This is about a really old but proven prospecting technique. It's not sophisticated, original, or costly.

It's called face-to-face prospecting for referred prospects.

It takes cold calling, which is a fast way to talk to a lot of people.

But many don't do it, because while developing a listing farm is good, it does not produce fast enough results.

We know that the best source of business is referrals. If that is true, then why isn't more emphasis placed on building a referral prospect base starting from day one?

New agents need prospects now, but what do we tend to do? - teach them systems that will take them months to produce a sale.

New agents need good, qualified prospects today. They need referrals. Where do referrals come from in most cases? Raving fan clients and customers is where most new agents are taught to get referrals, but most new agents don't have any clients, much less any raving ones. So why don't we get over this idea and get new agents focused on what will greatly enhance their chances of generating a closing within the first 60 days, and give them a strong dose of much needed encouragement at the same time?

There is only one guaranteed way I know of to get referrals on a daily basis, and it can be done 24/7. No computer needed! It's not even hard work. It's fun.

Here is the Big Idea. Don't think prospecting. Think prospecting for referrals.

Here is how It's Done:

Agents, wherever you go, ask for referrals. You can get referred prospects from restaurants, gas stations, malls, at work - anywhere there are people.

Here's your script:

Server or clerk: "May I help you."

You: (smiling) "You might. Do you happen to know of anyone thinking of buying a home?"

Their immediate answer might be "no", because they weren't expecting the question. But give them time to think about it.

That's it. It's free, it works, and you can start today, rain or shine.

By the way, wear your name tag. Hand the person you are talking to your card. It's much more professional.

Set a goal of X number of prospects per day. My guess is that two hours a day in the field, face-to-face with the general public will net about 20-25 prospects a week.

Using the referred prospect approach, agents can start getting referrals long before their first sale and long after they have worked the world's shortest prospect list: their family and friends.

Published: October 21, 2004

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David Fletcher has been a Florida real estate condominium and new homes broker for 30 years with more than $3 billion in new construction sales. In 2008, Keller Williams Realty International named him a "Lifetime Achiever." Along the way he has chaired the Florida Homebuilders Associaiton Sales and Marketing Council, trained thousands of general agents and on-site agents to work together, and was a featured speaker at the National Association of Realtors. Recently he founded New Homes Niche, a builder-certified co-broker training system "to meet the growing trend we see in short sale buyers moving to new homes for a lot of reasons." Call David at 407 234 2349, , and visit his website.