Forget Netflix and Chill — It's time to Nurture and Thrill!
It’s a weird, weird world out there these days, but people still need places to live. You know the drill, being a real estate agent never stops, even during times of change and transition. We might be doing things differently in many ways, but some things need to remain constant, like our email campaigns and communication with our database.
We’ve all spent a lot of time doing the “Netflix and chill” thing lately, so we were all thinking it’s about time to do a little “nurture and thrill” for your real estate business. Put the remote control away, and turn the television off, or shut that browser window you have Netflix hiding in, it’s time to get serious about your real estate business.
OK, now that Netflix is shut down how should we get started?
I always said I was going to organize my database, update my contacts, and set it all up to send my email campaigns to the right audience with the appropriate message. I spent 5 years making myself the same promise over and over. I never did it, I procrastinated in any way I could to not do it, or when I did it took me too long and I wasn’t focused on it.
If you are like me, and most agents, you’ve got a variety of contacts in your database. Let’s list a few: sphere of influence, friends, past clients, leads, active clients, the “mets”, and you can’t forget the vendors you’ve worked with. You have to know who they are to categorize them and understand what kind of message you will send to each. You have to send the right messages to the right people, I know this because I wasn’t doing it right a long time ago, and it mattered.
What’s my point? I want you to send the right email to the right audience in the most effective way possible, and to get the best open and reply rates.
Let’s face it, there are a lot of moving parts when it comes to email campaigns. You have to make sure you are sending at the right time, from the right email domain, with the right message to the right audience.
Here are 6 easy tips for a Successful Email Campaign!
The right message to the right audience, at the right time.
You want people to read your email and feel as though it was written just for them, and their interests not for 500 people. This is EASY! Happy Grasshopper has a team of ninja content writers to help you hone in on the right messages.Timing is nothing and everything.
When you send your message matters. If you are sending emails on a Sunday night at 9 pm expect to get buried in the Monday morning inbox. You have to think strategically about who your intended recipient is and what their schedule might be. Generally planning to have an email arrive between 4:15-4:35 pm is ideal. Most people who work regular schedules (not night shift workers) are usually in a lull at the time of day, checking emails and catching up on tasks before the end of the day. You’re 65% more likely to get that email opened and read at this time than in any other throughout the day.The magic number is 3.
Various scientific studies done in the fields of marketing as well as psychology have shown that people are more agreeable to options when they are presented with 3 choices. Three seems to be a reasonable number to select from when presented with multiple options when you hit 4, or higher, a reader will become more skeptical. Ways to use 3 in your emails: Include the number 3 in the subject line, use 3 paragraphs in your message body, and a multitude of other ways. When presented with a subject like “3 Quick Ways to get what you want” people are willing to take the time to read 3 quick things, and you can get their eyes (and their opening of your email) accomplished easily.Keep it short, sweet and to the point.
People don’t read anymore, they scan first to determine if it is something that they 1) want to read and 2) is worth their time. You want to make the point quick. Forget everything you learned in school about grammar and paragraphs, keep your paragraphs short and to the point. Less is more is the rule when it comes to email messages. Make your messages clear, use numbering or bullet points, make it obvious what you are conveying to get their buy-in.Say their name!
If you want the message to be personal, make it personalized. Use their first name in the subject line if you can, and in the body of the message if possible. Give them a reason to really believe it is a personal message and not just sent to a large mailing list. For bonus points, close the email by using their name, like “I hope to hear from you soon, Sean, just reach out if you need anything, anytime.”Get them engaged!
Use humor, by using humor you change the reader's mood, and they are more likely to respond to your email, or remember it. Make an impression.
Here are a few ways to get engagement with your email messages:Get more email replies by including various “because” techniques — when you provide a reason why you want someone to do something or a reason you are asking something, people are more likely to be cooperative and reply. Give a reason to reply and request it, politely of course.
Ask a question, give them a call to action. Give them a reason to act, ask a question or seek an opinion. People enjoy sharing their opinions or views, so why not ask, but don’t make it open-ended, give a simple choice between two things, or perhaps 3 (see what I did there?).
For instance “It’s the age old summer debate, unsweetened ice tea or sweet tea, which do you prefer?”
These questions all set you up for one thing, an engaged audience that is primed to have a conversation with you. A powerful question to ask when you have established rapport is to see what they’re challenged by in their living situation.
Try asking this: “What’s your single biggest challenge around your living situation?”
Your goal in all of these email messages and the tips related to them is to make a connection with your audience that matters to them. You want them to feel comfortable with you, to trust your expertise and your insight. You want them to rely upon you when they need your services. To do this, takes a delicate mix of messaging, the right message at the right time.
It’s not pure science, and it’s not pure art, it’s a mix of the two.
A good way to look at it for most people is this, if you’ve ever cooked, you know that cooking is an art whereas baking is a science. You’ve got to understand how your audience thinks, what their interests are, and even what their goals are—if they have been in touch with you about real estate there’s a safe assumption they have interest in real estate.
It’s all rather complicated but “Game Over.”
Another great way to do it all is by using Happy Grasshopper and their team of amazing coaches and content writers. Creating conversations and keeping-in-touch is what we do, and we do it very well.
