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If real estate agents know how to wield technology creatively, it can help them seal deals in this competitive market.
During an Inman Connect session on Tuesday, California-based agents Sandy Sicsko and Clayton Connolly spoke to Mark Choey, founder of HighNote, about how they use technology to help them win bidding wars.
“If you use something that doesn’t work, go to the next thing because something new is always coming up,” Sicsko, who works in Northern California, said.
When submitting an offer package, Sicsko uses HighNote, a platform that allows agents to consolidate and send all of the offer information through a single link.
“Everything is in a beautiful package. It’s a link, it’s not five different emails,” she said.
Then, using HighNote analytics, Sicsko is able to track which parts of the offer the seller is spending the most time looking at. The analytics help her curate a strong response for when it comes time to talk details with the seller’s agent.
Sicsko also includes a video of herself expressing how much her clients like the house.
About a week ago, her buyer’s offer was accepted as written, even though the seller originally wanted a higher price, because it was the most beautiful offer they had ever seen.
Over San Diego, Connolly has also been using technology to sway sellers. “You’ve got to be the purple cow that stands out,” he said.
Connolly recently won a 16-offer bidding war for his client because of his persistence and use of technology.
Using BombBomb, a platform similar to HighNote, Connolly was able to track when his emails were opened, and noticed it was taking a while for the seller’s agent to look at them. To keep his name at the top, he followed up with calls and texts and even sent flowers.
“It put us in the top three, the agent finally called me back and we were able to communicate,” he said.
Connolly is also a musician. When he found out the bidding was going to be intense, he tapped into his musical talent and recorded himself singing a song he wrote called “pick us.”
Since time is of the essence once an offer is submitted, Connolly used HighNote and saw that the seller’s agent didn’t watch the video right away. To speed the process up, he called to give a heads up.
Once the video was opened, Connolly immediately knew it was a hit because analytics showed that it was watched over a dozen times.
“Long story short, they came back to us and said ‘hey, the other party just offered us $40,000 higher than you, but we like you guys,” he said.
Being able to connect with the sellers on an emotional level, he continued, was what won his buyers the home even though they didn’t have the highest bid.
