Real estate lead generation is an art that goes beyond the outdated basics of cold-calling prospective home sellers. A proactive real estate agent needs 3 fundamental strategies that actually get potential customers contacting them - visibility, value and relationships. To learn more about how you can implement these strategies, keep reading.



1. Increase Your Visibility

Prospective clients aren't going to call you out of the blue if they don't know that you're even available. To increase your visibility, focus on your online presence, your street level presence and your market presence.

For an online presence, create your own website and focus on search engine optimization. This is a method of tweaking and promoting your website so that, for example, it becomes one of the first links that pop up in a search engine when someone searches for "real estate agents Countyville."

For your street level and market presence, spend the money on marketing. Start speaking at free seminars and home ownership workshops, invest in newspaper advertising and get your face out to the public.

2. Increase Your Value

Make yourself valuable by developing a specialty or a niche. By having a focus, prospective clients will view you as a specialist in that area, and therefore, a more valuable real estate agent.

Some agents focus on high-end homes while others concentrate on farm properties. Some agents zero in on first-time home buyers, and others on real estate for senior citizens. In short, increase your value by becoming a specialist.

3. Expand Your Relationships

Prospective clients want to work with a real estate agent whom they know and trust. This means you're going to have build a relationship with someone before you've ever met them.

One of the best ways to do this is through word-of-mouth advertising. Offer a cash incentive for any referrals from past clients, therefore encouraging your previous clients to promote you to their friends. Also, including actual customer testimonials can help build that relationship.

Another method of building a relationship with potential clients is to start a real estate blog focused on your real estate market. If the information is useful, current and snappy - you'll not only attract readers, but you'll also endear yourself to future clients. Running a blog is also a great way to increase your search engine ranking.

4. Build Your Referral Network

Grow your contacts network by getting in touch with local mortgage brokers, housing contractors, developers and real estate attorneys. By putting your name in their hands, you increase your chances of them passing it on to their clients.

You can build your referral network by calling industry professionals directly and setting up meetings, attending networking events or even with a simple mail-out introducing yourself and your services.

5. Attend Home Shows

Hosting a booth at a local home show can be a great way to meet and greet prospective clients face-to-face. Make your booth stand out by drawing visitors with an attractive multimedia display and free giveaways.

In short, lead generation is about increasing and building relationships, increasing your perceived value as an agent and becoming more visible to potential clients. By implementing these three methods, you'll increase the homeowners who come looking for you.