The unique perspective I have gained from speaking at over 50 events in the last year has taught me that while most people want the amazing and spectacular, what they really need is the simple.

The most common question I get from people both live and via my social media sites, is, "What's the one thing that I can do to create more business in the next month?" The truth is that there's no quick fix. Getting to the closing table takes time, repetition and persistence.

Most sales people are spending over 90% of their energy for a less than 5% return. Here are some supporting statistics from cumulative online reports sourcing the National Sales Executive Association. Did you know that...

• 48% of sales people never follow up with a prospect
• 25% of sales people make a second contact and stop
• 12% of sales people make more than three contacts

And yet 26.6% of all inquiries result in a sale.

This should motivate you:

• 2% of sales are made on the first contact
• 3% of sales are made on the second contact
• 5% of sales are made on the third contact
• 10% of sales are made on the fourth contact

Eighty percent of sales are made on the fifth to 12th contact.

How many of us can honestly say that we follow up more than four times with a prospect who is not ready to buy or sell in the next 60 days? According to the statistics above, 88% of us are guilty as charged. And yet, 80% of sales are made on the fifth through 12th contact, which means that too many of us are turning around and heading home right before we find the gold.

So what can you do about this? Remember, what we need is simplicity, not fireworks. Here are two systems I recommend you to set up today, or even better, right now.

1. Calendar Reminders. Using your contact management software, database or even your online calendar, set up reminders to call every single potential prospect you have or will come in contact with every month. For example, if you meet a potential buyer at an open house and you set them up with automatic search criteria, set up a reminder to call them once a month.

When you call, most likely they are not going to pick up. When you get their voicemail, leave a voicemail that says something like, "Hi (First Name). I just wanted to follow up with you about the properties I sent you and see if you had any questions or wanted to see any of them. I look forward to hearing back from you!"

That's it. Are they going to call back? Probably not, because they aren't ready to buy yet. But stick to the schedule and you'll be the go-to source when they are ready.

2. Automatic Emails. Set up an automatic email that goes out two weeks after your phone message each month that reiterates the same message as your voicemail. If you don't know how to set up automatic emails, seek assistance from someone in your office or someone in your sphere who is good with computers. This is an easy way to keep in touch because once you set it up, you are good to go. All you do is assign new prospects to your list, let your emails automate and wait for your reminders to make phone calls.

Here is why these methods are so important – even if your prospect doesn't purchase for the next 12 months, all you have invested is the less than 10 seconds that it took to leave them a voicemail once a month, totaling a two-minute time investment over the course of a year. And after you've been following up with someone for a year who is now ready to move forward and look at properties, guess who they are going to call?

The reality is most of us don't even remember who we have stopped following up with who ultimately moved forward on a purchase with another real estate agent. I believe if we saw the actual number of dollars we have cost ourselves, it would be heart wrenching.

So here is my advice – stop it! If you do nothing else this week, implement the two steps I talked about above. You can't afford not to.

To view the original article, visit RISMedia.