Although we at ZipMatch are a huge fan of spending time with family and enjoying the holidays, it is also a great time for real estate professionals to recharge, reevaluate, and restrategize. After all, a great way to start the coming new year is a clean desk and a new marketing plan ready to roll.
So what should you be working on? Quite a few, it turns out. But these will not take up most of your holiday time. Late December is always a lean season, so you’ve got plenty of time planning (and cleaning). Here are a few suggestions.
1. Database Cleanup
This is the time to get that shovel and start digging through every lead you have acquired throughout the past year and load them up in your customer relationship management (CRM) system (an Excel sheet will do if you don’t have one). Remember what the typical buying cycle is, and before you know it, you’ve got hot leads hiding somewhere. It’s just a matter of finding and reaching out to them. According to Lisa Archer, one of Inman News’ 100 most influential agents for 2013, the databank is a realtor’s bank of business for now and the future. It requires constant addition, nurture, and contact—or it dies.
2. Website/Blog/Social Media Cleanup
If you maintain a website, a blog, or social media accounts, it’s time to look at them again. Spend some time to read every post, page, and listing and make sure the information is both current and visually appealing. Perhaps your listing’s photographs are no longer appealing and, hence, a good time to take new ones. Take out those that have already been sold or rented out (a common problem among Filipino brokers and listings sites).
3. Tidy up Your Home Office
Nothing says welcome to the new year than a tidy and de-cluttered desk or home office! The days between Christmas and the New Year are perfect for organizing files, throwing away unnecessary clutter, and a general office cleanup. It’s generally a slow week anyway so you might as well do these before new inquiries start coming in.
4. Parties Are a Great Time for Prospecting
Attend as many holiday parties as your digestive system can handle. At least one person at a party will ask how the real estate market is going, so come prepared with expert advice and year-end statistics. Offer to send these people informative email newsletters and/or brochures. But don’t overdo it—parties, after all, are a time to network and reignite professional relationships, not to do hard selling.
