Over the past several weeks I’ve been attempting to network with Realtors who have short sale listings so an investor I know can make offers on them. I haven’t had any problems finding such Sales Agents, but I have been running into road blocks each and every time.
It’s a numbers game right?
From talking with other investors, I know this method of finding leads works. What am I doing wrong here? Everyone always says it’s a numbers game, so if I keep going with what I’ve been doing I will eventually find a desperate enough Realtor to trust in what I’m offering. This is true, but I don’t believe this is my problem as I can sense some level of interest in the Realtors I’ve talked with so far. If you are any kind of salesman, that is a good indicator of what the problem is.
No Call Back
A few times I’ve gotten to the point in the conversation with the Agent where they would need to ask the Seller, Seller’s Lawyer or whomever a question, so they would want to call me back later. No problem I would tell them, thinking I’ve made some progress and peaked their interest. Not so much, as they have rarely called back. Good sign that a blow-off was afoot.
Just Not Interested
After my initial inquiry with an agent I wouldn’t get a call back or response. This one is odd to me, because why wouldn’t a Realtor with a Short Sale listing be willing to relinquish the hard work that goes into dealing with the banks and still keep their commission? Beats me, but the reason is obvious.
What I have Learned
It’s all about creating a connection, building trust and explaining the value of your “service” simply and clearly. I am in no way a good sales person, so I’m not going to explain how to do the above things. I will tell you though that it takes practice. I’ve talked to a couple successful investors about this topic and I plan on talking to some more as well to help me.
Making a connection is important because it opens up conversation and will encourage both parties to share more information. With out a connection, trust cannot be established.
Building trust is the next step and will open up the gates to a great relationship. Just think about what you tell people who you trust and then imagine what a Realtor will share with you when they trust you and your abilities? Good stuff! The Best Stuff!….Snapple…oh sorry, that’s a tv commercial.
Again, I’m not sure how to do all of this in the world of Real Estate but I will learn by practicing.
If you have any tips I’d love to hear them
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Comments 11
Scotty — stop saying you're not a good sales person. Tell yourself that you're really effective at building relationships and creating mutually beneficial partnerships (which is what you're doing…).
As I find things that are working well for me, I'll certainly share. Did you watch Nick's videos from the other day? http://www.biggerpockets.com/blogs/355/blog_pos…
Darn it! That “BUT” just slipped right in there and I didn't even realize it. Good catch Shae, thanks for looking out.
Nicks video is on my must watch list for tonight.
Scott,
Never ever leave it up to the Realtor to have to do the work. You've listened to Bill's audiobook. Use the same technique on them. “Which would work better to call you back tomorrow at 1pm or 3pm?” Give them two yes choices. It also gives you an air of confidence. If you want, I think many of us would be willing to spend a few minutes on skype helping you practice and hone your skills.
Remember to solve their problem, fix their issue. You do that, and you will build that reputation.
I was going to say the same thing as BilgeFisher Scott. Definitely start scheduling appointments to call them up and always wrap it up with the fact that you're looking to put an offer in. “Okay so let's get back together on Wednesday at 3:00pm? Does that work for you? Great because we're looking to put the offer in this week early next week. So Wednesday at 3pm it is! Then be sure to call them at the time you committed to. If they blow you off, then tell them how you don't appreciate that and that if they're going to be serious about doing business with you then they need to honor they're comitment. Otherwise, you will have to look elsewhere, as there are so many shortsales out there.
You also want to find things in common to start of the conversation. Like “small talk” stuff. How was your Weekend? Type stuff. Keep it short and then start asking them about their current success with shortsales and look for problems to address. Finally, slowly add your business model as the solution to there problems… Nick's videos are awesome! Hope you watched it.
Thanks for the reminder about that point Jason. I've been forgetting what Bill has said and I think it's time to listen to it again.
Hi Scott, I don't have much advice, since I haven't worked short sales. But I appreciate your thoughts. Keep us updated!
Anytime Kelly. And I will definitely be giving updates as I go.
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Scott,
I'm going to 2nd errr 3rd what's already been said twice. Do NOT count on anyone to call you back at all. Always schedule your own time to follow up with everyone. I really think this is critical.
If we all waited for folks to call us back we probably wouldn't talk to as many people as we like and wouldn't be networking with as many folks as we like.
You know what? It's also ok just to call back and touch base with this realtors about well anything that you think may interest them. Call them back with something that may interest them, instead of always trying to get something from them. Does that make sense?
I mean sure, working with these agents will be a win win for you and them but at this point they just don't get that yet, they just see that “you want something from them” well help them let down the guard a little and if you know they like the Knicks, call them back and say something about the Knicks game. Or if you know they are concerned about the healthcare bill, call them up and say “hey I thought you'd be interested in this article about the healthcare bill that I just read in the Wall Street Journal.”
Boom that's it. And don't talk about wanting their business in this conversation. Save it for the next follow up because right now, you're building rapport and trust.
It'll take some practice but eventually you'll be a master at it.
Hey Scott, I've been trying to figure out the very same thing. I've talked to a few Realtors about this it. They did give me some insight that might help, although I haven't really tested it out yet yet. It's easier to explain in person, but what some Realtors have told me is that it ins't always a 'trust' thing between you and them. It is a trust thing that homeowner has with you since they didn't hire you, and don't know who you are. What ends up happening is that the homeowner calls the Realtor for everything even though you are the one trying to do most of the legwork. So, what ends up happening is the Realtor becomes a 'middleman' who just fields phone calls from the homeowner for the whole process.
Lance,
Definitely take a look at the link in Shae's comment. It's for 3 video's created by Nick Johnson that show him explaining this Short Sale strategy to a real estate agent. Great stuff!