The importance of keeping in touch

Last year, I was thinking about selling my house. To help with the decision, I wanted to get an idea of what the house was worth. The best approach seemed to be to contact one of the many real estate agents who were soliciting business in my neighborhood to get an appraisal. In a 3-month period, I had received a number of direct mail pieces from four different agents. After reviewing the materials I had received and doing a little research online, I chose to call two of them.

The first agent I spoke with was friendly and personable. We made an appointment for him to come by and look at the house, after which we agreed to meet again in a week or so to go over his research and findings. In our conversations, he revealed a good understanding of the area and a recognition that my house was somewhat unique as it is more in the style of the adjoining neighborhood, a factor that would have an impact on how it was marketed. We also discussed any repairs or improvements that should be done before the house went on the market. During the several weeks that we spoke and met, I was impressed by him and felt confident that I would be satisfied with him should I decided to put my house up for sale.

Then, I never heard from him again. I realize that I was not sure that I even wanted to sell my house but I thought it was strange that he never even followed up to see what my plans were.

On the other hand, my experience with the other agent was quite different. By the time we spoke, I had already gotten the ball rolling with the first agent. I didn’t want to lead this guy on, so I told him I was still thinking about what I wanted to do. He asked if he could follow up in a couple of months, to which I replied: “no problem”.

Follow up he did. He called every few months to see what I was up to — I was still undecided. And I got on his mailing list, receiving branded notepads and a calendar at various intervals — useful items that put his name in front of me on a regular basis.

Recently, the moving bug was in my head again. So who did I call? Not the first agent, with whom I was initially so enamored. Rather, I called the second agent who had been persistent in keeping in touch with me.

Although I still haven’t decided yet whether I will sell my house, I have changed my opinion on who I will chose to represent me should I decide to move forward.

This is just an example of why it is so important to continue to communicate with your customers and your prospects. Just because someone is not ready to buy, it doesn’t mean you should write them off. Rather, it is just as important to continue a dialogue with them so that you gain a deeper understanding of what they are looking for and what their barriers may be.

The approach, of course, will differ depending on your product, but simply keeping your name in front of the prospect will go a long way in making you the first person they think of when it comes time to commit to a purchase.