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How to Nurture Leads

by | Jul 25, 2017 | Real Estate | 0 comments

Alabama Real Estate Investors Association: How to Nurture Leads

Real estate investors that are looking to grow their portfolio are often searching for more, qualified leads. There are tried and true methods that have worked for years that will help you acquire more leads. Bandit signs, direct mailers, delinquent tax lists are all great ways to get more of these leads, but what happens after a lead comes in? A majority of the time, an investor is not going to close the deal on the first meeting with a client and depending on where that client is in their home selling process, it could take months or even years before they are actually ready to sell.
In our most recent podcast, we sat down with Damon Remy, the co-founder of REI BlackBook: a comprehensive system to help real estate investors. Damon, who was once a mortgage broker, decided to start helping clients find more deals and get loans. Damon opened up about REI BlackBook, how the system works, what lead nurturing is and how you can benefit from incorporating REI BlackBook into your business plan.

Brian Trippe of Alareia.com, talks about the importance of having a system to nurture your leads, which is what REI BlackBook does so well! From pulling comps all the way through the exit strategy, having an all-encompassing software will help you close more deals.

“The goal of REI BlackBook was to help people do more deals. Being in the loan industry, we understood that if people were doing more deals, they would need more loans which would lead to more business,” said Remy.

What is Lead Nurturing?

Lead nurturing is a system for continuing a conversation with a prospect from initial contact until the person is ready to become a client. By providing useful information and keeping your name/brand in your prospects’ minds you stand a much better chance of converting that lead at a future date.

One strategy that can, and should, be used is content marketing. Given the amount of topics and relevant information that real estate professionals can use to provide valuable content, content marketing remains as a staple for producing traffic, leads and sales.

On top of using a system like REI Blackbook, you will want to communicate with potential clients as much as possible. Think about it this way, we discussed that the home selling process can be a month to year(s) long process. Most investors simply contact a client once, they are not ready to sell, then disengage with that potential client and another investor secures that deal three months later. If that investor utilized a follow-up system, but also created content, there is a good chance that seller would have remembered them when it was time to sell.

Here are 3 simple ways to nurture your leads with content:

Blogs– At the Alabama Real Estate Investors Association we understand the importance of keeping in communication with our members! The same can be said for your potential customers. If you are consistently putting out quality content, people will begin to view you as the expert in the industry. This will help you not only with sellers, but other potential investors as well.

  • Find a niche and talk about it on your blog. By having a blog available for people you meet and work with to view, you can establish yourself as the kind of investor they’re looking for. Perhaps you come across a number of people looking for someone knowledgeable about investing in multi-units, or clients looking to sell their house for cash. Write up posts on these topics.
  • Mix in some posts that aren’t just about buying or selling a home. You could write about new home security systems, interior design trends and even DIY projects for new homeowners. Your blog can advocate your business and your investing, but shouldn’t be pushy. You’re nurturing, not selling.
  • Become a local topics expert. Think of a niche that most people don’t write about in real estate. Try pieces on community events and developments that shape your neighborhoods. By becoming more aware of what’s going on in your area, you will inform home buyers/sellers while also educating yourself on the happenings of the area.

Overall, a blog is a great way to brand yourself as an industry expert and will also keep you top of mind when your potential clients in prime neighborhoods are ready to sell.

Email– After you write a blog, you want people to see the blog. Using a lead nurturing software will help you keep potential clients email addresses. Anytime you write a blog (weekly/bi-weekly/monthly) I recommend sending it to your email list. This email list should include past clients, potential clients, other investors, maybe even some people that are not in the industry.
By creating compelling content and sending it to your email list, it may lead to direct business or a referral. At some point in time, everyone will be in a position to sell their house, or at least knows somebody that is. When that topic of conversation comes up, you are more likely to be the person they think about if they just read your article titled “5 Steps to a Smooth Closing.”

If you have never done email marketing, I recommend a service like MailChimp. It is free and easy to use! In fact, you can even segment your audiences. By segmenting your audiences you can be sure to separate out sales-ready buyers from those still in the early buying stages. You want your lead nurturing emails to go to the right people at the right times. By analyzing their clicks and interactions, you can see when they are approaching the final stages of a buying decision. With each stage, change up your content and your call to action so the email marketing is geared to the right audience at the right time.

Social Media- Social media has never been more relevant. I am not suggesting that you will get sales from posting nice pictures on Instagram and Facebook. However, I am saying you should use these channels to distribute creative and compelling content! You have to be patient with this and not take shortcuts. Be prepared to post 10 blogs and get less than 10 likes on each. However, over time if your content is creative, you will gain traction in the marketplace. Interact with those that interact with you and you will see your audience grow over time!

Twitter is also a great resource for this as you can search for phrases like “selling my house” and interact with those people. Avoid being “salesy” and instead try to provide value by saying something like “I love Sals pizza around the corner, I’m sorry you’re moving, please let me know if you have any questions about the process.” By doing this people will naturally be intrigued about who you are and what you do! If you don’t go in for the hard sales pitch, you give yourself the opportunity to create a lasting relationship that may lead to a new investment property.

Combining Lead Nurturing and Content Marketing

In closing, keeping in touch with clients after your initial contact can be difficult if you don’t have a strategy. The process becomes more simplified by using a lead nurturing software like REI Blackbook. A lot of our members at Alabama Real Estate Investors Association use the service, including the founding member Brian Trippe. Using a systematic follow up system and creatively implementing your content marketing strategy, you will start to see yourself converting more and growing your own brand in the meantime! Good luck!