Prospecting to win! By Mathew Frederick at PushPast.ca
I am going to share a 2 stage prospecting system that I have used successfully for the past 19 years. A large part of success is getting to the top of the hill first. It takes 1 person to run up an unoccupied hill but it takes 9 persons to remove that person due to the constraints of fighting uphill. That’s why it is important to hold the high ground in battle. That is also why in prospecting it is important to get to the potential client first. The problem, you can’t get to thehome owner first because realtors desirous of selling or investors desirous of buying at deep discount already got there. So instead of being first, be the most memorable. Being the most memorable has the equivalent effect as being the first on the hill top. Most realtors use the same door to door formula. They introduce themselves to the home owner, make them aware that a house sold on their street recently, provide them with some details, offer afree market evaluation, talk about high quality of service they offer clients, and how different they are from other realtors.Most investors leave an I BUY HOUSES card in the mail box, or inquire due to the rundown look if there may be interested in adiscount buy, renovate, and leaseback program. In both cases you are really asking the homeowner to trust you before you have earned their trust. You are saying that you will do something before you did something. You are speaking about your worth before doing anything worthy.Do you see the problem? You need to earn trust before you ask for trust. You need to do something before you say you will do something. You need to provide worth before you speak about yourworth. Better to have something to offer them which shows work has already been done, and your ability to negotiate has provided results before you start speaking of your worth. This separates you from everyone else and makes you MOST MEMORABLE in their minds. Especially when they get an instant bene fit from what you will present to them on first contact. No it’s not a pen with your name on it or a fridge magnet with a strangers face to place next to their kids’ stuff. Here is atwo stage solution to the problem.
Stage 1 Aftera tough winter people need roof, eaves, gutter, window, shutter, door, deck, fence, lawn, driveway, tree, and foundation help. Go to your computer, find 2-3 reputable companies in each field to investigate their work quality and start making calls. You ask the business owner if free advertising to 1,000 homes in their area where you knock on the client’s door to have a short conversation is worth discussing further. You tell the business owner about the 8 spots you have on the back of your 5 by 6 inch business introduction card that showcases complementary businesses. (1 per category). You make them aware that unlike newspaper flyers that are bunched together, and mail flyers easily tossed, you actually talk to the home owner. Finally, the business owner doesn’t have to pay printing cost or delivery costs, just a 10-15% discount ($250 maximum, valid until September 31 if booked before July). Stage 2 You print 1,000 cards with your business information on one side and the 8 complementary businesses on the other side offering a 10% – 15% discount when presented. When you knock on a door to introduce yourself and go through the standard realtor or investor verbiage you now have something different to offer. You show them how you have already been working on their behalf with local professionals to save them hundreds of dollars on services they can actually use. That you have spent the time to understand their needs and developed solutions before you met them. And, these savings are for them even if they don’t do business with you because you believe that when you give you also receive. You show your worth as being innovative in a tactile manner because the discounts ONLY come with showing the card which they keep in a good spot. I can go on but you get my drift. I did not say it was easy to do. If you are afraid to pick up the phone or knock on doors then this is not for you but then either is real estate investing. Win their mind! It’s not location, location, location. Its win a location in their mind first, determine needs second, and location third. Check out PushPast.ca for more investing topics!