Real estate professionals are in the business of selling and, because of this, generating leads is the lifeblood of a successful career. When it comes to generating new leads, the more people you can reach, the more successful you will be. However, in the current seller’s market, many are finding this more challenging than ever.
According to the most recent NAR Profile, 72 percent of recent sellers contacted only one agent before hiring one to sell their home. Because of this, it’s important to make a strong first impression and utilize the tools you have available to connect with potential sellers. Here are four ways that you can increase your seller leads.
- Update Website Keywords
Updating your website keywords can help to increase your SEO ranking and target your niche and local areas. Google has many factors it considers when determining how to rank websites, and using favorable keywords is a huge one. Identify key terms that are both relevant to your business and widely searched. For example, if you’re trying to find sellers in a particular area, write blog posts about your favorite places in that town. On the other hand, if you work mainly with retired military personnel, dedicate areas on your website to promoting local moving or shipping businesses that offer military discounts. You can incorporate these keywords by making frequent updates to your site’s content through blog posts, fresh “what’s new” sections or even your “about me” page.
- Utilize Your Social Presence
We’ve learned that most home-sellers find their next real estate agent through referrals. However, recent surveys show that 70 percent of people have forgotten about their real estate agent after only a year. This is where social media can help. With the ever-increasing number of people who use social media in some capacity, use your social profiles to connect with past clients who can then refer your services to potential sellers in your area. However, it’s important to connect with these potential sellers in a useful way. Studies have show that posts about food, home and lifestyle accounted for 85 percent of the world’s most viral content.
What does this mean for you? Focus your posts around what your followers want. If you want your previous clients to remember you so they can refer you to their friends and family, share posts that they’ll find useful – holiday recipes, home organization tips, events in your area, etc. You can use social media to connect with new prospects. Instead of posting listing after listing, share your personality and use the tips mentioned above to build both your brand and customer relationships.
- Work with Expired Listings
When a listing expires, often it’s because the property wasn’t marketed or priced properly. This is an optimal opportunity to show sellers how you’re different—and better. Create a marketing plan and present it to the seller, showing them how you would list their home. In your plan, include points about establishing a strong web presence, your use of social media, sample advertising ideas, etc. These should show how you can connect with potential homebuyers and sell their property better than the previous agent they worked with.
- Seek Out FSBO Listings
Those trying to sell a property by themselves are essentially saying they don’t want an agent, but often they change their minds once they learn the work that goes in to selling a home. NAR statistics show that nearly 90 percent of sellers who try to market a home on their own fail. Keeping this in mind, this creates plenty of opportunity for agents to find new listings. Contact FSBO listings in your area and let sellers know you’re here to help. Send them an email highlighting your qualifications and explain how you can away the stress of home-selling, sell their home more quickly, and likely get a better price than they could on their own. After all, this is what you do for a living. However, if they decide to continue on their own, wish them the best and give them some advice that could help. As time goes on, if they aren’t able to sell, they’re likely to remember you as someone who offered encouragement and call you for help.
For more ways to connect with transaction-ready sellers in your local market, check out Homes.com’s Local Connect ads. Providing you with the ability to target local consumers during their home-search process, Local Connect positions you in front of active sellers with branding that showcases your photo or logo, phone number and endorsements.
