was successfully added to your cart.

Calling Your Leads: What should I say when I call my leads?

By July 25, 2017Real Estate

“These are the new leads. These are the Glengarry leads. And to you they’re gold, and you don’t get them. Why? Because to give them to you is just throwing them away. They’re for closers. I’d wish you good luck but you wouldn’t know what to do with it if you got it.”

– Blake, Glengarry Glen Ross

Everyone has jokingly quoted a line or two from that startling speech at the beginning of Glengarry Glen Ross. Where a group of struggling and much too opportunistic commercial real estate agents are having a tough time trying to get people to answer a phone. They are relegated to a “sit” where they have to run through their old leads to find someone to buy. They watch as Blake from corporate shows them the tantalizing new leads they could have but they don’t get them because they’re for closers. The scene speaks to us because all of us want new leads. A fresh start. Just like Blake though we’re going to tell you to “put that coffee down” as we show you why those leads you already have are actually your gold mine.

In the never ending chase for more leads it seems natural to place a higher value on new leads rather than existing leads. It’s human nature. What we have gets forgotten. Many agents will call those leads a couple of times, but if there’s no response they get thrown to the wayside like a bad seed that fell in the thorns. Then it’s onto the next one.

The possibilities of the next contact–a new chance to engage–is enticing to new and experienced agents alike. In a recent webinar with Firepoint, Beverly Ruffner–who has made her living on training Inside Sales Agents and Real Estate Agents how to be better at calling their clients and being consistent in those calls–gave a few tips on how to not forget these valuable assets be diminished.

You have them so use them.

These new leads are already yours. You don’t have to pay anyone for these leads because you already have them. Don’t devalue your current leads. One to two calls to each of your current leads doesn’t cut it. Say you spent $30 to acquire just one of these leads. If you only call that $30 lead twice you paid $15 dollars per phone call. Does that seem like a smart thing to do? Of course not. Think of your existing leads as seeds you’d plant on your real estate farm. Some of your leads you acquired were ready to harvest from day one; don’t be tempted to ignore your leads because they came in the form of work rather than an immediate sale.

Don’t be scared of money that comes in the form of hard work. That’s what your existing leads are. Money. To forget about existing leads in your database is to forget about money that you already have. The biggest less you can learn in your real estate career is to always cultivate the leads you have while at the same time garnering more leads. If you cannot take care of all the leads you have in your database it’s important to find ways to nurture those leads before moving onto acquiring even more leads you won’t be able to give time to nurture.

What happens if I have a first name that’s hard to pronounce?

If you don’t know how to pronounce the name, you don’t have to say “Hi is *Insert HARD NAME TO PRONOUNCE here* there?” With Firepoint you can see where they have been searching. Just start right into, “This is *your name here*, I’m just wanted to do a quick check in. It looks like you were looking for homes in *say where they were looking for homes*. I was wondering what you’re situation is?” If you were to ask for their name you’re getting a programmed response. The second way you’re getting right into a conversation about their current home searching process.

Now if the lead doesn’t answer the phone, pay attention to the voicemail. Listen to how they pronounce their name in the voicemail and if the lead is male or female. Then, using your Firepoint system, add in how to pronounce the name and other details you learned from the voicemail into the warnings into the contact details. Make your life easier in the future when you call that lead again.

They said they already have a friend who’s an agent

Don’t quit just because they say they have a friend who’s an agent. Most of the time it’s a friend who’s only doing one or two deals a year. That’s not in the best interest of the client. Tout your resume. Tout your experience. Most importantly, allow the lead to know why that’s in their best interest. Say something like, “I’m sure they are great and want to do the right thing for you. A lot of the time, however, they’re inexperienced in the industry and only do one or two deals a year. The industry moves fast and a commitment to a house is long-term.

Firepoint will help you with your existing leads

Don’t be scared of money that comes in the form of hard work. That’s what your existing leads are. Money. To forget about existing leads in your database is to forget about money that you already have. The biggest less you can learn in your real estate career is to always cultivate the leads you have while at the same time garnering more leads. If you cannot take care of all the leads you have in your database it’s important to find ways to nurture those leads before moving onto acquiring even more leads you won’t be able to give time to nurture.

Firepoint won’t just help you generate more leads; it’ll find out where you’re missing opportunities. If you’re struggling with lead conversion, we can help you patch the holes and automate the process to make your business more efficient. We believe that nurturing past client relationships for repeat business and referrals is just as critical to success as generating new leads. Our system is designed to help you stay on top of both. Put every client on a monthly update of properties for sale in their neighborhood, schedule automated emails every few months, and use workflows to remind you when to call, send a card, or drop off a gift. Let our system remember for you, so you can focus on what you do best.