Here are six ways to turn For-Sale-by-Owner leads into listings. Obviously, there are many ways to go after a FSBO and get a listing appointment or get a preview appointment.
But I want to talk about some of the most popular ones and some variations of them that you can do to actually get more of these sellers to respond and give you a listing appointment.
#1 Mail
So let's talk about one of my favorites, which is mail. Mail is a really good method that I've been using for years to go out and solicit listings. There're obviously many different ways you can use mail, from postcards to letters to long-form sales letters to brochures and flyers.
But one thing that I recommend is, when you go out and create a mail campaign, if you know what other people are doing in your market, make sure you do something different that helps you stand out. A lot of really good marketers say, if everyone's going this direction, go the other way. It's kind of cliche, but if you want to stand out, you’ve got to do something different.
#2 Cold Calling
The second method is cold calling. We all know a lot of coaches who teach different scripts and tactics, and there are many types of messages that you can go with. I would say the same thing that goes with mail goes with cold calling. If everyone's using one type of script, say something different.
If everyone's saying, “Hey, agents sell homes for more money -- why are you selling FSBO instead of listing with us?” then maybe use a different approach. Go out and say, “I congratulate you on your desire to sell your home alone. Maybe I can give you some helpful advice and some info to help you do it.” Then later, when they decide it’s more work than they can do, they'll list with you because you're the agent that is most helpful and least pushy.
#3 Ringless Voicemails
Another method is ringless voicemails. There is technology out there that can make a phone call not ring and just leave a voicemail instead. There are a lot of compliance issues around this, so you need to know what you're doing, how you're doing it, and make sure you don't get yourself in trouble.
#4 Door Knocking and Drop-ins
Obviously, there's nothing new with door-knocking. However, there are some different ways that you can do it.
One good idea that I hadn't heard of before is stopping at FSBO open houses. We were talking to an agent in Denver, Colorado named Rick. He shared with us that whenever FSBOs in his area host an open house, he makes it a point to stop by the house, introduce himself, give them his marketing material and try to get the listing.
Obviously, drop-ins are a lot easier than knocking on the door cold. So if you feel like going out Saturday morning and attending a few open houses, it could be a really good way to turn a lazy Saturday morning into a few listings.
#5 Emails
If you can get FSBO emails from Zillow or from Craigslist, you can start doing email blasts. Write really simple emails that get their attention. When it comes to listing a FSBO, it's all about timing. You have to show up when they're frustrated and they're ready to give up and be there as the solution.
When you send these emails, do it in a nice way where you're offering helpful information, showing that you're an expert and hopefully winning the business.
#6 Texting
Another method is texting. A lot of the FSBOs have their cell phone numbers on Zillow, on signs in the front yard, on Craigslist, or wherever they're advertising, and you could obviously call them too, but we're hearing from agents out in the community that a lot of them are getting more connections by texting instead of cold calling.
The more of these methods you use, most likely the better the results are, so I suggest grouping some of these methods for the best strategy.