Customer
relationship management systems have, for several years now, become the norm in
many industries. These tools, which allow professionals to track, record, and
ultimately manage all interactions and information with their customers, have
given new meaning to the phrase all-in-one-place. The ability to manage and
automate interactions and managing efforts makes these even more valuable. The
right CRM can quickly increase efficiency and organization and enable you to
close more deals, faster.
However,
as important as this customer relationship management is, and it is crucial, as
a real estate sales professional there are many other relationships that also
need to be managed. Other real estate professionals, lenders, brokers,
appraisers, lawyers, inspectors, etc.: these are all people with whom you
maintain relationships for a reason, all of which are crucial for your own
day-to-day business.
As
we all know, referrals are the lifeblood of the real estate industry, and a CRM
that ramps up your referral rates is worth its weight in gold! So, how can you
use a CRM to boost all relationships, not just the ones you have with past and
current clients?
Collaboration
is crucial. Real estate is about give and take, and most real estate sales
professionals would be quick to recognize that expectations are there when it
comes to reciprocation. A CRM that allows you to collaborate on deals with
other professionals is a great way to get this done quickly, but effectively.
How
is this achieved? Here are a few things to look for to help you maintain
beneficial relationships with all professionals in your networks:
- Promote listings to other real estate professionals. Making your
listings available online is likely one of the first steps in your selling
process, but promoting them is a whole other story. A CRM that gives you the
ability to automate this process helps you stay in touch with others, but
doesn’t mean taking a great deal of time away from your other tasks. This is
also a great way to help encourage give and take.
- Electronic signing. Since the Ontario government made this
possible last year, real estate sales professionals have been working towards a
largely paperless industry. And, not only is this more environmentally
friendly, it is also friendly from a time management perspective. The ability
to sign documents electronically means a lot of the back and forth between
professionals is eliminated, again, freeing up time for other tasks.
- Electronic correspondence and tracking. Organization is key when
it comes to building and maintaining strong business relationships - no one
wants to feel as though you have forgotten about them, thanks to a missed
meeting or forgotten correspondence - that is a sure-fire way to get that
referral sent elsewhere. A CRM will help
avoid this and help alert you and help you stay on top of your contacts and
connections.
- Real estate info at your fingertips. A good CRM does all of the
above. A great CRM does even more. Access to real estate specific information
within the same platform - neighbourhood demographics or property information
for example - makes you not only more informed, but more sought after and
competitive.
Maintaining
relationships with other real estate sales professionals is just as important
as maintaining relationships with customers, especially with regard to
referrals. Make sure your CRM gives you the capabilities to do this with ease.
For
more about a real estate specific CRM that makes relationship management easy,
call ViMO today at 1 855 999
8466 (VIMO).
Have you heard the buzz? ViMO is a mobile app for real
estate sales professionals that enables you to do more - research properties,
areas, market to clients, create electronic forms and more - all while on the
go and right from your tablet, making you more competitive and helping you stay
in touch with clients easily. 
