How To Get Your Phone Ringing off the Hook! Brand Me LLC. in Leasing

WARNING! This article is going to generate more phone calls for you than you could possibly handle yourself! How do you get your phone to ring off the hook? I mean ring like crazy! You need your phone exploding to make the big money! How do you get your phone ringing more often than other real estate offices with leasing prospects? I have some inside tips and tricks that are going to blow up your phone.

Think about it, why do people call you in the first place? Not just prospects but anyone. If you think about your family and friends, why are they calling you? I would track it if you could. This will provide you some insights into why people pick up the phone and call you. There are only a few reasons people ever call you and they are that they need you to help them solve a problem, they want to tell you about something that has happened to them, they have some news to get to you, or they want you to buy something. If you want your phone to ring more often you need more people to know you. You simply right now do not know enough people.

Being great at getting to know more people and generating traffic/leads only takes a few consistent steps but these steps are different than they were 10 years ago. The internet has changed the way people buy!

There are 7 professional ways to market property that result in explosive leads and they are:

1. Personal Website- Everyone needs a personal website. Having a personal website helps people to know who you are and what you do.  You have to brand yourself and not wait for your company to gain recognition. Your website is where your buyers are going to go to find your video, audio, written content, success stories, social media, and follow up after networking. Your personal website is foundational to your brand. Make sure that you have a way to captures leads. Then you can cultivate the relationship with your leads. Not every time a prospect finds you are they in the position to lease from you.
2. Video - Posting video content. This content should start by gaining attention and identifying a need that consumers have. Next, provide information help you prospect make the decision to lease. Next offer alternatives, assist the buyer in making the purchasing decision and help them affirm their decision.
3. Audio - Speaking to groups is vitally important to getting your phone ringing off the hook. Weather you are speaking at a civic organization or at a prospects work for a lunch and learn you must get in front of groups of people who are in your target market to get your phone ringing off the hook. I recommend asking everyone what groups they belong to and asking them if you could speak to them.
4. Written content - Coaching participants often ask me what to say when they are in front of groups of people. This is specifically why it is important to develop content. You have to be well prepared and time to speak and be original. You do not need to write a 30 page ebook to state, develop a couple of short brief articles that meet your prospect's hot button needs.
5. Success Stories- Nothing makes the phone ring more than success stories. You absolutely MUST gain client success stories. Telling success stories over and over again accomplishes many of the requirements of leasing to your new prospects.
6. Social Media - You are going to have to get into the social media game if you want new clients, Facebook, Linkedin, Twitter, Instagram, Youtube, Craigslist, and Blogger. In addition you must Master and dominate Zillow and other rental specific sites. Your content should be all over social media with easy ways to contact you. Use your videos, take videos of recent move in clients ask them if you can post it.  Post video of how beautiful your ready property is to everything. Think about clever things to post what would gain attention you need. Make sure to connect with leads and prospects as they call you.
7. Networking - Connecting old school should be promoted in the new school of business. Sharing your experience with your prospects is important. Your prospects like to see you working hard in your marketplace. Never miss a networking event, and never miss the opportunity to capture valuable content at these events. Post video, pictures, and written content about the event you are attending. Make sure to like it all back to your leasing efforts.  

Today’s consumers go through a process very different than the purchaser/consumer pre 2008.  According to a recent article from October 2014 titled,  The 5 Stages of Consumer Buying Decision Process, the author describes stage one as need recognition, stage two as information search, stage three as  alternative evaluation, stage four as purchasing decision, and stage five as post purchasing decision (Perreau, 2014). Make sure your content plays the role of assisting the consumer with their decision.

In 2010, while working for a property management company, I was assisting in generating traffic and leasing homes for the organization. Of course tradition outside marketing techniques worked, rental lead sites, and paid advertising  What I was strong at doing was building my list. Not every time I talked to someone were they ready to lease. I was strong at following up with leads until they leased. I sent follow up emails every week. In addition I would call them from time to time. I also attempted to provide them relevant content in a newsletter that would help them no matter where they were living.  

The following list is a bonus of 5 additional things I personally do for follow up that keep my phone ringing off the hook:

1. Thank you cards. Every time someone toured a home with me I sent them a handwritten thank you note.  I always included two business cards.
2. Mail them a postcard if they did not lease with $100 off their move in.
3. Email a follow up video personalized using their name in the video. You might say something like, “This is Nathan, (Prospect’s Name), with XYZ Management. Have called you a couple of times because I wanted to let you know about a specials we are running with our recently renovated homes. Please call me at 555-555-5555.”
4. Mail the prospect $1.00 lottery tickets with a handwritten note: “We would be lucky to have you as a tenant!”  
5. Knock doors of all the property around your property. Take flyers to every home on the street. The flyer should be simple. Knock on each door. If there is someone that answers hand them the flyer and ask them if they know anyone who would like to live in a beautiful

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Nathan Bush is a highly sought after speaker, writer, author and real estate investment professional. One of the most inspirational and motivational men of his time. He delivers a high impact, educational performance that has improved businesses bottom line. With over 10 years of experience in the real estate industry and asset management industry, his systems have generated millions of dollars in bottom line profits for thousands of sales professionals, leasing agents, property managers, & investors.

Nathan is the Founder and President of Priority Investing, LLC. a National Consulting Practice impacting and changing lives across the United States. Nathan holds an MBA with an emphasis in accounting from Keller Graduate School of Management and a B.A in Nonprofit Management from Lindenwood University.  In addition to his degrees, he holds a Missouri real estate license and a National Apartment Leasing Professional (NALP) certification. He is currently a member of SCORE which is a nonprofit organization that serves to mentor start-up and growing businesses. Lastly, Nathan wrote the book Leadership Coaching as a Strategy for Employee Development and has been a guest speaker and facilitator at national conferences on the topics of leadership.

For More information: www.nathanbushmba.com

References:

Perreau. F (2014). The 5 stages of Consumer Buying Decision Process. http://theconsumerfactor.com/en/5-stages-consumer-buying-decision-process/