Email marketing is a vital part of your overall marketing mix, which should include print marketing, email, your website, and social media.
However, many Realtors® who get a lead’s contact information suddenly feel stuck. What do you say? How do you introduce yourself and get the lead interested in continuing to communicate with you?
If you’ve ever felt a little tongue-tied when it comes to email communication, this blog post is for you. Here are five emails you should send to every new lead.
The Welcome Email
The very first thing that you should send when you get a new potential client is a welcome email. This should be sent after the email that delivers the free download, if that’s how the lead signed up.
The welcome email should let new leads know that you’re happy they signed up and give them some background on the services you offer. You should also set expectations about how often they will hear from you, and what you like to talk about.
Most importantly, keep the welcome email – and all other communication – focused on the leads and their needs. You can share some of your accomplishments, but only as a way of showing how you can serve others!
An Education Series (3 Emails)
The next step is to keep the leads’ interest warm by nurturing them. You do this by educating them about real estate in a way that’s helpful. You can choose to do three emails about different topics, or have each message build on the previous one.
You can send out useful seasonal tips, talk about how to stage a house for sale, or discuss common life issues like how to make space in your home for a returning adult child or an elderly parent.
Of course, selling your home and buying a new one should be an option you mention, but it shouldn’t be the only solution. Share other genuinely helpful tips as well.
Space these out over time, but not too far. You don’t want someone to forget about you in between emails! Ideally, you told them what to expect in the welcome email and you can stick to that schedule.
An Invitation to Buy
As real estate agents, our “invitation to buy” isn’t as straightforward as someone selling a product. However, we do have a lot of ways to ask for a sale as a real estate agent.
If you’ve only sent 3 – 4 communications to someone, your first invitation to buy should be small. You’ve probably heard the analogy that marketing is like dating – you don’t want to ask someone to marry you on the first date!
Instead, think about what’s appropriate now that they know you a little better and have a feel for what you do. Can you invite them to join a webinar? Can you ask them to attend an in-person event at your office with other leads?
Think about what small step forward someone would be willing to take that would build the level of commitment they have toward you and move them toward accepting a listing presentation or other service.
Keep the Communication Going!
Congratulations! You’ve sent your first five emails. Now is not the time to stop, however! It takes a lot of “touches,” or communication from you, before someone knows, likes, and trusts you enough to engage in a major transaction.
If your lead didn’t respond to your invitation to buy, circle back and offer more educational pieces until they become comfortable. If they did respond, consider nurturing them with more information that’s focused on buying and selling homes, building up to asking for a meeting or presentation.
As with all marketing, consistency is key! Don’t feel tongue-tied when it comes to email. These simple tips will get the ball rolling, and then you can keep up your momentum from there.
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