- Pair traditional lead generation tactics with modern tech to attract clients as a newbie to the field. Organic offerings may be your best opportunities to connect with your sphere and begin generating referrals.
Are you a new real estate agent looking for lead generation tactics proven to produce prospects and clients?
To help get you off on the right foot, here are four you can put into action right away.
Experiment with the following techniques to determine what works best for you.
And remember, you will only be successful with lead generation if you are persistent and consistent with your lead follow-up plan.
Door knock with a technology twist
Agents continue to door knock simply because the tactic can be quite effective at delivering new buyers and sellers. As a rookie, you must door knock for leads with the right attitude and expectations. You will also need to come prepared with a well-honed script.
While this old-school marketing tactic hasn’t changed much at its core, you can be more effective at door-knocking lead generation with the help of a mobile app like Spotio or ZipComps.
With Spotio, you can not only map out a door-knocking route and track where you have knocked, but you can also immediately input important information (for example, contact information, notes from discussion, asked to be contacted again and when, and so on) for your follow-up plan.
The app will also let you upload your local city’s no door-knocking list (think: do-not-call list).
ZipComps allows agents to target “Smart Farms” (intended for door-knocking), which can be created in moments by entering an address or ZIP code to unearth homeowners likely to sell in 6 to 12 months.
Focus on farming a niche
Are you familiar with farming neighborhoods or ZIP codes to grow your real estate business?
You can also find, target and farm a niche as a new real estate agent. Branding yourself as the go-to agent for buyers and sellers in specific situations such as divorce, probate, relocation and international transactions will set you apart from the pack and narrow your market competition.
How can you farm a specific niche? Branding is one integral part of the equation.
Implement a branded website, email marketing and social media platforms to educate and provide value in the niche you are farming.
Also, make it a point to get out in public at networking and speaking events to showcase your knowledge.
Build rapport at open houses
Hosting an open house is another established lead generation tactic that’s still relevant for real estate newbies.
Ask around in your office, and you will probably have no problem finding veteran agents looking for help hosting open houses.
To make the most of these marketing events, use them as an opportunity to gather leads and build rapport with potential clients.
Like door knocking, real estate technology can play a valuable part in your strategy to generate leads during open houses. Open Home Pro is one tool you can use to capture contact information from open house visitors.
You can also set it up to ask specific questions (for example, “Are you working with an agent?,” “How soon are looking to buy or sell?”) during the sign-in process, which you can then plug into your lead follow-up system.
If you build rapport with leads during the open house, follow-up that evening or the next day with properties for sale that match their criteria or sales information, along with comparables if they are looking to buy.
Get social with your sphere
Popular social media sites, including Facebook, are great for generating leads even if you don’t want to use their advertising services.
You can also pair social media with one of the most effective lead generation tactics for real estate newbies — getting referrals from your sphere of influence.
What’s the best way to do this organically without spending a dime on social media advertising?
Simply put, don’t just tell your sphere of influence you are now a real estate agent. Instead, use social media to show them! Share status updates and photos of yourself working day in and day out to launch your real estate career.
Don’t hold back as you discuss your daily activities such as hosting an open house, door-knocking neighborhoods, and putting comparables together in the office.
Post plenty of photos of homes (inside and out) while you are out putting in a day’s work. And of course, when you close a sale, put the focus on your happy clients with status updates and photos.
By doing the above, your sphere of influence will not only hear you discuss your new venture as a real estate agent, but they will also have a virtual view into your daily, professional life. Seeing this, along with social proof of your happy clients and closed deals, will make them comfortable and willing to send you referral leads.
With these four lead generation tactics for real estate newbies at your disposal, you are ready to go out and get to work bringing in leads and picking up new clients.
Remember, lead generation is only one cog in the wheel. Most agents fail to generate business because they simply fail to follow-up with leads.
If you are going to put in the effort to generate leads, always be persistent and consistent with your follow-up system and you’ll be steps ahead of your competition.
Pat Hiban is the author of NYT best selling book “6 steps to 7 figures – A Real Estate Professional’s Guide to Building Wealth and Creating Your Destiny”, the founder of Rebus University and the host of Pat Hiban Interviews Real Estate Rockstars an Agent to Agent Real Estate Radio Podcast with Hiban Digital in Baltimore, Maryland. Follow him on Instagram or Twitter.
