It happens to everyone – you get busy with current business and your communication with leads and past clients begins to deteriorate. Sometimes it goes so long that they essentially become a cold contact again. It’s frustrating, especially as this can seriously hurt the future of your real estate business. Thankfully, there are ways to effectively re-engage with these contacts, and to prevent them from ever going cold again.
1. Send an e-Greeting Card
If it has been a very long time since a contact heard from you, starting out with something overtly sales-oriented probably isn’t going to go over well. Instead, think about sending them a nice e-Greeting card that shows you are thinking of them. If they are a past client, the odds are good that you have their birthday or move-in anniversary stored somewhere, so send them a card on those special days. If this is a contact for whom you don’t have any specific information, a more generic holiday like Thanksgiving or even Halloween are perfect opportunities to reach back out. When you use IXACT Contact, we provide a whole library of e-Greeting cards for a multitude of occasions, so you don’t have to go digging for one that will work. IXACT Contact also allows you to set automatic birthday and move-in anniversary reminders for all of your contacts so that you never forget those special days again. It’s a great way to warm up that relationship again, and to keep it going in the future.
2. Send a Monthly e-Newsletter
As mentioned above, pushing anything too sales-focused might not be well-received by a cold contact. But something informational? That’s useful to everyone! By adding all of your contacts to your email list and sending out an e-Newsletter every month, you are gently reminding people of who you are and what you have to offer, while also demonstrating your real estate expertise. With IXACT Contact, this is even easier, as our automated e-Newsletter is pre-written for you with 3 fresh articles each month. You can customize these as much or as little as you want, and they’re mobile friendly to boot! You can also automatically assign new contacts to this list, so you don’t have to worry about them slipping through cracks when you get busy again.
3. Reach Out Directly
If the contact that has gone cold was one you used to have a rapport with, you should reach out directly and apologize for not being in touch. Picking up the phone is especially useful here, as it feels more personal. As you chat on the phone, make notes about things your contact mentions. Is their child playing a particular sport? Is their wedding anniversary coming up? Do they have a new baby on the way? These notes will help you keep your relationship strong moving forward, and also to help you discover if they might have any particular real estate needs coming up. Using IXACT Contact, you can enter all of your notes in the Contact Profile so you always have easy access to them. You can also assign a contact to an email drip campaign that fits their needs, so you are keeping in touch on a regular basis in a relevant way. Whether the contact needs a new home quickly or is thinking of downsizing in a couple of years, there’s a campaign that can suit their needs. You’ll be communicating regularly without even having to think about it, and when they are ready to take the next step, you’ll be at the top of their mind.
When a contact goes cold it can be easy to give up on them, but it isn’t necessary. In a few simple steps you can warm them up again and course correct so that they become a valuable part of your database. With the help of resources and automation offered by IXACT Contact, it’s even easier to re-engage cold contacts and prevent them from becoming cold again. Start your FREE 5 week trial of IXACT Contact now.
