What Makes a Quality Real Estate Lead?
First things first. What, exactly, are we talking about when invoking that often-overused phrase “quality lead” in the world of real estate? In simplest terms, a quality lead is one that ends in a sale. Sure, there is room for nuance here, with some “quality” leads taking time or multiple rounds of showings to pay off. But, in the end, quality = successful.
While there’s no such thing as a surefire way to get such a lead (or such thing as a truly surefire quality lead), there are some real estate tips to improve your odds easily and exponentially.
Networking Never Stops
This is true in any line of work, but doubly so in a field like real estate. The kind of business where nearly all of your success relies on you and you alone. And we don’t just refer to professional networking occasions. Whether you’re going to a business conference or a family reunion, a formal dinner or casual night out, always be ready to network.
We’re not telling you to be pushy or single-minded by any stretch. Nobody likes the person who turns every single get-together into an all-inclusive sales pitch. But if your line of work comes up naturally, or someone mentions off hand they’re sick of their current house, you want to have a nice stack of business cards ready to go.
Keep in Touch
Making those connections via networking is the first step. Keeping that network alive means actively using it. Don’t wait for a potential client to reach out to you out of the blue. Send out regular hellos and holiday greetings to anyone and everyone in your professional rolodex. Not that many people have actual, physical rolodexes anymore but you get the idea.
Keep in touch with the fellow realtors you meet in your business and social dealings as well. Good relations, even with your ostensible competitors, can reap rewards down the line. You never know when a friendly fellow realtor will email to let you know a lead they got handed might be more interested in the listings you have to offer.
Mobile Availability
The ubiquity of smartphones, internet access, and general interconnectivity has its good sides, bad sides, and sides that are a mix of both. The expectation, even necessity, of remaining available to clients far beyond normal business hours is definitely in that third category.
Yeah, it can be a pain when work intrudes on what you thought would be free time. But sometimes you have to make those small sacrifices of an hour or two here and there to reap great rewards in the future. Being ready to answer the call, text, or email of someone looking for a new home at any time is a key component of turning leads into successes.
Social Media Matters
From big companies to home businesses, more and more commerce depends on social media. Same goes for you. Post. Engage. Tweet. Share articles and videos and anything at all of relevance. Get your name and listings out there across every possible site and medium.
Sites like Facebook can also help you find local community groups and pages in the areas you have listings and try to join them. Use these forums to post your info and regularly updated listings to ensure you and your homes are seen directly by those who might be interested.
So Does Your Professional Realtor Website
You should definitely have one of these if you don’t already. There are plenty of platforms out there that make it easy for even the least savvy internet users to put together a decent personal business site. Social media and business cards are great ways to pique interest, but you need a site dedicated to your business, accolades, and listings to really show potential quality leads you’re the agent for them.
And if you do already have one, maybe it’s time to polish it up a bit. Regular updates and improvements will keep potential leads coming back and seeing what you have to offer. And nobody likes clicking through an outdated, clunky site.
Really Understand Your Potential Clients
This is another one of those universal business laws (like networking) that goes double in real estate. And you should double that again when you’re working in military markets. Maybe even triple it. Niche communities love when you can talk their talk, and the military community is as niche as they come. Partnering with or posting on AHRN is a great way to get quality real estate leads in the military community. But taking extra steps can improve your odds of success even more
Military personnel and their families have special requirements and stipulations when it comes to where they can live and how much they’re willing/able to pay to live there. Not to mention their own little subculture with its own customs, slang, and a whole lot of acronyms. The more of the military community, its needs, and the details of its culture you understand the more they’ll enjoy working with you. So learn as much as you can.
Lots of leads are good, but quality is even better than quantity. Following these steps will give you a leg up on ensuring your leads are more likely to lead to a home purchase. Particularly when dealing with local, insular communities like the military populations around bases.