Are email drips equal in RIO to snail mail drips?
December 19, 2009
When I established Worthington Realty about 1.5 years ago, I wanted to always be experimenting with what I could do to convert leads to closed sales. So I set out to have the best email drip campaigns as well as the best snail mail campaigns. I have had much more success from a snail mail campaign than I have had from an email drip campaign. I often question myself with what I am doing right, and what I am doing wrong!?!
The snail mail has a thick stock cotton style envelope. Inside is a high definition business card, high definition tri-fold resume & a typed letter about me on one side & how I can help on the other side. I feel the presentation even though I’m not in person and doing this by snail mail is so powerful that customers call; about 2 out of 100 mailers to be exact. Generally speaking, I usually list and sell the property. I ask myself the question, what if I implemented a follow up snail mail campaign after the initial mailing? I will report back with my results in a future post. Can I close more snail mail sales as opposed to just one mailer, why not 3 or 4 snail mailers, especially on quality listings?
The email drips seem to have less response than a snail mail campaign. Surely I have closed leads off of my website and then referred from those sales. BUT, my conversion rate is far less than 2% like the snail mail.
My take is simply this. Email drips do work, but are easily forgettable to consumers. Snail mails are more expensive but since the consumers are physically touching quality materials, they are not easily forgettable as apposed to emails. Your thoughts? So much for my quest to go paperless…
Boost Your Business with Foreign Buyers
December 12, 2009
This is a good time for real estate professionals to expand their clientele with international buyers. Among the factors favorable for marketing to foreign buyers are:
- International buyers bought 154,000 homes and condos during the 12-month period ending in May, and they continue to be attracted to the weak dollar.
- The U.S. dollar has weakened significantly since June, dropping 9 to 11 percent against such foreign currencies as the Japanese yen, European euro and Canadian dollar.
- Both the U.S. economy and the U.S. housing market are showing signs of stabilizing.
- Nearly 46 percent of international home buyers paid cash for homes purchased.
- The median price that foreign home buyers paid for a home was nearly $80,000 more than the U.S. national median price.
Among International buyers, those from Brazil, Canada, France and the Netherlands have paid mostly cash for second homes. Those purchases, MSNBC.com reported, ranged from $6 million to $15 million in condo buildings.
Home Buyers and Sellers Pulling the Plug on Granite Countertops
October 25, 2009
Granite countertops have long been the staple of luxury housing. If you were buying a home with granite countertops it almost always meant it was a luxury home with an upscale kitchen. A status symbol.
That seems to be changing as a recent AZCentral.com article
highlights the new, fresh styles home buyers and remodelers are seeking for their kitchen work surfaces. Among the up and coming counter stars are some old niche favorites like glass and concrete while new contenders including recycled paper (Paperstone) and engineered quartz (Caesarstone, Silestone) pop up on buyer radar.
One reason home buyers are moving away from granite as a first choice surface is the ubiquitous nature of the stone in new homes. When granite was still new to the market it was very expensive and exclusive. After the wild popularity over the past decade, granite prices have plummeted and the idea of granite countertops in a home has lost its luster. While granite is still pricey at about $40 per square foot and up, it’s significantly lower than concrete ($100+/per square foot).
Another reason granite is slipping into the past is the porous nature of the stone. Granite needs to be sealed upon installation and every so often to prevent staining and losing its shine. Non-porous stones like Silestone avoid this making them practically maintenance free.
Still, the higher cost of alternatives will keep granite at the forefront of kitchen surfaces until discretionary kitchen upgrades grows more common again. Have you noticed a shift in buyer perception of granite countertops?
Image Credit: Rennette Stowe
Reputation Management advice from Google includes REALTORS
October 16, 2009
On October 15th Google offered advice to businesses and business people and others who care about their online reputation. Here is a link Balto III: Wings of Change video to their advice.
The gist of the advice is this. Many people have been contacting Google asking them to “take down” or “de-index” negative information that has been published about them. Google is taking the opportunity to point out that this is NOT their job.
For REALTORS the problem often boils down to mixing personal information published on the web with business information. The result is that when someone searches for your name, they find other personal information that may or may not lead them to do business with you.
So how do you change this? According to Google it starts by first removing the offending information where possible by contacting those who own the site.
Secondly you can add positive information to crowd out the bad information from off of page 1 of Google.Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country the movie
A Guide To International Real Estate & The Global Marketplace
September 14, 2009
Knowledge of the market and industry can always be of benefit to REALTORS®. If you you have not already tested the the International real estate waters, what are you waiting for, jump in, the water’s warm. You’ll find an abundance of opportunity both locally and abroad.
Just this weekend I attended the 2009 FIABCI-USA Fall Business Conference here in Denver, Colorado. How could it have been any easier? This was in my back yard. I met such an incredible group of real estate professionals locally, nationally and from around the world. Some of the countries represented beyond the US were Canada, Norway, Japan, Italy, Germany, and more. I’ll be writing more on my experience at this even shortly.
While there is a plethora of information available online, the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) provides great resource information on NAR’s International Lost Stallions: The Journey Home ipod web page and on the recently updated International Field Guide which provides direction for locating and working with international clients, etiquette, cross-cultural business guides and international networking opportunities.
Should you should have interest in expanding your business model into the International real estate market just let me know as I’m glad to share.
Increase your income with designations?
August 15, 2009
Are designations an item of the past or a tool to build credibility? I recently sat down to read the Wisconsin Real Estate Magazine & thought I would report on article that caught my attention. One of the opening sentences spoke of the best way to stay ahead of the competition was to earn a real estate designation through the Wisconsin Realtors Association. According to WRA (Wisconsin Realtors Association) successful agents must keep current on changing legalities and other central components of the business. NAR like the WRA has a designation for practically every specialty in the real estate industry.
Beyond buildings skills & knowledge, do designations enhance your professional image? Yes they can, but its not the silver bullet to success. The WRA stated that Realtors with professional designations earned more than double their incomes against Realtors without designations. Here are a few statistics to quote exactly.
Realtors without designations earned $33,200
Realtors with designations earned $67,900
The difference of $34,700.
Are designations a clear cut way to boost your income or are designations a way for Realtor Associations alike to boost their income?Sidewalks of New York ipod
Keller Williams Presents This Month In Real Estate: July 2009
August 11, 2009
Keller Williams Presents This Month In Real Estate: July 2009
Here is the latest on the current real estate market from the analysts at Keller Williams Realty. These timely videos will clue you in to what is going on and why!
Click here for the This Month in Real Estate Still Waters movies
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Pick up the Phone and Call
August 4, 2009
Let’s face it, cold calling stinks. Most people don’t want to do it. Yet cold calling is one of the best ways to build your business. However the cold calling I’m talking about isn’t the kind in which you pick up a phone book and start calling random people. I’m talking about Internet leads. Phoning Internet leads isn’t really cold calling since these leads took the time to contact you. They either emailed you or submitted a form with there contact information to your website. These are the kind of leads you want, and these are the leads you need to stay on top of. When most agents get a lead. They’ll call that person once. Maybe twice, and then don’t even bother to follow up. You want to be calling this person every single day until they answer. Be a little aggressive. Remember they took the time to contact you. So obviously they need help with some aspect of there Real Estate search. Once you finally contact them, send them listings. Constantly follow up with them. Any Realtor knows that your database is the lifeblood of your business. Take advantage of it. It’s all a numbers game. The more people you contact, the better chance you have of getting business. As far as fear is concerned, get over it. It can be nerve racking to pick up that phone and call a person whom you never spoke with before. But what is the worst that can happen. They say no. Ouch that hurt. Just move on to the next one. Think of this way. With every person you call, the closer you get to hearing yes. Feel better now. Great, now pick up the phone and start calling.
How Brokers Can Increase Exposure to Foreign Buyers
July 15, 2009
In Florida, low prices and a large number of bank-owned distressed properties are attracting more international investors. The Florida Association of REALTORS® offers a two-part article on how real estate brokers can attract and work with overseas clients interested in investing in U.S. properties.
Key points include:
- Know the basics about the real estate systems in the countries you want to work with
- Network with brokers and buyers of those countries at local, national and international meetings, conferences, trade shows, etc.
- Understand the cultural differences that can make or break relationships with foreign contacts
- Know how to communicate U.S. real estate terms in the terminology used in those countries
- Take the time to build relationships with professional contacts and potential buyers in those countries
- Form a team of specialists, such as a CPA and immigration attorney, to prepare information for potential clients about tax and other major issues.
Read tips for working with buyers and brokers from the United Kingdom and Asia and South America, France and Germany
. For more information visit the National Association of REALTORS® International real estate services
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Video Gaining Popularity Among REALTORS for marketing.
May 13, 2009
REALTORS continue to search for tools that provide impact to potential buyers. One of the latest trends is REALTORS using videos of both properties and themselves to drum up business. Are they alone? It appears not.
According to a 2008 comscore report City of God the movie
Google owned YoutTube actually overtook and passed Yahoo for number of searches. Aside from the obvious implications that come from Google now holding the first 2 spots in searcn sites, it says something about what users what. They appear to want video as well as plain search.
YouTube is a popular platform with REALTORS due to the exposure that they can receive from that alone.
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