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October is here, which means we are officially entering the last quarter of the year. And I think this is a really important time to ask ourselves a question: What are we going to do with the next 90 days? There is a lot of uncertainty in our industry right now. Interest rates, affordability, consumer confidence, traffic and the economy are all creating questions about what the rest of this year will look like and what we can expect when we head into the spring selling season. We can’t control…
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The Builder Marketing Summit has wrapped up for another year, and after two fast and furious days in Dallas, I walked away energized, full of ideas and, as always, wishing there had been just a little more time to talk with everyone. This was my fourth year joining Greg Bray of Blue Tangerine and Kevin Weitzel of Outhouse for the Summit, where they once again gave me free rein to lead the Online Sales Counselor track. That opportunity means a lot to me because there simply aren’t many industry events…
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Recently, a seasoned OSC reached out to me because she knows I do mystery shops. She also knows about the Annual Mystery Shop Report we conduct every year to get a pulse on the state of the industry when it comes to customer experience and the customer journey. She had been mystery shopped. On a Saturday. Her day off. Actually, it was the beginning of a four-day weekend for her. And as a solo OSC, she needs to take time off. Gone are the days when we should expect an…
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Why an AI Tool Isn’t the Same as an AI Strategy AI is everywhere in new home sales right now. Chatbots, automated follow-up, texting, dialers, lead nurturing, appointment setting. There are some incredible tools available, and I am certainly not anti-AI. Used correctly, AI can help us respond faster, manage more opportunities and take some of the repetitive work off our plates. But buying an AI tool is not the same thing as having an AI strategy. You don’t just buy it, unbox it, plug it into your website or…
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One of the first things I ask for when I start working with a new builder has nothing to do with conversion rates, lead response times, or appointment-setting percentages. Well okay I ask for all of that stuff. But I also ask for this… I ask to see every follow-up sequence living inside their CRM. The automated emails. The texts. The videos. The call tasks. Everything. Why? Because before I can coach an Online Sales Counselor, I want to understand what the buyer is experiencing. Every email, every text message,…
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“Everyone knows something you don’t… learn from them.” It’s a simple phrase, but one that’s resonated with me for decades. I’m not even sure where I first heard it, but it’s become part of who I am and how I approach life. Long before Blue Gypsy. Long before I was speaking at conferences or teaching classes. Before I ever became an Online Sales Counselor. It’s a mindset I’ve carried with me from experience to experience…country to country. I learned it years ago while traveling the world. Every place I visited…
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In our last blog post about One Team, One Experience I talked heavily about alignment. If the move from online to onsite is done well, it should feel natural from the buyer’s perspective. Exciting, even. The OSC should be building anticipation, not creating confusion. It should sound more like: “I’d love for you to meet my good friend; they’re going to have a much better handle on those specific house questions and help you take the next step.” That is a handoff. Not: “Here’s the appointment. Good luck.…
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Earlier this month, I had the pleasure of joining an NAHB Shop Talk with a title so good I figured it deserved a blog post of its own: One Team, One Experience: Turning Spring Traffic into Sales. When a topic is this relevant, this timely, and this painfully familiar to anyone in home building, you don’t just leave it neatly tucked inside a one-hour conversation. You bring it back out, dust it off, and say, “Alright, let’s talk about what this really means.” The discussion was moderated by Kelly Fink,…
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I feel like I make a post about this almost every year… but spring cleaning isn’t just for closets, junk drawers, and that cup holder in your car full of receipts, hair ties, mystery crumbs, and old empty coffee cups from Starbucks. It’s for your follow-up too. Let’s be honest… somewhere in that CRM is a sales process you built with the best of intentions and then never looked at again. She’s out there. Collecting dust. Sending old emails. Possibly embarrassing you. This time of year, is the perfect excuse…
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Alright, friends. We’re closing out March Debunking AI Month with one more thing I need to get off my chest: I am deeply skeptical of these micro learning AI courses that keep popping up all over my social feed. You know the ones. “Learn 47 AI tools in 28 days!” “Become an AI power user by next Tuesday!” “Master the future with our daily 10-minute lessons!” Meanwhile I’m over here thinking… who has time to collect apps like they’re Pokémon? What do I need 10…or 28 different tools? And more…
Building the Bridge Between Online Sales and Marketing
While your online sales counselor should not be the same person in charge of your marketing, there are many reasons why these two departments within a new home builder’s office should collaborate. It may seem fairly obvious that the marketing department’s job is to create awareness, drive traffic to the website, and generate leads. Just as important, the online sales counselor’s position is there to field these leads, build rapport, and set appointments that assist…
What is Your New Home Sales Strategy for 2019?
As the real estate market cools, interest prices on the rise, and competition becomes more stiff there are several things that new home builders will need to do to stay on top of their game. One of the most important elements will be implementing or fine tuning their online sales programs. Having a dedicated Online Sales Counselor, who is there on the front lines, answering phones and emails quickly is the key to beginning successful…
20 Blind Men, An Elephant, and Your 360 Degree Evaluation
Have you heard that old parable about putting 20 blind people in a room with an elephant? Each person has a different experience with the elephant. The first leans against it feeling a sturdy wall. The second feels the tip of a tusk and believes it to be a spear. The next feels the trunk and thinks he has a snake in his hands. Yet another feels the substantial leg and mistakes it for a…
Follow Up – How Many Times Should You Contact a Lead
Follow Up. The other day in one of the professional groups I belong to on Facebook I saw someone lamenting the fact that prospects were not returning his emails. He asked, “How long do you follow up before you just feel like you are being a pain?” I was astounded by the answers given by these professional social media people. The answers ranged from “one and done” to “You’ve done your job to follow up…
Is Your Inbox Getting You Down?
Last week I was on a mission. I wanted to clear my personal inbox of all the useless crap, spam, and subscriptions I get on a daily basis. Do you have this problem where you can walk away from your email for a day or two and when you open it back up your eyes cross with the 272 emails you have in there waiting for you to moderate? I couldn’t look at anything anymore.…
Balancing Business and Quality of Life: 7 Lessons
This time last year leading up to the holidays I had a client that ran me ragged. Several times I felt like dropping this client, but I didn’t. Now a year later, looking at an unpaid invoice that languishes in my quickbooks I know that the client was actually a lesson in disguise. Seven lessons in fact Lesson #1: Go with Your Gut – Don’t ignore those red flags. They almost never prove themselves to…
Email Marketing Tips: Don’t Use Email Marketing Badly
I try to keep only relevant email coming into my work inbox. Work is too hectic to be deleting another LivingSocial or west elm blast out of my work email every 5 seconds. (Don’t get me wrong I drool over their deals and furniture all the time when I have a weak moment) My personal email can build up to 300 irrelevant emails over a long weekend and that in itself is a headache weeding…
The Search For “Affordable” Websites
I see it all the time. The word affordable. People are often looking for services that are “affordable”. That term is so subjective it is hard to pin it down. It’s like nailing jello to the wall or herding cats. What is affordable to one company is not affordable to another. And yet…when you say affordable when you are talking about a website, or a marketing company, or a subcontractor to handle and important aspect…
Prequalfying Leads and Safety for Real Estate Agents
Recently the tragic kidnapping and murder of Beverly Carter, a prominent real estate agent in Jackson, Tennessee has placed a renewed focus in on job safety for real estate agents. The sad fact is that real estate agents feel they need to be available 24/7 at the drop of a hat to show a home both for the sake of their sellers, and the buyers who call with the desire for instant information on properties.…
The Quick Response – Online Sales Training: Lead Management 101
Having a dedicated online lead manager is a good position to create, fill, and train. Whether you are a new home builder, a real estate broker, or a real estate team, online sales is a very important aspect for your business. 90% of new home buyers begin their search online. The majority of people are going to take information from the builder, company or individual that provides the quickest response. All too often frustration begins…