It's being widely reported about the anticipated downturn in the market. Economists, journalists and other experts are warning that the good times with the housing industry are turning. In an article published last week by CNN Money, National Association of Realtors spokesman, Walter Maloney, commented, "We expect a very slow climb in the 30-year fixed, to 6.7 percent by the end of 2006."
As rates creep into the sixes and housing affordability becomes a bigger issue, potential homebuyers get pinched and the domino effect begins. Next, real estate agents get squeezed and then other ancillary industries, i.e., title & escrow, appraisal and mortgage.
If you don't have existing relationships with stable agents, what can you do to prepare for the upcoming change? Today's article covers 2 critical tips for improving your marketing planning so you avoid some potentially costly mistakes.
Prepare for Turnover
It's estimated in California that 86% of people cannot buy a typical home with a traditional down payment. If rates rise as expected, this will worsen. Soon thereafter, agents will be joining the ranks of the unemployed or changing careers, thinning your pool of prospects. But that's where lies your silver lining.
When the ranks are depleting, it helps sharpen your focus. So your first order of business with your marketing plan is to sharpen the pencil and define more clearly the agents you want to pursue.
You Attract What You Seek
The Law of Attraction says that you will draw toward you what you search for. If you've had trouble maintaining long-term relations with agents in the past, there's good reason that it's because you weren't specific to the kind of agent you targeted.
Just going after agents isn't smart enough. You have to be descriptive and detailed with the ideal prospect you want to convert into a client. And with a changing market, accounting for this measure takes precedence. Otherwise, you might secure relationships with agents who experience a short-lived career because they got pinched in the changing market cycle.
Appeal to the Masses
After you've defined your ideal prospect, the next order of business (marketing) is to uncover the largest audience you can penetrate. Loan officers heavily underestimate how many agents you must reach to find the ones that blossom into long-term profitable relationships.
Just because an agent sends you some of their business by no means constitutes a relationship. Relationships take time, patience and hard work. That's not to say that there isn't value in a short-term profitable relationship - a deal is a deal is a deal...right? But businesses that succeed over the long haul do so because they have stable and reliable relationships.
With your ideal prospect described, I recommend you speak with your peers and solicit names of agents who meet your criteria. If you have a relationship with someone in the title industry, give them a call and learn how they can help you by extracting a list from their databases. And finally, on your next trip to the store, swipe the free real estate magazines and research agents who print their website in their ads, giving you insights into their businesses.
With a list of your ideal prospects in hand you're ready to go about turning strangers into loyal clients.
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But how do I do it?
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It's one thing telling you all of this stuff about marketing; it's quite another thing knowing exactly how to do it and putting it into action.
That's why I compiled my information into comprehensive material - Become an Agent Magnet Program - and why I continue to get feedback from participants that tell me their business has taken off by using the ideas and strategies outlined in the materials.
Just last week, Joe Slaysman and Bruce McHenry with American Mortgage Specialists reported that since using some of the concepts outlined in my program over the past three months, they've connected with several agents. One, in particular, has sent multiple deals averaging over $300,000 per transaction and is kindly turning down solicitations from other lenders.
Unfortunately, in this weekly e-zine I can only skim the surface of the ideas contained in the program. If you really want to take your business to the next level, you need to get into the nitty-gritty detailed marketing action plans I've outlined there.
Learn more about it here and order online.
Thanks for support,
Jeff Nelson
Salesachievers
Helping loan officers attract more clients
© 2004, 2005 by Jeff Nelson
All rights reserved
