Back to work! What to do first for 2019

Are you ready to be back to work after days of parties, visiting, and not being able to connect with people you want or need to speak with?

If you’re like me, it feels pretty good to say “OK – now to get back in the groove!”

What is important to do right now to jump-start your new year?

• Follow up with every real estate buyer or seller who sounded promising, but who faded away as we got closer to Christmas.
• Especially follow up with every seller who indicated that they might list “after the holidays.”
• Start a new prospecting campaign – or continue with one you started in November or December.
• Finish the organizational work you might have started in December – like making SURE that all of your past clients and those in your sphere are in a database for staying in touch throughout the next few years.
• Re-connect with every client from 2018.
• If you haven’t been staying in touch, re-connect with everyone in your sphere. They are part of your referral network and they just might have friends who plan to buy or sell a home this year.

For the real estate buyers and sellers, I recommend a phone call rather than an email or text. (Unless they’ve told you they prefer email or text messages.) A phone call will allow you to show interest in them, wish them a Happy New Year, and gauge their interest in going forward in the next few weeks.  It might even get you an appointment in the next few days.

For the prospecting campaigns, I suggest two things:

Choose a niche or geographic area and begin mailing. if you already have one, consider stepping up your efforts OR adding a new one.

Add a buyer or seller capture box to your website. This can be generalized or niche-specific. You’ll need a special report to offer as an incentive to opt-in, then prospecting letters to send along with market reports and other news about your local real estate market.

For finishing the organizational work – there’s nothing to do but DO IT. If you have to stay up late a few nights or forgo TV for a few evenings to get it done, just do it. Then… do not allow yourself to consider a real estate transaction closed until you’ve added your client to that database.

Also, make it a habit to immediately add others as you become acquainted with them – no more leaving business cards in the drawer or contacts in your phone in hopes that you’ll remember and find them later.

If you’ve already been doing this – good for you!

For re-connecting with your 2018 clients – take the time to get into your files and print copies of their closing statements. Then mail them along with your wishes for a Happy New Year. Do this right away, because they’ll need this document to take to their tax preparer, and some might be in a hurry to get tax preparation underway. If you wait until they’ve done it themselves, you lose the impact of saving them time and trouble.

If you can find time, of course it’s a good idea to deliver these in person, or at least call to let them know they’re on the way.

After these things are done – examine your real estate website.

• Check every link on every page to make sure none are broken. If they are – fix them! This is boring work, but necessary. (The mystery is how some of those links get broken.)
• Decide what new pages your site needs. Is it more comprehensive and useful buyer or seller pages? Is it a community page – or several community pages? Is it links to community services, schools, etc.?
• Review your agent bio. If you don’t have one – get one!
  Is it up to date? Check for statements that say how many years you’ve been in business – and change that statement to say “since XXXX,” so you won’t need to change it again next year.
  Does it show you as a real person?
  Does it make you stand out, or does it contain meaningless statements such as “I am your local real estate expert” without demonstrating what makes you an expert?

Finally, think about your past clients from previous years.

Have you stayed in touch? If not, now is the time to re-connect. These people can and will become part of your referral network, but only if you let them know they matter to you. They’ll also come back to you the next time they need an agent – but only if you’ve stayed in touch.

If it’s been a year or more and you don’t know what to say after all this time, use my Past Client letters. These will allow you to get that door back open – and keep it open by staying in touch in the future.

All done? Then take an evening off to curl up with a book, see a movie, or enjoy dining and dancing. You will have earned it!

I wish you a new year filled with joy and prosperity,

Woman on the phone Image courtesy of podpad at FreeDigitalPhotos.net
Laptop Image courtesy of nalinratphi at FreeDigitalPhotos.net