As a realtor, you know that client relationships are the crux of your business.
To ensure that you keep a steady stream of clients, it’s important to stay in touch with those you’re currently working with or those you’ve helped in the past without becoming annoying or overly salesy. Sound impossible?
The good news is that this is easy to do! Thanks to digital marketing, a plethora of online tools, and communication forms, you can develop a strategic communication plan that keeps you in the loop with previous clients so that you gain new ones.
In this guide, we’re detailing 10 of the best strategies for reaching out to current and previous clients so that your business stays fresh in their minds and you get the referrals you’re after.
Why You Should Be Keeping In Touch With Past Clients
The key to having a successful real estate career isn’t in the listings, it’s in the lasting relationships.
Relationships are only made in this industry if you do your part (wisely) to create a communication strategy that reminds clients, both current and past, of your amazing business and customer service.
Past clients are a major key to growing your business as a realtor. They’re the ones who have experienced firsthand how helpful your services are and how hard you worked to sell their home or find them the new home of their dreams. And, other than leaving behind a nice review to use as social proof, they hold the power of referrals!
Here’s a shocking statistic for you: nearly 82% of all real estate business comes from referrals. What should that tell you? It should say that not only does this mean you owe it to your clients to give them the best experience possible when they hire you as their agent, but that you also owe it to yourself to ensure you remind said clients just how awesome you are from time to time. Enter, your new marketing strategy: keeping in touch with your past clients.
Once the paperwork has been signed and the keys have been handed over, the work for you still remains. Instead of forgetting about your client and working hard to land the next, consider how your current or previous clients can be the winning ticket to your new business.
Top 10 Ways to Reach Out to Previous Real Estate Clients
So, now that you know the benefit of staying in touch with previous clients, what’s the best way to stick around without being obnoxious? Consider these 10 ideas for resparking the communication between you and your clients.
1. Send Valuable Market Updates
It’s never too early or late to educate past clients on current market updates, especially if the information is of value. Are interest rates dropping? Is it currently or soon to be a seller’s market? Are there new, Pinterest-worthy homes for sale in the area? Share the news with your clients through a newsletter (digital or print), your email marketing sequences, or a postcard. Odds are if your client isn’t ready to make the next real estate move, they know someone who is or know who to recommend once their family or friend mentions needing the assistance of a realtor.
2. Ask For a Survey/Feedback
Once the dust has settled from your last closing – and your clients have had a chance to settle themselves into their new home – don’t be afraid to reach back out with a survey for feedback. This move will do two things for your business: 1) show you the areas your clients need the most help from you, and 2) remind clients of your amazing services. Not only will they give you valuable feedback to incorporate into your growing business so future clients have an even better experience, they’ll also remember you exist for their next real estate venture.
3. Make a Personalized Phone Call
Sometimes reaching back out to past real estate clients is about leaving lasting impressions, which is what a personal phone call will help achieve. Going the extra mile to call your clients personally to check-in speaks volumes about you as a professional that’ll leave a mark in the mind of your clients.
The best part is that you don’t have to call to ask about their interest in real estate. You can call to wish them a happy birthday, Merry Christmas, or for other special occasion greetings you remember from working with your client. Of course, if the conversation steers towards their new home, never miss an opportunity to ask how everything is going and to do a little bit of personal marketing!
4. Conduct Quarterly Check-Ins
As we mentioned earlier, reconnecting with past clients is a strategy that requires planning. The first step in planning your strategy is knowing who to reach out to in the first place. This can easily be accomplished with the help of a system like Cole’s Realty Source that allows you to create a custom search of homeowners in your area that fit specific criteria. Once you’ve generated a list of homeowners to contact, you can conduct quarterly check-ins.
Set a date four times a year to make your check-in rounds to previous clients to see how their current home is and if they know anyone who’s looking to sell or buy. Check-in messages can be short and sweet if you’re using email, and sound like this:
“Hey, [homeowner’s name], how are things going? The market is looking incredible right now for sellers. Are you interested in selling your home or know of someone who is?”
5. Send Special Occasion Postcards
If the thought of calling past clients breaks your body out into panic sweats, accomplish the same task with a personalized handwritten postcard on special occasions. Think about it: how often do you open the mailbox up to see a stack of bills? Mailing handwritten notes congratulating clients on achievements like anniversaries or wishing them happy holidays breaks up the dreaded monotony of financial responsibilities while also leaving a lasting impression on your clients.
6. Create an Automated Newsletter
There’s no industry that is above a killer email marketing strategy, real estate included! Setting up a regularly updated newsletter that you send out via email is an excellent way to continuously market your services to past clients to spread awareness of your business and industry insights in a fashion that potentially leads to increased work. The best part? It doesn’t have to be targeted to a specific client!
Whereas other ideas on our list require you to reach out to one client directly, an email newsletter goes to multiple at a time (literally to everyone who’s signed up for your email list). In this newsletter, you can share whatever information you want from industry updates to cool new listings and a general refresher of your services to stay fresh in hundreds of clients’ minds.
All you have to do is set up a platform you want to structure your email list around, get clients to sign up, and regularly push out content. By doing this, you’ll routinely remind clients of your real estate brand so they can share it with others.
7. Send Referral Requests
It may seem nerve racking and slightly unprofessional to outright ask existing or previous clients for referrals, but know that these are your own thoughts standing in the way of your growing business! Satisfied clients are typically more than happy to send referrals your way if they know anyone and make the introductions themselves, so don’t feel timid to occasionally reach out and ask clients if they have anyone in mind.
Want a cheat-sheet to ease the anxiety? Follow a script similar to the one below (or just steal it completely, we won’t mind!):
“Hey, [client’s name]. I’m reaching out to see if you know of anyone who’s in the market to buy or sell a home? I’m looking to grow my real estate business and would be thrilled if you could recommend my services to anyone in mind!”
8. Host a Client Appreciation Event
In-person ideas are wonderful for gaining more face to face time with clients both current and previous (and, hopefully, future ones). Make it a point to schedule a few in-person appreciation events or open houses throughout the year so you can talk to clients about current industry trends or current listings you have. To make it more memorable and fun, offer refreshments and cute knick-knacks for guests to take home.
9. Engage Through Social Media
Every realtor knows the importance of setting up social media accounts for their business, so use this as another medium to connect with past clients. Comment on or like their posts, respond to comments they may leave on yours, and don’t be afraid to slide into their DMs if the opportunity arises to remind them once again of your profession so you stay at the top of their mind. The more you show your face and name – even if it’s digital – the more remembered you’ll be.
10. Save the Day With Other Vendors
Did you know that you can remind past clients of your business while promoting other businesses too? It’s true!
As a realtor, you meet all kinds of vendors and contractors in the home sector that can come in handy for gaining more business. Here’s how:
When you’re conducting your quarterly check-ins or giving your past clients a long overdue ring, ask how everything is going and ask if there’s anything they need assistance with, like plumbing, electrical work, landscaping, or anything else around the home. If a client says that they are in need of a landscaper, inform them that you know just who to call. To go a step further and make an even stronger impression, offer to make the introduction yourself.
This act of kindness will leave a lasting mark in the mind of your client so that the next time they’re in need of a realtor or know of someone who is, they’ll instantly think of you!
