by Chett Coombs, on May 10, 2016
#1. Schedule it in
Your alarm clock just went off. You look over and see that its 6:30 AM. After taking some time to fully wake up, you get out of bed and start your morning routine: take a shower, get dressed, drink some coffee while reading the paper. When you pull into the office at 8AM, what do you typically want to do first? Making calls isn’t usually at the top of the list, but it should be #1.
If calling FSBO’s isn’t on your calendar, it’s too easy to fill the first few hours of the day returning emails and checking social media feeds. Landvoice FSBOs will give you access to the latest FSBO leads every morning. Make calling these FSBOs a top priority for the first few hours of every day. Simply calling for an hour or two every day will produce results.
#2. Have the correct perspective
Calling FSBOs is different than calling other seller leads. A FSBO is someone that wants to sell their home, but has already made the decision NOT to use a real estate professional. In order to be successful calling FSBOs as a lead source, you need to have the perspective of the homeowner.
Homeowners list For Sale By Owner for many reasons. Here are a few:
1. Money. Some homeowners don’t think they have enough equity to pay an agent commission or they just want maximize their profit.
2. DIY attitude. A lot of people have a DIY attitude and do not realize a real estate professional provides value that cannot be found by just using FSBO classifieds and listing by themselves.
3. Bad experience. Homeowners may have family or friends, or even themselves, that have had a bad experience using a real estate agent in the past.
It’s important that you have the right perspective when calling FSBOs, otherwise the homeowner will quickly sense that you are only interested in listing their house and not their concerns. The questions you ask and the solutions you offer should be based around the perspective of the homeowner.
#3. Practice
A report given by KW reads that "agents who excel with FSBOs and expired listings make a point to role-play, practice, and have good scripts that can overcome the objections of the homeowners that they come into contact with." Calling FSBOs is a different conversation than calling Expireds or other lead sources and should be practiced differently too. Make sure to schedule time each day to practice your FSBO script. Practicing FSBO scripts until they become part of your natural selling conversation will help turn leads into listings.
Make it a priority to practice objections that are difficult for you to overcome. If other agents on your team can’t provide help with a specific objection, the Lead Gen Scrips and ObjectionsFacebook Group is a great place to ask for help overcoming objections and improving your script.
#4. Provide value
Show the homeowner that you are a great agent by providing them something of value from the moment you call. Don’t withhold your best tips and advice until the homeowner signs a listing agreement. By taking the time to look at their FSBO classified ad and providing them with valuable advice, the homeowner will trust you as a real estate professional. When the time comes for the homeowner to finally list with an agent because their house hasn’t sold, they are much more likely to list with the agent that was willing to help them for free – You.
Another way agents are providing great value and building trust is by using the Landvoice Call Capture system. Call Capture will provide the homeowner with a toll-free number and a professional audio recording of their home. If any potential buyer calls their exclusive number, the homeowner receives a text message with the buyer information. [BONUS: the buyer information is also sent to you as a buyer lead!]
#5. Diligence
Agents have heard the statistic many times: 84% of FSBOs will end up listing with an agent. A homeowner may list for various reasons, but they all believe that they can sell it without an agent. You never know when a homeowner will finally realize they need an agent to sell their home. Diligently following up will help keep your name on the top of their minds. When calling, make sure to add more value. Don’t ever follow up and make it about you listing their home. Instead, ask about the sort of traffic they are getting and offer suggestions to improve it, such as some different places they might advertise it or a better way to describe the master suite. If they are having specific problems, offer some potential solutions.
By following up regularly and offering these valuable tips instead of just asking for the listing, the homeowner will eventually look to you as the real estate professional they trust to list their home.
Landvoice solutions offer subscription services to get you over the hump from calling expired listings to doing business entirely from happy client referrals. Bundle subscriptions and save—not only time, but money. Landvoice is the one provider you need that offers services like Neighborhood Search and Call Capture, which generate leads, to effortlessly supply you with expired MLS leads and FSBO leads right to your inbox. Choose Landvoice and you’ll save valuable time that you can dedicate to taking your business to the next level.
