Real Estate Business

Using technology effectively is a low cost, high impact way to control and increase your business. This past summer I had a unique opportunity to review my business and in particular my use of technology. I left the company I had been with since 1997 and dissolved a 7+ year business partnership. In making these two major changes, I took a couple of months off from real estate sales. Taking this time off was a unique opportunity for me to review my business. In my evaluation, I discovered that most of the technology products and services I bought or signed up for were great but I was not fully utilizing most of them. This was a waste of time and money, in this market none of us can afford to waste either.

There are many technology products available, the amount and type of technology you decide to use will vary depending on your comfort level, your experience and your target marker or client base. In my case, a significant amount of business comes to me from repeat and referred clients, so I choose technology tools that help me to stay in touch with past clients. For your business, you must choose the most appropriate methods to contact your desired market.

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Whether you have been in the real estate business for one year or are a seasoned professional in the business for more than twenty years, you will always have a need for new clients to worth with. Referrals are important, but attracting new clients that have not had the opportunity to work with you in the area that you serve can boost your business to unprecedented levels. Here are 7 tips to attract new clients who want to buy or sell real estate.

1. Design a mini-poster. A mini-poster is made using a single sheet of 8 ½ by 11 inch paper. You can use textured or colored paper if you like or stick with the more traditional white or ivory. Using a word processing program you can write down 7 tips for selling a home or 5 mistakes that first time buyers make when purchasing a home. You will be writing to the market of clients that you wish to attract. Be sure to put your contact information on this mini-poster so that people can contact you easily. You also may want to laminate the mini-poster or put it into a clear plastic sheet protector. Make lots of copies because people will keep them for quite a while. Give them out to anyone you talk to and ask others to give them out at their places of business. You will find that mini-posters are like giant business cards that are easy to see.
2. Start a blog. More people than ever are now reading and writing on blogs, or web logs. Many are indistinguishable from traditional web pages. A blog can be started for free and is a great way to communicate to the people you most want to reach. Choose a specific group to begin with, such as the area you farm, or first time homebuyers. Post at least twice a week to get your name and your message out into the blogosphere. Be sure to give your readers lots of useful information. This way they will see you as a resource before you are a vendor.
3. Write short articles. Use your blog posts as a starting point for writing short articles. By extending your posts to 250 or 300 words, using keywords that tell people what you do and where you do it (like vacation home sales in Panama City, Florida) you can use short articles to attract clients from all over the world who are searching for what you have to offer them. Be sure to include your contact information at the end of the article so that prospective clients can quickly send you an email or call you to get more information and make a connection with you.
4. Write short reports. After you have written 5 or 6 short articles combine them into a short report. You can convert them into a PDF file or print them out and put them into a folder with a cover page that tells more about you and your business. These can be given away to new clients or included in a listing presentation. When you write about real estate you position your as an expert in your field and make new clients hungry to find out more about you and to work with you.
5. Make a presentation. Accept every opportunity you are given to speak in front of others. Even if you dislike public speaking you may enjoy sharing information about your business with small groups of people. By speaking for even ten minutes and handing out copies of your mini-poster, you will attract clients that like what you say and how you say it. Be sure to take questions at the end of your talk so that people can get to know you even better.
6. Give teleseminars. Most of us have been using the telephone since we were very young. It is natural for people to want to communicate on a call and teleseminars are a way for you to talk about your specialty area while new clients get to know you better. Choose a topic to speak about, pick a day and time for the call and give out the call in information to everyone you meet. Bridge lines are used for the purpose of teleseminars and they can be obtained for free or at a very low cost. People can even listen in to your call using the internet so that they do not incur long distance charges. The replay of your teleseminar can be made available to those who were unavailable at the original time of the call, or to those who would like to hear the call again through their computer or mp3 player.
7. Put your recordings on audio CD’s. Everyone has access to a CD player, either at home, in their car or at their office. Record your teleseminar on to a CD and put your contact information on the front of the CD. Clients will listen to your CD at some point in the future and contact you when they need your services or to get more information. Think of a CD as a talking business card that will last for years.

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When selling real estate today, it has become imperative that your property have its own website. When someone asks me why this is the case, I say, “there are so many reasons I can’t count them all.”

In this article is my attempt at listing as many of the incredible benefits of having your own custom home-for-sale or property-for-sale website as I can think of. If you can think of some I missed I hope you will let me know.

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