The fact that real estate agents in Canada will be keen to work with investor buyer clients needs no explanation, as these are the types of clients who are most likely be buying additional properties along the shortest timeframes. Often these homes are purchased with the aim to have them rented out while the property increases in value, something that is nearly guaranteed in major metro regions of the country. These places will need to have someone overseeing them, and that leads us to property management leads for realtors.
That is going to be the focus here for this blog entry, and it is a bit of a departure from what we usually discuss here with lead generation for realtors. But it is still lead generation, and especially valuable if you are realtor working within a referral network that includes a local property management company. Bring new clientele to them and they will be more inclined to do the same for you when the opportunity arises.
Success in real estate is very much tied into networking effectively, and it’s also tried that traditional approaches to real estate lead generation can dig up leads that won’t go into the standard homebuyer / home seller boxes. Property management leads definitely qualify here, and it may also be that these investor buyers directly ask you to point them in the direction of someone who is able to manage the property if it is not something they can do themselves.
As a realtor you are always being evaluated based on whether or not you have a wide breadth of knowledge on everything related to real estate markets in Canada and the real estate business as a whole. Realtors who have clients approaching them more often than they are approaching prospective clients are nearly always agents who have done well with this. If property management can be a part of your related expertise too then you stand to do even better because of it.
So let’s get into it and lay out 20 proven strategies to boost your property management lead generation.
Mortgage Rate Connection
Before getting to them we should start by pointing out that in today’s housing market the high mortgage rates for buyers are more conducive to better property management leads for property management companies. This is because as high rates cut into the ultimate value a seller can get for their property, many homeowners are opting to rent out their properties rather than selling them.
This is a different look on it than the investor-buyer angle we touched on at the beginning here, but the same underlying reality remains – there is a growing demand for skilled property management for buyers who have purchased a home but are not living in it at this time for whatever reason. In any such scenario what comes to exist is an advantageous situation for realtors who have professional network ties to property managers looking to expand their client base and get property management leads.
All of the points we’re about to lay out here are in line with leveraging referrals and business networks to harnessing the power of digital marketing. And as you’ll all know a realtor who isn’t having success with their digital marketing efforts these days is likely not enjoying the growth of their client base they were hoping to see when they chose to switch careers to real estate.
Right then, let’s get to the first of our real estate management related lead tips.
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Referrals
Referrals are always a great source of new business of all sorts for realtors, and the ongoing beauty of them is that as you do well as realtor serving your clients the greater numbers of them you’ll have referring you to others for real estate services.
Done right you can be having them from new clients from friends and family, local BNI groups, realtors, and other clients. Leveraging your existing network with maximum effectiveness is always going to involve asking for referrals too as needed. If you know you’ve done well in meeting your clients’ expectations then you should be very confident in approaching them and asking for a referral.
Satisfied clients and professional contacts can often provide recommendations to potential leads. There is also the option to create ancillary revenue by charging a referral fee for your own referrals.
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LinkedIn
This social media career networking platform can also be good for property management leads. You can use it to connect with potential clients, join industry groups, and share valuable content. It’s a powerful platform for B2B lead generation and if you are diligent about networking through it then it becomes likely that you will develop working relationships with both investor buyer clientele and the property management companies they will be looking to work with.
- Event Marketing
Here’s another good consideration when you’re looking to establish these types of network opportunities with the aim of being better informed and equipped with information about property management for real estate clients. Think about hosting or attending industry events to network with potential property management clients, ranging from local real estate meetups to larger industry conferences.
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Cold Calling
These types of more traditional real estate lead prospecting methods may seem old and outdated, but the second part of this is simply untrue. It is entirely true that cold calling can still be effective, and those who are new to real estate in Canada will do well to get out there and start doing it. You don’t need to overthink what you’ll do and what you’ll say, but what you will need give more thought to is how you’re targeting the right property owners and property investors in your local market and offering clear value.
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Facebook
All social media marketing platforms can be used for powerfully effective promotion of you and your real estate services, but the consensus seems to be the Facebook is the best because it’s the one that is most used by the slightly older demographic – the same people who more often have the means of buying a home in Canada to begin with. Use targeted Facebook advertising or post in local groups to reach potential clients, and also consider running ads targeting landlords or real estate investors.
Company operations can use advanced targeting options in Facebook Ads to reach a larger, more specific audience. Consider retargeting ads to website visitors or people who have interacted with your content.
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Podcasts
If you’re confident in your presentation abilities then a podcast may work well to launch your first marketing strategies or provide a boost to your property management leads, and many times these fresh takes on the efforts produce surprisingly good results if you stick with them. What you can do is start your own local real estate podcast or guest on existing ones if you feel they’d like to have you and you know how to be in touch with the hosts. Discuss industry topics to establish your expertise and reach a larger audience.
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Local Businesses & Strategic Partnerships
Realtors who are only just starting out in a new career will do well to partner with local businesses that serve the same market. Examples could be moving companies that might recommend your services to new residents or as we’ve discussed a property management company that is eager to have new clients and your investor buyers would be most welcome. Consider joining local clubs and the Chamber of Commerce too and attend meet-ups to build a network that will likely start to uncover real estate leads for you eventually.
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Direct Mailing
This one doesn’t warrant us going on at length, but realtors always gain some degree of an advantage when they send targeted direct mail campaigns to potential leads. This could include newsletters, postcards, or informational brochures about your services and you also have the option of mentioning your familiarity with property management and / or being in close contact with good local property management companies.
This could also be for a homewatch service in Canada for people who own homes but are away from them for long stretches of time during the year.
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Reading Local Review Forums
Being actively involved in support and community is wise for anyone looking to establish themselves as a realtor. We recommend that you participate in online forums related to property management or real estate, and make yourself very visible as someone who is an SME and ready to answering questions and share potential insights. This can also help attract potential clients and ones that may come with property management leads.
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Look Through Niche Forums
Equally advisable is monitoring local listing reviews like ones Google and Yelp to find homeowner landlords who are having difficulties with managing the properties they own that currently have tenants in them. You can then reach out to offer your services.
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Browse Newspaper Ads
Another great way to find those first 10 or 20 clients is to look for rental listings or properties for sale. Reach out to the owners to offer your property management services.
- Content Marketing
This list was never created with an emphasis on being in order of importance, but if it was then creating and publishing real estate content on your site or on social media platforms with inbound links to your real estate website is another hugely effective way of generating real estate leads. Create blog posts, infographics, or eBooks that provide insights to property owners.
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Google Ads (PPC)
Established PMCs can run pay-per-click (PPC) campaigns on Google to appear in search results when the searcher enters relevant keywords. This can help attract landlords or property owners who need help with managing properties they own. This is up there among the best online marketing strategies for real estate.
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Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
A realtor website that is optimized for SEO and features content with relevant keywords will rank higher in search results, promote better visibility and attracting organic traffic. It goes without saying that this is also big for property management leads. If you’re not capable of doing this on your own then you should hire someone who can do it for you. It will cost you of course, but it’s going to be money well spent. Even if you need to hire a web professional and writer separately.
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Email Marketing
All successful realtors will utilize email marketing as part of their efforts. It is smart to nurture your existing email list with regular newsletters or updates, and when done right you’ll be providing valuable information and promoting your services to encourage leads being converted into clients.
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Use YouTube
Real estate marketing through YouTube can be beneficial too, especially if you are able to create and publish educational videos on property management topics or advertise on relevant channels that let you reach wider audience through YouTube. It will increase the likelihood of you making network connections with people who work in real estate property management.
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Webinars
Consider hosting webinars too, especially if you already have an established audience. Choose relevant topics that provide value to your audience, which may include property management for absentee homeowners. This can help position your company as an industry expert and attract potential leads.
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TV Ads
You can go with TV ads too, depending on your budget. For most realtors the cost of this will simply be too much, but you’re never going to be in front of a wider audience than you will with TV and if you do this right it will be a huge boost to your brand visibility.
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Billboard Ads
Many realtors employ outdoor advertising, with billboards, bus shelter and bus signage etc. It can help increase local visibility for realtors that already have at least something of an established reputation. It is particularly effective for property management leads when the ads are seen in specific areas of the country where there are fewer realtors working and with less property management options alongside that.
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Pay-per-Lead Services
Use a paid real estate lead generation service like ours here at Real Estate Leads. This will have an upfront cost for the realtors, but it can provide a stream of potential clients who are actively seeking management services and this will add to your collection of warm property management leads.
FAQs
What Types of Homebuyer Clients Are More Likely to Need Property Management?
There are two types of clients that are most often going be asking their realtor about property management. These are investor clients who have bought the home with the intention of renting it out until it is sold for a profit at a later date, and then people who intend to live in the home they’ve bought but will be unable to do so at this time.
Is It Possible to Incentivize Clients to Go With a Certain Property Management Company That I Have as Part of a Referral Network?
Yes, but it will require that you offer them something on your own behalf or have the property management company do the same. One of the most common ones is to have the company offer the client a discounted monthly rate if they are able to commit to a 1-year or longer term for property management services.
On your end you may be able to offer them something along the lines of regular market updates or a free market evaluation for the property in the future when market conditions may indicated the property is worth less or more.
How Often Do Realtors Provide Property Management Services on their Own and Independent of a Property Management Company?
It does happen, and some realtors who are further along in their career and content with a lower number of active listings being pursued may have time and expertise to be able to manage the properties for investor clients who have bought them. But if you are a realtor who is more in the middle of your career and very preoccupied with buyer and seller client volumes and not knowledgeable about property management then it is likely not something you would want to consider.
What is the Best Way to Make My Affiliation with a Property Management Company Visible to Prospective Clients?
The two best ways of doing this are to have a small logo icon on the rear of your realtor business card, and then similarly have that logo on the ‘partners’ page of your real estate website. On the website you may also want to expand and say that you are happy to be able to refer clients to a real estate property management company that you believe has the standards excellence your clients will be looking for. You can be complimentary of them in other ways too, but remember to keep it short on the website page.
