When leads are flying in left, right and centre, it’s crucial to be able to quickly distinguish which are hot, which are warm and which aren’t actually all that interested.
In a time-critical environment, however, this can be a bit of a challenge. The best method for getting the information you need is through open-ended questions, as they’ll help to give you a solid overview of their current situation and just how interested they are.
But which questions should you be asking? In this article, we’ll go over the top 5 most important questions that you need to cover with your leads. Follow these and you’ll be generating more business in no time.
1. Have you contacted other agents?
To decide a lead’s value to your agency, it’s important to get this question out of the way first. If you don’t, you could be investing time and money in helping them when you’re actually fighting an uphill battle against the competition.
If they are working with another agent, however, don’t be too quick to stereotype them. If they’re contacting you, there’s likely a good reason behind it. Maybe they’re just trying to broaden their scope, but it could also be because the other agent isn’t performing.
2. Why are you interesting in buying/selling?
By asking this question, you’ll be able to develop a clear picture of two key factors – motivation and timeframe.
If a client is highly motivated, they’ll likely want to get the ball rolling quickly, meaning you can move them through your pipeline at an accelerated rate. They’ll also be more willing to share information with you, meaning you’ll have an easier time working out how best to help them.
If the client is working with a tight timeframe, you can also qualify them as a hot lead. For example, if they’ve accepted a job in a new area and need to find somewhere within the next 3 months, they’ll be quick to move on any suitable listings.
3. What property types are you interested in?
This is a great question for understanding how committed a lead is to the buying process. If they’re invested in finding a new home, they’ll already have a clear outline in their mind of the type of property they’re after.
Winning hot leads all comes down to proactivity. If you can show the client that you’ll be working hard for them, they’ll be more likely to give you their business. Add them to any listings email updates you have and tell them they’ll be notified once something comes on the market.
With a Real Estate system like iDashboard, you can easily add your buyers property match specifications and the system will automatically notify them when your offices lists a property that may suit them. So simply set and forget, little does the buyer know, iDashboard has done this for you automatically.
4. Have you contacted a mortgage lender?
This will weed out the hot leads from the lukewarm. Buyers who are highly motivated will have contacted a lender (if needed) to find out what rates are on offer. They may have even already attained pre-approval.
If this is the case, work out if their loan type and amount is suitable for the types of property and neighbourhoods they’re interested in. If it is, then you’re in luck – find them their property type in the area and they’ll be likely to move quickly.
Asking this question can also enable you to refer this buyer onto a mortgage lender/broker if they are yet to speak to one, potentially providing you with an additional revenue stream.
5. When can we meet in person to discuss this?
Your leads might sound motivated over the phone, but this question will really test their willingness to move forward. Buyers will be better off coming into your office, but for sellers you could offer to swing by and provide them with a free valuation.
If they respond by saying they’d rather get in touch at a later date, they’re most likely a warm lead. Don’t push to set an appointment with them as they’re not ready to take any next steps yet. Give it a few weeks and get back in touch.
Qualifying your leads as hot, warm and cold is a vital step to boosting your lead conversion rates. Work these questions into your calls and watch your sales pipeline grow.
Looking for a way to record and track your leads? With iDashboard, you can easily add and manage your leads and buyers, so that no one falls through the cracks..