There are many tried and true methods of building a real estate business. Even with all the changes in real estate and technology there are plenty of ways to obtain the eyes and ears of buyers and sellers.
We all have the same opportunity to build our business but first we need to understand we own a business, formulate how it’s going to run, who are we going to serve and how to reach the intended target.
I firmly believe this is a relationship business and I want to work with those that value my expertise and experience. I started farming 22 years ago in the community I live because it made sense to work with the 1,330 residents residing in my neighborhood.
I began sending out postcards for just listed, pending, sold and began sponsoring local events until I became the trusted resource and a household name in my community. The website I created for the community showcases all the wonderful things about our community and I feature activities in the community, listings and monthly and quartely real estate statistical reports. I still have the reports hand delivered to the community quarterly.
I’m always looking for something new and exciting to add to my marketing and in 2008 when I joined Active Rain I experienced a light bulb moment and added a link on my website to my blog. Little did I realize the impact it would have and I found on listing appointments many residents already followed what I say about the community, activities, local businesses and my take on the real estate market. They even have my calendar on their refrigerator which I hand deliver to their door step every November.
I added an e-newsletter 5 years ago to my tool box that is emailed the beginning of each month. It’s short, sweet and offers a calendar of events, a link to my monthly Pinterest board and a link to a post I write each month on Austin Real Estate.
All of these marketing activities evolved over time and are still in place consistently keeping my name and face “top of mind” in my market place. I’ve worked with many residents, their friends and family multiple times. I’m always open to rolling out a new technique to connect with my tribe! I’ve found it important to constantly update and introduce new ideas to my tried and true marketing to keep me in front of my past and future business.
This brings me to my latest addition and at this moment my best technique to connect ….My Coldwell Banker Clients for Life program! I’m having fun and surprised at the traction it’s getting. It was easy to set up my contacts in another data base and now every month my clients receive an email and a chance to register for free tickets to something fun in Austin! Last month it was tickets to the Austin Rodeo and this month it’s 4 tickets to the Round Rock Express Baseball game at Dell Diamond!
Two of my clients won and seven others registered! This is a great reason to reach out (we like those extra touches) and now I’ll let 
everyone know the winners in my e-newsletter and nudge more to register! Next month will be for a wine tour so I’ll bet I see more register! This is a fun way to connect and a great way to stay in front of my clients. I’ll be delivering these tickets in person! It’s just one more addition in my tool box that keeps me in front of my client family and right now I’ll call it my best technique for the moment!
This blog post was written as a submission to the ActiveRain Challenge – My Best Farming Technique (Sponsored by SmartZip). If you would like to share one of your favorite farming techniques (and earn up to 10K ActiveRain points as well as a chance to win a free ticket to a Ben Kinney Training event) head over to the blog post announcing the challenge.
