Have you been trying unsuccessfully to increase online real estate lead conversion rates? You aren’t alone.
Many real estate agents are seeing a lower return on investment (ROI) when it comes to online lead conversion. According to Sam Monreal, Vice President of Business Development at Rokrbox, there is a way to convert more real estate leads from online sources.
During a recent podcast interview with Pat Hiban, Monreal discussed three steps agents should take if they want to improve real estate lead conversion rates.
Read about these steps below, and listen to the complete podcast interview for all the details and some additional tips.
Diminishing returns from online leads
Back in 2007, during the golden age of online lead generation, online leads were responsible for approximately a third of the homes sold. On average, real estate teams got a 38.5 percent ROI from online advertisements.
By 2015, internet lead conversion for real estate dropped to 0.05 percent with a negative 32 percent ROI. Most real estate teams lost money generating online leads, and real estate experts expect this trend to continue.
Use the right formula
First, you need to use a combination of leads generated via referrals, prospecting and online advertising if you want to have optimal conversion rates.
When agents try to generate leads from these three categories equally, they tend to have great results. So, instead of relying solely on online leads for business, make sure you’re still putting time into generating leads the old-fashioned way.
Respond quickly
Fast response time is absolutely vital to nurturing online leads. In fact, your odds of conversion drop by 400 percent if you wait just 10 minutes to respond to an online lead. In order for you and your team to have success with online leads, you should find a way to respond to all leads within five minutes of registration.
This “speed to lead” will increase your likelihood of engaging leads when they are most receptive, which is more likely to lead to productive dialogue. If you need help managing response times, you can hire a company dedicated to handling online lead responses.
Follow-up
One thing that separates great agents from average ones is follow-up.
You should never give up on a prospect after a single contact attempt. Instead, continue to reach out over the first 21 days following lead registration. Continue to call, text and e-mail prospects for at least a few weeks before giving up.
Most people are occupied with work, family and other obligations. By reaching out continuously, you might eventually catch your prospects when they have time to chat.
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 online real estate sales training site 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.