(#514) HOW TO: FOLLOW-UP

Follow Up Foundational Guide Squares.jpg

THE SPROUT HOW TO GUIDE TO FOLLOW-UP

WHY FOLLOW UP?

The average shopper begins looking for a new home six weeks in advance and is going to look at four to six communities before they narrow down their search. If you're going to stand out, you must follow up.

But here is the sad reality:

More than 50 percent of prospects never received one form of follow-up. So just by following up, you increase the odds of getting that new lease. We think that’s a huge reason WHY!

DO YOU PREFER TO LEARN THROUGH VIDEO? CLICK BELOW AS WE TALK ALL THINGS FOLLOW UP.

HOW TO PREPARE FOR FOLLOWING UP

What you do on the tour will determine how easy or difficult following up will be.

Take a personal interest. Download our Hot Buttons cheatsheet here. Our goal is to create a dialogue with prospects…to really get to know them. Take a special interest in what matters most to them. Take brief, easy-to-read notes of the things that you noticed your prospect especially liked, personal insight they've shared. It's those little tidbits that are most important when we go to follow up.
Make yourself memorable as their tour guide. When I was a leasing agent, I always found a way to weave in the fact that I had a 120 lb. Doberman named Bruno. If they were pet lovers, I’d even show them a picture of my beloved hound. This allowed me to use this fun fact in my follow up. Remember, when they tour more than just an apartment, you have to stand out and remind them of who you were. If I was following up by email, I might say, “Hi. This is Barbara, the blonde lady with the 120 lb. Doberman that gave you a tour of Park West Apartments.”
Before they leave, find out how they like to receive information. Example: “Do you prefer to get info via email, hard copies or text message?” Add that to your client notes.

THE ESSENTIAL FOLLOW-UP TOUCHPOINTS

Phone call
Voicemail
- PRO TIP: Want to skip the conversation and go straight to voicemail? Check out slydial.com. You can thank us later ;)
Email - with video, audio, images or links
Text message with an image, link, audio, or video
Social media message (if they’ve provided that info or corresponded with you that way)
Snail mail packet with fun flyers, interesting mail out or gorgeous cards
For themed and seasonal follow-up ideas search FOLLOW UP here. New ideas added monthly.

DOWNLOAD THIS TIMELINE AND POST FOR YOUR TEAM >>>

Just click to download

CREATE AUTOMATED SYSTEMS

Statistics show you have to follow up an average of seven times to make the sale, but that doesn’t mean it has to take hours each week. Create simple automation systems to make it a breeze. That’s why we created our 6-step timeline above.

Set a consistent day to follow up with your weekly leads. We think “Follow-Up Friday” is easy to remember. Set the date as a recurring event on your calendar.
Grab Sprout’s Mad Lib-style follow-up templates
Download follow-up email banners HERE. Select: Email banner (format)
Make a few generic follow-up videos at once. We love using Wistia & Soapbox for easy recordings.
- Video of your common areas
- Video of your team
- Video of you saying “thanks for touring”
- Create a folder on your desktop or drive with easy-to-access images and files of floorplans, community pictures, and more.
Save your follow-up templates in your email provider. Add a follow-up tag or label to follow-up emails that you can easily refer back to and duplicate.