You and your clients should both feel very happy when you close a transaction—a good home sale is the classic win-win situation.
If you want to be a truly great agent though, you shouldn’t view that transaction as the end of a relationship. No one likes to be ghosted! At the same time, it can definitely feel awkward reaching back out to your clients after the sale. Having a solid plan in place to keep in touch with past clients is key.
Here are five ways you can stay in touch with your past clients, keeping your relationship and your network thriving.
Check in with them
The easiest way to stay in touch? Check in on your clients as they’re getting to know their new home. They will be sure to appreciate the gesture; you’re going above and beyond by demonstrating that you care. If they run into any problems as they’re settling in, you can offer advice. You can even ask how they’re feeling about the transaction with the benefit of hindsight and apply their feedback in useful ways going forward.
Ask them to refer you
Once you close one transaction, you go back to hunting for more—that’s the name of the game in real estate. If your old clients are satisfied with their experience, ask them to refer you to their homebuying and selling friends. If you don’t ask, they may not know how beneficial this could be for you. You’ll stay in touch with your old clients and make some new ones too.
Write a newsletter
If you want to touch base with many of your old clients at once, maintaining a regular email contact list is the way to go. Of course, you have to offer something they’d actually want to read. So, why not a newsletter? You can offer market analysis, business tips, the choice is yours. You can send these out with physical mail too, so your hard work doesn’t wind up buried in an inbox or spam folder.
Host events and invite them
You don’t have to be all business when building business relationships. If your office is hosting, say, holiday parties or community events, invite your old clients. If your office isn’t hosting any such events yet, then organize them yourself.
Offer a personal touch
Susan Herrmann, an agent with William Raveis Real Estate in Westport, Connecticut, has a specific strategy for keeping in touch. Every Christmas, she drops off home-baked cookies to her past clients. After all, your presence will always be appreciated if you come bearing gifts (edible or not).
