SMS is a very useful tool for real estate teams; automated texting can increase lead responses by 50%-70%. Texting offers the immediacy and universal availability of a phone call with the convenience and permanence of an email.
These characteristics make text messaging highly valuable to any business with agents who need to send and confirm information with clients while on the move, especially real estate. Here are 5 simple ways text messaging can save your real estate team time and money, and some texting scripts you can modify and use to message clients.
How much time have your agents lost in the last year from your clients not showing up to a viewing? Your agents probably already text ahead to confirm viewing times, but automating this allows for much greater consistency and transparency. With a bulk texting service you can automate personalised reminders to be sent before appointments, and have the reminder logged in your CRM.
SMS reminders add convenience for clients, as they do not need to remember appointments or call to check times, and reduce the possibility of dropped leads. 55% of consumers prefer to get appointment reminders via text.
Example Scripts:
“I look forward to meeting you tomorrow on our tour of the houses you were interested in. The first address is [ADDRESS]. Let’s meet there at 11 am. Let me know if you can’t make it.”
“Hi [NAME], the property we are going to visit today is at [ADDRESS], I’ll see you there at 2pm. Get in touch if you can’t make it so we can reschedule”
Give all the information the client needs in one text, to avoid them having to text back to request more details.
Using automatic or scheduled alerts to let clients know about new properties reliably keeps them informed about homes they may be interested in, without your agents needing to spend lots of time calling up to discuss each property. A short description along with a link to the property allows clients to stay up to date and reply to book viewings in their spare time.
This is an added convenience for clients as well, as they don’t want to worry about missing out on their ideal home because they couldn’t take the call. 62% of buyers prefer to get property information via SMS. Not only does this allow your agents to update clients faster and more consistently, texts are usually opened and read within minutes of sending, increasing your chances of a rapid response.
You can also use SMS alerts to send progress updates on sales and contracts, saving time for your agents and ensuring clients don’t need to call in to check everything is going smoothly.
Example Script:
“Great news, your offer has been accepted! I’ll send over the details shortly.”
“We have several open house viewings on Saturday that fit your criteria; you can check them out here: [LINK]”
To avoid filling up your client’s inboxes, group new properties together instead of sending an individual text about each one.
Reviews and testimonials are not just a great way to collect feedback to improve your service, positive reviews and recommendations can also bring in leads. Text messages are 34% more likely to get a response than email, increasing your likelihood of getting a testimonial from satisfied clients.
The best time to ask for feedback is often during or right after the move, when all of your help and support is still fresh on your client’s mind. This might not be a good time to call however, as your clients will be busy settling into their new home. Sending a text instead allows you to remind them about giving you a review without inconveniencing them, and they can write your testimonial in their own time instead of being put on the spot.
Example Script:
“Hi [NAME], how are you settling into your new property? To improve our service we’d really appreciate any feedback you have about our help finding your home. You can give us your thoughts by replying to this text or at [LINK]”
“Hi [NAME], I hope the move is going well? I’d love to hear your feedback on our help finding your new home, it would be great if you could leave us a review at [LINK] or by replying to this text.
SMS is more personal than email, so clients feel more obliged to acknowledge your feedback request.
When your agents are messaging clients via their personal inboxes, the rest of the team can be left in the dark about their latest conversations with leads. This can lead to a worse experience for clients as well as inefficient time management within your team, with agents contacting clients and following up leads based on out of date information.
By incorporating bulk SMS to your lead follow up strategy your whole team can check the current status and entire history of agents’ messages with a client, as all the messages you send are automatically logged. All of your agents can text a lead through the same number, making it much easier for the client to track the conversation as well.
Using bulk texting to manage leads reduces your number of dropped leads as agents can quickly check when a client was last contacted and schedule a follow up text immediately after each contact. The average real estate agent loses 20% of their clients due to not keeping in touch with leads. It also makes it much easier for you to track which agents are your highest performers when it comes to following up with clients and leads.
Example Script:
“Hi [NAME], we have some great properties you might be interested in, what is your availability this week?”
“There are some new properties on the market that fit your needs; you can check them out here [LINK]. If you are interesting in viewing any of these just text me back with your availability for the next week”
To increase the chances of a client getting back to you, always provide a clear next step they can take to move things forward, in this example all the client needs to do is provide some times they are available.
SMS is a great time-saving tool for communicating with leads and your team. Automatically distribute leads to team members along with a conversion strategy for each lead or group of leads. Everyone can see what stage of the follow up process a client is at, and which strategy they should follow with each lead. Many online lead generation tactics will provide you with the necessary information to segment leads into different priorities and follow up strategies.
By creating and sharing message templates to personalise and use at each stage of the follow up process saves your agents time and allows you to ensure each lead receives messages in a consistent style and tone.
SMS in real estate can save you valuable time which you can spend pursuing additional leads and sales instead; improve your response rates while adding convenience for clients, it’s a win-win scenario.
Great follow up tactics and communication are key to providing a great service as well as maximising your conversions, and your real estate business can’t afford to miss out on the opportunities to improve these that SMS enables.
About the Author
Alexa Lemzy is a business blogger and content manager at TextMagic – a complete online text messaging solution. She is passionate about text message technology, customer success and innovative marketing campaigns. @Alexa_Lemzy
Home sales are a part of the economy that is affected fast and significantly when…
Are you wondering what a real estate ecosystem is and how to create one? In…
Owning real estate is a worthwhile investment, but what happens when available properties in your…
Upgrading your home isn’t as simple as it might seem. Installing marble countertops or a…
You can sell a home that needs a new roof if you're willing to make…
Summer, it’s been a blast. Though as the last of the BBQ’s sizzle out and…