That Nasty Eleven Letter Word!

Most of the time, we hate to say it aloud, especially in mixed company.  A word that can strike fear into the heart of agents with huge SoI’s, or weaken the knees of agents with years of repeat clients and consistent referrals.  Shhhhhh!

But as we watch the buyers’ pent up demand so far this year, and as the number of good listings on the market can’t keep pace with that demand, maybe it’s time we spoke the profane aloud:

PROSPECTING

There, I said it.  Hopefully, the kids aren’t reading this!

Yes, prospecting, that element of Real Estate 101 we tend to put on the back burner—or totally forget—when the market is strong and things are going well.  But we all know that generating leads is what makes our business grow, and our marketing program is only part of the formula.  While most of us now have our own websites and hopefully a program of advertising and direct mail and maybe even farming, those marketing tools can’t take the place of an active prospecting plan.

The best prospecting system lets us put into play the most effective levels of communication: telephone calls and face to fact meetings, either in groups or, ideally, one on one.  Remember, a major goal of our prospecting plan is to contact those targeted folks we don’t know yet, and to convert them to members of our sphere so they can help us generate more leads.  Of course, we’re prospecting when we hold an open house or contact those FSBO’s and Expireds, but it’s also important to target groups or areas for prospecting that will have the greatest potential for bringing in new referrals.  And, as we said in an earlier Playbook, one of the best prospecting targets is our own sphere of influence, as long as we’re prepared to be proactive in asking those friends for their help in expanding our business.  Don’t forget that “What can I do to help you?” approach!

So, let’s get ourselves organized and do some profitable Quadrant II work (remember Stephen Covey and his “Important, but not yet urgent” quadrant) as the fall weather approaches and the market begins to slow a tiny bit.

Spoiler alert: the new BHHS Resource Center will provide us with a number of “Action Packs” consisting of series of emails geared toward cultivating seller prospects, buyer prospect, expired listings, and more, and all can be done automatically once you set it up!

David M. Hassler

Director of Coaching