May 18, 2021
Today’s episode of The Real Estate Sales Podcast is all about an old-school technique that drastically increases outreach efforts: circle prospecting. This strategy doesn’t follow the ABC method (always be closing), but it does a conversation with your prospect. And, in the modern market, these conversations lead to relationships, which lead to conversion.
What is circle prospecting?
- Circle prospecting is sharing new information with people who own homes about their neighborhood.
- This information should be new data they aren’t aware of. The goal is to offer value to your prospects that they don’t realize they need.
- When Jimmy first started circle prospecting, he would circle potential houses to contact based on his recent listing or target house. Luckily, there are now tools that make this process more efficient.
How do you get the seller’s information?
- Check the property appraiser’s website or tax rolls for phone numbers, closing information, and more.
- There are also platforms like the Forewarn app, Cole Realty Resource, and Truthfinder to find the contact information you need.
- The takeaway? It’s a lot easier to get phone numbers than you might think.
Before you make the first call:
- Know the history of the neighborhood and the house you base you’re targeting around. Be aware of sold comparables, addresses, the price/square foot, and CDOM.
- Also be familiar with the neighborhood, like any houses available, market comparison, and the average price/ square foot.
Jimmy’s first-call script tips:
- Focus on building conversations and providing value for people down the line
- Let people in the neighborhood know when there’s a listing near them, and ask if they know anyone looking to buy a home.
- This helps you identify anyone looking to buy a house and plants a seed to contact you if they are looking to sell their own home.
- Ask the neighbors if their neighbors are interested in selling, but don’t ask about their own home. They’ll mention if they want to sell.
- Offer to give them information about their neighborhood and provide value to them.
After the call: develop your email list:
- The main point (besides relationship building) of these calls is to walk away with a list of email addresses for these people.
- Send emails to your list at least once a month. In these, provide relevant neighborhood information like when a house is bought or sold.
- Make sure you have a system set up to let them know the activity in their neighborhood.
- Give them an unsolicited video CMA every six months. If you want to know how to send the perfect unsolicited video, check out our previous episode.
Connect with Jimmy Burgess on LinkedIn and Facebook, as well as his YouTube channel.
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