How referrals, Open Houses and Marketing make Business Easy
Sure, there’s always a newer, better, shinier ways to up your market share and increase your business. But, did you ever think that covering your basics first may actually have you outpacing the competition rather than scrambling to keep up? That’s the message Ashley Wilson of Raleigh, N.C., Dale Snyder of Las Vegas, Nev., Laurie Finkelstein-Reader of Plantation, Fla., and Ryan Zook of Reston, Va. shared from stage at Mega Camp during the Referrals, Open Houses and Marketing panel. The AHA? Being consistently simple when it comes to the basics equals success.
Build a Referral Business One Experience at a Time
Only four years into real estate, Ashley Wilson is looking at $65 million closed volume this year – most of which is referral business. How’d she do it? A purposeful team focused on lead generation and the customer experience. “Our team mission is: ‘To transform and create unforgettable client experience through the business of real estate,’” Wilson said, highlighting the importance of including everyone’s opinion when forming the statement. Panel facilitator, Gary Keller, summed it up nicely: “When you don’t have a mission statement that you’ve purposefully created, you have one that you didn’t.”
Aside from incorporating the customer experience into their mission statement, Wilson’s team created an operations manual so that recreating the best customer experience in any instance becomes instantly repeatable.
Make Your Open House an Event to Remember
Dale Snyder and Laurie Finkelstein-Reader agreed that hosting consistent, quality open houses are standout practices for agents in a market. “First off, holding an open house is the easiest lead source to convert,” said Snyder, “because it’s a face-to-face interaction. So, why wouldn’t you want to have multiple open houses every weekend?” To stand out even further from the competition, Snyder’s team provides some pretty cool extras: education for the buyers including national, local and community data displayed on TV screens throughout the home; pre-packaged vendor-supplied materials for local goods and amenities, and freestanding MLS boards broken up by price point and locations. “This is a very smart way of not only closing, but being sticky,” Keller said, after hearing about the add-ons. “You’re getting people to stay longer, build rapport, open up faster and have a better experience.”
“This is a very smart way of not only closing, but being sticky,” Keller said, after hearing about the add-ons. “You’re getting people to stay longer, build rapport, open up faster and have a better experience.”
In a similar vein, Finkelstein-Reader’s team set out to build a fail-proof open house system to become more visible and integral in their community. In a nutshell, this system consists of branded signage, consistent open houses – at least two every Saturday and Sunday – plus one weeknight moonlight event per week, neighborhood door knocking and teaser videos of listings. “We’ve made our open houses fun, and we’re hosting local events that our community is expecting and asking for now,” Finkelstein-Reader said.
Make Marketing All About the Brand
Ryan Zook rests his business outcomes on his marketing, and he’s found that following the basics has been the differentiator. “It starts with branding yourself,” he explained. “Then you brand your team, brand each listing and drive each branded listing through your various communication channels. It’s that simple.”
By following this system each time, Zook’s team not only has a recognizable brand, but they’re able to create a unique feel for every property they work on. “We create single property pages that include a unique URL for every individual property,” Zook said. “This becomes the hub for all information on that property and it allows us to include additional material you can’t find on the MLS.” It’s also a great SEO boost for the team’s Website. Add-ons include a two-and-three-dimensional floor plan created for every home listed, as well as a 24/7 live chat functionality monitored by a real human.
“We use basic and consistent marketing techniques to make ourselves unique,” Zook said. “This makes us easy to find and remember.”