How much time do you spend surfing the web, looking on facebook, checking your tweets, browsing at all the different shops online ...
like my
wife at the Gucci shop .. looking but not buying. People going on websites,
looking, not buying, the amount of time we spend online and the number of web
pages we visit have gone up dramatically over the last 5 to 10 years.
More time, more webpages, but not nearly so much more in the way of business done. Your tweets (I have just started with Twitter .. I must admit its rather good isnt it .. my handle (anyone over 40 will recognise that as CB radio talk is @LettingsChris ) are seen by a ten times more people as they were 5 years ago, but as loads more peope see your tweets, it is only twice as likely to get clicked on as they used to be. More people are browsing, but less are clicking.
There's a whole lot of people spending a lot of time browsing, not taking action (nice Gucci shop!). Doing the deal hasnt gone up at the same rate browsing has, which is why your clients attention, almost permission to want they want to read what you have to say is worth more than ever before. In fact, the easiest way for a tweet/update/post to not spread is for you to ask someone to actually do something.(ie landlords wanted ..call this number)
The more time someone spends online, the less likely they are to do business with you. More time spent looking, less time spent clicking. We're being conditioned to sit back and assume that action is the exception, not the rule. Sort of like the difference between the local Asda supermarket (where no one browses) and the windows of a fancy Gucci store (where everyone does). "I am just looking" is the new way of doing business online.
So, if you want more customers ie landlords (and vendors), you need to realise that your customer needs to revisit your website many times, before they will speak to you. Give them something to read, give them something interesting, because if you dont .. they will go elsewhere. So what the hell are you going to do to make them come back to your site.
One thing I did see was one agent did a blog. A blog you say Christopher ??? .. everyone does blogs nowadays ... yes but this blog increased his turnover by in excess of £100k per year. (for 2 or 3 years in a row). But everyone says I haven't got time to do a blog and anyway, how do you get people to your blog?
Well I have taught of a number of letting agents that is in fact the easy part. Think about .. you are reading this, aren't you? The most important thing is what you put in the blog that is interesting, continues to be interesting but doesn't take you hours of your day .. you have a
lettings agency to run.To have a blog to the standard of the guy above, deadly interesting with fresh interesting content, who's turnover was rising by £100k a year, after the initial setting it up bit (which does take a bit of time but you only have to do that once) ... it would take most agents 8 minutes a day to do such a blog .. now tell you don't have time.
.... and the blog doesnt contain any 'Top 10 tips for landlords', no Daily Telegraph Top Ten lists of properties with ....(insert any of the following windmills/ stables/fields/helicopter pads/swimming pools/vague connections to famous dead people/ weird looking frontages / blue plaques / that are under ground / that are ideal Bond villain lairs .. you get the drift).
... it contains stuff that landlords, especially portfolio landlords want to revisit every day. I taught one letting agent and within 8 weeks, they had 4 new rental properties on the books with an additional 10 to 15 to follow in the following months
I am in the process of setting up a consultancy to help letting agents do such things. Drop me a line or contact via Linkedin (link here Linkedin) or Twitter @lettingschris if you want to know more but in the meantime I hope you are enjoying my thoughts on how to get landlords. Thank you all for the very kind words of encouragement and like I said, feel free to pick up the phone.
Anyway, its Monday morning, so best get some work done. Shalom my friends.
More time, more webpages, but not nearly so much more in the way of business done. Your tweets (I have just started with Twitter .. I must admit its rather good isnt it .. my handle (anyone over 40 will recognise that as CB radio talk is @LettingsChris ) are seen by a ten times more people as they were 5 years ago, but as loads more peope see your tweets, it is only twice as likely to get clicked on as they used to be. More people are browsing, but less are clicking.
There's a whole lot of people spending a lot of time browsing, not taking action (nice Gucci shop!). Doing the deal hasnt gone up at the same rate browsing has, which is why your clients attention, almost permission to want they want to read what you have to say is worth more than ever before. In fact, the easiest way for a tweet/update/post to not spread is for you to ask someone to actually do something.(ie landlords wanted ..call this number)
The more time someone spends online, the less likely they are to do business with you. More time spent looking, less time spent clicking. We're being conditioned to sit back and assume that action is the exception, not the rule. Sort of like the difference between the local Asda supermarket (where no one browses) and the windows of a fancy Gucci store (where everyone does). "I am just looking" is the new way of doing business online.
So, if you want more customers ie landlords (and vendors), you need to realise that your customer needs to revisit your website many times, before they will speak to you. Give them something to read, give them something interesting, because if you dont .. they will go elsewhere. So what the hell are you going to do to make them come back to your site.
One thing I did see was one agent did a blog. A blog you say Christopher ??? .. everyone does blogs nowadays ... yes but this blog increased his turnover by in excess of £100k per year. (for 2 or 3 years in a row). But everyone says I haven't got time to do a blog and anyway, how do you get people to your blog?
Well I have taught of a number of letting agents that is in fact the easy part. Think about .. you are reading this, aren't you? The most important thing is what you put in the blog that is interesting, continues to be interesting but doesn't take you hours of your day .. you have a
lettings agency to run.To have a blog to the standard of the guy above, deadly interesting with fresh interesting content, who's turnover was rising by £100k a year, after the initial setting it up bit (which does take a bit of time but you only have to do that once) ... it would take most agents 8 minutes a day to do such a blog .. now tell you don't have time.
.... and the blog doesnt contain any 'Top 10 tips for landlords', no Daily Telegraph Top Ten lists of properties with ....(insert any of the following windmills/ stables/fields/helicopter pads/swimming pools/vague connections to famous dead people/ weird looking frontages / blue plaques / that are under ground / that are ideal Bond villain lairs .. you get the drift).
... it contains stuff that landlords, especially portfolio landlords want to revisit every day. I taught one letting agent and within 8 weeks, they had 4 new rental properties on the books with an additional 10 to 15 to follow in the following months
I am in the process of setting up a consultancy to help letting agents do such things. Drop me a line or contact via Linkedin (link here Linkedin) or Twitter @lettingschris if you want to know more but in the meantime I hope you are enjoying my thoughts on how to get landlords. Thank you all for the very kind words of encouragement and like I said, feel free to pick up the phone.
Anyway, its Monday morning, so best get some work done. Shalom my friends.
