Adding Expireds to Your Sphere…

Adopting a Timeless Strategy from Industry Expert Walter Sanford

by Julie Escobar

As part of our 2012 SOI Challenge…we will be sharing new ways for you to grow your sphere each week this year.

This week’s food for thought:  EXPIREDS.  Ask some of the top agents in our industry where the low hanging fruit is and many will tell you quickly and emphatically:  Expireds. Why?  In most cases, they’re still motivated, have a sense of urgency and need answers.  What a great combination for the right agent to take a listing, make a sale and better still – create a customer for life.

A few years back I sat in on a talk by industry legend Walter Sanford who shared his powerful strategy for kick starting the New Year right by scooping up all the expired listings before most of the agents in your market have even shaken off the New Year’s eve confetti or champagne hangovers!

Here’s Walter’s strategy:  During the first week of January, put together a team to contact EVERY expired in your extended area.  Approach them with patience, warmth and most importantly – a real plan to get their home SOLD.  His strategy works because it’s timely, most of the competition won’t have time to implement and still others are still working on their goal setting, business plan creating, or resolution making.

Keep in mind — Some of these prospects have been very disappointed, frustrated and just plain let down.    That’s where good people skills, warmth and the ability to bring real solutions to the table will make you the frontrunner for those homeowners who are still eager to get their property sold. And even if they don’t list NOW — put them on a drip campaign that will let them know you are not in this for the SHORT TERM, but you are a dedicated, committed to success sales professional who will be there when they are ready to make a move.

Some will be anxious to get For those eager to get started – don’t “blue-sky” them.  Tell them the honest truth.  Get the listing priced right and make sure they know you’re ready, willing and able to meet their needs but that they play a role in the successful sale of their home as well.  Our Merchandising Review™ and the Price Pyramid are great tools for helping you do this.

For those who want to wait, you may want to share some of our valuable free reports with them, and invite them to listen in on a weekly conference call that you could host specifically for sellers who’s listings have expired, or put them on a drip postcard campaign designed to keep you top of mind and prove that you’ve got the “chops” to stay in the game and give them the service they need.

And for those sellers who really need to be WOWED in order to relist their home and accept that the job CAN be done in today’s market, consider our Ultimate Marketing Toolkit.  It integrates all of the technology tools, best business practices and top agent strategies for getting listings sold (and helping you continuously fill your pipeline of prospects.)  From lead generation tools to Craigslist ads to single property websites and more – this toolkit really is the “mac-daddy” for getting the job done.  The best part is that it makes your job simple because it’s all in one place and you can track your results!  (A must for any budget-conscious agent in the new year!)  We even just added both a pre-listing package and a listing presentation to make your jobs easier!

Commit this week to pull all the expireds in your market and make contact with them.  And don’t stop with this week.  Top agent make this segment of prospects a must-contact every week, then add them to a drip marketing plan for exciting, rewarding results! Expireds are a terrific niche for those with a little savvy, patience and ability to prove themselves the professional every time.

Wishing you luck and prosperity in the new year!  Need help?  Contact us at 866.405.3638 or visit our site at www.prospectsplus.com for more expired strategies.