plan for lead generation Archives - Wade Webb Real Estate Coaching

Plan For Success as a Realtor© in 2023

Wade Webb on November 2, 2022

Need help to plan for success as a Realtor© in 2023?

A mentor of mine said to me “agents aim for nothing and hit it with amazing success!” 2022 is wrapping up and what did you aim for? What did you hit?

It is the perfect time of year to aim for something in 2023 and hit it with amazing success! So when 2022 begins to wind down you should not wait until the very end to start planning for 2023. This means having a crystal-clear understanding of the successes and challenges of your current year, how it impacts your upcoming year, and developing a vision of what you want to accomplish, and how.

Many agents aim for nothing every year and most hit it with amazing accuracy!! I believe you should always start working on your next year strategy months in advance of the new year. This awards you enough time to make an impact on your final quarter and lay the groundwork for making sure your next fiscal year starts off on a solid footing.

For agents who want to achieve greatness, push the envelope, and grow their business through market share, market penetration, paying down debt, increasing sales, profits, and cash flow, I urge you to get going now!

The way I see things is, if your business isn’t growing, pushing the envelope, thriving, and maximizing profit, then all you’re really doing is suffering a slow death. Believe me, your competition is fighting the fight every day, and they didn’t wake up in the morning and say “Gosh, golly, I hope I stay even in 2023.” They want to eat your lunch, take your business, absorb your market share, and steal your customers away.

Some people might ask me if they should start planning by looking at their competition, and I say NO. Why focus on the competition, instead of focusing on yourself? When it comes to my business, I don’t care what others do. I care about what I do. Recognize your competition for what and who they are, and then put your best foot forward by pushing the envelope in your business. You should approach the new year as if you are going to battle, and for that you should develop a strategic plan.

Business Plan – a written document that describes in detail how a business, usually a new one, is going to achieve its goals. A business plan lays out a written plan from a marketing, financial and operational viewpoint.

FACT:

LESS THAN 3% OF REAL ESTATE AGENTS HAVE A BUSINESS PLAN

FACT:

ESTIMATED 3% OF REAL ESTATE AGENTS IN NORTH AMERICA DO 97% OF THE BUSINESS

“If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.” Writing a business plan may seem a daunting task as there are so many moving parts and concepts to address. Take it one step at a time and be sure to schedule regular review (quarterly, semi-annually, or annually) of your plan to be sure you are on track to meet your goals. It is that time of year again when we begin to build our plan for 2023 so let’s look at the key areas of the agent’s solid business plan.

Business Plan for the Successful REALTOR©

Step 1.)“Success and history always leaves us clues.” I began by looking back to identify the clues that have been left for us and the business. I would look at the real estate market first and search for the following clues. What have the number of sales been doing the last year? 2-5 years? Up? Down? What have the number of listings been doing the last year? 2-5 years? Up? Down? What have the average and median prices been doing? What price ranges are experiencing more activity? Less activity?

What neighborhoods or areas are experiencing more activity? Less Activity? What property types are selling more? Less? What buyer types are buying more? Where are the buyers coming from? Local? Next state or province? Over Seas? Imagine the targeted and strategic plan you would be able to build for you and your real estate business with this kind of information? Now you are not just winging it. You really know where and what to focus on.

Step 2.) Looking At The Present State of Your Own Real Estate Business. What have my sales been doing? Up? Down? What have my listings been doing? Up? Down? What is my average price? Can I raise my average selling price? What is my Gross Commission Income doing? What is my average deal worth? Where are my listings and sales coming from? Sources of business? What types of buyers do I represent? Where are the buyers coming from? Local? Out of area? What are my pending sales? What do I have for potential buyers and sellers? What is working? What is not working? What do I need to start doing again? Stop doing? What if you took the time to really track and measure and reflect on your business at a deeper level and see your strengths, weaknesses and opportunities of yourself and your own business?

Step 3.) Activity Plans – Take the time to lay out your activity plan calendar a year in advance. Focus on the activities you know you are good at and you see a return on your invested time and money. I am guessing for most agents it would be your sphere of influence, referrals and face to face or voice to voice activities. Set up a schedule for a month or two in advance of your activities for generating business. What is the activity? When? How? To Whom? Track and measure each of these scheduled activities to help identify the best of the best.

Step 4.) Budgeting – Profit is the goal in business. Knowing what your personal life and your business world cost you monthly is so important. Expense management is just as important as your income and earnings. Have a clear picture of your expenses and measure all of them for their return on investment or if they can be reduced in any way. I understand this my be terrifying for most of us to see what we are spending personally and professionally but it is the foundation of your business plan to know what your personal and professional lives cost and then be able to set a financial target that is enough to cover them both and leave you some profit! So many of us stay away from this and run in a deficit and that is not good practice for any of us.

Step 5.) Goals – If your “Why” is big enough the “how” will take care of itself. What is your purpose? Vision? Values? Mission Statement? Taking the time to know what it is you want and why you want it is a game changer for us all. Nothing gives me more joy than impacting and improving people’s lives personally and professionally every day. I have realized that the driving compelling force in my life is serving others and having the means to create memorable experiences with the people I care about most and nothing else has given me more joy than these amazing WHY’s in my own life. In my own real estate business, taking the time over the last 29 years to create a business plan has been so incredibly beneficial for me and I know it will for you as well. In today’s post I have given you a brief business plan overview. To help you get going with your own plan I put together a Step-by-Step Real Estate Business Plan Workbook you can download for free by signing up using the form below.

Strength and courage,
Wade

Low Or No Cost Lead Gen Ideas for Real Estate Agents

Wade Webb on March 9, 2022

Often I hear realtors tell me how expensive it is to do effective marketing as a real estate agent and how they don’t have the budget for these costs. Although I agree there are some very pricey marketing tactics in play right now, I assure you there are countless highly effective tactics that are “zero” cost or low cost to the agent….

1. Pick up the phone and talk to 5 current or past clients a day. Give them your greatest gift, “your time.”

2. Ask for the business ”Of all the people you know, who do you think will be moving next?”

3. Record a new, upbeat and original message on your voicemail every day. Try a riddle, joke, tip, quote or short story.

4. Create a “do it yourself” info graphic of your local market statistics for real estate and post it on social media or email it to your clients. A Market Snapshot.

5. Check the local news or internet for a good news story and clip or print the story and send the person who the story is about a personal note saying “well done or congratulations” and include your business card.

6. Create a video of your best buying or selling tips and post them to YouTube, Facebook, Linkedin, Twitter.

7. Create a video of a past client testimonial sharing their experience doing business with you and post it to your website or social media. Get them to give you a google or yelp review.

8. Create an instructional video on “How to” or “Step by Step” process.

9. Constantly wear your company name badge. Don’t be a secret agent. Even add a company logo to your clothing.

10. Join or start a networking group like Business Network International (BNI). So many business owners and service providers could use an agent like you.

11. Write and post some of your best marketing, buying or selling ideas in Real Estate on your own blog like I have done with AgentsBoost! Over 10,000 readers in over 100 countries in less than 10 years.

12. Submit press releases each week to local media sources like new innovative real estate marketing, using drones, videos, interactive floor plans, virtual reality, etc.

13. Create joint ventures and partnerships with other businesses and services that fall in line with the real estate industry. Add them to your website!

14. Complete a detailed profile of yourself in Google, Facebook, Linkedin and Twitter.

15. Write a short market update each month and email it to your database.

16. Post classified ads on free online websites like Craigslist, Kijiji, Oodle.

17. Teach other business owners and service providers how to market with little or no money.

18. Write and send a personal hand written note to 5 people every day.

29. Door knock an area where you have or your company has a bona fide buyer, recent sold or recent new listing or invite them to your open house. Even just slip a letter in their doors.

30. Post on social media and email every month your local market “best bets” for buying opportunities. All categories like first time buy, move up buy, foreclosure or rental.

31. Visit face to face an expired listing owner with a sold topper in hand and say “We have just been notified your home is no longer on the market and I am sure the last person you want to see at your door is another real estate agent. I just have 2 quick questions and will be on my way”. First “why do you think one of these “sold” signs did not get on your property” and second “why did you want to sell in the first place?”

32. Hold an open house on a listing any day that only takes a customer no more than 2 open house signs to get to from the main traffic.

33. Create a contest or a client referral rewards program.

34. Volunteer for an event or at a local charity. Join a service club. Attend a networking event and exchange business cards.

35. Host a buying, selling or investing real estate seminar. Co-present with other experts like lawyers, lenders, inspectors, etc.

36. Video interview local business owners, service providers and professionals in your community.

37. Create an agent to agent referral business with agents from other cities sending you their buyer and seller referrals.

38. Connect with solicitors that represent family, estate or financial institution law for referral business.

39. Work the referral network of other realtors in other cities and become their agent of choice for buyer and seller referrals in your marketplace.

40. Create a referral network with trades people, contractors, renovators and handyman professionals.

41. 97% response rate texting someone and asking them “How’s biz?” and in exchange you can expect them to text back the same question to you about the market!

42. On FB show people you care by sharing and commenting on their posts. Message them and ask them “how they are doing?”

43. Educate your clients on how to give you a referral. “Call me with their name and number and I will follow them up and give them excellent service and promise you not to pressure them in any way.”

44. Help a For Sale By Owner in exchange for the opportunity to represent them when they are needing assistance to buy again. Help them enough they might give up and even list with you!

45. Target and work a geographic farm area. Become the expert in one specific segment of the market. Video, blog, door knock, Facebook live video from a listing in your farm area, farm market area statistic updates.

So there you have it, an in depth list of ideas for agents with smaller or no marketing budgets in 2019. Feel free to add more ideas and suggestions to this year’s list in the comment section below!

Strength and courage,
Wade

Secrets To Agents Sales & Marketing Plans

kelowna on October 14, 2015

For more than two decades I have really underestimated the importance of having an actual plan for agents and their sales and marketing. I was always trying one thing or another to generate leads for my business with no actual plan or focus.

How many agents actually have a formal, written, systemized and scheduled plan for lead generation? Are you just winging it?

First we need to understand the difference between a Lead and a what I call a Hit. So many of us confuse ourselves with leads and that we have so many leads but the reality is we have so many hits and not that many leads. A Lead in my opinion is someone who has expressed interest in buying or selling now or in the near future, say 60-90 to 120 days. A Hit is someone who has filled out an online form, randomly emailed you about a property or is just plain curious and maybe one day would consider buying or selling some real estate.

Having the ability to qualify hits on their timing and motivation determines whether they are a lead or really just a hit. Now that we have determined the difference between a lead and a hit let’s look at the next step to a strong sales and marketing plan. We need to determine what strategies we want to implement and choose the strategies that are right for our personalities, strengths and what we believe that we would be good at. We have so many options as agents to generate leads with our sales and marketing but what ones do you enjoy? Would do without hesitation? Would suit your strengths? Here is a list to choose from.

Click Here >> Agentsboost – Prospecting Activities Chart

The next step to your strategy is to choose enough sales and marketing strategies to ensure enough leads for you and your business. You can’t be just a one trick pony and rely on maybe one or two strategies. The key to a strong sales and marketing plan is a minimum of six sales and marketing funnels. In fact most top producers have at least ten to twenty funnels of sales and marketing strategies generating leads for their business.

After you have chosen your minimum of six then you build your sales and marketing plan. Actually write out a plan for a ninety day period of the activity you are doing like when you are doing it, how you are performing it and all the pertinent details of each funnel. Clearly create the plan and visual so you can see the plan for the next ninety days in advance. Here is a sample of a three month sales and marketing plan to help you build your own.

Click Here >> Sample Marketing Plan

So there you have it. A sales and marketing plan for lead generation with a minimum of six funnels and a system to create consistent leads to keep your business at a smooth steady pace and not peaks and valleys of leads and then no leads. I trust you build a plan for your next ninety days and finish 2015 strong!

Strength and Courage,

Wade

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