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Do you send a HUD-1 Letter/E-mail to your clients?

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This is not a new or unique idea, but if you have never heard of it, you may want to consider doing it.

Each year, at the very beginning of the year, I send an e-mail to everyone who bought or sold a home through me. That e-mail basically says “If you need a copy of your HUD-1, I’ll be happy to get one to you”. This is part of my closing plan drip campaign in my Trans-Plans.

It is a value added touch opportunity that is appreciated, even though it is rare that you actually need to send them the HUD-1. It’s just the offering of the service that gets you some brownie points with your past clients.

First I created a “form e-mail/letter” called the “HUD-1 Letter”. That can go something like:

_____________________________

Hello Bob and Mary,

Hope your holidays were memorable, and that this letter finds you in good health and spirits.

My services don’t stop the minute closing is over. Please think of me as your resource for all things Real Estate. An example would be that if you would like a copy of your “HUD-1” or “settlement sheet”, please give me a call, or shoot me an e-mail. You may need it come tax time to make sure you get all the deductions to which you are entitled. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to give me a call. I’m not an accountant, but I’ll help in any way I can.

As always, please remember that my favorite source of new business is referrals from satisfied past clients and customers. So if I can help a friend, relative, or business associate, please give them my card. Better yet, give me a call and I will call them, and very briefly introduce myself. You can be assured I will give them the most professional and courteous service!

Warm regards,

_____________________________

Throughout the year when I close a transaction, I have several “Categories” I apply to my clients that come in handy for this. The ones I use for the HUD-1 letter are – “Settled 20xx”. “Past Buyer”, and “Past Seller”. So now I do a search and get everyone who is a past buyer or seller from 2010, and then do an e-mail merge to them all using the above template. I actually used to just mail them all out, but that was a lot more work, and most people didn’t really need them anyway.

After you do this the first year and have the form letter, and have the clients categorized, it takes all of 5 minutes to do the whole thing. It’s an efficient effective way to stay in front of your past clients in a value added way!

Happy holidays!

via Do you send a HUD-1 Letter/E-mail to your clients?.

What could I be doing with my CRM/Contact Manager?

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The following is a list of functions that a good CRM enables you to do. Many people buy a CRM because they are told they need one, or because they want to get more organized. Often while evaluating a CRM or after purchasing one, they then end up saying that it cost too much for what they need, because it does so much that they do not need. The reality is that the CRM does so much because it is what you need, IF you want to grow your business significantly, while at the same time; having more of a personal life; with less stress for you and your clients; with less mistakes; with better service to your clients; with less staff; with more compliments from everyone you work with; with more referrals. If you want those things, then the CRM does not do too much. It has the features it does in order to accomplish those things.

Note that the title uses both of the terms CRM and Contact Manager. The fact is that the following bullet points can not all be accomplished with a contact manager. The reason for the title is that a significant percentage of agents have either never heard the term CRM (Customer Relationship Manager) at all, or they have heard it but do not know what it means, or they do not understand the difference between a Contact Manager and a CRM. Therefore, if the words Contact Manager are not in the title, they may never find this post!

An example of a Contact Manager is Outlook. Examples of CRM’s are Top Producer, Agent Office, AdvantageXi, Active Agent for Outlook, etc.

It comes down to recognizing what you want to accomplish with a CRM , and then purchasing according to your needs. Following is a list of what you can accomplish with a good CRM. The more of these things you do within your CRM, the more efficient you will be. If you want to do all or much of what is on the list, then you need a CRM as opposed to a Contact Manager.

  • Prospecting – Get suspects, turn them into prospects, and turn them into sales, by knowing who they are, what they want, and when they want it, all in significant detail, and by being reminded to capitalize on that information automatically.
  • Lead distribution and tracking – The ability to give out a lead to a team member, and then follow-up to see if that member is doing what you want them to do to capitalize on that lead.
  • Lead source tracking – Knowing where your business is coming from and spending your marketing time and money accordingly/wisely.
  • Referral tracking – Knowing who is referring you the most business, so you know who to do more for in return.
  • Contact management – That means everyone! Suspects; prospects; clients; vendors; friends; relatives; neighbors. Knowing how to find any information on anyone, even from many years ago, with a few clicks virtually instantly.
  • Mail merge­ – Do all print or e-mail merging from within the CRM eliminating redundant external databases.
  • E-mail management – How many e-mails are in your inbox? They should be with your contacts, or with the property, where you can find them, quickly, not in your inbox.
  • Document management – Store all documents and photographs relevant to a transaction with the transaction record and/or the contact record. Having a complete paper trail all in one location is invaluable if you are challenged.
  • Appointment management – The ability to not only track when and where you had an appointment with someone, but also the ability to note the substance of that appointment.
  • Listing coordination – The biggest complaint lodged against Real Estate agents has always been poor communication. A comprehensive, automatically executed listing plan enables you to turn those complaints into praise effortlessly, automatically.
  • Closing coordination – Too many details can fall through the cracks. The busier you get, the more details you have swimming around in your head. And each day you have to make many decisions regarding what actions you need to take for which transactions. Even the best paper list and file methods are rife with bottlenecks and inconsistencies. Having all the information you need in one place and a to-do list automatically posted on your calendar makes your job far easier and more stress free.
  • Communications documentation – Also known as History, there is a place where it all comes together. Tasks, phone calls, e-mails, letters, post cards, fliers, and appointments. A contiguous record of everything that has happened with that contact or transaction.
  • Time management – Having automated to-do lists, and organized methods of consistent follow-up. Decide what you want to do, once, and automatically follow up that way every time from then on.
  • Risk reduction – Knowledge is power. If you use a CRM properly and consistently, you will automatically gravitate towards centralizing the huge volume of detail with which you work every day. It can not be overemphasized how important it is to have a contiguous chronological accounting of any contact you have with clients and even prospects. You can be challenged at any point about a myriad of issues from Fair Housing Violations to Mortgage Fraud, Procuring Cause, and any number of other things. A CRM can easily and automatically organize you. Having complete records of; phone calls, letters, e-mails, appointments, etc., insures that you will enjoy a much better position from which to defend yourself if need be.
  • Post closing follow-up/client retention – Not staying in touch with past clients is one of the single biggest causes of loss of income in the Real Estate sales industry. Never lose another referral due to your failure to stay in touch.
  • Staff training and accountability – Personnel retention is a problem that never goes away. Having a system in place with notes built into the CRM task lists significantly diminishes the impact of a lost staff person. It enables you to have the new person step right into a tried and true system, and none of the details are lost in the transition. Additionally, it provides a clear picture of exactly who is doing what each day with regards to each individuals responsibilities.

If this list has you interested, it is likely that you are ready for a comprehensive CRM solution. Just realize that the dollar investment in the CRM is the easy part. The time investment is the tough part. But the rewards are more than you can appreciate until you get there.

What does a CRM do anyway?

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If you don’t know what a Customer Relationship Manager does, how can you know if you need one?

Do you run your business like a business? You’re probably tired of hearing that old question, but it’s one of the many things a CRM helps you do better. So what doe s a CRM do? If you want to do the following things, or do them better or faster, then you should be looking at CRM solutions.

  • Prospecting – get suspects, turn them into prospects, and turn them into sales, by knowing who they are, what they want, and when they want it, all in significant detail, and being reminded to capitalize on that information automatically
  • Lead source tracking – knowing where your business is coming from and spending your marketing time and money accordingly/wisely
  • Referral tracking – knowing who is referring you the most business, so you know who to do more for in return
  • Contact management – That means everyone! Suspects; prospects; clients; vendors; friends; relatives; neighbors. Knowing how to find any information on anyone, even from many years ago, with a few clicks virtually instantly
  • Time management – having automated to-do lists, and organized methods of consistent follow-up. Decide what you want to do, once, and automatically follow up that way every time from then on
  • E-mail management – how many e-mails are in your inbox? They should be with your contacts, or with the property, where you can find them, quickly, not in your inbox or in a folder somewhere
  • Listing coordination – the biggest complaint lodged against Real Estate agents is poor communication. A comprehensive, automatically executed listing plan enables you to turn those complaints into praise effortlessly, automatically
  • Closing coordination – too many details can fall through the cracks. The busier you get, the more details you have swimming around in your head. And each day you have to make many decisions regarding what actions you need to take for which transactions. Even the best paper list and file methods are rife with bottlenecks and inconsistencies. Having all the information you need in one place and an automated to-do list posted on your calendar makes your job far easier and more stress free.
  • Document management – store all the documents relevant to a transaction right with the record of that transaction and/or with the client
  • Word processing and desktop publishing- enjoy being able to easily do any kind of mailing you want to, right from the database itself rather than farming it out to third party if that is your preference. OR maintain your mailing list and easily send it out to third parties with a few clicks when needed.
  • Post closing follow-up/client retention – not staying in touch with past clients is one of the single biggest causes of loss of income in the Real Estate sales industry. Never lose another referral due to your failure to stay in touch.
  • Risk reduction – knowledge is power. Having an automatically generated centralized easy to reference complete record of phone calls, letters, e-mails, appointments, etc., insures that you will enjoy a much better position from which to defend yourself if need be.
  • Staff training and accountability – personnel retention is a problem that never goes away. Having a system in place with notes built into the CRM task lists significantly diminishes the impact of a lost staff person. It enables you to have the new person step right into a tried and true system, and none of the details are lost in the transition. Additionally, it provides a clear picture of exactly who is doing what each day in the daily tasks.

CRM is the software you need to do these things for you. Therefore, if you need to do these things, you need a CRM solution.

You cannot really grasp how much it will help you.

Occasionally when you are working with a buyer or a seller, do you find yourself thinking, “They have absolutely no clue how incredibly complex this whole transaction is from start to finish. They can read all they want about it, feel they have become quite expert on the subject, and still have no real appreciation for it all.”

Until you use a CRM to the point where you can no longer see yourself getting along without it – you too, cannot appreciate how much of an impact it will have on your business, and even on your life.

If you invest the necessary time to truly use and develop a good CRM as more than just a glorified Rolodex, it is an absolute fact that you will look back some day and wonder how you ever grew your business, stayed in business, and kept your sanity without it. It will be the single most all-pervasive choice you will make in your entire Real Estate career concerning the day-to-day administration of your business. It will become a growing thing and believe it or not, you will actually come to like it a great deal.

DO NOT BUY A CRM…

…unless you are committed to:

  • making the time to learn it – note the use of the word making as opposed to gettingthe time. It’s so very important to understand that this one point makes all the difference in the world between someone who implements the CRM and reaps the benefits, and someone who eventually simply regrets spending the money, and blames it on the CRM. Maybe you have heard the time management axiom that a project or meeting takes as long as the time you allot to it. The same goes for your Real Estate day. You cannot keep putting off learning your CRM until the time that you need to spend with it presents itself. For many of us, that time just does not come. When you put one hour into learning your new CRM first thing in the morning, before you answer any calls or e-mails, you get it done, and then you somehow miraculously manage to get everything else you need to get done that day, done!
  • learning to use it as more than just a glorified Rolodex. If that is all you are going to use it for, stick with Outlook or something like that.

As a Real Estate licensee, we wear many hats. No one likes all of them. There are those who will tell you that the reason most agents do not use a CRM is because they are too complex, and they need to be easier. Maybe they do, but selling Real Estate needs to be easier too, but it is what it is. You learned how to use Outlook, MS Word, and maybe MS Publisher too. You spent hour after hour playing with them until you got a handle on them and never complained because you had no choice. What is so different about learning a CRM?

You do not have to like the time you invest into becoming proficient with a good CRM. But if you want to grow your business, while having more of a life, with less stress, with less mistakes, with better service, with less staff, with more compliments, with more referrals – then you need it.

Make that determination right here and now. In order to accomplish the above, you must make a commitment to investing the time to learn how to use a CRM. You then must either create, or purchase and tweak, pre-written e-mails and letters; fliers; post cards; prospect follow-up campaigns, etc. This does not have to be done all at once! It’s an elephant. Eat it one bite at a time! If you are not yet an organized professional business person in Real Estate sales, and want to become one, what are you waiting for?