Maximizing Lead Quality: How to Filter and Nurture Your Real Estate Leads

Some have likened generating leads for real estate to fishing, and there is some legitimacy to that as you will ‘catch’ more of them if they’re biting and your lure happens to be where they are in the lake. There will be times that your real estate lead generation efforts will go nowhere, but if you’re a fisherman you’ll know that there are days you go home without catching anything too. This makes the real estate leads you do drum up all the more valuable, so what we’re going to do here with this entry is talk about real estate lead quality.

Making a determination on the quality of a real estate lead is a much deeper process that simply putting leads in the cold, warm, or hot baskets. Ideally the lion’s share of them would be hot leads, but that’s also not how it works most of the time. Real estate agents tend to busy people nearly all the time, and that’s not surprising considering this is one business where if you’re not legit hustling you’re going to get left behind to see others eating your slice of the pie.

So maximizing lead quality is something that makes a lot of sense, and it’s done by filter and nurturing your real estate leads. This is the way you can improve lead quality in real estate, and it is something that is very conducive to making better use of your time as a real estate agent. What we’ll share with you here is not a definitive summary of how to do this, but we image long-experienced realtors will see that these approaches are fairly tried and true.

Be Lead Savvy

Successful real estate agent will be the ones with the savvy to know how likely a lead is to be converted, along with an explicit understanding of how to make that happen. When you’re not able to attract quality leads through digital and offline marketing it becomes significantly difficult to scale up a real estate business.

If you’re a real estate agent who’s a little overwhelmed by the sheer number of options and ‘how-to’ marketing articles, we’re here to simplify lead qualification criteria real estate with 15 real estate lead generation ideas that are proven effective.

Local Lead SEO Optimization

Optimizing your Google My Business profile and incorporating local SEO keywords is first on the list here because it means you are more likely to be attracting clients who live in your area or are planning to and are more serious about buying a home. This will apply the same way for home seller clients, as while most people have a realtor referred to them by family or workplace acquaintances there are some who will not have these resources and be looking for a local realtor online.

Something to keep in mind is that a recent Moz SEO ranking factors survey determined a good Google My Business profile was the single biggest factor for a real estate website that ranks higher. So setting up your Google My Business profile is the place to start here if you haven’t already. It is best to have it updated with the latest professional pictures, contact details and addresses.

You will also need to optimize your website and Google My Business account for local SEO keywords so that these contribute to real estate lead quality too. An agent working out of Edmonton, for example, will want to be incorporating local Edmonton real estate search keywords and nearby localities for maximum leads. What this does is whenever someone searches Google with keywords like ‘real estate agent Edmonton’ or ‘Edmonton best realtor’ or ‘realtor near me’, your website and listing are more likely to be showing up on the first page.

Consider the searches that include the keyword ‘near me’ have gone up by around 900% since 2017-18. Local SEO optimization is a way to improve lead quality in real estate.

Optimize Landing Pages for Conversions

Real estate landing pages are a standalone pages, where visitors land first when they visit your Canadian real estate website. A landing page usually has a clear goal and a very visible call-to-action (CTA) button. Would-be real estate clientele that end up at your landing page by clicking on a link in your email can then be mor readily put in front of listings that you have.

Real estate landing pages maximize lead conversions best when they complete the following checklist:

1. A clear headline that is ideally creative too and highlights your value as a realtor
2. A prominent call-to-action (CTA) button
3. Accomplishments, recognitions, client testimonials, etc.
4. No unnecessary or loud graphics
5. Attractive, up-to-date photographs of properties
6. No excessive amount of form fields
7. Marketing Automation Software to Segment and Score Leads

It’s not possible to say enough good things about CRM (Customer Relationship Management) software if you are focused on improving real estate lead quality, and particularly when your CRM is integrated with marketing automation so that it is optimized to score and segment your leads. Lead scoring may be a new term for some, and what it means is just the process of assigning a certain value or score to your contact list based on their interactions with your real estate business.

Lead scoring promotes lead qualification criteria real estate in the following way. Let’s say you have a prime property for sale and you want to close the deal as soon as possible. 2 clients are your top leads for this week and the ones you see as most likely to submit offers on the home that will be accepted by the owner.

Your CRM indicates that one of them has recently unsubscribed from all your newsletters and email updates. While the other has recently filled out a form expressing interest in a property in the same area. You obviously then assign a higher value to that lead. This makes it easier for you to reach out to them to discuss the property you have for sale and automated lead scoring makes that a fairly simply and straight-line process.

It is true that real estate lead generation providers like us do a lot of the heavy lifting for you, with lead scoring potentially included in that. And most realtors will be very pleased with the fact there are no cold calls involved. Leads coming in from these sites will usually be warm but some may be hotter.

Create Virtual Home Visits for Out-of-Town Prospective Buyers

Staging virtual home visits is a must for realtors these days. A recent study found that approximately 80% of buyers would switch to a real estate agent who offers virtual home walkthroughs or 3D virtual home visits. That same survey indicated that 50% of buyers would consider an in-person sight-unseen purchase if they have a virtual walkthrough and it is enough for them to determine it is the right home for them and they’re ready to put in an offer.

Here are some other benefits for realtors hosting virtual walk-throughs:

1. Realtors, buyers, and sellers all save more time
2. Agents are able to communicate in real-time with clients online via smartphone
3. Targeting more long-distance buyers becomes possible
4. Prospects can take the tour at their convenience anytime and from anywhere
5. Sellers are not pressured to keep their homes spotless at all times

You can use virtual reality software like Lumion or Kuula to upload images and videos of the property to create a virtual tour of your property. This can definitely be a part of real estate lead conversion optimization and you will do well to take advantage of it.

Use a Lead Magnet to Capture Higher Numbers of Leads

What is a lead magnet in real estate? It’s essentially a freebie offer given if the individual agrees to exchange their email address. Lead magnets can go a long way in promoting better real estate lead quality. It should be something that offers real value to prospective clients so that they are fine with agreeing to give you their email ID. This could be a checklist like the example above, or perhaps an e-book, a link to a webinar, or an email newsletter.

Effective real estate lead magnets will include all of the following :

1. A high-value freebie that appeals to would-be clients of any type
2. A captivating and clear headline
3. 1 or 2 form fields (like name and email ID)
4. A clear call to action button
5. A clear image of the freebie
6. A close button
7. Hosting Real Estate Webinars

Webinars are not simple to put together, but if you want to be have success as a realtor you would do very well to learn how to make them and then start using them to position yourself as the local authority on real estate and the type of professional people will be inclined to work with as they buy or sell a home in Canada.

Hosting a webinar on real estate-related topics is a sure way to improve lead quality in real estate. When people sign up for your webinar, they will provide an email ID and this creates a new lead for you plus helps establish you as an expert in real estate in the minds of your prospects.

Create Blogs with Interesting & Helpful Content

Content is king in marketing, and that certainly applies for real estate marketing too. When your write and publish real estate blogs and articles you are not only adding value for your customers, but also promoting you staying present in your prospects’ minds as an expert in real estate and someone they will keep in mind if and when they come to a time where they’re ready to work with a realtor to buy or sell a home.

The benefits of content creation for a real estate website are extensive, and you can expect to obtain:

1. More visibility in Google search results
2. Superior cost-effectiveness
3. Long-term real estate lead generation
4. Added lead generation potential when people share blogs and articles on their social media channel

Optimize Social Media Pages & Post Regularly

These days it is not surprising that social media remains the top source for generating high-quality leads in the real estate industry and over time as you get good at it you can also use it as part of lead qualification criteria in real estate. The top social media channel for realtors is Facebook, with a 97% share of social media leads in the real estate industry. Instagram comes in at 39% and Linkedln at 59%. So be sure to put some focus there too.

Begin by ensuring that all your social media channels are up-to-date with pictures and other important information. Once your pages are fully prepped, these social media content marketing ideas are ones you should consider if you want to grow your real estate business through social media:

1. Post content that highlights your USPs and company values
2. Clarify common misconceptions about home buying or selling
3. Respond politely and professionally to both positive and negative comments
4. Share videos of some prime properties
5. Share customer success stories in creative and interesting ways
6. Share your thoughts and opinions on the latest industry and market news
7. Share inspiring client and employee stories
8. Pay for targeted Facebook or Instagram ads

Join Online Homeowner Groups for Your Area of Canada

Find those local homeowner groups for the areas that you service. This will be a great way to stay connected with the issues and problems experience in the local community, and when you post relevant and helpful content on these groups it also ensures that you are viewed as an expert. But it is always best to not be too pushy and you should never post unnecessary or promotional material on these groups.

Social Media Contests and Giveaways

Another strong way to engage with both prospects and long-term clients on social media is to host contests or giveaways, but how might these social media giveaways and contests work for real estate? Here is an example. Let’s say your aim is to target buyers who have already purchased one home and are looking for a second one. Investor buyers tend to have deeper pockets obviously, so this may well be something you want to do.

In this scenario you might host a contest where you ask your prospects to write about their biggest challenges while buying their first home. The person who receives the most likes receives a $___ gift card. You can also aim to be as creative as possible with your contests too with what you are willing to offer as prizes to participants. When your idea is more unique and engaging then prospective leads will be more likely to participate.

Be on the Look Out for Old, Expired Listings

Expired listings are an ongoing reality in the real estate business but you can certainly target these homeowners as a means of improving your real estate quality. When a listing expired you can safely assume that the property has been on the real estate market for some time, but it has not sold. Theres’s going to be a reason for that, and this is where a realtor can approach them and say, hey – I have an idea how we might be able to get your home sold. You will need to have that idea of course, but you are the real estate agent here.

The best source for realtors to find expired leads is going through a multiple listing service (MLS). Filter the listings by their expiry date and location on most MLS services. After that, this list can be manually or automatically imported into your CRM software. Then with your CRM software you’re able to score these leads based on their interactions.

You can reach out to these expired listings through email or a call. But it is always best to first build a natural rapport because you can also be fairly sure they are being contacted by other realtors in the area.

Target FSBOs (for sale by owner homeowners)

You will have times when you find FSBO deals that are just perfect for some of your clients, and this is another way to improve lead quality in real estate. Most FSBO listings already feature the owner’s email and contact details directly, and there are stats that indicate the average open rate for emails in the real estate industry is just 19%! But there also stats indicating that that only 5-10% of prospects would even answer a realtor’s cold call.

While reaching out to prospects with an FSBO listing, these are your best gridlines:

1. Avoid being aggressive with your sales pitch
2. Tell of what you are able to do differently as a realtor
3. Make cold calls for no more than 2 minutes
4. Send email first before calling the prospect directly

Feature Video Walk-Throughs and Client Testimonials

It’s also advisable to warmup leads by using real estate video marketing in your strategy. If you need convincing for that a study found that real estate listings that feature a video received more than 400% inquiries. This means that featuring videos on your website is a great idea to make leads warmer. Here are some kinds of videos you can consider featuring:

1. Virtual walkthroughs of listings
2. Client testimonial videos
3. Useful tips for sellers and buyers
4. Hosting of a live Q&A session on YouTube or Instagram Live
5. Interview videos
6. Contact Clients for Birthdays and Other Events

Real estate is the one industry where more than any other client referrals are extremely important for you to find new leads. It is also equally important to periodically reach out to your existing clients, but of course not with a new sales pitch or listing. Try reaching out with a friendly email or call on your clients’ birthdays, anniversaries, or other milestones. It’s effective for building or maintaining a rapport with these clients and keeping you fresh in their minds.

As you likely can appreciate, it is equally important that you nurture every lead in the right way at the right time. But of course moderation is key. These are just a few examples of what you can do to improve real estate lead quality, and what you will likely find is that as you gain experience and build your real estate career you will become aware of other good ways to maximize your return from them. That’s the way it is for most real estate agents in Canada.