Well, that led to talking about things that we’re grateful for.  We both realized that we are grateful to have so many great subscribers.  We love sharing marketing strategies and the feeling we get when we help someone turn their business around or launch a successful product is indescribable!

We decided to celebrate Thanksgiving by expressing our gratitude by helping some of our subscribers work out the kinks in their own marketing system.  We’ll do that by providing F-R-E-E consultations to at least 4 lucky subscribers.

What’s Included in the F-R-E-E Consultation?

First, we want to learn everything we can about your business.  What’s working and what isn’t?  How does the business you WANT to have differ from the business you DO have?  We want to know exactly what you’re going through and how what’s happening now differs from what you want to happen.

Next, we’ll explore the obstacles in your way.  We’ll take a look at what’s stopping you from creating your ideal real estate business.  Anything you want to talk about is fair game.  Everyone’s situation is different, and we can only help you if we know exactly what you’re up against.

Then we’ll wrap up by going through your existing marketing materials and look for what’s working and what isn’t.  We’ll give you suggestions on how you can allign your marketing materials with your goals for your business and blast through the obstacles in your way.

Sound good?

Heck no, it sounds GREAT!  Normally, we would charge $225 for a full blown consultation call.  But this is your chance to get a makeover consultation for F-R-E-E.

Sign Up Now

To claim your free consultation, email us right now RealEstateMarketingMakeover (at) gmail (dot) com and tell us how to contact you so we can schedule your consultation.  We already checked our calendars and we were able to make room for 4 consultations.

When you reply, please leave a phone number and let us know what days, dates and times would be convenient for you.  Be sure that you have a free hour of uninterrupted time so we can focus on your business and moving it forward.

Just to be clear, we aren’t selling anything. This is our way of thanking you for subscribing.  Remember, we only have 4 consultations available.  Email us now - don’t let someone else get YOUR spot.

I just read a news release this morning painting a horrible picture. It’s almost like watching storm clouds move in slowly with a tornado forming in front of you. You can’t do anything but watch.

Bloomberg reported that over a quarter million homes received foreclosure filings in October. And that’s after laws were put in place to slow down foreclosures.

On top of all that, we’ve gotten reports that the US jobless rate is up to 6.5% which is the highest it’s been since 1994.

Can it get any worse… home prices dropped at the fastest pace on record and have fallen every month since January of 2007.

This sure does paint a bleak picture if you’re a real estate professional trying to provide for your family, doesn’t it?

I’d be willing to bet that many of you are in the same situation as the average American.

Let me give you some numbers and you decide where you fit…

• About 43% of US families spend more than they earn each year.
  
• The average household carries $8,000 in credit debt.
  
• Personal bankruptcies have doubled in the past 10 years.
  

C’mon if you’re in one of these categories you’re just average. You’re living the so-called “American Dream”.

But wait. Aren’t there real estate professionals out there actually making it?

How..?

That’s a good question… and if you’ve been paying attention around this blog I think you know the answer.

They’re doing some sort of real estate marketing.

They are using the resources they’ve been given both online and offline to find leads, find buyers, sellers, and lending.

Think about what you can do to begin marketing your real estate. Could you contact some of your local merchants and see what kind of deals you can make? Sure you could.

Let me give you an example…

Let’s say that you’re marketing your real estate with a USP. You’re the homes with pools specialist. You’ve become an expert at houses with pools. You know everything there is to know. You can tell someone the demographics of home buyers who want pools, how much they go for, how they affect the value of your home and when is the best time to buy or sell.

Now, you could go talk to some of the local pool merchants and offer up a mutually beneficial venture. You’ll market their products and services when you come across people who are buying a home with a pool. On the other side, if they go clean or assist someone with a pool who looks like they are trying to sell their home they market for you.

Now I know, it’s kind of a simple example but think of different areas you can do the same thing. Maybe it’s hooking up with a furniture store. You could use their furniture to dress out homes for sale. It can be a joint effort and you might make a little extra cash in the process.

It’s simple as that and I know you could probably come up with better examples. So start leveraging these relationships today and make it integrate with your USP.

Let’s face it. The people who are making it out there right now in this tough economy are the real estate professionals who specialize, have a great USP, and who are performing some sort of real estate marketing for themselves, their properties, or both.

Now, stop reading this and get out there and take some action.

Jay

PS If you’re wondering what a USP is you can get our Free Report and discover new ways to improve your real estate marketing strategies, find more leads, and make more money.

I drop my husband off at his office every day.  This morning, on my way back, I heard a story on the radio that made me think of real estate agent leads.  The odd thing is… the story was about Britney Spears.

Poor Britney can’t seem to catch a break.  It’s been a long while since she shaved her head, went after the Paparazzi with an umbrella, and partied all night with the wrong people.

Now, she seems to be getting her life on track with the help of her father.  Heck, she even performed a song at Madonna’s concert a few days ago.  It’s really great to see her turning her life around.

But Britney Had Another Crisis Yesterday

While she and her two sons were visiting her family in Louisiana, her youngest son, Jayden James had a seizure.  When the family called for an ambulance, they learned that it would be faster to drive the child to the hospital themselves.

So Britney and family tore off as fast as they could to get Jayden to the nearest hospital 25 miles away. Apparently, he had an allergic reaction to something he ate.  Let’s hope that Jayden recovers well and that there are no serious health issues.

Now, maybe I’m spending too much time thinking of how to help connect real estate professionals with buyers and sellers.  Maybe I’m becoming obsessed with helping real estate agents get flooded with real estate leads.  

The image of Britney racing down the Louisiana back roads to get to a Mississippi hospital 25 miles away immediately triggered a connection in my mind to real estate agent leads…

Here’s How My Mind Linked The Two: 

I hoped that Britney would find a doctor who had enough experience and knowledge, or ideally specialized training, about whatever could be causing her son’s symptoms to make the right diagnosis and give him the best treatment possible.

But then I realized that the chances of this aren’t great.  I’m sure she found a competent doctor.  But basically, Britney’s just stuck with whoever happens to be scheduled this morning at the hospital’s emergency room.

Isn’t That What Happens With A Lot Of Home Buyers And Sellers? 

Most home buyers and sellers have no prior relationship or knowledge of real estate agents out there.  But when the time comes to sell or buy their home, they’re pretty much stuck with the first real estate professional who returns their call, right?

Well, that’s not the ideal situation for the buyer, the seller, or the real estate agent, is it?  That’s no better than choosing an agent with the old “one potato, two potato” game.

To make sure you have a steady stream of buyers and sellers, you need to keep in touch with each and every potential buyer and seller you come across.  

They may not be ready to buy or sell their home right now, but you’re laying the foundation for when they ARE ready.  Provide them with information.  Build their trust with your knowledge and experience.  Get them to know, like, and trust you BEFORE they have a real estate emergency. 

That way, when the time comes and they need a real estate professional - and everyone does, sooner or later! - you’ll be the only one they’ll turn to.

I went out to eat yesterday with my wife, daughter, dad, and step mom.  We went to eat steak.

It was great.  We had lots of great conversation, ate lots of good food, and just felt overly stuffed when we were done.

Our wait person was nice but one thing stood out through the night.  She wasn’t there when we needed her most.  Sure she brought our food and drinks out.

But…

When we ran out of drink, she was missing.  When we needed a new fork, she was missing.  When we needed extra napkins, she was missing.

So although the food was good there was something lacking.  If I had to rate her… she did her job.  Didn’t go above and beyond but just did her job at the minimum and went about her merry way.

Now on the other side of the token, today the same group went to Starbucks.

Customer service was out of this world.  They were slow brining a drink out so they gave us one on the house.  We asked for a few extra things and they complied.  While were sitting at the table a few of the staff even came over to check on us and see if we need anything.

Ok… Ok… I know you’re probably wondering what this has to do with Real Estate marketing and your business.  Well, it has to do with it more than you know.

It’s about bringing leads in.  It’s about getting to know them.  It’s about customer service.  It’s about getting referrals.

Allow me to explain.

It’s About Being There

One of the things Leah and I had discussed in the free report, teleseminar, and bonus was about progressive exposure.

In the first example, had I seen my wait person come by our table more than just to bring out food or drink, but to check on us regularly she would have seen we were out of drink.

Had she came by our table multiple times she would have seen we needed napkins…. You get the picture.  The more times she would have come by the more she would have been able to figure out our needs during that short hour.

In the process she probably would have gotten a bigger tip and received referrals from everyone at the table.  This is part of what progressive exposure is supposed to be about.

When you get real estate leads coming in… you’ve got to do something about them.  Jump on top of them right away.  Start communicating, find out what they want, find out what they need.  Keep in touch with them even if you know they aren’t going to buy something from you within the next week or month.

You never know when they will have a referral.

If you approach your real estate marketing strategy the same way Starbucks approaches customer service you may find yourself head over heels above your competition.

Here’s what I mean.  Let’s say you have a real estate marketing lead generation system that’s bring you a few leads each and every week.  You put them in your database, see if they need anything, and in most cases forget about them.

Progressive Exposure

Now, here’s where things change.  Instead of forgetting about them, It’s time to jump in with both feet and make contact with them each and every week.  Give them some value every week.  It doesn’t matter what it is as long as it’s valuable to them.

You could be updating them with interest rates or changes in real estate law that you’ve discovered.  No matter what it is, you’ve got to keep in touch with them.

That’s it.  Just keep doing that and every now and then throw in a few of the listing you have on your books that you think they might be interested in.  What you’ll find is your leads get to know your style.

They will get to know, like, and trust you over this period and be more apt to do business with you when they’re ready.  They’ll be more apt to refer you to others even when they haven’t worked with you before.  They’ll be more apt to do things for you because you’ve been doing so much for them.

It’s high time you put your but in gear and use progressive exposure like we’ve discussed.  If you haven’t gotten your hands on our Free Report or the Teleseminar, I suggest you go now and get it.  By the way, feel free to tell your friends and peer about the free report and have them sign up too.

This is all about creating the best real estate marketing strategy you can and succeeding in the toughest of times.

We’ll be doing more as time goes by.

Have a great day.

As a real estate agent, your business lives and dies by the real estate leads (both buyers and sellers) that you generate.  Heck, that’s true for any real estate professional, right?

Well, Jay and I have been talking a lot about real estate leads, and we find that, as in most businesses, one of the best ways to get buyers and sellers in the door is to use reciprocity.

What is Reciprocity?

Now, you may not know this, but I’m a recovering anthropologist.  And back when I was studying to be the next Indiana Jones, one of the things that I learned about was what anthropologists like Richard Leakey called the “web of indebtedness.”  Basically, cultural anthropologists suggest that human culture progressed rapidly as the “web of indebtedness” allowed us to divide labor and create an exchange for goods and services.  In essence, reciprocity gave rise to our economic, political and social systems.

Cultural Anthropologists argue that, by giving something of value to another, you strengthen your relationship and create of bond of obligation with the recipient.  For example, if you’re a good hunter, you may give a friend some of your mastodon kill.  By doing this, you’re ensuring that later on he’ll give you some of his meat when he has a successful hunt.  Or maybe your friend is a toolmaker.  He may give you new stone point for your spear as a way of thanking you.

Reciprocity in Action Today

Let’s bring this into the modern world.

Have you ever experienced the panic during the holiday season when someone unexpectedly gives you a gift?  It’s uncomfortable right?  You may feel awkward and downright rude until you reciprocate with a gift from them.  Heck, my friend Lisa stocks up on Godiva chocolate boxes during the holidays and keeps them on hand so she is never caught off guard.  

If you receive a holiday card from someone who isn’t on your list, what’s the first thing you do?  Right - you send them a card immediately and them to your list for next year.

Well, that’s reciprocity (or the “web of indebtedness”) at work.  And, as a real estate professional, you can put it to work for you to generate real estate leads.

Here’s What This Means For You As A Real Estate Professional…

All you have to do is provide something of value to the buyers and sellers that you are trying to attract.  There are as many ways to do these as there are real estate agents out there - you’re limited only by your imagination.

Put yourself in the shoes of the ideal buyers or sellers that you are trying to attract?  What are they looking for?  What do they worry about?  How can you make the real estate process easier for them?  What would make them smile?  Figure that out, then give it to them.

If you need some ideas, go back to our special report.  If you don’t have it yet, you can get it here:  www.realestatemarketingmakeover.com   We also go into more detail on our free teleseminar where we offer some ideas and walk you through the process.  You can get your copy of the teleseminar here:  www.realestatemarketingmakeover.com/freeteleseminar.html

Whether your perfect real estate lead is someone looking to buy or sell a single family home or someone looking for commercial space, with your expertise you can easily give them something of value.  Once you do, they will feel obligated to do something nice for you.  It may be as simple as referring a friend to you or it may turn out to be listing their home with you.  Whatever it is, it will be good for your business and bring more leads to you.

So take a minute to think of what you can provide to your ideal prospect (buyer or seller) whether it’s online, in person, over the phone or in the mail and have it ready to go… just like those boxes of Godiva chocolate Lisa keeps on hand.  Do that, and you’ll have more real estate agent leads - and more commissions! - than ever before.  

That’s about it.

In today’s economy it’s necessary for you to have a real estate marketing strategy that works.

One marketing tool that can be used is step marketing.  The problem with step marketing, as we mentioned in our free report, is that most people don’t step past month two or three…  And that’s a conservative figure.

With the real estate market the way that it is… you have to take step marketing one level farther.   You’ve got to use it month after month after month.

You see, most people aren’t ready to buy a house or sell a house the first time they meet you.  That’s why you have to stay on their mind all the time.  Keep in front of them using step marketing as much as possible.

You see, these tactics have been used in small business marketing for a long time and are just starting to catch traction for real estate agent marketing.

I can’t believe it’s taken so long.

The thing is, when you have so many marketing tools at your disposal and you don’t know which one to use first… it kind of gets confusing.

But with a solid real estate marketing strategy in place you should expect to do very well.

So let’s go over a few real estate marketing tactics…

1.  Step marketing

Talk to your clients and prospects as often as possible.  Keep up with them every step of the way.  You never know when they might need you.

2.  Always ask for referrals

Having a solid referral system in place will keep the leads coming in.  Don’t be afraid to ask for them.  It’s either you ask or you keep food out of the mouths of your family.  You decide.

3.  Space Ads

When you’re running space ads, remember to keep them relevant and hot.  You want to draw attention and be different.  Remember, if you keep your infromation looking like everyone else’s stuff it’ll be like throwing darts for your potential prospects.  One doesn’t appeal to them over another.

So stand out from the crowd.

Ok, so there’s the run down of the real estate marketing strategies you can use right away to start pulling leads and generating business.  Remember, this has been the staple for small business marketing for a long time now.

These are the marketing tools you need to use in the real estate market as it is today.  And as you use them when things get better… you’ll be that much more ahead of your competition.

Start using a real estate marketing strategy that works.

Jay

Then you’ve come to the right place.

You see… one marketing strategy that works is writing real estate marketing letters.

I’m talking about physical letters as well as web site content that sells.

Your clients and prospects will get involved with the real estate marketing letter that you write because it will hit all of their emotional hot buttons.

Most good real estate agents already know this information and don’t hand it out freely.

You know why…

It will add to their competition.  Writing letters for real estate marketing is a fantastic tool that just adds one more weapon into your marketing strategies arsenal.

Let’s face it.  You’re a professional who is running a business.  It may not be your very own… you may work for a bigger agency but you have to treat it as if it is your own business.

When you leverage small business marketing that approaches the direct response style of advertising you’ll take your business to a whole new level.

Imagine for a moment…

You just got another lead through one of the marketing strategies that Leah and I have taught you… All you do is follow up with a real estate marketing letter selling the property you had in mind.

You hit all the hot buttons.  You described the property in all of its glory.

Bam!

Your odds of selling that home have just skyrocketed, didn’t it.

You bet it did.

Think of the people you’re selling to just like you when you’re buying something that you’re passionate about.  You’ll see the difference almost immediately.

So if you’re interested in learning more real estate marketing strategies go ahead and go to the main page www.realestatemarketingmakeover.com and fill in the form or just fill in the form on the right of this post.

You’ll get a free report that describes some simple marketing strategies you can put to use right away.

Till next time…

Jay

Foreclosures are at record highs, new home sales are at record lows, and people are scrambling everywhere you look.

I can’t help but look at the situation and see something really positive.

For all of those agents that can set themselves apart from their neighbor… You’ll have a succeful year.

You’re probably thinking … “yeah right!” … and you have everyright but what you’ll be seeing is a change in how business done in the industry.

The days of joining the biz, doing what everyone else does and expecting people to run to you hand over fist is over.

You’re actually gonna have to put in some marketing effort.

Look… You’re running a business.

Treat it like one.

Over the coming weeks my partner Leah and I will be giving away information that can help you get through this mess.

So if you want to stay informed sign-up to our newsletter, get a free report on getting through this market and get ready to skyrocket your results.

Jay