Five Common Opportunities with Referral Leads

Real estate is a relationship-based business. So it is no surprise that many agents count on referrals for new client leads. Keller INK published the 3L Blueprints: Leads, Listings and Leverage which offers a collection of snapshots on the topics that matter to the agents of our industry. Here is peak inside the book and a look at five common opportunities with referrals.

Five Common Opportunities with Referrals:

Opportunity 1: Contribute value constantly.

In all interactions with current and potential clients, an agent who brings value and comes from a place of contribution will experience a side benefit of creating a group of people who respond favorably to them. For instance, one source of value is to keep referral sources up to date on every step of the home-buying or selling process of the referral. If an agent puts the client’s needs before their own, asking for and getting referrals from clients is going to be a natural aspect of the sales process.

Opportunity 2: Build a pool of cheerleaders.

A small group of 20–30 people can become a significant source of business once the agent connects and focuses on building relationships with them. It is important that the agent be purposeful about the inner circle they focus on and aim to bring constant value to the relationship. Once the agent has established a position in a client’s mind, they may return in kind with referrals to grow the business once prompted.

Opportunity 3: Ask for a referral.

The easiest time to ask for referrals is when a client has either just bought a home or sold a listing with the agent because they are excited about the business transaction. Beyond this standard post
transaction referral, agents benefit from having frequent one-on-one conversations with members of their sphere to ask for referrals and then following up periodically with these same contacts to remind them about the previously promised referrals.

Opportunity 4: Identify top referral sources and treat them differently.

By identifying the top 50 referral sources in an agent’s database and cementing relationships with them, the agent can radically transform their business. To do so, an agent needs to treat these connections like VIPs, whether it be with special client events, face-to-face meetings, phone calls, or meals. The most important aspect of an agent’s interaction with these sources is to show appreciation and thankfulness for the referrals received. Because these stop referral sources take the time to advocate for the agent’s business, proper gratitude must be shown.

Opportunity 5: Become a local version of Angie’s List.

Utilizing a comprehensive vendor list can allow agents to stay top of mind with past clients and increase an agent’s chances of earning referral business. Likewise, thinking of their database as an active source for satisfying the requests of their clients can also help bring future business.

Capture FSBOs and Expired Real Estate Listings

Have  you ever landed a FSBO? Do you regularly find gold in your expired listings? If not, the tips and tricks discussed at Family Reunion 2015 by KW MAPS Coach Jackie Kravitz and agents Kelly Henderson, David Hill, Mary Hufendick and Gene Arant can help you convert more FSBOs and expired real estate listings to close more transactions.

There are several unique opportunities and challenges when working with FSBO and expired listings. With the right tools, you can capture and unleash the power of FSBOs and expired listings in your area!

“Before becoming a coach, I sold real estate in Fort Lauderdale for many years, and my entire business was FSBOs and expireds,” Kravitz says. “I sold 120 to 125 homes a year. FSBOs and expireds are an incredible source of business. Once you learn the skills to communicate with them, you’ll make a fortune.”

Phoenix-based Henderson made landing a FSBO her goal the fifth time she took BOLD. She secured her first listing the day before graduation and ultimately worked with her MAPS coach to create a script for FSBOs that felt more personalized and authentic to her style as a numbers person.

For her market, Henderson found that houses in 2014 sold for 12 percent higher, not including commissions, when listed with an agent.

Her script begins: “I’m calling to see if your house is still for sale. I work with a lot of FSBOs in your area. I’ve found on average that sellers net $39,000 more with an agent than sellers do on their own.”

From there, she takes them through the rest of her five-step process, including:

-Objective-handling

-Providing an item of value, like a buyer inventory list

-A handwritten thank-you card followed by a postcard one week later

-Put contact in eEdge and 8×8 campaign geared toward FSBOs

Hufendick, an Inside Sales Associate in Beaverton, Oregon, lead generates all day long, with a special script for expired listings: “I notice your home is no longer active on MLS. I’m calling to see if you’re still planning on getting that home sold. What is your agent going to do differently to get your home sold this time?”

Are you interested in tapping into the listing potential with FSBOs and expired listings?  Register for Keller Williams University’s Family Reunion Encore webinar presentation on July 23 at 1 p.m. CST.

*Note: The article previously stated the webinar was on July 21. The correct date of the webinar is July 23. We have corrected this information in the article.

4 ways to start working on your 2016 business plan now

July is here, so it is time to start working on your 2016 business plan.

Too early, you say? Not necessarily. Here are four ways you could improve this year’s results and start working on a plan for next year right now.

1. Evaluate your 2015 plan   

You’re halfway through the year, so you should be getting a sense of what is working and what is not. Hopefully, you have been tracking your marketing efforts and expenditures, so you can see where you are getting the best return on investment.

Some activities take longer than six months to show return, so don’t stop doing something just because you don’t have tangible results. If part of your 2015 plan included blogging, don’t quit doing it because a buyer hasn’t called and said, “I saw your blog, and I want you to help me buy a house.”

At the same time, don’t be afraid to abandon an activity that clearly is not paying dividends. If you have knocked on doors every weekend since March with no results, it is probably time to put your energy elsewhere.

Not every decision will be that obvious. Trust your instincts about what elements of your 2015 plan you need to keep in motion, what you need to abandon and where you can make some tweaks to be more efficient.

2. Execute your plan more effectively

Whatever your objectives are, you likely have multiple action steps you plan to implement. If your goal is to get more listings, a good business plan might include farming a particular area, interacting more with your previous clients and improving your personal brand recognition by buying online ad space.

If you attempt to execute all of these at once, you divide your focus, and the quality of your effort will be reduced. Instead, implement one new action every couple months.

Spend the summer reconnecting with clients you might have neglected. Once that becomes a habit, work on your online ad campaign. Finally, when that is running efficiently, begin farming your target area.

Doing this can also increase the effectiveness of your efforts. A homeowner who has seen your online ads for a month or two is more likely to respond to a mailer. Staggering your plan also spreads out the impact on your wallet, so any increase of advertising dollars does not happen at once.

3. Earn more this year

Why wait until next year to start making more money? There is nothing magical about implementing new business practices in January, unless you run a health club.

Starting a new marketing effort now will increase the business you close this fall.

If that business comes from new clients, you also have new potential referral sources for next year. Two extra deals this fall could turn into four additional sales next year if you stay top of mind with those clients.

4. Establish a habit of self-reflection

Smart business owners are constantly evaluating their operation. Reflecting on where your business has been, where it sits currently and where you want it to go needs to happen more than once a year.

Start by evaluating your numbers: average sale price, number of closed transactions, and what percent of your business comes from referrals, sign calls, farming, the Internet, etc. If those are not things you have tracked previously, start doing it now.

Studies on strategic thinking show that people who begin by reflecting on the past are better able to project into the future. Think about where you want to be in a year, five years or 20 years, then determine what steps you need to take to get there.

Then get to work — the sooner you start moving toward where you want to go, the sooner you will get there.

Increase Your Website Marketing Results Now!

If there’s one tool in every real estate marketing tool box that works for agents 24 hours a day, seven days a week, it’s their website. To make your website work harder for you and to increase search engine optimization (SEO), you need to have a blog on your website.

Concerned you don’t have enough time to write a blog or don’t have anything to write about? Don’t worry. Blog posts don’t have to be long to be effective and you probably already have a good deal of content written.

How Your Listing Presentation Checklist Can Provide a Month’s Worth of Content­

First, take a look at your listing presentation checklist. Next, determine which items can be expanded into a more detailed blog post that would provide valuable information for your clients and prospective clients.

Here are a few examples to get your creative wheels turning:

Checklist Item: Discuss digital photographs for the listing

Blog Post: Write a brief post about the importance of professional pictures for listings. You can show the difference between homes listed with low quality photos compared to ones professionally photographed.

Checklist Item: Identify items that require cleaning or repair

Blog Post: Create a detailed checklist that expands on this topic. Write a brief article about when it is better to replace or repair items and/or when a cleaning or touch-up is the best option. You can take this opportunity to give examples of what upgrades yield the most return at sale.

Checklist Item: Local market analysis

Blog Post: Every quarter the KW Blog has a series of national market analysis articles in the Market Aha series. Topics covered include GDP, unemployment, new home starts, mortgage rates and home prices/affordability. Take the content from those posts and customize the message to your local market. In short, give your clients a national overview followed by a detailed local analysis.

 More Content Suggestions

• New business openings. Keep an eye out for new businesses opening around town. This shows you’re on top of what’s happening in your community and provides useful information for your clients when they are considering moving to a new neighborhood.
• Community events. Is there a fair or festival coming to town? Write about it. Share some of the more exciting features and let people know if your team will have a presence there. If so, invite them to stop by and see you.
• Movers and shakers. Give a shout out to members of your team when they celebrate milestones and welcome new members.
• Real estate advice. One of the oldest pieces of writing advice is to “write what you know.” And you know real estate. Write short pieces that will be useful to buyers and sellers such as tips for home staging, four ways to improve your curb appeal, or how to choose the right moving company. These types of pieces position you as the real estate sales expert you are.

Best Practices in Blog Writing

When you start your blog writing program, remember the focus of your posts should solve some pain point for your reader. Real estate agent blogs are targeted toward helping clients become more informed buyers and sellers.

Don’t stress about writing every day. It is important that your content is consistent, but it doesn’t have to be daily. If you want to post one article each week, that is fine; just make sure to post every week.

You are competing for readers’ time and attention so be sure to focus on stories that will be of interest to them. Use personal stories and past client testimonials (with permission) to add personality to your posts.

Before you publish your posts make sure you can clearly identify what the value is to the reader. Don’t just post to have something on the screen. It is important to build trust with your readers. Providing value leads to trust.

Install a contact form on your blog. If you are going to invest in publishing good content, you want to capture as many readers as you can. Most blogging platforms such as WordPress have a turnkey solution for adding contact forms.

Don’t forget about analytics! Every post should have a call to action (CTA). This can be an option to download more information or a contact form. When your posts have a CTA, you can measure the activity and get a sense for how well your content is performing.

Name your blog. Experts suggest giving your blog a name. For example, American Express’ blog is called “Open Forum” and The Zebra’s blog is called “Quoted.”

Announcing Keller Williams Agents Who Made NAHREP’s Top 250

Thirty top-producing Hispanic real estate agents from Keller Williams are featured on NAHREP Top 250 list

 

Keller Williams is proud to be represented by 30 associates on the fourth-annual National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals’ (NAHREP) annual list of the top-producing real estate agents in the United States, two of which are on the top 10 list!

The 2015 list recognizes top-producing agents whose hard work and dedication has led them to close an outstanding number of transactions.  Selected from among 500 agents considered, the 250 winners collectively handled a total of 20,730 transaction sides in 2014 and over $3.9 billion in total volume.

Leo Pareja

For the fourth consecutive year, Leo Pareja of Falls Church, Va., has secured a spot in the Top 10. Pareja closed 398 transaction sides in 2014, a 21 percent increase over his strong performance in 2013.

David Acosta

David Acosta of El Paso, Texas, also makes a return to the Top 10, with 351 transaction sides closed in 2014.

“Congratulations to Leo, David and our full team of agents on this year’s NAHREP Top 250 ,” said Chris Heller, CEO, Keller Williams. “We’re excited and honored to be in business with them all. Keller Williams is stronger because of their determined efforts to set such a high bar of achievement.”

“We continue to attract top agents who are building extraordinary businesses,” said John Davis, President, Keller Williams. “These 30 agents are market experts who have committed to delivering a superior customer experience. It’s no wonder so many clients choose to work with them to buy or sell their home.”

NAHREP will recognize the Top 250 Latino agents during the NAHREP 2015 National Convention and Latin Music Festival in Chicago on Sept. 22.

“We are proud and excited to acknowledge these hardworking individuals who make a remarkable difference in the lives of Latino families across the U.S.” said Teresa Palacios Smith, president, 2015 NAHREP. “These agents take us one step closer to our goal of increasing Latino homeownership in a sustainable way.”

Below is a full listing of Keller Williams agents named to the NAHREP Top 250 Latino Agents Award in 2015:

Rank	Name	Business	Location	Sides
2	Leo Pareja	Keller Williams Realty Leo Pareja Team	Falls Church, VA	398
7	David Acosta	Keller Williams Realty David Acosta Real Estate Group	El Paso, TX	351
16	Carissa Falcon-Acker	Keller Williams Realty Real Estate by Design	Denton, TX	210
28	Patrick Simm	Keller Williams Partners Realty SW	Pembroke Pines, FL	145.75
33	Albert Yabor	Keller Williams Realty Prestige	Pinecrest, FL	131
35	Jose Rivas	Keller Williams Realty Gateway – Lion Home Group	Baltimore, MD	127
43	Florencio Villalpando	Keller Williams Realty Heritage – Villalpando & Associates	San Antonio, TX	105
60	Ruth Henriquez	Keller Williams Capital Properties – Campos International Group	Manassas, VA	91
62	Mario Hesles	Keller Williams Realty Legacy	San Antonio, TX	87
63	Miguel Salvat	Keller Williams Realty	Pinecrest, FL	86.22
65	Roman Lopez	Keller Williams Realty The Roman Lopez Real Estate Team	Austin, TX	86
69	Terry LaRoche	Keller Williams Realty LaRoche Team	Whittier, CA	84
74	Luis Fernandez	Keller Williams Realty Luis Fernandez Sales Team	Scarsdale, NY	82
84	Rodolfo Hernandez McIntyre	Keller Williams Realty The SeaReal Team	Burien, WA	75
107	Sofia Chacon	Keller Williams Realty Sofia Chacon Group	Corona, CA	65
108	Mynor Herrera	Keller Williams Realty Mynor & Associates	Bethesda, MD	64
116	Anna Klinger	Keller Williams Realty The Marketplace – Klinger Real Estate Group	Henderson, NV	61
127	Victor Niño	Keller Williams Realty Victor Niño	Austin, TX	57
131	Anthony Gibson	Keller Williams Realty Austin Properties Group	Austin, TX	55
139	Leo Robles	Keller Williams Realty Corona	Corona, CA	52
147	Jaime Marin	Keller Williams Realty Marin Realty & Property Management	San Antonio, TX	51
151	Larry Garcia	Keller Williams Realty	Visalia, CA	50
159	Hector Martinez	Keller Williams Realty Garcia – Martinez Real Estate Group	Visalia, CA	49
161	Ramon Sanchez	Keller Williams Realty Pacific Estates	Cerritos, CA	48
178	Andrew Arevalo	Keller Williams Realty The Ingenious Group	Highlands Ranch, CO	45
184	Alexandra Silva	Keller Williams Realty Treasure Coast	Stuart, FL	44
193	Arturo Cruz	Keller Williams Realty The Cruz Group	Ashburn, VA	42
226	Bobbi McKinnon	Keller Williams Realty Group One, Inc.	Reno, NV	36.5
238	Martha Martinez	Keller Williams Realty David Acosta Real Estate Group	El Paso, TX	35
250	Alfredo Pujol	Keller Williams Realty Partners SW	Pembroke Pines, FL	34