Realtors get leads from a variety of sources in order to build their business and connect with potential buyers and sellers. The main sources of leads for realtors include referrals, online leads, open houses, expired listings, direct mail, and their sphere of influence.
Referrals
Referrals from past clients and colleagues are one of the top sources of leads for realtors. A recent survey showed that nearly 60% of realtors said referrals accounted for the majority of their business. When a realtor provides excellent service, their clients are likely to recommend them to friends, family, and coworkers. Realtors rely heavily on referrals to generate new business.
There are several reasons why referrals are so valuable for realtors:
- Referrals convert at a high rate – Studies show referred buyers and sellers are 4-5 times more likely to use the referred realtor compared to non-referred prospects.
- Referrals close faster – The trust in the referred realtor enables faster decision making. Referred clients often skip additional searches and agent interviews.
- Higher sales prices & commissions – Referred clients are more willing to work exclusively with the realtor and follow their pricing guidance resulting in more sales and higher commissions.
- Recurring business – Happy referred clients will use the realtor for future transactions and provide further referrals.
Because of the tremendous value of referrals, realtors make referral generation a priority in their business. They aim to provide 5-star service so clients are eager to recommend them. Realtors stay in regular contact with past clients and remind them to provide referrals. They also ask for referral suggestions during client meetings. Getting a steady stream of referred prospects is critical for realtors to grow their business year after year.
Online Leads
Online leads have become one of the dominant sources of new real estate leads. With widespread internet use by home buyers and sellers, realtors have invested heavily in online marketing and lead generation tactics. Here are some of the main online lead sources for realtors:
Real Estate Portal Listings
Major real estate portals like Zillow, Trulia and Realtor.com attract millions of buyers to search listings. Realtors promote their listings and contact info on these high-traffic sites which connects them with large numbers of potential leads. Home searchers who inquire about portal listings get routed to the listing agent. According to NAR, 34% of buyers found their agent through a real estate website.
Realtor Website Traffic
Many home buyers will search for “real estate agent [city]” and browse agent websites directly. Realtors who invest in an attractive, informative website optimized for buyers can capture more website traffic and generate seller/buyer leads. Lead capture forms, listing showcases and local market reports bring more prospects into their sales funnel.
Social Media Presence
Over 70% of realtors are using social media for real estate marketing. Facebook, Instagram and Youtube are popular platforms realtors use to promote listings, market reports and establish their brand. Social media builds connections with potential leads in the local community. Many realtors see leads generated directly from social platforms.
Digital Advertising
Digital ads allow realtors to promote themselves and attract new leads during the internet home search process. The most popular digital ad formats include:
- Google Ads – PPC ads shown for related terms like “homes for sale”, “top realtor” etc.
- Facebook Ads – Targeted ads ideal for geographic and demographic targeting
- Display Ads – Banner ads on news sites, real estate apps, and other traffic sources
- Retargeting Ads -Ads shown to previous website visitors as they browse other sites
Combining paid search, social, and display ads can rapidly deliver new prospect leads into a realtor’s pipeline. Savvy realtors allocate a portion of their marketing budget to digital ads for attracting new business.
Email Marketing
Email continues to be a highly effective channel for lead generation. Realtors build out their email lists from past clients, website opt-ins, social media followers and purchased lists. They segment and target their lists to deliver relevant home buying and selling tips and listings. Email open and click-through rates for real estate remain high compared to other industries. For realtors, email marketing is an efficient way to stay top of mind and generate repeat and referral business from subscribers.
Online leads have grown quickly due to realtor marketing technology and internet usage. Most real estate brokers today attribute over 50% of their leads to digital sources. Online lead generation will continue rising as more home search activity shifts online. Realtors dedicating more of their marketing budgets to digital channels will capture the lion’s share of leads in their markets.
Open Houses
Hosting open houses still generates viable real estate leads. An NAR survey showed 11% of buyers found their real estate agent through an open house. When buyers visit an open house, there is direct contact with the listing agent. The realtor has the opportunity to impress these prospective buyers with their skills and expertise. Many listing agents capture leads for future buyer representation at their open houses. Some key open house lead generation tactics include:
- Use attractive open house signs and online ads to drive traffic
- Gather names and contact info of all visitors for follow up
- Build rapport during open house conversations
- Highlight experience and market knowledge
- Distribute listing flyers and agency materials
- Follow up promptly with those who attended open house
While online marketing provides more lead generation scale, open houses remain a viable supplementary source of leads. They are a good way for listing agents to leverage the foot traffic from their For Sale listings.
Expired Listings
When a property listing expires without selling, there is an opportunity for agents to contact the seller as a potential lead. Some studies show that over 50% of expired listings eventually relist with a new agent. Industry surveys have found that expired listings account for around 11% of the average realtor’s business.
To generate leads from expired listings, realtors scrub through listing databases looking for recent expirations. They then contact the sellers by phone and mail to pitch their services. Communication is customized based on the expired listing details. Many realtors find that persistence pays off in converting a portion of expired leads into listed properties.
Direct Mail
In the digital age, direct mail marketing remains surprisingly effective for realtors. Physically mailing postcards, newsletters and letters to targeted homeowner lists generates new leads. Direct mail open rates exceed 90% versus 20-30% for email. Realtors can target specific neighborhoods or home types to increase relevancy. Hand addressing envelopes boosts open rates further. Just 2-3% conversion of a direct mail campaign into leads begins paying dividends.
Some direct mail content proven to generate real estate leads includes:
- Just listed/just sold postcards
- Market reports & newsletters
- Neighborhoodfarming letters
- Listing promotion flyers
- Personalized sale price estimate letters
Adding direct mail into the media mix keeps the leads flowing in for realtors. The tangibility of print helps drive response in ways that email cannot. Realtors devote a slice of their marketing budgets to high quality direct mail campaigns.
Sphere of Influence
Realtors naturally market themselves to friends, family and personal connections as leads. This is known as a realtor’s sphere of influence. No one has a more trusted relationship than your inner circle. Real estate is highly referral driven, making a realtor’s sphere of influence critically important.
Common strategies realtors use within their sphere includes:
- Casual promotion of their real estate services
- Offering free home valuations
- Asking for introductions to those needing real estate services
- Providing helpful content on buying and selling
- Staying top of mind on social media
A realtor’s closest contacts are more likely to become clients themselves or provide high quality referrals. Keeping sphere of influence marketing consistent ensures maximum lead generation from personal relationships.
Other Lead Sources
Beyond the main channels above, realtors may use a variety of other lead generation strategies including:
- Past Client Referrals – Getting repeat and referral business from past clients
- Lead Websites – Third party lead generation sites like Zillow Premier Agent
- Craigslist – Posts in for sale/housing sections
- Real Estate Apps – Apps like Zillow, Redfin and Realtor generate buyer leads
- Events – Hosting or attending open houses, seminars and meetups
- Door Knocking – Canvassing specific neighborhoods for sellers
- Call Campaigns – Calling expired listings and FSBOs directly
Although these sources may play a smaller role, realtors still devote resources here to cover all bases for lead generation.
Lead Generation by Realtor Experience Level
There are some notable differences between lead generation sources for newer realtors vs experienced ones:
Newer Realtors
- Heavier focus on online lead sources like portal listings and digital ads
- Greater emphasis on building a referral base
- Use sphere of influence for initial business
- Lead generation training and coaching
- Lean on brokerage for leads
New realtors following getting a license initially have a small network and low awareness. They rely more heavily on company lead programs, digital marketing and inner circles to find new prospects. As they gain initial traction, developing referral relationships becomes important.
Experienced Realtors
- Significant business from past client referrals
- Greater referral partner networks
- Strong organic traffic to established realtor site
- Expanded sphere of influence
- Targeted digital ad campaigns
- Nurtured email subscriber lists
- Consistency with direct mail
Seasoned realtors generate leads from years of happy repeat clients, referral partners and followers. They shift to more targeted digital and direct marketing to fill inventory gaps. Their experience and tight conversion skills also enable converting leads at high rates.
Tracking Real Estate Lead Sources
To optimize results, realtors need to track the performance of their lead generation efforts:
- Number of leads generated from each source
- Lead to opportunity conversion rates
- Opportunity to sale conversion rates
- Sales volume from each source
- Lead quality rankings
- Marketing costs per lead
CRM and marketing automation systems provide reporting to analyze lead source efficiency. Data insights help realtors double down on the highest performing channels. They can also experiment with new lead sources and reallocate budgets to drive more growth.
Here is an example lead source tracking report a realtor may monitor:
Lead Source | Leads | Lead to Opportunity % | Opportunity to Sale % | Sales Volume | Lead Quality | Cost Per Lead |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Google Ads | 183 | 21% | 15% | $540,000 | 6/10 | $112 |
Direct Mail | 52 | 12% | 22% | $210,000 | 8/10 | $98 |
Referrals | 74 | 18% | 27% | $630,000 | 9/10 | $0 |
Analyzing lead source performance in this way guides smarter marketing investments for realtors seeking more leads and sales.
Tips for Generating More Real Estate Leads
Here are some final best practices for realtors to generate more qualified leads across channels:
- Focus on delivering 5-star service – Amazing service generates endless referrals and repeat business
- Build referral partnerships – Team up with lenders, home inspectors etc to receive referrals
- Target online ads – Laser target key demographics, geo-locations, interests and behaviors
- Update listing content – Boost portal views with additional photos/videos and description details
- Send direct mail series – Nurture leads with a multi-touch mail series over time
- Promote listings wider – Expand open house and listing promotion outreach
- Incentivize referrals – Run referral reward programs to subscribers and past clients
- Analyze lead sources – Continually evaluate lead source effectiveness with metrics
Consistently generating new leads is the lifeblood for real estate agents. Following proven lead generation strategies across digital and traditional channels will maximize their prospect pipeline and drive higher sales.
Conclusion
In summary, realtors get leads from referrals, online sources, open houses, expired listings, direct mail and sphere of influence contacts. Online has become the dominant lead driver from portals, websites, social, ads and email. Yet traditional options like open houses and direct mail remain effective. Experienced realtors generate 50%+ of leads from past clients and referrals. For continuous growth, savvy realtors use data to track lead performance across sources and double down on what works best.