Got my first calls... but they didn't leave a voicemail

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Got my first calls... but they didn't leave a voicemail

Danielle Cage
Aurora, IL · Member since 2014 · 65 posts · 20 votes

Hi! I feel like this should go in the success stories because after dragging my feet for *months* and being interested for years, I finally sent out my first direct mail campaign last week!

Between yesterday and today I received two calls, however neither of them left a voicemail. I called them both back today and left a pleasant message... but my question is now what?

How often to I call them and how many tries? If there is no proven formula, then I'll create my own. Just wondering what the pros are doing?

Thanks!

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  • Aaron Einfrank
    Real Estate Investor · Columbus, OH · Member since 2008 · 18 posts · 3 votes
    10y
    Hey Danielle Cage - Congrats on taking action. I'm one step behind you so I'm looking forward to the responses to your question. Would you mind sharing more details about your marketing plan? How many mailers did you send out? Who did you target? High-equity? Absentee? Probate? What was the message on your mailing? Thanks!
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  • Clay SmithBusiness Member
    Investor · Louisville, KY · Member since 2013 · 419 posts · 244 votes
    10y

    Try texting

    LREI Property Management LLC4.6442 Reviews
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  • Danielle Cage
    OP
    Aurora, IL · Member since 2014 · 65 posts · 20 votes
    10y

    @Aaron Einfrank I have a designated farm area so I built out a map on listsource. Unfortunately it was determined for the county I'm in, they don't report certain information. In order to get a number worth mailing to, I had to lower my criteria. So I sent to 3br, 2+ba, 40% equity, SFR. This yielded about 350 homes.

    I read over and over again that you just have to get something out, see how it goes and then adjust. So that's what I'm doing. I also do driving for dollars in my farm area and just found what looks like a foreclosure (or preforeclosure) that's not on the market yet. So I'm going to try and dig up that info.

    The home is on my list that I purchased from listsource, however it's vacant.

    I used yellowletters for the first mailing because I needed done right. We'll see how it goes. I think next time around I'll do handwritten letters and since the list is so small I'll do it myself.

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  • Danielle Cage
    OP
    Aurora, IL · Member since 2014 · 65 posts · 20 votes
    10y

    Great idea @Clay Smith.... I just don't want to anger anyone right out of the box, but I guess I can't worry about that. Any suggestions on how often I should contact them before I stop?

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  • Clay SmithBusiness Member
    Investor · Louisville, KY · Member since 2013 · 419 posts · 244 votes
    10y

    Call every day until they say stop.  If you they don't answer then move on.  It is kind of like that old boyfriend/girlfriend....you just know when it is over.  you can make up a date if you need that for your process, but I wouldn't spend much time on the issue.  I like the #7

    LREI Property Management LLC4.6442 Reviews
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  • Glenn Banks
    Design | Build · Milwaukee, WI · Member since 2014 · 107 posts · 35 votes
    10y
    Danielle Cage At a recent real estate seminar this topic came up. Using an answering service was highly suggested. The data showed a 70% no contact rate after the first call was made between potential seller and buyer. You need to be using a live call answering service who answers with your specified script. You're losing an opportunity every time someone calls and doesn't hear an actual voice on the other end of the connection.
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  • Brad Woodall
    Investor · Ball Ground, GA · Member since 2014 · 55 posts · 16 votes
    10y

    Congrats! Have you setup a webpage for them to visit as well?

    I just ordered my first round of postcards last week from YL.

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  • Rick H.
    Lender · Greater LA/Orange County area, CA · Member since 2012 · 3k+ posts · 3k+ votes
    10y

    So they tried to respond but you couldn't get them to leave a message? 

    I'd break the process down more. Since they won't leave a message that says, 'Will you buy my house...please?', you'll need to capture caller in real time and sell them on the next step. 

    Hope you know what each progressive step will be so caller senses your leadership.

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  • Danielle Cage
    OP
    Aurora, IL · Member since 2014 · 65 posts · 20 votes
    10y

    @Account Closed yep, I totally see your point. Honestly, I don't know how I missed it while researching all of this. I don't know how much these services cost, and I am on a somewhat limited budget, however I'm going to look into it before my next round of mailing. Considering the idea that missing one good lead could cost a deal, I'll do just about whatever it takes to get one in place.

    One question... will using a service take away from our local investor "feel"? We are marketing ourselves as such.

    Thanks!

    1Reply
  • Danielle Cage
    OP
    Aurora, IL · Member since 2014 · 65 posts · 20 votes
    10y

    @Brad Woodall Yes, I did set up a website. I made it very simple, 3 pages... home page, about us and contact us. It needs a little updating to make it a bit sleeker, but it has a form, and points visitors to my company.

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  • Nick Fitzpatrick
    Real Estate Broker · Marietta, GA · Member since 2014 · 135 posts · 105 votes
    10y
    Danielle, I'd call them everyday and text. Try different times. I'd also see if I could figure out who called. Hopefully the machine says "Sally Smith" and you can reference that with your list. If they don't answer, knock on their door. I'm about to close two deals solely because I wouldn't take no for an answer and kept at it.
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  • Danielle Cage
    OP
    Aurora, IL · Member since 2014 · 65 posts · 20 votes
    10y

    @Rick H. Yeah, I don't know why they wouldn't just leave a message asking me to buy their house? ;) Seriously though, this is a lesson learned. I work full time and don't have the capability to answer the calls as they come in live. With that said, a few others have mentioned using the live answering service, so I will definitely go that route for future mailings.

    I don't feel as though I'll have a problem appearing confident with clients as I know the values in my farm area and I know what I can offer in the way of assisting them. Our company has our "narrative" down. Hopefully this will show through when speaking with callers, however if you have any pointers, I would love to hear them!

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  • Danielle Cage
    OP
    Aurora, IL · Member since 2014 · 65 posts · 20 votes
    10y

    @Nick Fitzpatrick Wow, congratulations on your deals! You are right, I need to be aggressive on this. When I first posted the thread I had my first calls. It was kind of like an "uh oh" moment. It was reality hitting that I really had things in motion. I'm over that now and ready for more calls/ leads. Unfortunately we are using a dedicated cell phone line and the phone numbers that called didn't show up with caller ID. Out of curiosity, did you answer your calls live or did you use a service to answer?

    Thanks!

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  • Jalen Carethers
    Greensboro, NC · Member since 2015 · 125 posts · 74 votes
    10y
    Congrats. I just closed my first wholesale deal two weeks again. The first step is building that list
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  • Nick Fitzpatrick
    Real Estate Broker · Marietta, GA · Member since 2014 · 135 posts · 105 votes
    10y

    Danielle,

    I'm a real estate agent and pride myself on answering my phone, although it doesn't always happen. My marketing is to older homes in Intown Atlanta that can be torn down for new construction. To be honest, I've had limited success with letter campaigns and more success with just cold calling. If I can't find a phone number (White Pages), I'll look up on Facebook or LinkedIn. 

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  • Danielle Cage
    OP
    Aurora, IL · Member since 2014 · 65 posts · 20 votes
    10y

    @Nick Fitzpatrick Got it! Unfortunately in my profession I'm not able to answer calls live... so I'll definitely be getting some kind of a service. Much continued luck!

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