Creating Connection, PART TWO: Who, What, Where, When, Why, and How

I’ve written about Michael Port’s excellent Book Yourself Solid and wanted to share another of his thoughts on turning strangers into friends and friends into clients.  The basis of his approach is that we can improve our business if we stop interrupting people with our marketing messages and instead add value so we can offer them our services as friends.

A few Playbooks ago we covered the first three of Port’s plan for creating connection, the Who, What, and Where, so now it’s time to think about the When, Why, and How of that plan.

Once you’ve determined your target market (the Who), you need to consider When. When might those folks or institutions might be looking for your services?  Keep in mind that many people sell and buy homes when there is a personal life change like a new job or a transfer, a marriage or divorce, the list can go on.  While we rely to a great extent on referrals and repeat business, most folks don’t buy a new house every few years the way we buy cars—or we used to, anyway!  So how can your marketing efforts consider the When aspect and target potential clients based on those situations?

Next, probably the key ingredient in creating connection, the Why question.  Why should your potential client choose you?  What makes you the best choice to provide real estate services for them?  Port recommends putting modesty aside, and letting folks know “The best thing for you is ME!”  Here’s where that mastering our stats can come in handy, of course.  It’s far easier for most of us to point to a great stat that demonstrates our success rather than crowing in general terms about how great we are.  Find those stats that show the potential client your power so you don’t have to just tell them about it.

Finally, we come to the How of creating connection.  Here, Port recommends we consider how we want our potential clients to interact and/or engage with us.  By that, he doesn’t just mean a question of telephone or postcard, but how we will take an initial contact and turn it into a relationship that leads to a transaction, whether that’s in a month or three years.  How often do we remember to follow up on the hits on our website?  How often do we provide useful and engaging information to our potential clients?  How often do we push our communication up Michael Mayer’s communication pyramid to that face-to-face level to truly cement that connection? 

Make sure your marketing plan includes all six of the Who, What, Where, When, Why, and How elements, and see how far your business can go!

David M. Hassler

Director of Coaching