Most real estate agents I coach do not have a lead problem – they have a lead nurturing and conversion problem. Finding real estate leads is relatively easy. However, the fortune is in the follow-up, especially considering almost all of these leads will start as strangers.
It’s up to you to build a relationship with your leads over time by implementing a strategic real estate lead nurturing plan for your business. Understand why nurturing is essential, and check out my top seven lead nurturing strategies and best practices to help you convert more leads into clients this year.
Why is lead nurturing important?
Buying or selling a home is a big deal. It’s usually not an impulse. And NAR data shows that 81% of sellers and most buyers only interview one real estate agent! This means that being the first agent to contact and properly nurture leads is critical.
The nurturing phase is the key to building trust with a lead, and this trust is the key to winning the business. The majority of buyers and sellers will become a lead months or even years before they’re ready to actually move. It’s our job to keep in touch, provide value and be there as a trusted resource when the time is right.
7 ways to nurture leads in real estate
Wondering how to best nurture your leads to convert more of them to clients? Let’s break down our top seven strategies into actionable steps for your business.
1. Text your leads
Texting is a less aggressive way to keep in touch with your real estate leads. While there is something to be said for the added personal tonality of a phone call, texting is a great option for nurturing a lead who you do not have a relationship with yet.
The lead is more likely to respond to a stranger’s text than a stranger’s call. Text is also a good medium for sending properties to buyer leads, as there’s a better chance they will see a text over an email, which could end up in the spam folder.
2. Email Your Leads
An email drip campaign is an easy “set it and forget it” lead nurturing strategy. Here’s the concept: add each lead to your CRM, add them to a once or twice per month email campaign and they will hear from you consistently. This strategy allows you to leverage your communication and prevents leads from falling through the cracks.
Need a CRM? Check out the follow-up power of Top Producer. It has templates for text and email campaigns, branded market reports and real-time listing alerts that you can automatically send to your leads. Top Producer also gives tracking information to monitor and improve your nurturing strategies. Save time and convert more leads with a powerful CRM like Top Producer.
3. Call your leads
True, they may not answer. But calling is a more personal touch than text or email. Even if you’re simply leaving a voicemail, calling allows the lead to hear your voice and feel more connected to you, hopefully prompting them to call you back.
Pro Tip
Plan in advance what you’re going to say if they answer and what message you’ll leave if they don’t answer. It’s easy to get caught off guard and fumble your words without this advanced preparation (I know from experience)!
4. Send snail mail
Old school? Yes. Memorable? Yes. When used as one part of a multi-pronged lead nurturing plan, snail mail serves as an important pattern interrupt. Very few real estate agents consistently mail to their leads.
You may be wondering how you get a lead’s address. You can look it up in public record if they already own a home (this isn’t as easy with renters), or you can give them an incentive to give you their address, such as running a contest in which people need to fill out a form to enter to win. Make the address field mandatory on the form, and there you go!
This method does cost money, unlike calling or texting. Although companies like Wise Pelican make it quite affordable and easy to implement. Upload your own mailing list or have Wise Pelican curate a list based on geographic, demographic or property types. Then, design your mail and press send. Real estate nurturing done easy!
5. Connect on social media
Presumably, some of your real estate leads may have come from social media already, which makes this strategy even easier. If you’re already connected on a social media platform, use that platform to build a relationship with your leads. Send DMs, proactively comment and like their content and stay consistent with your own content creation to remain relevant and stay top of mind.
If you are not already connected with your leads on social media (perhaps they registered on your website or attended a webinar you hosted), search for them and connect with them. Use your best judgment here; I’d lean towards following on IG or connecting on LinkedIn versus sending a friend request on Facebook.
6. Meet in person
Some leads will originate “in the wild.” Maybe you will meet someone at the chamber of commerce or at your local bar who mentions they’re thinking about moving but aren’t quite ready yet. You’ll still want to get the lead’s contact information so you can control the communication and keep in touch. But I would also recommend attempting to see them again in person. Attend the next chamber of commerce meeting. Go back to that bar.
In-person communication is the highest and best way to build rapport and trust, as you not only have words and tone, you have body language. Experts disagree about the exact percentage, yet we can all agree that body language and tone add elements to communication. So do what you can to meet your leads in person; it will help you build the relationship faster.
7. Host an event to nurture your leads
One of my favorite lead nurturing strategies is hosting events. Events are not just for past clients! You can (and should) be liberal in your event invitations. Include past and current clients, all your real estate leads, anyone who has ever referred a client to you, anyone who would refer a client to you when they have the opportunity to, affiliated partners, friends, family and neighbors.
Imagine how special a potential buyer or seller will feel when they receive an invitation to an event hosted by a real estate agent they haven’t even worked with yet. They may not choose to attend, but that’s irrelevant. The invitation will go a long way to nurturing the lead.
Real estate lead nurturing best practices
Now that you have the strategies, let’s dive into the best practices to make your lead nurturing efforts even more effective.
- Always provide value: Avoid the boring and unhelpful “just checking in to see if you’re ready to buy a house yet!” Instead, give your leads something they want. Examples: information about off-market properties, advice about how to prepare their home for sale or a new portfolio loan program your preferred lender is offering.
- Nurture your leads using multiple strategies: A multi-strategy approach allows you to follow up more often with your real estate leads while not seeming pushy. If someone receives a text, a call, an email, a postcard and a comment on their IG within the span of a week, it won’t feel like as much communication as five phone calls in that same week’s time.
- Be patient: Real estate lead nurturing takes time. It can take months or years to convert a cold lead from the internet to a client. That’s ok. Be patient and focus on filling your pipeline for the future. That mindset will set you up for success.
- Be organized and consistent: The other key to success in nurturing your leads is organization and consistency. Thankfully, there are tools to help with this. Get a good CRM like Top Producer or Market Leader and use it. Add every lead to the system and make sure you have a plan for keeping in touch regularly, using a variety of the strategies above.
The full picture
Real estate lead nurturing and conversion is a numbers game, yet it consists of real people who need our help. Finding the balance between automation and personal touch is key, which is why I recommend a multi-strategy approach to lead nurturing. Keep your content valuable, stay consistent and watch your conversion rates improve as your lead nurturing skills flourish!
