3 Proven Campaigns to Keep Your Sales Pipeline Full

There's been a huge shift in the behavior of real estate consumers over the past decade and a half. More people are finding their homes online, and very few (only 1 percent!) are relying on traditional methods like newspapers to find homes.

This shift in consumer behavior necessitates a shift in agent marketing behavior. So what are the tactics that agents should take in this new, digital age? To find out, we asked the experts at The Paperless Agent, a company that offers agents training on digital marketing. They're owned and operated by the leaders of GoodLife Realty, and they shared the "cornerstone campaigns" that their brokerage uses to fill their sales pipeline, secure future clients, and grow their business.

Ready? Here goes...

Campaign 1: Marketing to Your Network

For most agents, your sphere of influence is your best source of potential new business. These are the people who already know and trust you, and are likely to refer others your way. But how do you stay in contact with your network in a way that's meaningful and doesn't annoy them? After all, this is the era of caller ID, screening calls, and texting, so calling your network may be seen as intrusive.

The Paperless Agent recommends staying in touch via email newsletters. This is the method that their associated brokerage, GoodLife Realty, uses. "We provide content and information that is useful and relevant via an email newsletter, and then we use this newsletter as a reason to reach out and call our network," says Chris Scott, President of The Paperless Agent.

Their newsletter is broken into four distinct parts (click here to see an example):

• Section 1: The newsletter introduction and calls to action for sellers or buyers. Placing this prominently lets those who already know they want help buying or selling a home can find more information immediately.

• Section 2: An article with a local market update. Scott says that the number one thing people ask them is 'How's the market?' This article gives them what they want and lets you, the agent, highlight your expertise. GoodLife Realty also records a video to accompany the article. The video explains what the numbers mean and offers a more personal touch. "Even if you don't end up speaking with someone directly, they still get to see you and and hear your voice, which leaves a stronger impression," says Scott. Plus, it's excellent content that you can repurpose on your blog, social media, and elsewhere!

• Section 3: Featured listings. "This is what we like to call 'real estate porn,' says Scott. "People love seeing homes. Even if someone isn't interesting in buying at the moment, people enjoy browsing."

• Section 4: The newsletter concludes with a few articles that GoodLife Realty has recently published to their blog. These posts typically share information useful to buyers and sellers, like tips on homeownership, the selling process, area news, etc.

While the newsletter is full of useful information, Scott says that its main purpose is to give agents a reason to follow-up with a phone call. Here's a basic script that they use:

You don't have to call every contact who receives your newsletter every month (instead, call a different set of contacts each month). However, if you touch base with a contact every quarter, Scott says that this script is very effective.

Campaign 2: Just Listed

"Just Listed" campaigns have been used in real estate forever. This classic farming technique lets agents market the home, market themselves, and get more listings.

Postcards have long been the traditional medium for these campaigns, but they are expensive to print and mail, and there's no way to track their effectiveness. Rather than relying on postcards, GoodLife Realty has turned to digital methods instead. Facebook ads are cheaper, more effective, and are easier to target to the right audience.

To do this, simply create a Facebook ad that targets people who live in a specific neighborhood or zip code, people who are likely to buy in the near future, or people in certain income ranges. And, bonus, because Facebook tracks the effectiveness of your ads, you can share those stats with your sellers to show them all the great marketing you're doing on their behalf.

Campaign 3: Expired Listings

Finally, The Paperless Agent recommends marketing to expired listings--with a caveat. Prospecting expireds can be difficult because these homeowners are likely getting a ton of calls from other agents. Rather than annoying them with another phone call, The Paperless Agent advocates taking a different approach.

This campaign features multiple touch points and plans for all possible contingencies--whether or not they answer the phone, if you leave a voicemail, or if you talk in person, etc.

First, you need to get the list of recent expired listings in your area. Once you have that, take these steps:

1. Drop off a printed report titled, "My Home Didn't Sell, Now What?" that offers owners of expired listings information on what they can do now that their home didn't sell. Why printed? "Hand delivering a useful, nicely designed and packaged report shows that we put in personal time, energy, and effort," says Scott. "Doing so shows that we care, and it also creates a sense of obligation to respond."
2. If you're not able to talk with the owner when we drop off the report, follow-up with a phone call.
3. If you still can't get a hold of them, leave a voicemail and drop off a sticky note asking if they received the package. Then, try to either catch them in person or on the phone.
4. After that, if you still can't get a hold of them, add them to an email drip sequence to stay in touch with them and deliver more useful content.

GoodLife Realty reports that their agents receive a 50 percent response rate from homeowners when they follow these steps.

Wrapping Up

Want to learn about even more campaigns to help fill your sales pipeline? Check out The Paperless Agent's new Real Estate Digital Marketer (REDM) certification course. You'll get more high-tech (but easy!) tips and tricks for quickly and effectively growing your business. For more information, visit http://thepaperlessagent.com/redm.