Automating Your Contact Management for Better Service Presented by Mike Carraway Approved for 3 Hours CE Credit by the Alabama Real Estate Commission
Housekeeping Turn of all electronic devices (OFF means NO POWER) Check your CE Credit after 48 hours on www.arec.alabama.gov Fill out course evaluation form on AREC website
Too Much TIME! More time is spent working on a contact system than is spent listing or selling Most bells and whistles are never used on most systems These 3 hours will save you from purchasing expensive time consuming products, show you haw to use FREE stuff, AND show you how to make money
The real SECRET to Contact Management Warm and Fuzzy!
WF I care about you I remember you I think about you
Combining Automation and WF Difficult at best Requires personalization Requires the WF factor Automation usually REMOVES the WF
Automation Whichever media you choose to use You STILL need a hardcopy system You need something that s s easy You need something that runs itself
First things First - Categories How many and What? Should be Wide and Deep, not narrow and shallow WRONG 4000 contacts in 37 catagories RIGHT 2000 contacts in 7 catagories
Categories You must decide what they will be Examples: primary contacts people who can make you money (4 or 5 of these) Secondary inspectors, lenders, businesses, friends, title, etc (1 to 3 of these)
Categories Primary Contact? Past client, Investors, Prospects, Holiday mailings, etc These are the ones you will actually manage.
Once you have BROAD Categories What info do we need to track? Why this info? Remember the WF factor If it doesn t t contribute to WF, don t t track it
Follow-up, Follow-up, and Follow- up Nothing will happen without follow-up this includes internet leads, social media leads, etc. How can you automate it AND keep the WF factor?
First let s s get the correct Information The F.O.R.D. system
FORD Family Organizations Recreation Dreams
Now that we have the info What do we do with it? RECORD it
Records A record is the FILE with the contacts information in it It can be on paper It can be in a database or CM system
Fields Name Phone Address Email Family Organizations Recreation,Dreams
Simple way to Automate 4 x 6 index cards $5 file box 30 index tabs numbered 1 30
Action Plan List of events that are to occur with each contact in a certain category Includes letters, postcards, phone calls, personal visits, emails, tweets, broadcasts Can be applied to whichever prospect you want to apply it to
Sample Action plan 1 Day Activity 0 Thank you note 3 Phone call-1 4 Letter1 4 postcard1 1 Email1 4 Phone call2 5 letter2 3 email2 4 phonecall3 6 letter3 4 email3
Letter1.doc This is a letter you have already written and saved on your computer It has blanks in it to insert or MAILMERGE the WF parts of the letter Personalization, WF is EVERYTHING
Sample Letter Dear, It was great talking with you the other day. I look forward to helping you and finding the home that s perfect for you. NOW is a great time to buy because the rates are so low and prices have moderated. By the way, how is it going with and? Give me a call if something great happens! Sincerely,
Phone Call1 Script it out? Hey, this is Mike we talked yesterday at the. I just wanted to give you a quick call to let you know I hadn t t forgotten about you and and I have already put together some homes you may want to take a look at.
Email 1 Dear, I just got some information on home loans that I thought you would be interested in. Since you and are eager, I want you to be as up to date as possible. By the way, I met someone yesterday who is interested in, too!
Save Letters, phone scripts File on desktop called Buyers or Sellers Label them letter1, letter2, letter3, pc1, pc2, pc3, etc. These are the parts of your action plan
Look at your Action Plan Do the first activity for the prospect If the next activity is 4 days from now, move the prospect s s card 4 days back in your file box.
Use the Action Plan with File How Action plan controls activities Move the correct number of day back in your filebox Can handle 1000 prospects
Automate your follow-up email A lot of pup-ups ups and unders but it s s FREE www.freeautobot.com No Ads In the emails
Setup Account and Log in
Control Panel Message Control Add Leads Help Button
Copy and Paste the Code
Layout is the key Back on the POST page
You can Add video, edit your profile, edit your post
Let s s Add a Page Element We have a LOT of choices!
HTML/Javascript Element Don t t freak out all we are going to do is copy and paste
Message Control
Use the HELP file to Personalize Help file explains how to put in names and other words You can include tags like: <%Email%> <%First_Name First_Name%> <%Last_Name Last_Name%> Give me Warm Fuzzies! <%Name%>
There are other Autoresponders They are more customizable They cost money or have ads Getresponse.com is a good one but you have to pay for it My Favorite is listed on www.realestaterocketfuel.com
Use your Smart Phone Go to Contact menu (address book) Usually you have 4 custom fields Label them F O R D I am terrible with names
But my Phone has FIND: I can search if I remember the person s hobby is kite building I can search on Kite! I can search on basket weaving!
Past Clients = Future Revenue
Past Clients Deserve their OWN category Their OWN Action Plan that repeats every year At least 3 calls a year Should be your #1 email list
Automatically Email New Listings! Do your customers search in MLS Set up a new prospect in MLS Save the search to the prospect Call the prospect their name Use their Email address
Use your Blog to stay in touch with ALL customer and clients My Active Rain blog My Blogger.com blog My Wordpress.com Blog
Social Networking Adds an additional element to followup Use Facebook and Twitter Social Network sites are more discussion and less selling Build Relationships
Twitter.com
Twitter.com
Search Twitter for Keywords
Google s s New Application
Results for House Shopping
One of the House Shoppers
We can actually follow a buyer
Key to Twitter Search for home buyers, sellers, Alabama, house shopping, etc. Go to person who made the post and click on their profile and then Follow them Use tweetlater
Tweetlater.com Many Uses BUT THE BIGGEST works like an autoresponder for Twitter
Tweetlater.com Set up messages in advance Set up direct messages to new friends Automates many twitter functions. Too many to mention here just look at it
Facebook.com Recent surge in Popularity Lots of Business people now using it Go to www.facebook.com and set up account
Facebook.com Upside you can quickly locate people and business contacts Downside it s s FUN and time consuming Key - Groups
Set up Facebook Group Groups allow you to segment a market Here are some examples of groups you will want to set up: 1 st Time Homebuyers in Birmingham How to Buy a Home How to get the Best Home Loan
Groups You can send up to 5000 messages to a group at one time. Serves as an email broadcaster It s s FREE Key is Group Name
Facebook Groups People search for groups to join Title your group as a BENEFIT to the searcher Quick Home Fix-ups for Fast Sale The benefit of joining the group is in the group title!
Facebook Groups YOU search groups Find groups and Join them Add friends that are in the groups Then recommend your group on the Walls
Facebook Set up SEVERAL Groups and then Work to build the people in the groups Goal should be about 2500/group You can broadcast to the entire group
Social Bookmarking Delicious Stumble-upon upon Lot s s more Bookmark Your Own Sites
Social Bookmarking Adds Backlinks or one way links to your sites Other people look search for things on the bookmark sites Other people bookmark your site
Turn your Blog into your Website Get your own URL www.yourbusinessintentorname.com Log into the Domain Control panel and FORWARD your URL to your Blog adress Use MASKING
Got a LOT of Calls? #1 Rule Answer Your Phone #2 Rule See Rule #1 #3 Rule if you cannot do 1 or 2 Get Someone Else to Answer your phone
Assume your Contact System is 30 50 calls a day Working How do you handle all that? There IS a cheap solution
Get a 24 Hour Hotline/Assistant System www.superagentphone.com Answers your phone 24/7 Receives faxes
www.superagentphone.com Sends a notification to your email for: Every call you receive Every Fax you Receive (even includes the fax as an attachment) Makes sending and receiving documents easy
www.superagentphone.com Has a find me feature You just enter ALL your numbers Caller presses 7 and system calls ALL your numbers to find you
www.superagentphone.com Has 100 mailboxes where you can: Record description of property Tell caller about open houses and give directions Can load a fax-back brochure 5 mirrored extensions
www.superagentphone.com Like having a personal assistant 24/7 About $25/month Worth every penny NOTE: if you are not doing follow-up, you don t t need this
Other Cool Tools Broadcast video upload 1 time and click SUBMIT video goes to 14 Video Sites www.tubemogul.com
Other Cool Tools Automated Social Bookmarking SocialSubmit.com One click to submit to ALL Social Bookmark sites
Social Bookmarking
Landing Page Use your Blog as a Landing Page A Landing Page has one purpose To Capture a lead
Landing Page Ethical Bribe Something of Value Make your offer Ask for Name and Email
Landing Page Example
Another Example
Summary Set up a system for follow-up Include email, regular mail, and phone calls Use F.O.R.D. to gather information Use 24/hour hotline system to field calls Use Social Media to Generate Leads Drive Traffic to your Capture pages You can thank me later
Automating Contact Management for Better Service You now have 3 hours of CE Credit! Fill out your course completion form to get credit Turn it in on the back table