If you don’t plan for it, after-the-sale service won’t happen. You’ll get so consumed with the next deal and with the task of earning the next commission cheque that you’ll overlook the opportunity to create long-term revenue through your past clients.
Calling your clients regularly
Begin by personally calling your clients at least four times during the 30 days after the closing. Following are some suggestions
- Call in the first few days after the closing to thank them for allowing you the opportunity to serve them.
- After the call, send a hand-written thank-you note further expressing your thanks and asking for future business or referrals.
If the sellers caused problems when they left and you don’t know about them, you may be blamed for the mishaps without any opportunity to make them right. Most issues will be between the seller and the buyer, and, unfortunately, power over the seller — unless legal action is involved — is gone because the transaction has closed.
Sometimes all you can do is provide a listening ear and sympathetic voice. Other times you can make a few phone calls to help right the wrong. The fact that you’re willing to listen and try to help speaks louder than any demonstrable action — it shows that you care.
This approach sounds simple, but don’t underestimate the power it has in enabling you to lock your clients in for life. You’ll not only gain a lifelong client, but you’ll also open the door to referral business that flows freely.
Calling the other party in the transaction
While you’re at it, call the other party involved in your real estate transaction as well.
Every real estate deal involves a buyer and a seller. In most cases you represent only one of the two parties, but why not call and offer after-sales service to both?
When calling to follow up with the party represented by the other agent in your transaction, be ready for a response of surprise and great appreciation. The fact that you’re willing to call, while the agent who got paid to represent their interests hasn’t called, will positively awe most people. By the end of your 30-day after-sale service period, the names of the other agent’s clients will be in your database, and you’ll be the one receiving their referrals.
Sending your client a gift
You may want to consider delivering or sending a gift to your client, congratulating them on their new home and thanking them for letting you do business with them. This gift is usually called a closing gift.
Don’t take the gift with you to the closing as your clients will be focused on the transaction and thinking about their impending move and all the challenges that lie in front of them. Your gift will get lost in the shuffle.
The papers presented at the closing put the amount of the real estate commission in writing, causing your clients to focus on exactly how much money you made from the transaction. If you give your gift at the same time, they could make a negative comparison between the value of the gift and the money you received. If you want to give them something at closing, give them a hand-written thank-you note.
Don’t go overboard with the gift and find something that reminds clients of you and your service. Give them something that can be used rather than consumed.
