Enjoyed speaking with you today.

There is actually a 4th option that I think works the best. The idea behind getting someone to register is to get a lead. It helps if the data is good. Other studies have shown, and from my IBM days, that people will give up their information when they are ready to take action. In the meantime, they like the idea of being able to surf anonymously until then. But when they are ready to take action, the recent California Association of Realtors’ study showed that they will typically use the first agent they make contact with.

So one trick is to create a website that will provide enough information to keep those visitors coming back (return visits). You can do this by providing really good neighborhood and community data. By tying in a good social media strategy that lets the visitor know you are the local expert and you have the information they need or want. For example, one of the things I blog about revolves around buying raw land in Chatham County. Unlike general blog post that deal with general financial articles, I blog about the specific area and things a buyer or seller may not know, but should. Thus my return visitors is fairly high.

When they are ready to make contact, give them every means possible. Not just an e-mail or a form, give them live chat also. After all, it is all free to offer. Make is easy for the visitor to contact you.

The next thing is about registrations. I would give the visitor the ability to do initial searches. But to look at more detailed information about THAT particular property, I would ask them to register. Typically when they want more detailed information, they are a more serious buyer. Not always, but usually.

Another way to solicit registrations and a call to action is to provide something else of value. Here you might find that neighborhood reports, property data, or recent sales could be used. The idea is to think about a potential buyer and what information might be important to them if they were looking to purchase in that area. Then assemble that information in a format that can be used in exchange for their information. Because you are going to e-mail them the information, they have to give you a good e-mail address.

I have seen people use Craigslist and advertise free foreclosure or short sale list in order to get investor/buyers to sign up.

And don’t forget sellers, they need information also. A potential seller may be interested in a sales report for their neighborhood, or some other information.

Enjoyed the conversation.
Barrett

I have not been able to track the numbers so I’m not sure if people just see the sign in sheet and look for another website where they don’t have to sign in. I don’t really know how to do this.

One thing I am wondering is whether you have taken into account the time it takes to deal with the bogus leads you get from the forced sign-in. I am a solo agent and I was spending a lot of time dealing with those, when I could have been doing more dollar-productive things. When I switched to the voluntary, I got very few bogus names.