Understanding Online Home Buyers

May 21, 2009

Many real estate professionals don’t understand online home buyers, especially veterans used to handling phone prospects only.  They’re frustrated with these people and don’t think they’re serious buyers and therefore a waste of time.  In reality, these people are serious buyers but need to be engaged in a particular fashion altogether different than phone prospects.  Here’s how to handle email prospects.

The first thing you need to realize about the online home buyer is they may not be looking to buy right away.  Many home buyers, especially first time buyers, use the internet to research things about real estate such as mortgages, neighborhoods, developers, real estate law, condo fees, and so on.  They may be several months away from starting to actively look for a home.  So you need to understand where each buyer is at when they contact you and engage them accordingly.  Many real estate professionals lose these researching prospects when they start asking them qualifying questions more suited to someone actively buying.  Nothing kills a relationship better than misunderstanding the prospect’s needs right from the beginning.  So the first question you should ask someone inquiring by email is when they will be buying a home.  If they’re only researching for now, find out the particular information they’re looking for and try helping them find it.  The best is having this information on your website already.  In either case, once you’ve helped them find information they’re looking for, they’ll be more inclined to sign up for your mailing list.  Having this relevant information on your website will go a long way to getting your website ranked higher in search engines for people looking in your farm areas.

If someone is actively seeking to buy a home, don’t use the old model method of asking a bunch of qualifying questions in your email replies or ask for their phone number immediately.  This turns prospects off and accounts for why many prospects fall through for many real estate professionals.  Rather, ask these prospects questions that will help narrow down who they are and what they’re looking for.  Find out if they’re first time home buyers.  If they are, that will help you know the types of homes and information they’re probably looking for.

The key thing is asking a question or two at the end of each email.  This keeps the conversation going and shows you’re interested in helping them, which will make them want to work with you more.  Eventually, once you’ve exchanged a few emails, they’ll be ready to speak with you on the phone.

Find out more of the subtleties of handling email prospects in my course The Awesome Power Of Email.   This course has been approved by the Registrar, REBBA 2002 to qualify for 4 credits.

Filed under: Using Email For Attracting Buyers/Sellers

Tags: email inquiries, email newsletter, email prospects, email subject line, email training tips, prospect, real estate education, real estate educators