The truth is, there isn’t a snap your fingers solution to today’s inventory shortage. But there is something you can do about it. 

The only thing holding back many willing and able sellers is just plain old hesitancy. 

Maybe they think that there will be a new wave of foreclosures that gets them that deal of a lifetime. Or maybe they’re waiting for their dream home to be built. Or maybe they’re just waiting until the spring because, well, that’s when everyone sells a house.  

While these are all totally legitimate reasons for sellers to hold off on their plans, they also aren’t true. 

Therefore, if you want listings then you have to help educate them every step of the way. If you want them to trust you, you have to back it up with facts, data and insights. 

When you do that, you’ll get listings. Here’s how to pull it off. 

Whether you’re a seasoned real estate agent or new to the industry, prospecting for leads, and in turn listings, is the same game. 

For agents, there are two types of prospecting: active and passive, and they both have their advantages. 

Today’s sellers have a lot of questions. Remember that hesitancy we talked about? Your active and passive prospecting are great places to combat any market anxiety with cold hard facts.

Here are a couple good places to start:

• Fill your social media feed with expert quotes & market insights
• Use local hashtags to reach new people
• Create videos for social media & email that highlight hot topics 
• Restructure and refine your email follow-up campaigns

It may not seem like a lot but sometimes the smallest tweak can make the biggest difference. Having a successful prospecting strategy means offering a little bit of everything. 

People make purchases based mostly on one factor: value.

Now value doesn’t mean commission. It means what you bring to that listing presentation table.

So, when you’re selling yourself to potential clients, ask yourself this: what do you offer that’s bigger and better than what other agents are offering?

Your lead follow-up is the KEY place to do this. Sending the standard “Still thinking of selling?” email won’t do the trick.

But if you fill that “Still thinking of selling?” email with relevant real estate articles, a Seller Guide and/or market insights, you are proving your expertise, and therefore providing value.

Every step of your lead follow-up should answer this question: How can I (as a real estate agent) help you? And beyond that, how can I help you better than every other real estate agent in the area?

So how do you provide value? You use content that answers their questions and puts their needs into your hands. Check out how we did it below.

When done well, a listing presentation can be one of a real estate agent’s most powerful tools. It can also be your biggest enemy.

If you’ve made it to the Listing Presentation stage of the sales process, you’re 30 minutes away from securing the sale.

But if you want to create a listing presentation that wins in today’s market, you need a lot more than an overview of all your recent sales and career highlights.

Therefore, take a long hard look at yours and ask yourself these questions:

• Does it start and end strong?
• Is it focused on the sellers needs?
• Does it explain your company’s value?
• Does it explain your value?
• Does it develop trust?

If you answered no to any of these questions, it’s time for a listing presentation refresh. In the article How to Build a Perfect Listing Presentation, we walk you through each step of how to create one that converts.

Everything comes down to this. We don’t have to tell you twice that the country’s current inventory storage means listings are getting harder and harder to come by. 

People aren’t only nervous about the nation’s economic future. They’re also worried that even if they do decide to sell, they won’t find a home available to buy. 

These questions are understandable, but according to most real estate experts, they aren’t accurate. 

This is where data and market insights become your best friend. People trust credible sources. They trust news articles, charts and graphs. They don’t need to hear what you think about where the market is headed. They need to hear what experts predict is going to happen in the market.

From your prospecting to your lead follow-up and listing presentation, every step of your customer journey should be filled with hard data and market insights. 

This not only provides value, it establishes trust, and that’s the most important commodity a real estate agent can offer.

The key to getting sellers to list comes down to confidence. 

There have been a lot of frightening headlines this year fueling a lot of confusion about where the market is headed. By filling your lead prospecting and follow-up with cold hard facts, you can not only help potential sellers trust the market, but also your expertise as an agent. 

The best place to tackle this is in your sales strategy. Whether it’s social media posts, your blog or listing presentation, you can use your marketing to boost confidence in sellers and get more listings today. 

Don’t have time to create new content? KCM makes it easy to add branded content filled with the latest market insights to your strategy.

Try it free for 14-days by signing up for a trial.