Good news from the trenches... the market is picking up.
An article in the Sunday paper 3 weeks ago identified price points and listing availability in certain areas of the market. As readers saw that they could buy a nice 3 bedroom house for $50,000, they were obviously surprised. Sensing that was the "bottom" of the market, they started looking at houses. We have seen multiple offers, some over list price. We have seen extremely busy open houses, and many agents are reporting that their phone is ringing constantly.
So, are you getting your fair share? If not here are some tips. Your phone will not ring if you do not have any marketing tools out there, signs standing or ads running. If not, then do the following (not in any order)
1. Call everyone (and I do mean EVERYONE) that you have worked with in the last 5 years. Buyers or sellers, no matter. Call them and see how they are doing. Catch up with family, life events, etc. Each one of them has a story, might have a real estate need or might know someone who does.
2. Find other agents who have listings and offer to sit them open. EVERY DAY! Not just the weekends. Time shift. Think about 3-6 PM and catch people on their way home.
3. Think about how you made your first 10 sales in your career. How did you find those buyers/sellers? Go back to basics and do the same things.
4. Bump up your website. Add some valuable tools. Work with a lender for a mortgage calculator. Add flash video. Give visitors a reason to go there (find ways to drive them to your site) and stay there (give them valuable information and keep them engaged. You might need to hire a SEM or SEO person (search engine marketing or search engine optimization). No sense in having a website if no one sees it.
Bottom line. There is no sales slump that can't be cured by good ole fashion marketing and prospecting.
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