Is your real estate database a dumpster fire or lead gen machine?

Study after study has shown that nurturing your database should yield you at least a 10% return.

This means that when you have 100 people in your database, and they’re hearing from you regularly with something of value, at least 10 of those contacts should either transact with you or refer someone they know who will work with you buying or selling real estate.

Are 200 people in your database hearing from you all the time? That’s at least 20 transactions this year. Calculate that out: Twenty times the average commission of nearly $10,000 equals $200,000. In other words, if you’re running the dumpster fire version, that’s the minimum potential income you’re missing out on.

Take this easy test to determine which type of database you may be running.

Is your database a dumpster fire or lead generation machine?

1. Do you have a database?

• Don’t stay stuck on ‘what’s the best database?’
• Don’t over-spend on one you’ll never figure out.
• Commit to using one and stick to it.

2. Do you know how to use your database?

• Do the tutorial, take the training.

3. Do you update your database at least once per week?

• Add new contacts, including adopted clients, professional sphere of influence and new friends,
• Remove duplicate entries
• Delete bad contacts and partial contacts
• Add social media handles
• Add details like kids and pets names, birthdays, anniversaries
• Curate specific lists

4. Do you regularly update passwords to keep your database protected?

5. Are you using your database to communicate regularly, effectively and efficiently?

Are you closing sales as a result? Just ‘having’ the database is meaningless. You have to use it.

Examples:

• Phone conversations (add notes to your contact entries)
• Digital newsletter campaigns
• Pop-by list for ‘top 30’ contacts, most influential / referral givers, etc.
• 5 Thank You or Congratulations cards daily
• Free Comparable Market Analysis delivered / discussed
• Market Updates
• ‘Wanted’ outreach for buyers you’re working with

6. Do you follow a specific, scheduled communication calendar to nurture your database?

• Daily calls, ex: 5 contacts daily x 5 days / week = 25 contacts per week, 100 per month.
• Weekly pop-by’s for top contacts
• Monthly newsletter

Bottom line?

To generate at least a 10% return from your database, it must be regularly updated, cleaned for accuracy, used to communicate at a high level and continue to grow. Done correctly, your database is a highly valuable asset.

Tim and Julie Harris host the nation’s No. 1 podcast for real estate professionals in the US. New episodes premier every weekday. Tim and Julie have been real estate coaches for more than two decades, coaching the top agents in the country through all types of markets.