Image via zionstar.net

During Luxury Connect, our VP of Marketing, Lisa Fettner had an opportunity to chat with a group of seasoned Luxury Agents about how they manage their referral business. The agents, all from different luxury markets such as Cabo, Aspen, Hawaii and SoCal, all agreed that staying in touch with their clients, fellow agents and communities were keys to their success in generating incremental business.

They shared the following five tips that all agents can apply to their daily work lives and activities to generate additional referral income:

• Remember to ask for ALL of your clients’ business.
  • If they have multiple properties (or are in the market for another), offer to find them an agent where they’re interested in buying or planning to sell.
  • Are they planning to purchase property for staff or a child going to college? Let them know you can help find agents for those purchases as well.
• Be an information resource to your agents and clients that contains area information and highlights. 
  • Send separate newsletters to position yourself as an area expert to keep you top of mind with your agent network and past clients.
  • Be active on social media and post fun facts about your community. Be sure to include photos of your community and area to give prospects and other agents a “true” view of what it’s like to live there.
• ALWAYS pick up the phone and respond when an agent calls. 
  • You never know what a fellow agent is looking for. Perhaps they have a client who needs an agent, or they simply need information on your area. Forging strong relationships and partnerships will pay off in the long run.
• Conduct a Pre-Interview. 
  • When you do receive a referral from another agent, be sure to get detailed information about the client and the properties they are interested in buying or selling. Do they want a “shark” to negotiate the best possible deal or are they seeking an advisor who can “hand hold” them through the entire process? Make sure you know the prospective clients timeline as well.
• Get out and be active in your community to position yourself as “the local expert.”
  • Consider sponsoring, hosting or participating in local events.
  • Be the “go to” source for your local paper and broadcast stations. Write a weekly real estate column or host a TV/radio show.

Your real estate business is bigger than you think. ReferralExchange matches your clients with 3 great agents and pays you a 25% referral fee at closing.