Cultivating the contacts captured is the key to real estate marketing via the internet… follow-up.  Most real estate agents have a quality site with inbound traffic. Most agents offer the MLS, and most agents have a guest book. But most agents lack follow-up.  Most agent fail to utilize tools such as a contact management system to keep in touch with real estate leads.

In 2005, the National Association of Realtors® conducted a study, and in that study members randomly signed up for information on an agent’s site.  The average response time was THREE days.  Unacceptable.

The response time must be immediate.  This is where a well thought out, content driven FOLLOW-UP CAMPAIGN becomes very effective. It is preferable that the drip campaign is automated.  A thank you email is sent when a contact signs up.  The follow-up emails should contain take action steps.  For example, in your thank you email, you may ask if they are selling a home, and if so, would they like a Comparative Market Analysis.

The Drip Campaigns should last at least four months, and they should be front end loaded. The contact should receive more emails early and less frequently towards the end.  For example:  in my drip campaign a contact will receive five emails the first month, but only one email in the last month.   Remember to have take action steps in all correspondence.

Another great tool for cultivating contacts is the automated MLS searches or Gateway.  If you have captured relevant information in your form, then set up an automated MLS search, and send listings to the contact weekly.  Be careful not to send to many.  I recommend sending 2-4 listings per week.  Then, send a weekly email asking if they received the listings and were any of the properties to their liking.  The objective here is to create dialogue.  Once the contact responds, you are one step closer to a sale.

Electronic newsletters are another great tool for cultivating prospects.  Utilize monthly newsletters to maintain contact, remember to include take action steps.  If you are utilizing electronic articles to enhance rankings and boost traffic, these can double as monthly newsletters.  Make sure your newsletters are content driven and relevant.

A very productive formula for success is to put a lead into a drip campaign with a series of messages and MLS searches for six months.  After six months, transfer the prospect into a second campaign that consist of monthly newsletters and MLS searches.