Real Estate Communication:

Top 3 Problems Solved

What To Say Now Episode #38

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Full Show Transcript:

Dan Stewart (00:00): When it comes to communicating with your database, there are three problems. The first is, what the heck are you going to say? The second is, when do you say it? And the third of course is, how do you say it? So if you've ever asked yourself, should I send a text, an email? Should I be calling them? Should I send a voicemail or a card? You are going to love today's episode of What to Say Now Welcome to episode number 38 of What to Say Now. And this is our how to say it episode, right? Because it's not just being able to communicate a message, it's the means by which that message is communicated that often makes the biggest difference. So let's break this down.
Dan Stewart (00:56): There's two things we need to talk about right upfront, and we're going to get a little geeky here at the top. First, we've got synchronous communication. That's you and me in conversation with each other at the same time. That's synchronous. I say something, you respond to it. You say something, I respond to it, right? So if you think about text messaging or using the DMS, direct messaging on any social media application, it's expected that when you say something, you do not have to wait for the reply, right?
Dan Stewart (01:33): The other type of communication is asynchronous. Asynchronous communication is a mouthful. And it's also the type of communication you make when you say something and yet you do not necessarily expect to get a reply right away. It could be hours, days. It could be weeks. Sometimes when you're communicating asynchronously. It means you're saying something. The other person is receiving it when they choose and responding to it when they choose and understanding the difference between synchronous and asynchronous communication is the key to leveraging the power of your database. Okay? So let's break it down. I've taught for years that they're really just two kinds of people in the world. There are people who know you, like your past clients, your sphere of influence, your friends and your family. And there are people who don't like all those brand new leads, right? So, if I'm a stranger and I'm just meeting you, I need to be communicated with in a way that pulls me closer so that we can have a relationship.
Dan Stewart (02:44): So I'd like you to envision this in your mind. Let's say you're here, right? This is you in this area, and then we've got these rings of relationship. Now, people who are closest to you. Closest to you in a relationship, you can communicate with them very frequently and easily. It's friendly, right? There's an easier thing there, but these brand new leads that are just coming in, we don't have that closeness of a relationship yet. We need messaging for those people that pulls them closer. So, here's a rule of thumb. Text messaging is very effective when a lead just comes in, and it's very effective once we've already built that deep relationship. In fact, most of us when we're working with our clients every day, most of our communication is via text messaging, right?
Dan Stewart (03:37): So, if we're accomplishing the mission of pulling that person closer, building a better relationship with them, text is really good initially. And it's really good once they're close. Where it's not good is when that lead has been generated and it is now months later, and you're still texting them and you fail to pull the relationship closer. All your text message is doing in that scenario is annoying, right? It's annoying. We've all been on the receiving end of that text. It doesn't feel good. We've registered for something somewhere in our lives where months or years later, we're getting random text messages telling us we need to do something right now. So, the way I like to use text messaging, the way I recommend it for you and your business would be to set it up as a lead response. So, someone registers on your website. You've generated a brand new lead, a text message sent then can be incredibly helpful, right?
Dan Stewart (04:35): So now, we need to shift here. So we're sending that text initially. Then it's time to shift into sending email and one of my other favorites, which is voicemail drops. So if you're smart, you should set this up. This is my pro tip for you. Set it up to where you are setting expectations with this person that you haven't met yet. And then the automation that you're deploying is fulfilling those expectations. So I'll give you an example. You register on my website. You might get an email from me that says, "Hey, thanks for registering on our site. We really care about building relationships with people who are interested in us. We'd love to have a conversation with you when it's convenient. Here's my direct line. If I don't hear from you today, I'll reach out again tomorrow. I'll send a voicemail or I'll make a phone call." Right? And then you can have the system automatically send a voicemail drop to fill in that gap.
Dan Stewart (05:36): So it's about setting expectations that the automation can then fulfill. That's a very effective way to convert on this business. And I got to say hey to my man, John Magus. I love that you're here, John. I would love to catch up, man. It's been probably three weeks since we've spoken, so way too long. So, think about this guys. Asynchronous and synchronous, and then think about these three rings of communication. The people furthest away from you. These leads that you've just generated, send them texts, send them voicemail drops, send them emails, right?
Dan Stewart (06:10): In that middle ground, you can rely on email, right? Less texting, right? You're pulling them closer. And then when you're actually in the process of transacting with them. That's when you should be using your text messaging much more frequently. So, if you think about this in terms of your marketing mix, the thing that I mentioned earlier really comes to bear, because your past clients and your sphere, you don't need to be marketing them. You need to just be in communication with them on a regular basis. They remember who you are. They know what you do. There'll be happy to do business with you. They'll be happy to refer you.
Dan Stewart (06:48): And John, I see your reply. I'm going to call you as soon as this is done if you're available, that'd be fun. Right? So, this is a really good example here in real time. John Magus and I are friends. We've been friends for a lot of years. And we can text. We can email. We can send voicemail drops. It would be weird though, if the only way John and I communicated with each other was through our marketing materials, right? That's a really good illustration of the boundary that exists between people we have a relationship with and leads that you're trying to convert, right? So, I'm going to strongly encourage every single person watching this to think about those people you're close with and the need you have to communicate with them.
Dan Stewart (07:33): It is business driven. It is okay. That it's good for your business to communicate with people. You just don't always have to communicate about your business, right? So, let's review. We've got two types of communication, asynchronous and synchronous. And then we have two audiences. Those who know us, those who don't. And then we have these three rings, right? One is that people are absolutely closest to you. Two is people in that medium range. You kind of know each other, but you don't really have a great relationship yet. And then third ring furthest out are people that you have not yet built a relationship with. They've just registered, then become a lead for you.
Dan Stewart (08:16): So, we're talking about how to use text, email and voicemail drop when communicating to these groups of people. Where does social media come in? Right? Social media can be both asynchronous and synchronous. I post something on Facebook. You're going to see it whenever you see it. You're going to reply to it whenever you reply to it. There is zero expectation that you're going to engage with it in real time. That's okay. Now, if I see that you're live and I reach out to you on messenger and you reply right away, right? That's a little different. Now, we're in a conversation. We expect that to be very synchronous, right? And conversation continues until it stops.
Dan Stewart (08:58): So, a few thoughts for you about how to reach out to these people that have just registered and pull them closer. To summarize, we're going to set expectations that you're going to continue to follow up with them. And then you've got to set up the automation so that, that happens automatically. So any questions, comments, any tips at all, or anything I can help with? I'm here to serve. Thank you to those of you who are tuning in live. Please join me next week. 2:00 PM, on Tuesdays, we go live with What to Say Now. Have a great afternoon, everybody, and John Magus, I'm going to be calling you in just a minute. Bye everybody.