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This article last updated Aug. 11, 2022.
We are the sum of what we do day after day — and so is our business. Here are 22 daily activities that put you in touch with others, so you can have the conversations — both online and IRL — that will grow your business.
1. Send a handwritten thank-you note each day
If you focus on pouring gratitude out daily, you will always find more things to be thankful for. If you’re wondering the best way to start your day, start by sending out a handwritten thank-you note to someone each and every morning.
2. Add people to your database
The sign of a growing business is a growing database. Consistently adding people into your database broadens your reach. It gives you the ability to add value to more and more people as your database grows. The more people you add value to, the more business you will do.
3. Set up an automated property email
Every person in your database should be receiving automated updates about properties coming on the market, going under contract or being sold. If the person in your database is a homeowner, they should be receiving updates on sales activities in their neighborhood that affect their home’s value.
If the person in your database is a potential buyer, they should be receiving automated emails with properties that might meet their criteria that are coming on the market or that have price reductions.
Adding someone each day to an automated property email campaign compounds your reach and value to your clients and prospects over time.
4. Email a property from the hot sheet
I’ve mentioned automated email updates on properties to clients and prospects, but there is another level to emailing properties. Sending an email with a link to a property on the hot sheet is impactful and personal. Here is an example of what the email should say:
I was looking at the hot sheet with the properties that came on the market this morning. I saw this property that literally hit the market a few hours ago and I immediately thought of you. You can click the link below to see photos and details. Let me know if I can answer any questions about this house or if you might like for me to set an appointment for us to look at it.
5. Prepare and send a written CMA a day
Mailing or emailing an unsolicited written CMA (comparative market analysis) provides the opportunity to stay top of mind for potential sellers and to add value to a future or past client. These CMAs should give a range of values and provide personalized insights on the home’s current value.
6. Send an unsolicited video CMA a day
Recording your screen and walking the homeowner through the CMA is the most powerful way I know to add value to homeowners in this current market environment. By recording your screen and walking them through how you arrived at the estimated value of their home, you’ve created a unique way to stand out from your competition.
If you’d like to see more details on exactly how I used this strategy to generate over $11 million in listings by doing one unsolicited video CMA, click here.
7. Connect with contacts on social media
People do business with people they know, like and trust. Make sure you are friends or connected with as many of your prospects as possible on social media. This gives you the ability to move from salesperson to person, from a business relationship to a personal relationship. By connecting, liking and commenting on the posts of a few of your prospects and clients a day, your business will explode.
8. ‘Help me out’ posts
Social media provides a great way to leverage a large group of people to help your business with zero cost. Here are a few examples of “help me out” posts:
I’m hoping someone can help me out. I have a great client that is looking for a home in (whatever) neighborhood with at least four bedrooms. If you know of anyone that is planning to sell soon, I would love to talk with them to see if this buyer might be a good fit for their home.
Lil’ Help Please! I have a buyer relocating to our area that is open to options but needs a five-bedroom home in the (city) area. If you know of anyone preparing to sell, I would love to see if I might have the perfect buyer for their home that could help them maximize their price and reduce the stress of putting their home on the open market.
These types of posts can create opportunities to help your buyer or find listings before they are fully on the market.
9. Check in on past clients
Now is a great time to check in on your past buyers. Their home values have gone up dramatically and after spending so much time at home over the past two years, many are considering their options to upgrade or downsize. These calls are very straightforward and here is an example of the script we use:
Hey (Homeowner) it has been a while and I just wanted to check in on you. How are you doing? [Pause for answer.] Can you believe how much the values have gone up on homes like yours? [Pause for answer.] Are you all still loving your house?
These conversations are extremely fruitful for finding listing opportunities and deepening client relationships. Make the calls and you’ll find opportunities.
10. Private message Happy Birthday to someone on social media
Instead of just posting Happy Birthday on their feed like everyone else, drop in their DMs with a more personal message. Something like:
Happy Birthday! I hope this is your favorite year yet. Any special plans for today?
These messages create conversations and are much more impactful than simply posting to their timeline.
11. Add a photo to your Google My Business page
Google My Business pages are becoming more and more valuable. Google is the largest search engine in the world and when people are considering doing business with you, the first thing they do is Google you. The Google My Business Page is free and is the first thing that will pop up on the search page to the right.
The more complete your page, the more you are seen as an authority figure. Adding photos to your page is a great way to increase your authority perception when clients first find your page. Adding photos adds depth to your page. These could include photos of your community or photos of testimonials posted on other sites like Realtor.com or Zillow.
If you haven’t set your Google My Business page up or are looking for ways to optimize it, check out this article that gives complete details.
12. Preview a home that is new to the market
One of the best ways to increase your market knowledge is to preview homes that are new to the market. This broadens your knowledge of the market and provides an opportunity for you to do a video walk-through of the home that you can text or email to your prospects.
Even if the house isn’t the perfect place for your clients, sending them an email or text with the video shows them that you are actively out in the market working to find them the perfect home.
13. Text a personal video to someone
Nothing beats the power of a video text right now. They have an almost 100% likelihood to be opened and watched. A quick video of you saying something like the following is a great way to stay top of mind:
Good morning (name). You just popped into my mind so I wanted to send a quick video to say hello and that I hope you and your family are doing well. Just know I’m here if I can ever help in any way and I hope you have a great day.
If you do one of these a day, the good vibes you are putting out in the atmosphere will absolutely come back to you in the form of deeper relationships and ever-increasing business.
14. Practice and then execute on a script
Practice makes perfect and that is especially true with scripts. Scripts are readily available online and you can find a script for just about any scenario through videos on YouTube. Practicing scripts are great but executing by making the phone calls is where the rubber meets the road.
If you are looking for some script examples, this article shares three ideal scenarios that are working now.
15. Call a 6- to 18-month-old expired listing
Expired listings receive dozens of calls from agents on the day they expire and in the week or so to follow, but expired listings that have not relisted or sold within six to 18-months receive very few calls. These are great opportunities to reach out to people that wanted to sell their house in the past but it did not sell. The calls to these homeowners go something like this:
Hi Mr. or Mrs. Seller, this is (agent name) with (company). I saw that you had your house for sale last year and I was checking to see if you still planned to sell it.
Casual calls to this group of homeowners build relationships that lead to listings now or in the future.
16. Call the next-door neighbor of a house that is sold
The sale prices seen in many parts of the country are amazing. Each sale seems to elevate prices and add equity to the homes around the sales. A call to the next-door neighbor of a home that closed is a great way to provide new, public information about the sale price and to see if the neighbor has considered selling their home in the future.
These calls provide a great way to add value to a homeowner and to build new relationships that can lead to business.
17. Send mailers to the neighbors of a recently sold property
This is another way to provide information about recent sales that affect the value of their home. A call to action like the following is a great way to uncover future listing opportunities:
The home located at 123 Main Street in your neighborhood sold on (date) for (sales price) and it has potentially raised the value of your home. If you’re curious about the current value of your home, give me a call and I will be glad to provide you with a free, no-obligation valuation analysis of your home.
18. Use SlyBroadcast to leave voicemails for property owners
SlyBroadcast is a company that allows you to record one voicemail that can be dropped into the voice mailbox of all the people with the phone numbers you upload to their website. These voicemails run about 10-cents per mailbox and this provides a great way to leave sales details or neighborhood updates to a targeted group of homeowners.
Phone numbers can be collected through services like Cole Realty Resource or Truth Finder. This is a great way to amplify your efforts.
19. Send a request for an online review
The value of online reviews and testimonials is growing each and every day. The great thing about a review is that it has a long shelf life and never goes away. The review you request and receive could be found years from now and still provide the confidence a buyer or seller needs to choose you as their agent.
20. Call a for-sale-by-owner
Tried and true, For Sale by Owners are raising their hand and telling you they want to sell their home. Calling for sale by owner homes is a great way to find potential homes for your buyers and to build a relationship that can lead to a listing.
21. Consume training content every day
If you want things to change for the better, change yourself for the better. Are you daily feeding your mind with quality information that helps you serve your clients better or to become a better agent? If you aren’t sure what to do, start with reading, listening to or watching quality content that broadens your knowledge of the real estate business.
22. Shoot a frequently asked question video, and post it on social media
If you were designing a website, what would the questions be that you would add to your frequently asked question page? Whatever those questions are, record a video of you answering those questions and post them on social media. Sharing your expertise and answering common questions before they are asked elevates you as the expert.
The more informational and entertaining videos you post, the more opportunities you will have to grow your business.
It would be difficult to do all of these every day, but if you choose one or two to consistently add to your daily routine I have complete confidence that your future will be brighter than your past.
