As a real estate agent, you know that prospecting for new leads is a critical daily activity. Have you ever wondered if there are leads out there that everyone else is missing? Instead of competing with lead gen platforms (like everyone else), there is a secret stockpile of valuable leads that may be waiting for your services—and they can be had at no cost.
Expired listings. As professionals, we assume that everyone knows the market is hot, but not all homeowners keep up with options that are now available to them. By contacting listings that went off the market more than one to two years ago, you may discover a wealth of new prospects to contact, incubate or convert to new sales.
Make sure you change up how you approach this special group. Besides asking the obvious questions about why their property didn’t sell or if they plan on moving anytime soon, switch it up with more engaging conversation. Ask if they are aware of the rise in their property value over the past year. If their property value increased more than 38%, be prepared to back it up with the data to support that claim. If they were unaware of that increase in equity in their home, recommend that they contact their insurance carrier to be sure they are not currently underinsured. Offer other options that include putting their dead equity to work by acquiring an investment property or using those funds for major home improvements.
When you open the door to be their “celebrity authority” for their real estate needs, you are on your way to building a new relationship that, when nurtured with value and consistency, is more likely to contact you for their next buy or sell.
‘Abandoned’ past clients. When an agent leaves a company or retires, it is likely that they will abandon their past clients. This is a great opportunity to reach out with a letter, follow-up call or a visit to those addresses in order to let them know that you want to “adopt” them now that their previous agent is no longer available to help them.
If you know of an agent who is getting ready to slow down or leave the business entirely, approach them with a suggestion that you “assume their position” and keep the connection with their clients. If you’re a new agent, approach your broker or manager to check out options available for “rescuing” this group of latent prospects.
Discover the rewards of focusing on these little-known groups of overlooked potential clients and watch your lead generation efforts turn to closed transactions.
For more information, visit https://workmansuccess.com/.
Terri Murphy is a communication engagement specialist, author, TED Talk speaker, consultant and master coach with Workman Success Systems. Contact her at Terri@TerriMurphy.com.
