10 Ways to Generate Real Estate Leads You Probably Haven’t Thought Of

by Robert Clough

5.5 million existing homes sold in the United States in 2018. That number is set to go up by about 0.2 million in 2019.

With all of those homes getting bought up, it should be a cakewalk for realtors to drum up real estate leads in the way of both sellers and buyers, right?

Wrong.

More opportunity breeds serious competition in the real estate space.

Despite the volume of agents out there today, there are still some tried and true ways that you can begin to network in the right places and start finding the people you need.

Below, our team shares 10 of our favorite, and often ignored, lead building strategies.

1. Cross-Promote With Other Businesses

Have you ever heard the saying, “You scratch my back and I’ll scratch yours”?

This saying holds true when it comes to realtors looking to build relationships.

For example, if you were to approach an attorney and told them that you’ll refer all of your clients to them for closings if they refer their clients to you for their real estate needs, just like that you’ve created a free marketing relationship.

The more partnerships you can form in your community, the more real estate leads you’ll start to see pouring in.

2. Get Social

Sure, a lot of real estate agents use social media. But are they leveraging it correctly?

Social media isn’t just about shouting about every listing you’re repping. It’s about building trust.

Share tips on Facebook on how homeowners can get the most out of their living spaces. Provide insight on Instagram that can help people improve their home’s value.

The more non-sales information you share with people, the more trust you’ll build and the more likely your followers will be to come to you when they need their property repped.

3. Build a Realtor Website

Business cards have begun to go digital in the way of “professional profile websites”.

Do you have a profile website set up? If you don’t, you should get one going.

Building a realtor website is a great way to allow prospective clients to learn more about you and your track record in a community. They’re also a great place to collect client emails so you can market to prospects later on.

4. Start a Blog

Blogging and real estate might not seem like a good fit. You’d be surprised though by how much value blogs can bring to your success.

When you blog, you entice search engines like Google to index pages from your website into their search results. The more blog posts you publish, the more you’ll appear in results.

With a strong portfolio of blog content at your back, you’ll be astounded by the amount of traffic you can start raking in.

Browse the web for more info on blogging, SEO, and search traffic before you start blogging to make the biggest impact.

5. Start Using Coming Soon and Sold Signs

If you’re only using signs that say, “For Sale” on them, you’re not maximizing your real estate lead generating potential.

“Coming soon” signs can generate interest in a property before it’s officially listed in the MLS, which can lead to you selling homes faster. “Sold” signs are a great way to show off that you did a great job servicing a client.

Signs are a free billboard for your services. Use as many as you can get your hands on.

6. Get Involved in LinkedIn Groups

LinkedIn has a great “groups” feature that allows you to talk to people in niche communities. There are a number of groups that exist around real estate.

You’d do well to get involved in as many of these groups as possible and maybe even start a group of your own.

7. Integrate Your Listings With Zillow

The vast majority of people that are looking for properties will use online search engines like Zillow to find them. If the listings you’re repping aren’t on those platforms, you’re missing out on important sales leads.

Selling properties through Zillow and similar platforms can cost a small percentage of your commission but the speed in which you can get homes sold with the extra exposure makes up for the marketing cost.

8. Keep an Eye Out for Expired Listings

If you’re looking for a new property to rep, one of the best ways to find real estate leads fast is to keep an eye out for expired properties.

When a property expires on the MLS, it almost always means that an agent failed a seller. That seller may be open to working with a new agent that can get them better results.

Reach out to expired listing owners and ask them if you can lend a hand.

9. Give Free Educational Talks

There are a lot of questions the average consumer has about real estate.

How do I invest in real estate? Who pays agent fees? How can I find an agent?

If you host free community talks answering questions like those, not only will people benefit from your knowledge, but you’ll benefit from earning their trust and possibly their business.

10. Host Neighbor-Only Pre Open Houses

If you’re repping a house in a community, consider hosting a neighborhood-only private open house the day before your real one.

Doing this can help you build ties with other homeowners in an area that you love selling in!

Wrapping Up Ways to Generate Real Estate Leads You Probably Haven’t Thought Of

Our 10 ways to generate real estate leads barely scratch the surface of what you can do to start marketing yourself in order to find more clients to rep and more buyers to sell to.

Get creative and start maximizing your real estate potential today!

Want more outstanding tips on how to market yourself as an agent? If so, check out additional content on search engine guide today!

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