Okay, agent, you’ve got your web site configured. You’ve got your CRM set up. And now, the payoff. You’ve got a new lead!

This seems simple, but in fact, there are so many ways it can go. Some are more successful than others. Agents often track a number called “contact-to-closing ratio” to measure success or the difference between how many contacts come into your funnel vs how many closed on a sale.

But Greg Harrelson and Abe Safa of Real Estate Sales Solutions told us that was a mistake they see new agents make all the time.

Look at the right data

“The contact-to-closing ratio isn’t the right metric,” Harrelson said. “I want you to look at your capture-to-contact ratio.”

This metric takes a step back from the closing and instead looks at the number of leads that come into your pipeline, measuring it against how many you were able to connect with.

Safa noted that “your conversion ratio is easy to track — it’s the dollars you earn. And the only way to measure is to look back at the source of that lead. But it doesn’t tell you how many leads you missed. Once you nail that, it all falls into place.”

Harrelson and Safa agree that the key to unlocking an exponentially better capture-to-contact ratio is in workflows. Because agents often give up on a lead and consider it ‘dead’ or ‘inactive’ after one or two return calls.

“We built a ‘no-contact’ workflow in Real Geeks,” Harrelson explained. “First, you call. Then you call again. That’s the double dial. Then you text. Once you double-dial and text, you enroll that lead into a workflow.” The workflow is automation that platforms like Real Geeks offer.

It’s not so much what you say, it’s when you say it

“The data shows it takes an average of seven attempts to get a response,” Safa said. “But agents worry they’ll bother people, so they give up far too soon.”

Safa wants new agents to know this more than anything else: you aren’t bothering anyone. People are busy. By staying on them and trying calls, texts, and emails, you are doing your best to help and to meet them where they are, at a time when it’s best for them to connect.

The workflows do that for you. But often agents worry: what should I say in these follow-up emails and texts? Safa and Harrelson recommend you keep it simple.

“Don’t overthink it!” Harrelson said. “It’s not about crafting some powerful marketing message. It’s about being human. What would you say to them on the phone or in-person? Say that!”

Is your lead dreaming, exploring, or buying?

This first 24-hour period when a lead comes in is a critical window of opportunity and one in which you get to learn so much. For example, once you do contact your lead, you need to find out where they are in their journey.

People are often in one of three phases: dreaming, exploring, or, buying. Listen to the cues they give you as you talk to identify where they are.

In the dreaming phase, people are thinking big picture, dipping their toes into the idea of buying or selling.

If they are in the exploratory phase, they probably know some details, they’ve done a bit of homework about schools, moving costs, or general prices.

Lastly, in the buying phase, they’ve likely already found a house or a neighborhood they love. They’re pre-qualified.

“You think you’re lucky to get this lead,” Harrelson laughed. “But a dozen other agents missed out on it because they didn’t stay in touch in the right way. That lead was neglected by other agents during their dreaming and exploratory phases.”

Drastically improve your cost per lead, without buying more leads

“The data shows that between ten and fifteen percent of real estate leads actually get contacted,” Safa observed. Simply by implementing the “double dial/text” method, you’ll increase that number to a 25 or 30% connection rate. Then when you enroll leads into a workflow, you can increase your contact percentage to upwards of 60%!”

Learn more about how workflows and behavior signals work with Real Geeks.