What's the primary idea that pops in your head when somebody talks to you about a referral letter marketing system for Realtors? You probably figure I'm talking about getting testimonials from your past clients to use in your marketing, correct? That's a great Realtor marketing plan too. Although, how about having a steady flow of motivated clients given to you by other well-thought-of professionals like attorneys, financial planners, tax accountants and remodeling contractors? And all you'll need is a "down-to-earth" letter that you jot down yourself.
This is how I'd sum up referral letter marketing for real estate agents: Grab a list of well-thought-of professionals in your area that may have the same type of clients you do. Then, sending it by regular mail, write a personal letter to your list of respected professionals.
When it comes to the envelope you send off your letter in, make certain it stands out and isn't the uniform white envelope we find everyday. Be certain to follow up by phone, if you can, with each professional that you've sent your letter to.
There are a ton of "top producing" Realtors who borrow this one approach to bring about the bulk of their closings. Don't worry, there's nothing immoral with copying what the "big boys" practice.
1st, let's get a list of professionals that actually have the clients you could work with...
- CPAs
- Home Loan Consultants (I'm confident you recognize this one)
- Financial Planners (certified)
- Real Estate Lawyers/Attorneys
- General Contractors
- Appraisers
- Escrow Officers
- Electricians (residential or maybe commercial, depending on your business)
- Plumbers (residential)
- Landscaping Companies
- Tree Trimming Contractors
- Residential Handymen
- Makes sense?
Of course, there are many more professionals to add to the list but that'll have you going for today.
You're probably questioning how to get all these professional's information to advertise to, right? Wonderful question, glad you asked. You have a duo of options, depending on how much money you hold in your marketing budget.
You can sift through the on-line yellow pages, which is an economical alternative. As a Realtor, you already have a "farm area" you operate in so you'll want to keep within those borders. With the yellow pages choice, the downside is that it can be time consuming.
You have to move through each person listed and get their name, phone number and mailing address. This method can take a long time but if your marketing budget is small, this is the free way to go.
Another choice for building this marketing list of professionals is to just pay money for a list. Exactly as you're on a "Realtor list" out there someplace for sale, these professionals are on lists that the general public is able to pay money for as well.
Don't be concerned, these types of lists are not dishonest or anything. Several individuals don't know but these types of lists are compiled and available for sale when professionals, like us real estate agents, join an association or provide their info to a publication that they subscribe to.
See why all that Realtor junk mail and email somehow gets sent to you?
There are quite a few list companies out there to pick from. The list company you choose ought be able to supply you with every profession you'll require, rather than going to one company for a CPA list, another company for an attorney list, and so on. I tell you, it'll cost you a few dollars for this list but it's going to salvage you hours of precious time!
However you prefer to get your list of professionals, once you have it, it's time to kickoff penning your "personalized" letter. I'm not going to get into how to pen sales copy here though. That's a topic all by itself.
For now, you should to realize that this letter can't be a regular "sales" letter that you'd mass mail to a farm area to create listing leads, ok?
When one of the professionals on your list gets your letter, you want them to feel as if they're the only individual who received it, even if you might copy it and mail it to the rest of your list.
The trick is penning your letter as if you were speaking to each professional in-person. Do not be like your local bank and write down some kind of "this is so boring I could vomit" referral marketing letter. Grab the reader's curiosity, write to them like a genuine person and not like an institution.
The "meat and potatoes" of the letter needs to explain that you would like to create a professional relationship with them where you can refer business to one another. You want to be their "go to" Realtor or agent for the remainder of their career. Specify for these professionals however they will benefit without "selling" them, make sense?
If you happen to know a personal tid bit about their company or a client they've worked with, toss it in your letter. If a professional has helped a client you know, feel free to write that in your letter also. Unless you gossip about their momma, for some reason, it's almost inconceivable for you to get too personal in your letter.
I would kindly tell you to write this letter yourself, in your own words. But if you just hate writing this kind of marketing material, you can employ an economical self-employed writer to do it for you.
To see some self-employed writers, you can Google "freelance writers for hire" and check out several of your options there for companies to make use of. With a number of companies, they even allow you to sort through their writers from across the world. The cool thing is several of these companies permit you see reviews on each writer, how much they charge and even reach them with "consultation questions". On some sites, you can post an opening for the project you need written and have self-employed writers apply to you. It's pretty cool.
Now that you have your referral marketing letter completed and your list of professionals to mail it to, let's get them mailed out. Only please don't simply mail it in a simple white envelope like everybody else... pretty please!
Alternatively, grab a distinctive looking envelope that has some unusual size or color to it. You need that letter to stand out from all the additional mail this guy or gal is getting that day. Also, a nifty way to personalize your letter and get it opened, is to have the mailing and return addresses hand-scripted.
When you gather your mail, which pieces do you open straight away and which ones do you toss without a second look? Hand-scripted addresses move to the top of the stack, every time.
A bonus you'll need to include, in the package, is some type of marketing piece in addition to your referral letter. A creative marketing idea could be a DVD that you create through Animoto, showcasing yourself (not as scary as it sounds).
I have a buddy who sold life insurance and had the brilliant idea to mail out little poker chips with his information printed on them. His theme was "Don't gamble with your life".
Brilliance! That's the sort of creative juice you want to have flowing if you desire to be the top dog Realtor or agent in your area.
Getting back to this referral letter, I'd suggest that you point them not only to your telephone number but also your site or blog. It's vital to provide them the option of how to contact you. You can never tell who hates talking on the phone and who hates looking at websites.
This final step is probably the most significant. The mother of all keys to marketing is "repetition". If you look at marketing stats in general, it's been shown that consumers and prospects need to hear or see the same marketing message more than 6-7 times before they feel comfy enough to answer back.
So continue following up with these professionals on your marketing list. After you've sent your initial referral letter, try following up by regular mail or a phone call about 1 time a month. If you have it, using a professional's email address would be a fine follow up as well.
As it is with dating, you want to be careful to not smother and irritate them or else you can count on never getting referrals from them, ever. Be courteous and give them space but at the same time, don't let them forget which Realtor or agent they have to be sending clients to.
As a side note, if you have the marketing money but don't have the time, think about hiring a teenager or college kid to stuff these mailers. You can write down the referral letters yourself but have your hired-hand address the envelope, stuff it with the letter and marketing piece and have them mail it out.
It's cheap labor, just like US companies do when they hire overseas workers for their customer service call centers (did I just drop in a cheap shot?).
Seriously, this is just one of the better, long-term and short-term marketing tips for Realtors. As long as you are consistent about building these relationships, you can garner yourself a career-long stream of free client referrals.
Josh F. Sanders is a Real Estate Broker and the Founder of Shiloh Street University in Seattle, WA. SSU is an online marketing school for Realtors, dedicated to “Creating Wealthy Agents through World-Class Marketing” by providing step-by-step video lead-generation tutorials. Get your "FREE 5 Day Sneak Peek" at Shiloh Street University.
