Are you collecting your oppositions data?

At a recent event I attended, the question was asked from the group, “How do I get my sales people to refer investment sales to the property management department?”. As you can imagine, this question started a heated debate within the group. Conversations started around how much to pay them, building confidence in their perception of the property management team or making them pass on the sale. While all these maybe an adequate solution, If you are trying to solve the problem any of these ways, you are most likely coming at it the wrong way.

Just to offer some context. It is not uncommon for salespeople to sell a property to an investor and either, let the management go to another agency or, worse still, give it to another agency, because they are being paid a referral fee. The data cycle of your business starts long before the sale ever happens. The concept of referring a sale is basically defunct.

Sales leads from your sales team should be filtered directly into the growth team for your business. The sales cycle and the property management lead should be disconnected from each other, allowing the growth team to build an independent relationship with the prospective purchaser.

So where does this ‘opposition data’ I talk of come from? An assumption can be made that investors in your area don’t buy the first home they see. What this means for you, is that active buyers in the market have most likely either, enquired about one of your properties for sale, or have been through one of your open homes. This data would normally sit in the salespersons inbox and if they don’t buy that property from your salesperson, is forgotten about.

Imagine if the contact details of each of these buyers were handled directly by your growth team. They would then have the opportunity to build their own relationship with these buyers and follow them to whatever agent they buy from. They could be offering these prospective buyers rental appraisals and other relevant investment information that will show value and build a relationship with these buyers. When they finally buy through your opposition, they automatically give the property back to you to manage.

Most businesses I go into have a sales market share of between 10% and 30%, some more, some less. This leaves 70%-80% of your buyers on the table. A huge, missed lead opportunity for your growth team. Try this for a month in your business and measure how many new leads come from this process and how many new properties you are able to secure.