The success of your business is primarily based upon the quality of your list. If you spend your time and money marketing to a stale list, you won't get much business. If you market to upscale consumers using techniques for lower-income prospects, you won't get much business. If your list is small, it won't matter how well you market because it just won't bring you enough business to satisfy your goals.
So a significant portion of your time should be spent building your list. And this is never truly a task you'll complete. People fall off your list and join your list constantly. And although it's dynamic, you still have control. Here are six simply strategies you can use to build a quality list.
Buy Your List:
When you are starting out and don't have a big list this is an easy way in. Buying a list also works if you want to target a specific niche. For example, you can buy a list of all subscribers to Home & Garden in Southern California for a couple hundred dollars.
Sure they are cold prospects but you can quickly build a reputation and rapport with this list with a creative direct mail or email campaign. Knowing the habits and interests of your list allows you to cater your marketing campaign directly to them.
If you are working geographically any title company will provide you a free list of names in your area. You can also get specific demographic data. I recommend Stewart Title as a resource due to their extensive farm research capabilities. Meet Other Local Business Owners:
There are hundreds of businesses within just a few miles of you. Each business has a large sphere of influence that you don't. The business owners are just as eager to expand their reach as you are.
Go meet them. Build relationships with them. Explain your offer to them. Work out a deal with them to refer business mutually. Also, you can partner with other businesses on advertising to cut your costs.
With local businesses on your side, you can potentially earn their business as well as an endless stream of referrals. It's important to stay in their lives so they remember you. Pharmaceutical sales reps make weekly stops at doctor's offices just to bring cookies or a flyer or just to say “hi”. They don't make a sale every stop. But when that doctor chooses where to buy, the most present sales rep gets the business.
You can use the same strategy. Make this a part of your week.Attend Mixers, Functions and Seminars:
By seminars I mean non-real estate. There are limitless groups of great people gathering every day of the week. Tie into events that interest you. While you are there make an intentional effort to meet and exchange information with at least X number of people.
Most importantly, follow-up with everyone you meet reminding them who you are and what your offer is. Also, you should maintain an active email list. And ask them if they would like to receive an occasional email with valuable real estate tips. Make sure you deliver on the value and they will enjoy receiving it.Offer A Freebie Online:
If you are using the Internet as a tool, create a simple landing page with a free offer. Maybe you have a report that talks about saving money for retirement by leveraging your home's equity or getting the best price when selling. Offer this valuable resource in exchange for the prospect's information.
You can get prospects to your landing page via your personal website, banner ads, partnering with other websites, email blasts (with a purchased list), pay-per-click advertising (Google and Yahoo), or search engine optimizing your site.
Once they leave information to receive the free report, use an email auto responder to send the report and stay in touch over a period of time.
For continuation, send a regular email newsletter to this list.
Very important: keep giving valuable information so people continue to read. Ask For Referrals:
You can start this one right away. I see it a lot; an agent meets a prospect and asks if they are thinking of buying or selling. When the answer is “No” the agent considers the conversation dead. You can turn this “non-client” into something great though with one simple phrase:
“John, who do you know that may be looking for some help in real estate?”
This forces the person to think. They can't just say “yes” or “no”. Many times they will say they can't think of anyone. But a few will actually give you the name and phone number of someone they know. And that referral is very likely to use your services because a friend referred them. There is an instant trust.
I have used that exact phrase to get dozens of clients I had no other way of getting.
You can also stimulate referral activity by giving incentive for referrals. Whether given a discount, cash or other gift, people will refer more if there is something in it for them. Be careful on this one depending upon legal restrictions in your area.
And listen, don't expect people to send you a referral just because of a heartfelt message on the back of your business card. The only way you can count on for good referrals is by proving your value to people and personally asking.
Do your work so well that your clients become raving fans. When you are great enough, you won't even have to ask.Partner With Other Businesses:
You can instantly double or triple your list with qualified prospects for absolutely free. Develop a partnership with another company: a lender, title company, home inspector, etc. You can co-op on advertising which saves you money. But you can also share your lists.
Perhaps a business has 4500 email addresses that get a newsletter every week. Partner with the business by writing an article, offering a freebie for their clients, or anything else of value, you can get massive exposure for little to no cost.
Offer to exchange advertising with the business owner. You will put their information and offer in your newsletter if they put your information and offer in theirs. You won't have to pay a dime for this added exposure. Make sure that the company is reputable or your reputation could get tarnished.
Getting it Done:
The point of all these strategies is to be proactive. Develop a habit of meeting people every day and following-up with them. Never, never, never let a contact get cold without touching base at least a few times. Don't be the one that stops the interaction. Determine something of value you can offer everyone you meet. Use your Compelling Marketing Proposition as a conversation starter.
