When properties are put on the market and they don’t sell it can be a frustrating time. The seller is frustrated because they had to go through the hassle of listing their home, keeping it extra clean and now are still in the same place. The listing agent is frustrated because they put in time, effort and money into a listing without getting a commission!
Some of the most common items for properties not selling are:
- Price
- Condition
- Accessibility (i.e. people can’t easily show the property)
Now, you could send a letter stressing marketing, or revealing pricing methods, or even how to easily make the home accessible, but what if you are missing a key item? What if you aren’t addressing the REAL problem of the listing?
In today’s market many of the listings that are expired are actually short sales! The challenge is that the listing agent may not be experienced in short sales so they didn’t tell the client. An even bigger problem is the seller might not know that their home needs to go short in order to sell!
Unfortunately you can’t just go up and tell someone “Hey, your home is a short sale, wake up!” as that might be too harsh. Going through a short sale is an emotional roller coaster and one where many people still have fears about what can happen. To help you reach prospects that could be in need of a short sale and not yet know it, I invite you to consider the following marketing strategies to apply to your letters:
- Headline – The headline of your letter is the #1 item that will determine if a prospect reads on or tears your letter in half. In your headline to the expired seller, share with them that “Price” may not be the problem! Pique their interest with a headline such as “In 2 Minutes Discover How the Bank Can Help You Sell Your Home Today…”
- Call to Action – Make it easy on your prospects to take the next step in finding out more information about how you can help. Simple new technologies such as SMS and QR codes can make it easier for your prospects to take action and dramatically increase the response rate of your letter.
When you can craft a new powerful headline and make your call to action easier for your prospects you can transform expired sellers into new listings today.
Discover how to generate more expired listings today with a powerful set of letters, postcards, and social networking updates today.
