A lot of times, we see technology as a necessary cost for our practice. But Greg Harrelson begs to differ. The way he puts it, "technology shouldn't be an expense, it should be an investment".
According to Greg, we should be quantifying the return we get from our tools, and then adjusting accordingly.
"If you invest in real estate, you expect a return. And this should be no different." he explains, and goes on to say that if you're thinking of your tools as something to get rid of, you should start by asking yourself how you can make money off of them.
Perhaps you already are. In Greg's case, he takes the number of leads he's generated through his RealGeeks website, through his advertising at RealLeads, and through the platform's What's My Home Worth widget.
He then calculates his conversion rate on those leads, and that's how he figures out that he's getting a 1000% return on his investment.
You might not be making this amount (many of us aren't!) but that's okay. You're in the right place.
Because today, we're going to be breaking down Greg's favorite tactics to make money off of the RealGeeks platform, in no particular order.
Everything Greg shares here, he's currently doing.
If you want to learn even more ways to increase your ROI, or go deeper into any of these activities, join Greg's private coaching community at www.RGMastery.com, where he shares actionable advice on how to grow your real estate business using RealGeeks.
1. Share Your Listings for Free Advertising
RealGeeks offers a simple "Share" button on your website, allowing you to effortlessly promote any of your listings on various social media platforms. By regularly sharing your listings, you not only drive free traffic to your website but also create valuable prospects.
Greg's strategy involves monitoring shared listings for friends tagged by your audience. These individuals are potential homebuyers, and reaching out to them via private messages on Facebook can generate free leads.
Here's what you do: commit to sharing one listing per day on your most engaged social media platform (be it Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, or LinkedIn).
Then, private message everyone who engages with the property (or is tagged in the comments of the property) with the following:
"Hey, I noticed you tagged someone/were tagged/commented/liked X property, and I was wondering if you wanted to check it out next week"
This strategy is not only great for prospecting through Facebook - it's a great channel to generate leads for free and amplify your reach.
"And if you have a team of agents, just imagine how much business you could generate if everyone was doing this daily." adds Greg.
This strategy is one that Greg's team does every single Tuesday at 10am, like clockwork.
He shares the top 10 new listings of the week with his database.
Here's how you do it: You build a page on our RealGeeks website, and you title it "Top New Listings of the Week in [Neighborhood]"
On that page, you ask the platform to populate all the new listings of the MLS, through the IDX. This means that in real time, your list is going to be updating every time a new listing appears on the MLS.
Then, you send an email to the people in your database, letting them know about the brand new listings in this particular neighborhood or district.
"I will tell you this with certainty: it is the most engaged email or video we send." says Greg. "Some of our leads will click it every single week."
This is also a great strategy to re-engage leads. You can do an Advanced Search Filter for people who haven't engaged in your website for the last 90 days, and send them this list as an email or text.
Make sure the subject line is: Top 10 New Listings in [neighborhood], and embed the link inside that text or email.
To take this even further, post that same link of the Top 10 New Listings on Facebook/LinkedIn/Instagram, that same Tuesday at 10am (which Greg deems as the best time to post right now), like clockwork.
Personalization is a powerful tool in real estate.
Here's how to use it to your advantage: Greg suggests identifying 10 buyer leads in your database every day who are searching for specific types of properties.
When you find a new MLS listing that matches their criteria, text it to them along with a picture of the property. Underneath the link, make sure to write:
"Hey, a new listing hit your market in your price range. Let me know if you want to check it out this week."
Greg guarantees you'll set at least one appointment by doing this for just one week straight.
We've all heard about the benefits of SEO: the concept of generating "passive" and free leads every month. Except, because it takes time away from us, they're nor completely free.
With that said, SEO is a worthy investment, because what you put in today can pay off handsomely in the future. And it's an asset that generally appreciates over time, as articles gain popularity and SEO juice the longer they exist.
Here's what to do: Commit to writing one new blog or city page per month, and within 10 months, you'll be guaranteed to have a consistent stream of new visitors.
Clear out 1 day of your month to work on this, and do it for 10 months. After you start seeing results, you will have already built the habit of working on this one day a month, and you'll only grow the channel from there.
If the time investment of SEO is out of the question for you right now, consider its polar opposite in terms of marketing: PPC advertising. PPC leads cost money, but they pay off immediately.
RealGeeks offers a PPC ads service called Real Leads. And according to Joel Johnson, he wasn't able to keep up with the amount of leads he started getting when using this service.
Something that agents will often say about PPC leads is that they're not great in quality. But Greg Harrelson believes the quality actually lies in the agent's approach:
"Some agents say PPC is by far the most successful channel for them. Some agents say it doesn't work for them - this is because it depends 100% on your approach."
Here's how to make it work: If you follow best practices like Speed to Lead, consistent follow-ups, and offering quick access to properties, you'll be part of the PPC-loving camp.
Here's a hard pill to swallow for many of us, according to Greg: "An agent that logs in every day is going to set more appointments than the one who doesn't."
Regularly logging into your RealGeeks account is crucial for success. Agents who log in daily can stay up-to-date with their leads' activities and respond promptly to opportunities. And consistent engagement with your leads is the key to turning your RealGeeks platform into a lucrative asset.
In conclusion, these strategies, inspired by Greg Harrelson's insights, provide a comprehensive roadmap to turn RealGeeks into a robust money-making tool for your real estate business.
By leveraging these techniques and considering the statistical insights, you can ensure that your investment in technology not only pays off but also transforms your expenses into profitable returns.
For a deeper dive into these strategies and personalized coaching, consider joining RGMastery, where you can unlock the full potential of RealGeeks for your real estate business, all for less than $200 a month. Don't miss out on this opportunity to elevate your real estate game with RealGeeks.