How to Adopt Abandoned Buyers – Chapter 18 from the book Less Blah Blah More Ah Ha – How social savvy real estate agents become trusted, preferred, referred and rewarded.

by Ken Brand, Sales Manager - Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Gary Greene / The Woodlands TX / on October 18, 2011

How to Adopt Abandoned Buyers – Chapter 18 from the book Less Blah Blah More Ah Ha – How social savvy real estate agents become trusted, preferred, referred and rewarded.

“I always wanted to be successful, not famous.”     ~ George Harrison, Beatles

Does Closing and Running = Abandonment?

Sadly for them, the majority of average and ordinary selling agents do not stay in touch with buyer clients after closing. They think that when the deal is done it’s time to run. Fresh leads need chasing, and an uncertain future needs feeding

At first blush, “closing and running” seems logical, maybe even smart. The rationale is (by those average and ordinary selling agents) that gleefully-settled buyers won’t be moving for years, so why waste precious attention on a multi-years-distant possibility? Bills need to be paid now. Right?

Dead Wrong!  Closing and running is abandonment and financially unwise. Here’s why.

The magical power of The Three-People Principle is supreme.  Okay, it’s not really magical, but it is pretty supreme — and based in fact.  Closed buyer clients who chose you and trusted you to represent them will, within the next year, know of three people who are going make a move and need the services of a Wonder Woman real estate such as yourself.  Invest time and attention in these fine folks and you’ll earn referral recommendations.  Referrals are the best leads, are they not? And they’re free. Well, almost free. You have to invest some emotional labor to remain relevant and remarkable, and therefore referrable. But that’s easy; it’s what you do—or, what you will be doing once you’ve read and implemented the ideas in this book, right?

So, are we agreed that staying close and relevant is smart and profitable? Hope so.

But wait, there’s even a higher, Sensi-like level of business cultivation.  The wise capitalize by monetizing the mistakes of the average and ordinary majority.  Some weaklings might consider this business-getting tactic “stealing.”  I call it smart and Adopting Abandoned Buyers.

Adopting Abandoned Buyers: The Strategy

This Zen strategy is pretty straightforward.  Most selling agents abandon their buyers after closing. When you’re the listing agent, grow your success by cultivating a relationship of relevancy and trust with the abandoned buyer of your listing. Yes. You heard right. I believe you should adopt the abandoned buyer, and become their Go-to-Girl for all things home, community, lifestyle, and real estate.

Let me share a four-step action plan that I’ve used and profited from.

  1. After closing, mail a handwritten note card.  Wish them well, welcome them to their new and wonderful home, the neighborhood, etc. Of course, include two of your business cards.
  2. Thirteen days after closing, between 2:37 p.m. and 7:57 p.m., stop by their home, in person, to see how things are going. Ask for permission to stay in touch. I’d say something like this, “Hey, would it be okay if I touched base from time to time to see if I could be helpful with anything real estate related?” or “Hey, I mail monthly real estate market report updates to my friends. I’d like to include you — would you be offended if I shared my real estate market report with you too?”
  3. Follow up this visit by mailing a handwritten note card (nice talking to you, short-n-sweet). Use purple ink, a single sheet of canary yellow shaded paper, a hot-pink envelope and a real postage stamp, preferably one with an eagle or American flag on it. Ha ha, just kidding. Doesn’t matter what time you stop by or what color combo stationery you choose. It only matters that you Do It.
  4. Stay in touch. Remember the value of including these fine folks (the ones who gave you permission to stay in touch) in your thoughtfully created and wisely managed Top of Mind Awareness campaign (relevant, remarkable, repetitious contact, conversations, and engagement).

Pretty simple approach, but uncommon. You know what you need to do. Go for it. Er, not next week. Like, right now! Cool.

If you’d like to order the book, CLICK HERE and you’ll go straight to the Amazon.com book page.

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Cheers and thanks for reading.  If I can be helpful, let me know – Ken Brand 832-797-1779