Stating that the consumer will be doing the searching and not getting suckered into filling out some form so that some covert agent will do the search for them and then report back with the (possibly doctored) results.
Why do I add my name? I do this for branding and associating my quite memorable “elite auto” name with “real estate” and “MLS searching.” Doing so creates better top-of-mind awareness of me with online consumers.
Why do I have my own private MLS search service? Because I can control it, tailor it to my own style, and even forget about it if I want. Yet, its powerful program just keeps on delivering new matches to the consumers who are using it. How many?
I now have 3,500 consumers actively using my private MLS search service! Most ask to get automatic updates. This means that every day, hundreds of consumers get an e-mail from me containing my (preprogrammed) message to them and a link to one or more new home listings on the MLS.
Why do the recipients eagerly read the messages “I” send them? They do because these homes precisely match the search parameters that they entered when they originally searched the MLS from my site and signed up for automatic updates of listings. They no longer have to search the MLS themselves. My personal MLS program searches the MLS for them and delivers the results in a handsome, personally tailored e-mailed format, which includes my photo and contact information, along with the matches from the MLS.
The daily listing flyers contain detailed contact forms, photo slideshows, maps, virtual tour links and mortgage calculators. Most people think that I have personally sent them each update and they tell me how much they appreciate what I have done for them.
I routinely have buyers call me and say, “Well, Debbie, we’ve been getting your updates now for (period of months) and we’re finally ready to move. Because of the updates you’ve been sending us, we know exactly the kind of home we want and even the neighborhood. So, we’d like to come down next weekend and have you show us these MLS numbers. etc.” That is music to my little bell-shaped agent’s ears.
Agents' and brokers' listings are available from my Web site within minutes of the listing being added to the MLS.
The personal MLS search firm that I use delivers all MLS active listings to my site using Broker Reciprocity standards set forth by NAR and the MLS's and Associations. Taking it a step further, the program captures all my visitors who go to the site, and places them in a prospecting database with automated responses that I can tweak.
Because I get 500 unique visitors a day to my site, and because most of them want to search the MLS themselves online, it does not take long for there to be a large number of active users. If a person wants to exit from my MLS search function and no longer get updates, he simply clicks on a link in the last e-mail he gets “from me” and he is gone.
I can search this database by e-mail address, name, and other ways, plus I can send personalized e-mails to selected recipients, or, to the entire list any time that I want. As soon as a person enters his contact info to search the MLS from my site, I can get an e-mailed copy of his contact info and search parameters.
With this, I can contact him immediately either by e-mail or phone, or postal mail him a promotional piece. I seldom do, however, because on the Web, being less proactive with prospects is usually best. They like their anonymity until they choose to contact you.
Using a built in Agent Productivity Tool, I can search all MLS listing data much the same way I do from the MLS itself. I can view the data in the same format the MLS systems provide, but with a great deal more flexibility. With just a mouse click, I can reformat the listings to flyers and e-mail them to a client or print them out. I can build a CMA or order a property profile on any listing, or contact the listing Agent via e-mail. I can also manage all the prospects that come into the site, as well as add any additional prospects that I might have.
Last year, I made $110,000 in commissions just from leads that originated at my Web site. Virtually all of those leads were from consumers who had been using my personal MLS search service anywhere from several weeks to more than a year.
Each of the two years that I have had my personal MLS system on my site, the portion of my commissions that comes solely from web site leads has gone up by a whopping 30 percent. By January 15, 2003, I had already done two transactions worth $650,000 from buyers who had been using my MLS service for months.
By now you can see why it is valuable to offer MLS searching directly from your site. Doing so puts you way ahead of most agents since you are offering, nay, HIGHLIGHTING, the very thing that realty-minded consumers come on the Web to do anyway.
With a personal MLS service, you can tailor everything that the consumer sees to your own personalized, compelling, colorful HTML formats. You can do this to the point that many wonder how you find the time to send them so many “personalized” messages. In all cases, those who end up buying or selling with you acclaim your incredible level of service, far beyond that of past agents they’ve dealt with. And naturally, that kind of accolade can lead to word-of-mouth referrals.
Guest columnist, Debbie Ferrari, e-PRO, EMS/CE, RECS, Broker Associate, Prudential California Realty, who serves South Orange County, California, counts herself as one of the earliest Realtors® to embrace Internet marketing. Her site at www.DebbieFerrari.com is among the most-awarded known Realtor sites in the country. She can be reached at Debbie@DebbieFerrari.com.
