Think about how much time and money you spend on generating new buyer or seller leads for your business to sell to. Remember to calculate not just your direct ad spend, but also the cost of your own time and your staffs time. You likely spend 5-15 percent of your gross revenue and time on lead generation marketing, with the goal of giving yourself (or sales system if it isn't a live person doing the selling) the best quality leads possible. So let me ask you this question. How is your conversion to an actual appointment? Do you convert 1 out of 10? 1 out of 5? 1 out of 3? This week I want to share some of my favorite tactics to quickly increase your appointment conversion rate.
1. Create or refine your "Pre Selling" system. What kind of impact do you have on leads when the initial contact has been made? What does your “Informed Homebuyer” pre buyer appointment package or “Informed home seller” pre listing appointment package look like? Have you sat down and strategically mapped out how you can best prepare any prospect before a sales interaction? Is there a video you want them to watch? A white paper you want them to review? A client testimonial you want them to see? When you intentionally map out how to presell your sales prospects you can significantly increase your closing rate. One of the agents I coach increased their conversion rate by over 20 percent just by introducing a “Pre selling” package to their buyer and seller leads.
2. Improve your sales scripting. Appointment conversion sales scripting really means you are making the consumers aware of their challenges and difficulties they face navigating in today’s real estate world with engaging thought provoking questions. Once you have their attention you need to let them know you have solutions to their challenges and all they need to do is get together with you! This means first you actually have to write out the challenges they are facing and the questions you need ask to help the consumer become aware of their challenges and discover they need some help. Now slowly test out different elements of the script and see the impact on your closing percentage. Don’t practice the script in the field burning leads but in the office with other agents in your office.
3. Set and hold your prospect and yourself accountable to an upfront agreement. An upfront agreement is a formal or informal oral contract you and your prospect both agree on to give each other a clear decision - yes or no - whether you want to take the next step in the sales process. This next step could be to purchase right then and there, or it could be to set up the next sales meeting. No "think it overs" allowed. Plus, it is your way to clarify your prospect has the ability (authority and or money) to make a purchasing decision. An upfront agreement might sound like:
"Now Mark, I am more than willing to give you my time and really work with you to find the exact home you are wanting to buy and can’t find on MLS. I'm just going to ask for one thing in return... As we go through this, if you don't feel what we have is a good fit, are you okay telling me that? Great, I want you to know you're not going to hurt my feelings. On the other hand, if after going through this it's clear we really do have a great fit are you okay telling me that too here today? "Great, I'll be doing the same thing. If I don't think you're the right fit for us I'll let you know straight out. And if on the other hand I do think you are the perfect candidate from really benefiting from our home buyer system, then I'll let you know that too. "Are we both in agreement on this Mark as part of the ground rules for today? Great."
4. Optimize your offer. Test your price point. Test the terms you're offering. Test the way you frame your offer - as what you'll gain... or as what you'll lose if you don't take action. Test any bonuses they'll get or added features if they act now. The only way to maximize your conversion is to test, test, test. One of my best buyer offerings is “Beat other buyers to listings” or “Our easy exit home buyer guarantee”. My best seller offering is our “30 day marketing plan” nothing about me buying it back if it doesn’t sell but the fact we have a “30 day selling plan” offer attracts the sellers interest in the appointment. We also offer our “Easy exit home seller guarantee” as well.
5. Introduce a "fear of loss" to spark action. Create urgency with the consumers. One of the biggest sparks to action is fear of loss. How can you legitimately introduce or strengthen your prospect's fear of loss if they don't take action now? One of the easiest ways is to introduce a highly valued bonus they get today when they take action and buy. The market is shifting and seller’s choosing to wait are losing equity as prices are correcting. Interest rates are rising on the buyers and their payments are increasing on what they want to buy now costing them more.
6. Use stronger risk reversal - Clearer and more powerfully worded. Are you confident your product or service correctly used will provide great value? Then put yourself on the hook by guaranteeing certain results. Why should your customer have to hope your product or service will fit their needs? Put yourself on the line. “Easy exit guarantee” if you are not happy. Create a certificate like I did they visually see the exit guarantee and increases the impact of my promise to them. Don’t tell but show and sell!
7. Get better sales training. It amazes me how many otherwise rational, intelligent business leaders will spend hundreds of thousands or even millions of dollars in lead generation activities for their business, but then pinch pennies when it comes to sales training for their core sales skills. The most effective sales training is not a one-time event, but rather, month in, month out, behaviorally based sales training. Shaping behaviors takes gentle pressure applied relentlessly over time. The feeling from a high pitched sales training wears off fast; the deep behavior changes from grooming and developing sales skills over time last long term.
So there you have my 7 favorite ways to increase sales conversion. You need to become a lean mean appointment setting machine. It is not only about lead generation but the key is the skill of appointment conversion! Good luck to you in implanting one or more of these key ideas and stop just lead generating and start appointment setting! The money is in the appointment and not in the lead.
Strength and courage,
Wade
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