Brett Beasley (a pseudonym by request) serves a small town of 35,000 with an average sale of $138,000. He spends $87.52 a week to alternate 4 short classified ads in two local papers. The result? 14 deals in 7 months for a gross profit of $113,295!

A great 5-step system

Brett uses one of the best low-risk, high-return advertising methods available today. It is what many refer to as automatic lead generation marketing. It's ideal for those on a limited budget or those who want to produce immediate, measurable results. Brett uses a powerful 5-step system:

1. Lead generation using two-step classified ads
2. Inquiry qualification via voicemail
3. Personal telephone follow up
4. Fulfillment
5. Personal telephone follow up

Lead generation using classified ads

Brett runs four small classified ads in two local papers - the daily press and a free paper called the PennySaver. He runs two ads in one paper and the other two ads in the other paper for two weeks. Then he rotates the ads.

The power is of this strategy goes deeper than it appears at first glance. Running classified ads in your local press helps you target the relatively small percentage of people in your local area who are genuine prospects. Not everybody is ready, willing and able to buy or sell realty, but when they are... the majority will immediately seek out a local paper.

Two-step lead generation provides a steady flow of new prospects

This steady flow of prospects helps you build the most valuable asset in your business - your contact list of future, potential buyers and sellers.

You can test the power and appeal of different offers. Brett tested a total of 26 ads before settling on the four ads he currently runs.

#1 Best Producer - 10 Best Buys in Town! Free report reveals 10 best buys in any price range. No cost or obligation. Free recorded message. Call 555-1212 ext 101 now. Brett's Realty Services

#2 Best Producer - BUYERS FREE report reveals 10 best buys in town in any price range. No cost or obligation. Free recorded message. Call 555-1212 ext 201 now. Brett's Realty Services

#3 Best Producer - INVESTORS FREE. Report reveals 10 best buys in town in any price range. No cost or obligation. Free recorded message. Call 555-1212 ext 301 now. Brett's Realty Services

#4 Best Producer - FREE BUYER REPORT reveals 10 best buys in town in any price range. No cost or obligation. Free recorded message. Call 555-1212 ext 401 now. Brett's Realty Services

All four ads are run on a continuous, rotating basis. Two ads are run in the local press, two ads in the free press. The ads are rotated every two weeks to match the publication schedule of the free press. Inquiry qualification via voicemail

Notice each of the ads direct readers to call a voice mail number with a specific extension. This practice is powerful for three reasons:

1. The only way to know if you are running a profitable advertising campaign is to measure the results of your ads. Voice mail allows for accurate, real-time tracking. You gain an incredible advantage by assigning a unique phone number or extension to each ad and tracking the results of each ad. The idea is simple but powerful. If an ad pulls a profitable result, run it until it no longer does. If an ad pulls a marginal result, change it and try again. Unprofitable ads are not run again.

2. Voice mail allows you to automatically screen and qualify callers independent of your efforts. The goal is to save your time, resources and personal efforts for the most qualified prospects.

3. Voice mail is inexpensive. Local voice mail systems range can range from $19 to $25 a month per number or extension. 800# systems are usually more expensive and fall in the $49 to $149 per month range, plus per minute charges. Good arguments exist for both, however, if you are on a limited budget, a good local voice mail provider will work just fine. If you really want to know which whether a 800 number or a local number works best -- test!

Brett directs prospects into a local voice mail system. The script is simple.

"Hello and thank you for calling our 10 Best Buys Real Estate Hotline Service - the easiest, fastest way to get your hands on the best ADVANCE notice on all the best new home deals that match your home buying criteria. You can interrupt this message at any time to get personal, professional service by pressing "0".

At any time, there are between 400 and 600 homes on the market in our area. Many are overpriced, most are priced fairly and a few... a tiny handful represent GREAT buys... incredible deals which can save you $5, $10 even $15 thousand dollars or more on the purchase of your next home.

By taking advantage of our FREE 10 Best Buys Real Estate Hotline Service, you gain incredible advantage over every other home buyer by knowing about the best deals first - when they first come available!

Here is how the program works. In a moment you will be asked to provide us with a brief description of the type of home you are looking for, number of bedrooms you need, bathrooms, area, price range, etc. And that's when our powerful computers take over and search the entire database of listings to find only those properties which represent the best deal for you and your situation. When we find homes that match the criteria you've outlined a detailed description, photo and map will be mailed or faxed to you.

The 10 Best Buys Real Estate Hotline Service is a FREE service. Here is how you get started...

If you are planning to buy a home in the next 30 to 60 days, press "1" now.

If you aren't in any great rush, but are planning to buy a home within the 12 months, press "2" now.

If you are an investor with special requirements, press "3" now.

Again, thank you for call our FREE 10 Best Buys Real Estate Hotline Service - the easiest, fastest way to get your hands on the best ADVANCE notice on all the best home deals that match your unique home buying needs.

You can reach a live person in our office by pressing "0" now.

If you are planning to buy a home in the next 30 to 60 days, press "1" now.

If you aren't in any great rush, but are planning to buy a home within the 12 months, press "2" now.

If you are an investor with special requirements, press "3" now."

Notice two things here. 1) No attempt is made to sell, and 2) prospects are led to self-qualify themselves in regard to motivation. Investors and soon-to-buy prospects should be treated as hot, ready-to-do-business leads.

Personal telephone follow-up

Brett personally calls every lead that funnels through his system. A standard qualifying script and lead sheet is used. The tone is one of introduction and excitement. The idea is to begin to establish a personal relationship.

Fulfillment

The 10 Best Buys report is a simple MLS criteria-based search. Brett tabulates results weekly and either mails or faxes the report with a simple cover letter and a call to action.

Second personal telephone follow up

Again, depending on the motivation and qualification of the new contact, personal telephone contacts are made to follow up. Hot leads are called three days after mailing. Others are called within 10 days. ALL leads are placed into Brett's personal contact management system and marked to begin receiving a monthly real estate news letter as well.

So there you go - a simple, but powerful classified ad marketing system. Want to increase the power even more? Then simply offer a free home pricing analysis to your prospects when making your follow up calls - because about half will have a home they also need to sell!