Is Long-Term Follow Up Still Important?
The last 18 months have seen crazy things happening in the new home construction world. It’s no secret that we have more buyers than homes. So, is it really necessary to have long-term follow up? The answer is YES!
For the first quarter in a while, we are seeing the lead volume slow down. What does that mean? Well for most it means a more normal volume. But that change in frequency can leave many lead managers (OSCs) lead generators (Marketing) and leadership feeling a sense of scarcity. Yet we have soooooooo many leads in our database that we’ve likely been ignoring.
It’s time to start working on communication with those older leads. Did they buy somewhere else? Did they pause their home search? Are they still waiting for the right home to come along?
Just like we had more buyers than homes some people definitely had to put themselves on the sidelines because they just weren’t finding what they wanted. They were frustrated with the process. Or they just decided for whatever their reasons that it was better to wait. This means one of two things.
One. If you were following up with them in a plan that sounded personal and like you actually gave a darn about them… they may still be considering you for a home.
Or.
Two. You didn’t follow up with them when they were really interested, and now you are dead to them.
This is why long-term follow up is so important! It MUST be a part of your process as an online sales counselor and as a builder this is why you need someone who makes sure these things are happening! This is one of the important roles of an OSC. If OSCs are not being trained to do long-term follow up and are not setting these processes in place, you can lose out on potential sales, but even worse you can damage your reputation. Buyers are frustrated. No response is no excuse. Just because a buyer didn’t respond on your first or third email doesn’t mean they aren’t interested.
It may mean a lot of things:
- They are busy at the time your email came in and forgot
- They aren’t sure who you are because your email didn’t clearly match their inquiry
- Your email bounced to their junk folder
- They plan on “circling back” but they have too many zoom meetings
- The list goes on!
In your long-term follow up there should still be phone calls scheduled quarterly to try to get people on the phone who will open up to you about their trials and tribulations of finding a new home. And in that first 30 days you should be calling at least 3-4 times.
I fear that in our industry we are becoming complacent with our leads because we’ve been drinking from a fire hose for so long, we don’t remember normal lead management and the care and tending of our databases. Many people who are speaking about the industry have only been here during the up market since 2014. History can be important in understanding trends. And it’s important to understand why lead management is important and not just getting the appointment.