Author: Buildout This post originally appeared on Buildout’s Blog and is republished with permission. Find out how to blog with us on theBrokerList.
As a commercial real estate broker or brokerage, the key to winning more listings, closing more deals, and growing your firm is prospecting. Without prospecting, and prospecting often, you will struggle to acquire new clients and maintain existing relationships—and no clients means no business.
So, as a rule of thumb, you should be prospecting every single day. Here are some tips on how to make the most of that time.
Establish your territory and niche
Establishing your territory and niche within the commercial real estate market will help you find prospects who either have a need or interest. You’ll want to be as specific about the territory and property type so you can laser focus on your target market.
While it might make you nervous to decrease your addressable market, it will ultimately help you generate more and better quality leads. After all, your prospects want to work with someone who can address their unique needs. By focusing on a small niche in a specific territory, you can ensure you have the insights, skills, and relationships needed to stand out from the competition and get relevant inquiries.
And that’s where your prospecting software comes in. Document and categorize any inbound inquiries and conversations in your prospecting software so you can maintain regular contact and connect the right people with the right property types and listings.
Network with other business owners
Establishing your reputation and building relationships with local business and property owners in your territory can help you source leads and opportunities based on their connections.
Develop an understanding of quality businesses in the area and talk to key employees and decision-makers about their property needs and challenges. Use your business card over and over again every day to level up your prospecting and expand your network.
Review sales records in your area
Reviewing sales records in your territory can provide you with insights you might not get otherwise. For example, properties that turn often could be opportunities in the near future, and sales records feed you firsthand market research while helping you better understand demand, utility, scarcity, and more.
Get to know the properties in your territory that are priority areas for businesses and use CRE prospecting tools to fuel your lead generation, research, and outreach.
Make outbound calls every day
One way to grow your client base is to talk to more people—and one of the easiest ways to talk to new people is by making more outbound calls. Remember, your goal for every single outbound call you make is to get the prospect to sit down and meet with you.
Before making these cold calls, you’ll need to research what would interest your prospects and formulate your pitch. Determining a prospect’s issues gives you a good reason to call and move the relationship forward—and a pointed conversation is also more likely to lead to an in-person meeting.
Grow your referral network
Repeats and referrals should be a huge part of your CRE business. If you don’t have repeat and referral clients, you’re doing something wrong.
But this is only possible when you deliver an amazing client experience, so make sure every part of your service—from the listing process to the closing—is good for your client. Then ask for referrals, capture and share client success stories, and stay active in the CRE community.
Are you ready to take your prospecting to the next level?
With Buildout’s full suite of connected tools, you can streamline your processes, level up your prospecting, and ultimately—win more listings. If you haven’t seen what Buildout can do for you and your team, get in touch with us and ask for a personalized demo today.
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