Unlike local newspaper ads, which start the phones ringing right away, the Internet is broad-based and appeals to buyers who may be months or years from buying, to the frustration of many real estate professionals. That's caused many agents to dismiss Internet leads as unimportant.

But what is one agent's annoyance is another's goldmine. Some agents report that staying in contact with long-shot leads pays off using Internet tools such as Market Conditions Reports™, contact management drip campaigns, The Real Estate Update newsletter, and more.

Susan Youngblood, REALTOR®, ABR,CRS, GRI, Broker Associate, RE/MAX Heart of Texas Realtors, Austin, Texas, Web site by Advanced Access

Until recently, getting found on the Internet was a matter of buying a Web site and search engine placement, putting listings on the Internet and hoping for the best. But Susan Youngblood has found a way to get more leads and visitors to her Web site by posting her opinion of the market on Market Conditions Report™.

The next day after posting her first "report" online, she had an inquiry from a buyer/investor who lives in California. He found her report on MSN HomeAdvisor, and told her he liked what she had written and appreciated that she e-mailed him back right away. Because she took him seriously, he is on his way to Austin to look at condominium investments this week. A graduate from the University of Texas, Youngblood's client thought he wanted to invest in properties near the school, but Youngblood's knowledge of the market impressed him to consider another idea.

"We are having mold issues with older places, and he could sidestep that with new construction, and he would not have the maintenance problems," Youngblood advised. "And he would be leasing to a different age group than college kids. I'm excited about a new condo project here that is very well done, and where he could get in before the prices go up."

When Youngblood finds articles of interest to her new client, she e-mails him. "With most people, it is their home, but by having those same feelings about his investments, I can make him feel more comfortable taking my advice on some issues, while he crunches the numbers to make it work."

Bart Zimmer, REALTOR(r), Coldwell Banker Dan Blough and Associates, Santa Maria, California, Web site by Best Image Marketing

Agent Bart Zimmer, says, "I treat e-mail like a telephone call. You have to respond as quickly as possible."

Explains Zimmer, most agents won't bother with an e-mail from a buyer who is playing hard to get by failing to give a phone number and address and specific information about their needs.

"They give you a taste, and see if you respond," says Zimmer. "A lot of Realtors don't respond, so if they e-mail 20 people, and I'm the only one to respond, I will get the relationship.

"When I get an e-mail with no contact information, I consider them a cold lead, but I e-mail them and tell them that I have information to give them, and that I need the phone number and address. Odds are 80 percent that I will get it because they realize there is a live person on the other end," he says.

Zimmer divides prospects into hot, warm and cold leads and color-notes them red, white, and blue. "Red will buy in the next 30 days, warm is three to six months away, and cold is nine months or longer."

He then puts them into a different automated follow-up program depending on their colors.

"The average Internet buyer takes six to 12 months. I rarely have one who contacts me and says 'I'm ready to buy right now,'" says Zimmer. "I put them on a Top Producer e-mailing list with programmed letters. You'll get a letter from me once a month if you are buying in less than a year. When it gets to two or three months, I e-mail them every two to three weeks."

Zimmer also turns cold leads into cash. "The biggest key is keeping in contact with regardless of how long that they plan to move," advises Zimmer. "I will e-mail them, if you aren't planning to move, let me know. And some people will e-mail me that they've chosen another area. That gives me an in for a referral.

"I had an Internet client from Idaho, and it took them a year and 8 months to buy a home here, but when they got here, we felt like we already knew each other. One year later, they wanted to sell, take the money and run, and they moved back to Idaho. They just called me wanting me to find her a Realtor in Idaho," says Zimmer. "The key is you treat them with respect and give them the service they need. Most Realtors would take a client like that out of their database, but I think of people as clients for life."

Zimmer also says that he gets enough leads from his Web site to offer referrals to other agents, but he's careful not to give prospects to agents who don't believe in long-term follow-up.

"We had the area of Santa Barbara locked up, and we didn't work it," says Zimmer. "We found a go-getter Realtor and sent him three to five leads a day. When we weren't getting any referral fees, I called him, and he said, 'They were all duds. They are a year away, so I threw them out.' He didn't realize what he had done. The Internet customer will call the person who will stay in touch."

Christine Pardo, REALTOR®, e-PRO, Kroll Realty, Plantation, Florida, Web site custom designed

"It's extremely low cost to hang onto Internet leads," says agent Christine Pardo, "it's two clicks a day, but you can only e-mail 'Can I get you more information?' so many times."

She relies instead on The Real Estate Update, Realty Times' online customizable newsletter to help with new and long-term prospects.

"The newsletter is a look at what the market's doing," explains Pardo. "It is a gentle non-intrusive way of staying in touch."

To Realtor complaints that Internet customers aren't real buyers, Pardo says, "A lot do buy and sell; your percentages are no worse than sign calls. The idea is that a husband says we need to move to Florida, they go online and start searching, their dream comes true, and I'm the only one that e-mails them, and now they know me."

Pardo's system for staying in touch goes as follows:

1. I have several opportunities for them to contact me. Of course the e-mail link is on every page - but also relo packages, magazine ads, foreclosures, daily home finders, etc . Some ask for lots of information, some very little for the shyer visitors.

2. Zimmer divides prospects into hot, warm and cold leads and color-notes them red, white, and blue. "Red will buy in the next 30 days, warm is three to six months away, and cold is nine months or longer."

3. Then I put them on a Top Producer trickle system with e-mails and occasional phone calls following up. I write all the letters because I want them to appear more personalized.

4. Everyone who contacts me is put on my newsletter list. These receive monthly newsletters and announcements of my new listings.

5. If I do not receive feedback after 3-6 months (depending on their original request), they are dropped from everything but the newsletter.

Are you dismissing leads because they came from the Internet? It could be that you don't have an array of contact and follow-up tools, or you prefer to do business with act-now customers only. But, you'll need customers next month and next year. Why not use the low-cost Internet tools that are available to nurture these long-term leads until they are ready to buy? One thing is certain, if you don't, other agents will be happy to.

Editor's note: A week following this report, Susan Youngblood reported the following: "The interested person from the Internet is here. He has purchased one property and will purchase others in the future, I'm sure. He is 25 yrs. old. His wife accompanied him on his Austin safari. They both attended the University of Texas. Isn't it great win/win?!"

Published: March 20, 2002

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Blanche Evans is the award-winning senior editor of Realty Times, the Internet's leading independent real estate news service. She is featured daily on the Realty Times Video Network in the "Realty Viewpoint" segment. Blanche has been named one of the "25 Most Influential People In Real Estate" by REALTOR Magazine, and has been twice recognized as a "notable." In 2005, she was named "Top Reporter Covering the NAR" by Delahaye-Bacon's. Blanche is a renowned author of five real estate books. Her newest, Bubbles, Booms and Busts: Make Money In Any Real Estate Market, McGraw-Hill, was rave-reviewed by The New York Times. She was also selected from hundreds of real estate experts to contribute to Donald Trump's book, Trump: The Best Real Estate Advice I Ever Received: 100 Top Experts Share Their Strategies, Rutledge Hill Press, and is featured on page 68. Order Now Review - Honors In 2006, Blanche was selected among scores of candidates to author two consumer real estate guidebooks for the National Association of Realtors: The NAR Guide to Home Buying, and The NAR Guide to Home Selling, Wiley & Sons. She is currently planning two new books for the NAR and its members.       Known for her keen insight into real estate industry issues and for her ability to make complex subjects easy to understand, Blanche is a sought-after keynote and continuing education speaker. Real estate organizations from MLSs, to brokerages, to franchisors, to associations hire her to provide up-to-the-minute analysis of real estate industry news and advice on how to improve revenues. Her passionate delivery, peppered with stinging wit, is a huge hit with audiences and fans. Don Klein, CEO Greater Nashville Association of Realtors, Blanche Evans, Richard Courtney, president 2007, GRAR "The GNAR membership meeting last week featured Blanche Evans as the keynote speaker. Her comments and insights resonated extremely well with those in attendance and we have had many requests for copies of her PowerPoint Presentation. She was a terrific part of the membership meeting and convention program!" - Don Klein, CEO Greater Nashville Association of Realtors Coverage from WSMV, Nashville - 8-14-2007 That Interview Guy - Get Inside The Head Of Today's Generation 2007 AE Institute Session - To purchase 2006 AE Institute Session - Parts 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 HouseValues Mastermind call - Parts 1 2 Blanche's fireside chat with Jeremy Conaway, HAR - Click here. To contact Blanche, email her at . For more articles by Blanche, click here.