Technology Tips for Real Estate Sales Professionals - Relationships for Life = Investments for Life

We decided to blog on this topic because when most businesses, or in the case of this blog real estate sales professionals, think of investing in relationships for life, they think of their clients. While this is the obvious first conclusion, when it comes to how to generate revenue, there are many aspects to a real estate transaction that lead to closing more deals. From the point of acquiring the client, to negotiating the offer with the other side, assisting your client with their home inspection, engaging a real estate lawyer, obtain a mortgage, etc., these are all relationships.

·      You can have all the colleagues, suppliers and support in the world, but without customers, you really have nothing at all.

·      You have all the customers in the world, but without strong relationships with other real estate sales professionals (colleagues), suppliers and support, the result is poor customer experience longer times to close deals.

It’s pretty difficult to argue that, in the real estate industry, repeat and referral business represents a sizable share of most real estate sales professionals’ revenue. In an article on Forbes online some well-known statistics on the subject were revealed (http://www.forbes.com/sites/alexlawrence/2012/11/01/five-customer-retention-tips-for-entrepreneurs/) : 

·      According to Bain and Co., a 5% increase in customer retention can increase a company’s profitability by 75%.

·      Gartner Group statistics tell us that 80% of your company’s future revenue will come from just 20% of your existing customers.

So how do we build relationships for life? By being accessible, competitive and providing a great service. 

Being accessible means something different today than it did in the past. Technology has forever changed the way we communicate and interact. In the 90s we called one another, in the 2000s we began to rely on email. Now, with social media and text messaging, we can communicate en masse, stay connected to those we like to communicate with, and leverage technology to expedite processes  which makes us that much more efficient. 

Here are some tips for the real estate sales professional who wants to build relationships for life: 

Invest in your own efficiency – It is 2014. If you don’t have a tablet, get one! This will give you the ability to do more on the go and provide more information to your clients when you’re on the road. 

Embrace technology – Whether you like it or not, technology is here to stay. Look at a real estate app that will connect you to your colleagues, suppliers, customers, etc.  Make sure that you choose one that provides other capabilities such as the ability to show your clients listings when on the go, research neighbourhood demographics, research a property, etc… 

Get Social – Take the time to set up even a single social media presence and get connected. Social media is a fast and effective way to maintain relationships for life. Social media could mean a platform like Facebook; if you are using an app or social platform to administer your deals, chances are that it already has a component where you can connect, share and engage with those directly in your industry. The little time it takes to upload your contact list, and add new contacts as you meet them, is nothing compared to the impact of them being constantly reminded of you and your service every time you post an update or send out a message. 

Sweat the Details – Remember the small stuff. Leveraging technology that remembers birthdays, holidays and other important dates is another small thing to show that you care. Remembering to say happy birthday to a client, a favourite loan officer at a bank, or a referral source, is building towards a relationship that can last for life. 

Stay Relevant – This means posting and staying in touch. A good example of this is, when you have a new client considering purchasing a property and, you pre-configure your real estate tools to update you on new listings that fit the predefined criteria to send off to clients. Consider posting a weekly ‘hot listing’ on your Facebook page, or blogging about industry subject matter that will establish you as a thought leader.  

Your relationships matter, and it doesn’t take much to build and nourish them. We hope that this blog has helped you to consider all of your relationships and that our tips make it easier for you to build relationships for life.

 

If you would like more information about a mobile real estate app for iPad that provides you with the ability to share listings, investigate properties or neighbourhoods, generate sales comps, sign electronic documents, connect and engage colleagues, clients, supplliers and more, please visit www.myvimo.ca