Any agent would like to make their real estate sales cycle more predictable. But the truth is buyers, sellers or renters can give you such a hard time that the entire process can spin out of control. All the more reason to do your best and optimize the sales techniques you’re using.
How to speed up your real estate sales cycle
1) Automate time-consuming, repetitive tasks
You can spend most of your day managing data entry and follow-ups, or you can automate the most boring elements and focus on hot leads instead. Use your real estate CRM to store all sales data and automate your follow-up reminders and email campaigns. Some CRMs automatically add your website leads to your contacts so you don’t have to do the same work twice.
Some good places to begin with are:
- automating your property proposals;
- automating follow-up messages for cold leads and reminders to follow up for hot leads;
- automatically creating your marketing adverts, flyers, and videos.
2) Try to find out more about each objection before replying
You haven’t sold any homes in my area. I have a friend in the business. Let’s list high and we can always reduce later. I met another agent and they said they could sell higher etc.
The list of client objections can go on and on. Most of them are quite common so you’ve probably encountered them many times. It also probably worked better to ask a few questions before making your point about why these objections may not be relevant.
In order to handle objections successfully, your responses must be very specific so people actually see why the solution you’re offering is a better fix. To reply specifically, don’t hesitate to ask additional questions to understand your client’s unique needs better.
3) Set a goal for each call
Another real estate sales hack is to define what exactly you expect from each follow-up call. It’s easy to get carried away in a discussion on last year’s market trends and how they affect current prices – but that can take too long.
A much better approach would be outlining your agenda for each sales call. That way you can intelligently lead the conversation and reach the desired outcome, e.g. book a meeting. It’s also a good idea to let your client know about that goal too. If you’re calling to book a meeting, tell them so and you’ll both share the same expectations. Plus, people will understand the next step better.
4) Shorten the duration of each call or meeting
The more time you have to talk to your leads, the better you can plan your next sales step. But with so little time in the day when you can actually call people, it’s necessary to maximize the value of those calls but spent less time on actually talking.
Consider this: You’ve been talking with your prospect for almost an hour, and you have another call booked in 15 minutes. This gives you little time to prepare for the next call, go through your CRM notes and collect the necessary info. The result? You’ll be hastily switching between calls and other important tasks, like handling transactions, commissions, referrals, etc., will be pushed till late in the evening.
Set up a timer to track the duration of your calls. Once you’ve reached your limit, end the conversation. Not only this will save you time, but you’ll also learn to be more concise too.
5) Agree on pricing and commission early on
In real estate, people are always expecting hidden costs and commissions. Sadly, this is often the case.
To make your prospects less hesitant about the deal, address the pricing question early. If you think that the price is too high and no one will bother to look at the property, tell them so. It’s realistic and it makes sense because, as an agent, you know everything about smart pricing strategies.
So the typical objection “Let’s list high and we can always reduce later” should be clarified asap. Save yourself lots of headaches and protect your reputation. The same goes with your commission.
6) Offer them a plan
One of the most effective real estate sales hacks is suggesting your clients a plan of action. Few people are ready to go through the intricacies of the real estate marketing, home staging, pricing strategies, mortgages, etc. on their own. And that’s good because it’s what you can do for them.
Make sure to explain in simple words:
- how you’re going to market their home;
- how you can help them to find a mortgage professional;
- how is the market performing (CMA);
- what’s the plan for staging, pricing and negotiating the property, etc.
A clear agenda can greatly speed up the sales cycle and might compel people to act faster.
7) Win a little “yes” after each touchpoint
Your ultimate goal is to see your prospect saying yes more often than no. This makes people feel more committed to working with this deal and helps them see real progress in this cooperation.
For example, you can end one of the first calls by asking for a mobile number or offering to talk via messenger. If you’re accommodating their favorite technology, this speeds things up much faster as not everything deserves an email. Next time, you can ask to book a meeting to discuss their requirements or budget in greater detail.
