Referrals are the lifeblood of the real estate business, but how do you express each referral thank you? There is no better compliment to your business than receiving a referral, but are you taking the time to properly thank the referring party the right way? If not you very well may be pissing them off.
Over 60% of Closed Business Comes From Referrals Or Repeat Clients
When people refer services/professionals to others, they do not get any type of award, big shiny trophy, or anything monetary, but you should at the very least say thank you.
When somebody sends you a referral they are more than likely expecting your acknowledgment of it. If you just handed somebody $5,000 wouldn’t you at least expect a phone call? People who refer you business now will refer you more business later so make sure you have a referral thank you process.
When you get a referral you need to acknowledge it the same way you do when your dog goes to the bathroom outside by using positive reinforcement. You must let your referring relationships know how much you appreciate their referrals.
Have you ever received something from someone unexpectedly and even though it is something small, you very much appreciated it?
Here is the referral thank you checklist I’ve used over the years with every client I received a referral from.
1. Make personal contact with referral
Pick up the phone and thank the referring party immediately. If they do not answer the phone you can leave a message. This is something very simple to do and it should only take a few minutes.
2. Send Referring Party A Text & Email
Once you either speak to them on the phone or leave a voice mail, send a follow up text and email. Make it short and sweet and say something along the lines of, “hey just wanted to thank you again for your referral. It means a lot to me. Hey, what’s your address by the way (if you don’t have it). You should always have the direct mail address of anyone who as sent you a referral.
3. Send a “Thank you” letter and $10 Gift card
Print off or hand write a thank you letter with a $10 dollar gift card to either a coffee shop or gas station. Most people won’t expect anything, but when they receive it will be very appreciative.
4. If referral closes, call to thank referring party again
Once the referral closes, make sure you contact the referring party again via phone, text, and email. You should make sure you update all contact information in your CRM and add them to your database marketing system. Let them know their referral closed and you took great care of them.
5. Send Referral a $100 dinner gift certificate when referral closes
Don’t be cheap. Somebody just printed you money. Get them a dinner at a local restaurant! Somebody who sends you a referral will send you another one so look at this as an investment. Do you think they will send you another referral in the future?
6. Acknowledge the Referral on Facebook/Instagram
Tag the referring party on social media with a simple thank you story. By doing this you are programming your entire database that you are referral based real estate agent.
Generating more referrals is not rocket science, it’s common sense, but if you want more of them you need a referral thank you checklist. Implement this system and see what happens next time you receive one.
This is also a real good book if you are interested in learning more about attracting referrals.