How quickly do you follow up on new leads?
Response time is everything.
Think about it…
Don’t you get annoyed when you call your cell phone service company and you get placed on hold?
How about when you’re trying to buy something over the phone, and you hit that automated recording, followed by the elevator hold music?
Or you call someone, leave a voicemail, a days go by before you ever hear back?
A Little Test:
I’m friends with a ton of Real Estate Agents on Facebook. Some (if not most) of them have their number listed on the info tab to their Facebook Profile (as they should). Well, I called 5 of them at random this morning.
Can you guess how many answered their phone?
Zero.
Granted, maybe they didn’t recognize the number. Or maybe, they recognized the number, but the area code was too long distance. Nevertheless, nobody answered.
But what if it wasn’t me calling? What if this was an out-of-town buyer interested in a listing? What if it was a potential client?
Unless you were referred directly, my guess is, that lead is shopping you around and you just lost a lead to the next Agent who answers the phone.
When you respond quickly, it says…
- I can trust you. (Sorta). Respond to all calls, emails and requests in a timely manner and it says that you can trust this person to do the work.
- You’re reliable. (See #1). When you answer your phone on-time, in way, you’re doing something unexpected (because well, no one else answers on the first ring). This sets you apart. This says, I can trust that you’re going to answer the phone when I need something. This says, you’re reliable.
So, how quickly do you follow up with new leads?
Do you answer on the first ring? Do you call them back right away if you don’t? How about when someone registers to your IDX, do you send them a quick, personal follow-up email? How soon?
The comments are yours…