Reader Q&A

A reader asks

I have a couple of questions about Permission Marketing: How can I get the first attention? How can I ask for permission to contact without interrupting them?

Before I answer your question, let me start with an example of the traditional approach to marketing (aka “interruption marketing”) and permission marketing. You walk into a store and a salesman immediately asks if he can help you. What’s your reaction? In many cases, it’s “No, thanks. I’m just looking.”

But, as you are browsing the store’s merchandise, perhaps something captures your attention. Maybe you find an item of clothing but can’t find your size. Maybe you spot an electronic device but aren’t sure of the technical specs. Suddenly, you are much more receptive to talking with someone who might help you make a more informed purchasing decision. read full entry

A reader asks:

I am a highly experienced marketing guy. I’m good at putting together marketing plans but not so good at speaking in front of people. Whenever I speak, my mind fills with hesitation and fear. How can I get rid of this problem?

Public speaking is a great way to market your services. Just by getting up in front of an audience, you set yourself apart as a leader who is confident in your expertise and skill set. Yet public speaking is also a source of fear and anxiety for many, many people. read full entry

A reader asks:

When the real estate market is down, no response to advertisement/promotion & target customers are reluctant to buy or invest now & would like to wait for some time even though the rates have been reduced & promotional offers are provided, how would a real estate marketer generate potential leads & attract customers for sales to sustain in such uncertain market?

It’s no secret our economy has taken a downturn. With Wall Street in crisis, the credit market tightening, Detroit on the verge of bankruptcy and millions of Americans scrimping to get by, it’s not surprising that home sales are down considerably.

Yes, many people are taking a “wait and see” approach to real estate rather than jumping in to buy or sell a home. Lots of people aren’t looking to buy or sell right now. read full entry

From the comments:

I have a website that I have spent long hours making it and adding information to it. I also get a stream of about 2,500 visitors a month, but I don’t have anyone emailing me about any questions or just anything. So far I have had two contacts. Tell me what else do I need or do to improve. Thank you.

Sargon, it sounds like you are doing a number of things right.

• You’re providing lots of good information.
• You give away free reports to attract buyers and sellers.
• You offer several ways for people to contact you.
• You’re looking for ways to convert visitors to leads.

You’ve realized that traffic is virtually useless unless you can convert those visitors into leads, which means you’re off to a great start. So how can you start generating more leads from your website? read full entry

This is a bonus sixth step in the continuing series on how new agents can successfully break into the real estate market. (FYI disclosure: I use a few affiliate links throughout this article.)

I’ll close this series by going back to Mike’s original question. As a new agent, if I had $2500, how would I spend it? read full entry

This is step 5 of a five-part series on how new agents can successfully break into the real estate market.

Yesterday, I talked about the importance of nurturing your prospect list. Today, I’m going to shift gears and discuss what you need to do to build a referral-based business.

Last week, Mike asked me, “Where do you get the most bang for your buck in marketing?” Personally, I think there’s no question that it’s referral marketing. So why did I spend the last few days talking about building credibility, educating prospects, generating leads and following up consistently? Because when you’re starting out, those are the steps to building a referral-based business. read full entry

This is step 4 of a five-part series on how new agents can successfully break into the real estate market.

Most small-business owners (myself included) are guilty of not following up with all leads they generate. When leads pour in, it’s tempting to cherry pick the low hanging fruit while ignoring all the others who aren’t quite ready to hire you yet.

In yesterday’s post, I discussed how to create education-based marketing materials that your prospects will want to read. The purpose of creating those types of marketing materials is to get prospects to self-identify themselves as interested in what you have to offer by giving you their contact information and permission to follow up. read full entry

This is step 3 of a five-part series on how new agents can successfully break into the real estate market.

Yesterday, I discussed why agents should focus on creating education-based marketing materials that address prospects’ key problems and concerns rather than focusing on “getting their name out there.” In today’s article, I’ll talk about the best ways to generate leads using those education-based marketing materials – but first, let me again stress why education-based marketing is so important.

Marketing in the Attention Economy

Irrelevant advertising no longer works. Sure, back in the ’50s when there were only a handful of magazines, TV and radio channels, it was fairly easy to reach a broad audience and tell them virtually anything you wanted them to know. If you repeated your message enough or had a cute jingle accompanying your commercial, prospects would remember it and, hopefully, they’d buy because of it. read full entry

This is step 2 of a five-part series on how new agents can successfully break into the real estate market.

General common sense dictates that your marketing materials should tell prospects who you are, what you do and what you’ve accomplished. If you pick up any ad, mailer, or other promotional material, chances are you’ll read about the agent’s accomplishments, sales background and history, or awards they’ve won. Yet this is exactly the opposite of what works in advertising.

The problem with this approach is that it focuses on boosting the agent’s ego rather than addressing their prospects’ problems, fears and concerns. Agents love to see their name and picture on billboards around town, or create a glossy, full-color brochure they can hand out, or design a website with lots of bells and whistles. read full entry

This is step 1 of a five-part series on how new agents can successfully break into the real estate market.

Building credibility and expertise as a new agent is somewhat of a chicken or egg dilemma. You need clients to gain credibility and expertise, yet clients won’t hire you unless you already have that credibility and expertise. What is a new agent to do?

When your prospects analyze which agent to hire, they also weigh in risk – and hiring a brand new real estate agent who has only worked with one or two people is incredibly risky, especially in a down market. What if problems come up or you make a mistake that prevents them from buying the house they want? What if you don’t know about marketing techniques other agents are using? What if you fill out the forms wrong or any number of things that might possibly go wrong? read full entry