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November 2007
Index of all
past
Affiliate Corner columns
Generate a flow of referrals by practicing relationship marketing
By Karen Saunders,
SendOutCards
The good news...REALTORS® get as much as 90 percent of their business from relationships or referrals.
The bad news...91 percent of all real estate agents are forgotten one or two years after they close or represent a buyer on a home because they don’t stay in touch with their client.
Use the Rule
To get referrals, try tapping into the “Rule of 250.” Each one of us knows at least 250 people. Each one of those people knows another 250 people. You can use this vast network; every single person is a potential prospect.
What is relationship marketing?
People do business with those they know, like, and trust. It’s your job to make this connection happen. When you consistently follow up with your customers and prospects, you’re building strong relationships.
We can learn from a story about Joe Girard, who was listed in The Guinness Book of World Records as the “World’s Greatest Retail Salesman” for twelve consecutive years.
Girard was not born with a silver spoon in his mouth. He was abused by his father, he lost jobs and he went bankrupt. He finally landed a job at a Chevrolet dealership. There, Girard did very well, personally selling more cars than most entire dealerships. In fact, people would stand in line to buy a car from him. What was his secret?
Girard practiced relationship marketing. He sent 13 handwritten cards to each of his clients and prospects every year. They all received one card a month and one on Christmas. These cards were cards of appreciation, tips, and giveaways—never about special sales, discounts, or promotions. His recipients began to anticipate those cards every month, and Girard was the first person on their mind when they were ready to buy a car.
What can we learn from this story? Understand the power of giving to give. Every single human being wants to feel acknowledged, loved and appreciated. When you send love and appreciation out into the world, you’ll get it back tenfold. This is the law of attraction. The popular book The Secret shows how to apply this law to achieve anything you want in your personal and business life.
Stay in touch
Once a quarter, send a newsletter about yourself and your family to create a personal connection. Once a quarter (on the alternate months), send a real estate insight letter to build credibility. Every month, send a note of appreciation, tip, or giveaway. Send birthday cards, seasonal cards, and consider sending cards on closing date anniversaries. Also, hold client appreciation parties and send out your brochure once a year.
Stay connected with your contacts with cards, e-mails, newsletters and phone calls. Did you know that you lose 10 percent of your influence every month that you don’t have contact with your client? And just a five percent increase in customer loyalty could add 20-80 percent to your bottom line.
Build strong relationships with the people you serve and they’ll provide you unlimited referrals. Those referrals will carry you through low cycles when the real estate industry is soft, like it is now. Make relationship marketing part of your business today, and it will pay off handsomely one or two years later.
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