Business cards at the park

[Jean LaCosse]

Hi,

I am a new real estate agent and looking to get the word out a bit. I was thinking of walking around the park this weekend with a cooler of freezies and passing them out with my business card, and of course talking to anyone who had any real estate questions.

Is this a good idea? Would people be potentially receptive to this or would it just be a waste of cards for people who'll never call? Also is this even legal? I have never seen anyone else pass out cards in a public place.

Thank you for any answers!

[Nathan Gesner]

Call your City to confirm but I can't imagine it would be a problem. Selling products without a license is a problem, but you're just giving out something free and sharing information.

My question: what kind of seller do you hope to find at a park that's (a) not already working with an agent and (b) willing to give their biggest financial transaction to a stranger that hands out icee-pops at the park?

People do business with someone they know, like, and trust. You could earn some business from strangers at the park, but it seems more likely you'll just spend an afternoon giving treats to kids and soccer moms that aren't there to find a REALTOR. You'd have better luck building relationships with people through volunteer work, serving on a board, coaching T-ball, or some other long-term relationship.