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Door Knocking for Real Estate, Best Practices

D2D is and remains the most effective steps to success. How do your colleagues make their door knocking a success? In this article you learn the door knocking best practices.

D2D real estate success everywhere in New Zealand and around the world. Door knocking best practices.
D2D real estate success everywhere

The real estate sales industry (in New Zealand and anywhere else) relies heavily on relationships. It is but natural for clients to want someone they can trust handling their sizeable property investments. Whether they are in the market to buy or sell, they would need a realtor to guide them through the process. The challenge for such professionals is to be able to connect with such prospects. They must build their contacts base beyond their “sphere of influence” of family and friends. In this emerging world of social media marketing however, one of the most effective prospecting techniques is still door knocking.

This article will discuss the merits of the practice combined with some basics to remember in order to be more effective at it.

Best practice for all succes: Demeanour

There are three things to take note of before knocking on a stranger’s door. A good attitude which displays a positive and genuine demeanour is one of them. It is something that people will respond to and is a characteristic which underpins the entire process. Remember that the purpose of door knocking is to establish and build relationships. People will see through fake personalities who are not interested in their well-being.

Do not treat these short interactions as just another house to tick off the list. People will take notice and there is a good chance that word will spread about the encounter. It might as well be something positive. Be focused, show competence and convey professionalism. This is a long-term strategy and not just a one time affair to get a listing or a prospective buyer’s contact details.

The goal of door knocking is to:

  • Meet the neighborhood
  • Understand the sentiments of the community
  • Know the types of houses
  • Possibly get in touch with the homeowner’s association officers

Dress for success is a best practice

Studies vary on exactly how long it takes to make a good first impression, or a bad one for that matter. It generally ranges between one tenth of a second to 30 seconds. Regardless, there is a short timespan to make a positive impact. Within this limited period, realtors need to communicate the part of a trustworthy and responsible professional. It will be difficult for potential buyers or sellers to rely on a realtor who cannot at least show that they take care of themselves.

A person’s outward appearance is a likely indicator of what is going on within. The one who looks professional would certainly be viewed as more capable to handle the complexities of real estate investing over someone who introduces themselves in shorts. It does not matter if it is a hot day. Look sharp. Wear a nice crisp shirt and pressed slacks or a simple but appropriate dress to let people know that they are dealing with someone they can depend on. It is the second essential of door knocking which can easily be overlooked though can convey a very powerful unspoken message when executed correctly.

Be ready for anything when door knocking

Showing up at somebody’s door with a good looking outfit and an honest smile are just two parts of the equation. The third basic requirement is preparedness. Doing this takes time so be willing to put in the necessary effort to undergo the process. As the oft quoted saying by Sun Tzu  goes, “Every battle is won before it is ever fought.”

What does it take to win? Do the necessary research and study them routinely. This is more technical in nature though is not always considered the most fun part of being a realtor. It is also something that can easily be overlooked because of the effort involved in doing them. Performing due diligence however is not an extra requirement, it is actually part of the job. It is good to practice it not only when there is a potential sale but in every aspect of the business.

Know the facts and numbers:

  • Being familiar with the multiple listing system (MLS)
  • Researching on tax records and learning about tax nuances
  • Performing comparative market analysis (CMA)
  • Having a ready list of what is selling in the community backed up by figures

Focus on your prospect: Stop, look and listen

Armed with these three fundamentals, it is important to keep in mind that not every door can be a target regardless of its potential. Consumer NZ has a “Do Not Knock” campaign in effect which could result in stiff fines for violators. Look out for such stickers before knocking on any door. Disregarding it could also be grounds to revoke a real estate license. Getting a bad reputation in the community however could be just as damaging.

When the opportunity does present itself and the door knocked upon eventually opens, be sure to exude a respectful but confident stance. Have a script that is non-confrontational both in words used and body language employed. Take one step back and to the side instead of squarely facing the prospect. Give a simple greeting of hello and wait for the response before continuing. The message should be short and simple but engaging.

Use a tools like RealtyBuddy to take care of the admin and hassle so you can stay focus on your prospect. That is the foundation for success in real estate.

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Door knocking succes for Australian Realtors

Door knocking works like a charm for Australian Realtors
Door knocking Australian style

Door knocking distinguishes you from competitors. It is amongst the best recognized and proven lead generation methods for realtors, but does door knocking bring success in Australia?

As you know, the higher the number of leads generated, the higher will be the revenue. Let it be a new real estate agent in the field or the highly knowledgeable and experienced ones running the business for years, door knocking works effectively for both by creating an impact in the minds of customers that are there to stay. It results in meaningful relationships with the clients eventually leading to sales and strong brand recognition.

Face to face engagement builds trust

This method of networking inculcates a sense of trust in the minds of your potential customers since they get the chance of truly knowing you, not just your online avatar. They feel that you are a person who’s willing to facilitate them and aid them in finding the right place instead of just another wolf looking for sheep. They are not discouraged with the feeling that you’re persuading them into something. The door knocking technique makes them think that you’re informing about the list of potential options that they could benefit from. It’s a well-known fact that reality doesn’t matter as much as what goes in the minds of your prospect.

Door knocking is low cost

The door knocking technique does involve a relatively minute amount of shoe leather cost but the fact that it is absolutely free distinguishes this method of interacting with the potential clients from any other. Any wise person would know that the potential of knocking the houses and reaching the door to door builds a relationship stronger than any that could be built over the cell phone, email or any other digital form of marketing your business. There’s no limit to the number of houses you can reach and hence there is always a margin of convincing and informing more people which results in future sales.

Effort creates success

That door knocking aids in establishing real long-lasting connections makes it the right choice for realtors. By door knocking, even the client’s rejection won’t be that bad. The rejections through cold calling are often disappointing and cause demotivation but the rejections in person would still be an achievement. Such rejections would still mean that your message is being conveyed to the potential customers directly and that leads to a chain reaction causing the message to spread from one person to more and more.

You grow your sphere of influence simultaneously giving rise to the exposure within the market.  Being free means that it won’t be affecting the cost in any way and its potential is undefined. Conclusively, the factor that determines the success is the right mindset. Attitude is everything. It only works for real estate agents who believe it will work. With the appropriate energy, this method is undoubtedly the most useful for realtors in this aspect.

Door knocking in Australia

In Australia, the door knocking is considered a crucial aspect by the leading realtors in the field. Claudio Encina is considered one of the leading real estate trainers and he and various other trainers stress on its importance. According to the real estate business bulletin, the door knocking is considered by 46.7 percent of the realtors as an effective method. These included realtors like the CEO of the Peard Real Estate, James Bennet from Belle Property Group Lane Cove and several others. They believe that door knocking is vital for the success of realtors since it’s the most effective method and the time has proven the worth of this traditional method.

The effectiveness of this method in Australia is itself proven by the fact that almost half of the realtors trust this method of selling and generating leads. The fact that these halve includes some of the very enormous names in the field of realtors. Even the very well experienced trainers who are in contact with various realtors believe that the door knocking is an effective and stress on its importance, one example of such would be Claudio Encina, who works directly with some of the leading real estate agents in the field and with various sales teams in Australia in order to identify the various methods of how to deliver the best performance within the field. He stresses upon the crucially important door to door knocking by guiding the realtors through a list of methods that makes it and even efficient method of generating leads and hence ultimately increasing the revenue. The reason it isn’t used by all the realtors is the fact that there are some laws which goes against door knocking in Australia. To deal with that, realtors should go from house to house without directly trying to sell anything. It isn’t illegal to ‘talk’ to the people.

The right tool leads to door knocking success

Use of modern technology takes the traditional burden out of door knocking. In our always connected world, with GPS and vast online databases, mobile technology is a fantastic tool. Use RealtyBuddy to make door knocking a breeze.

Online References

https://www.realestatebusiness.com.au/breaking-news/5423-agents-divided-over-door-knocking

https://www.domain.com.au/group/agent-news/expert-tips-to-develop-a-killer-prospecting-strategy/

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Does door knocking work?

Make door knocking work for you. Learn from other and use the RealtyBuddy app for door knocking success
make door knocking work for you

Door knocking to obtain leads in the real estate business has been around since time immemorial. A lot of realtors, ask themselves does door knocking work for me? For a while door knocking, or d2d sales as it is also called, became a controversial sales technique in contemporary society. However with telephone canvassing and social media getting ever more difficult due to regulations and consumer exhaustion, many real estate agents are convinced that this is a method that remains tried and tested.

Why pursue door knocking?

Schneider of Smashwords claims that door knocking is like a treasure hunt. Clues to the treasure are all around but there is no definitive map to make sure you are the lucky winner who discovers the treasure. The point though, is to be persistent. Much like anything else in life, those who try harder are the most likely to reap rewards. Those who refine their door knocking techniques are also the real estate agents who will generate the richest treasures at the end of the day.

A study conducted by Harvard Business School provides even greater motivation to continue to engage in the door knocking sales approach. One study conducted by Harvard Business School established that personal interaction on a face-to-face basis ended in recipients recalling the brand name 13 times more than that of other advertising in the market place (Smartzip). That is a powerful reason to retain this technique in any real estate company.

Imagine that an agent generates 13 times more brand recall for his or her company than that of competitors? Based on this data, door knocking should become or remain a staple for all real estate companies. The simple reason for this high degree of recall is that real estate, like most businesses is a people-oriented business. Personalizing your service gets better results than impersonal media advertising. So, how does the agent go about door knocking?

Best practices, make them yours!

Many real estate agents who have done door knocking have some basic advice to offer both novices and seasoned agents.

  • Dress for success but also dress for comfort. That is the advice offered by Schneider. Real estate agents don’t necessarily need to don a suit to impress but it is definitely advisable to look and behave as a professional.
  • Write up several sales scripts to follow when door knocking as these will build your confidence and instill trust in the potential lead. When you sound like you know what you are talking about, your market leads will be more likely to be helpful.
  • Be prepared to deviate from your script as different leads will ask different questions.
  • Do your homework. You don’t want to be standing in front of a prospect and not know how to respond. Even when you don’t know the answer, assure the prospect that you will find out and get back to them. Keep your word if you want that person to become a concrete prospect in the future.
  • Bring advertising material with you. This is a useful way to open the conversation and leave contact details should your lead wish to use the information or refer a friend to you for a sale.

This is some basic advice offered by Schneider in her e-book entitled ‘Door to Door Real Estate Prospecting: The Complete Guide to Door Knocking for Listings’and

Josh Snyder in ‘Door Knocking for Real Estate Agents .. THREE THINGS + SCRIPT’on YouTube.

Tried and tested tools to make your door knocking work

Practice and persistence in door knocking are the absolute drivers of success for real estate agents. But everyone needs a little help from time to time. Fortunately, the RealtorBuddy app affords agents a lot of help when going from door to door to build leads.

This exceptional app has been designed precisely for real estate agents. It helps agents to track their door knocking activities. Agents can make brief notes after a call and fill in further details once they have more time back at the office. For example, agents can note which homes had vicious looking dogs, those where there was no response, helpful prospects or those with grumpy owners, which might be best to avoid.

Recording all of this data on the app enables the agent to make door knocking far more successful than in the past. The RealtorBuddy app allows the agent to make follow up calls to strong prospects, remember what was discussed and what topics to focus on in the future to build strong business relationships. Personalization is key to door knocking success stories, and using the app just enhances lead generation.

One last important piece of advice in addition to using the RealtyBuddy app is to plan for success. Set goals. Stick to these and increase them over time. Door knocking may be a traditional real estate sales technique but it still holds enormous value in modern society. This value is greatly enhanced by the RealtorBuddy app, blending the past with the present in a highly successful manner.

http://bhnj.com/pdf/door_to_door_ebook.pdf

https://forbes.com/ondoorknocking/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g4lF9DLUTIE&feature=youtu.be

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Real estate success: “Every thing you do, every day, is prospecting”

Interview with CYNDI ALVAREZ, successful realtor in Austin. It is all about prospecting according to Cyndi.
Cyndi Alvarez

Interview with CYNDI ALVAREZ
Realtor in Austin, Texas

What is the foundation for Cindy’s succes in real estate?

How important is prospecting in your real estate business and what approach do you use?

It’s very important. Eighty percent of my occupation is marketing and lead generation.  Many new Realtors have no idea the commitment to marketing required.  I do a large percentage of my business by referral, but I’m always on the lookout for new families to help. Every activity that I do, every day, is lead generation, in my opinion. When I take my laundry to the dry cleaner and positively interact with a person then they’re a lead. They’re a prospect. By having friendly interactions with people, they feel trust towards me and I am already generating potential business and developing prospects.  Everybody knows someone that will need to buy or sell a home in the next year.

Also, if I see a house that looks vacant I will cold call and try to find the person that owns it, since there’s such a shortage of homes to buy. If I have a client who wants a specific house that isn’t on the market anymore I’ll track down the owner of the property to try and get it for my client. If they had their house on the market within the last five years and it matched what my client would want I don’t have any problem hunting them down and asking if they’d like to sell it, because a lot of times they do.  People are flattered when someone wants their home.  They also may know a neighbor that is contemplating selling their home.

I do phone calls and I do a lot of online marketing but I door-knock selectively. I’m very careful – since I’m a female my safety is my number 1 priority – so I door-knock around listed properties or when I’m doing open-houses.

When door-knocking do you work with a partner to make it safer for you?

I have an application called ‘Forewarn’ which allows me to look at the names/addresses for all the surrounding properties to see whether there are any sex offenders or anyone with a criminal history in the homes. Even when somebody calls me for help, I run a background check on them immediately through my app on my phone, so I can determine whether they are safe to meet with.  Knowledge is power.

When it comes to prospecting do you have any specific targets such as how much time you spend on it or the number of leads you want to get out of your activities?

Well, I have certain guidelines. Most agents block time every day to lead generate. Two to two and a half hours is normal.  You can’t stop this even when you get busy or a couple of months down the road you will not have active clients.

For me, the most important thing is being able to service all my clients and being very responsive to them. I know from experience how many clients I can work with at a time, while still giving them exceptional service. Once I reach my target I refer business out to other agents that I trust.

I choose to serve a larger geographical area compared to most other realtors.  I enjoy serving to military families, teachers and first responders so I go where I am needed. I give a discount to those groups, and because I do they tend to follow me. I try to take care of those that take care of me.  I have a Pay-it-Forward business model.

What would you say are the keys to success in prospecting? 

The most important thing is that you’re able to establish a rapport with people quickly.  If you’re not being your authentic self you’re wasting your time. I’ve also invested a lot of money to make myself one of the most educated realtors in the area. The groups that I give professional courtesies (discounts) to know they’re not getting an inferior realtor for a discounted price. They know that I’m going to take good care of them.

In terms of prospecting – have you changed your approach over time and what are some of the changes that you’ve implemented to improve your prospecting?

It’s really important to be able to listen and to have a good speech pattern on the phone. My weakness is I talk too fast. When the person answers the phone, you need to be listening.  When I say listening, I mean listening to communicate/understand not just to respond. You need to be listening and following whatever their speech pattern is. If they’re a slow talker and you’re going really fast you’re not going to be able to establish rapport. You need to mirror and match the way they communicate.

What specific event led you to adopt this mirror and match approach?

I had an elderly client ask me to slow down. I took that to heart. If somebody’s going to offer you honest feedback, you need to be open to it, and accept it. I have become more aware of that particular issue. Matching their speech patterns disarms people. It puts them at ease and they feel like they know you.

Do you have any advice for Realtors who are just getting started, regarding prospecting?

Every single thing they do every day can be prospecting. Little thing like your keychain, your phone case, and your ringtone are conversation starters/rapport builders. If you choose the right ringtone you can make people laugh/smile, they let down their guard and start conversations with you in the elevator. The other thing that a new agent can do is sit in Starbucks, with their computer and a stack of their cards and make it obvious that they are open for a conversation. They can do that by having a sticker on their computer that says ‘I’m a real estate professional. Ask me questions.’ That’s a great way to meet people.

The other way that I prospect is through companies I partner with. I make sure that the companies I do business with understand that they need to reciprocate if I’m sending them business. I support my disabled brother and my elderly father who’s 80.  Because of my obligations, I need to do business only with mortgage representatives and companies that will reciprocate.  They can either do co-op advertising with me or commit to sending me two referrals a year. You are respected when you know what you want and need, and you ask for it nicely.

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Real estate success: The King of Lead Generation

The Power of Door Knocking

Door knocking has long been the gold standard of lead generation for realtors, both new and experienced. It’s where the bread gets buttered and meaningful client relationships are formed and eventually turned into a sale generating machine. There are so many upsides to door knocking that it would be impossible to list them all so here are some of the best:

  • Door knocking gives you an edge over other realtors that won’t put in the work (You get more leads and more sales)
  • Leads will contact you when they are ready to sell
  • Door knocking is a long-term strategy which will set you up with leads for years to come, the future is more certain, especially in hard times
  • Door knocking does not cost you thousands of dollars just to get started.

The foundation for real estate prospecting success

Door knocking is a tried and tested approach. Take advantage of the experience that has been build up over centuries to be successful now:

  • Bring the right demeanour and attitude. Be positive, curious and helpful.
  • Dress for success. This is important in any business.
  • Determination. Use a structured approach and work step by step towards you goals.

So, Are You Taking Full Advantage?

The truth is that door knocking is not without its headaches, it can be tough to remember when you last visited a particular house, what mood the potential client was in, if they were interested in selling, and a whole host of other factors that can lead to both high rates of new listings and painful confrontations with frustrated homeowners. Even if you were to write all this information down the hassle can be enormous.

The solution is simple: an app that tracks all this information for you in seconds and builds out a profile for each and every house you visit. That means next time you visit you can see which houses were marked “Not Interested” letting you avoid an earful or houses that were marked “Not home” so you can give them another try and get leads more consistently.

You can even mark these houses as “Follow Up” making sure you don’t forget about people that were on the edge of selling but just needed a little nudge. The app that does all that and more is called Realtor Buddy and you can start your free trial right now and start making more sales! Take a big headache out of door knocking today.

RealtorBuddy page on AppStore