Today we’re sharing an article that was written by IXACT Contact partner and real estate trainer Richard Robbins of Richard Robbins International, which recently appeared in REM Magazine. It’s an important piece because a real estate contact management system is essential to much of what he discusses. We’ll post a snippet of the article and a link at the end of this post.
One key theme of the article is that you have to master relationship-building in order to provide your customers with that ultimate service experience. As Richard says, “The secret to better serve, protect and support your clients, is to take time to get to know them.”
As a great Agent you need to understand what your clients’ needs, wants, and motivations are, their current and future plans, and what’s going on right now in their lives. So next time you meet or give them a call, you can ask about Bobby’s baseball or hockey tournament, for example.
The other theme is that the best agents position themselves as experts in their field. They do this by providing their clients and prospects with a monthly e-Newsletter filled with useful and interesting real estate related content and by being the “go-to person” for recommendations on reputable home professionals, like mortgage brokers and interior designers. Richard has some other ideas for you and puts it well when he says, “Build a reputation based on what you know, not simply on what you sell.”
Now, I mentioned at the beginning of this post that a real estate contact management system is essential to all of this. Here’s why: first, most of us don’t have a memory like an elephant, so a contact management system helps us store and manage all of our valuable client information, including our communication history with them.
Second, one way to build on a relationship is by staying in touch. A real estate contact management system lets you automate a lot of your keep in touch communications, send out real estate email marketing pieces, schedule and remember phone calls and face-to-face meetings, and do direct mail. It also lets you easily send out an e-Newsletter, which is great for positioning yourself as a “home expert.”
Third, some contact management systems, such as IXACT Contact, come with a built-in Business Directory that you can sort and filter based on profession. This enables you to quickly and easily recommend the right person to a client in a snap. In addition to the benefits of a Business Directory that we discussed above, check out this article and learn why referring other professionals is truly a win-win-win situation.
Enjoy Richard’s article below:
Real estate transactions are stressful. They’re a big deal. They might not seem that way to you, but for your clients, the sale of their home and the purchase of a new home is a central occurrence in their lives often fraught with moments of anxiety and angst. Thankfully, they have you to guide them through the hurdles and alleviate their fears.
Each time you work with a client you are doing far more than executing a transaction; you’re being given the opportunity to make a difference in someone’s life.
I invite you to stop seeing yourself as someone who closes deals and to begin seeing yourself as someone who makes a difference. Stop thinking about making a sale and start thinking about making the process of buying and selling better.
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