As a business we want more people to choose our product or service and we want them to be happy with their choice. In order to gain new custom most businesses will turn to some form of advertising. But what is advertising? In its simplest form it is communication and the clever people at Google have developed a theory around the perfect formula for communicating with people to encourage them to buy.  

The Google theory advocates 7 'touches' with the customer in 11 days across 4 different channels or places.  According to their research once someone has done this they are more likely to be ready to make a purchase.  Google’s 7-11-4 theory also applies to estate agents and we can learn from them when we think about attracting new customers.  So for estate agents, 7-4-11 could mean seven touches over 11 days through phone calls, email, direct mail, site visits, and personal conversations with customers. The goal is to create a consistent brand experience throughout the customer journey and to remind customers that the estate agent is there to serve their needs. The 7-11-4 theory also helps to create loyalty among customers as they are frequently communicated with in an appropriate and respectful manner.   

To put it into some context of an estate agency, your clients touch points can start long before they ever speak with you.  It could be a For Sale sign, a rightmove listing, or a Facebook post, they may read about you on your website, then they call to ask you to attend to carry out a valuation – so by this point you could be up to 4 or 5 touch points, so a friendly visit and a prompt follow up could be enough for them to make a decision.  However to make sure you don’t miss out you could consider increasing your touch points, perhaps with a pre-appraisal information pack, or an email campaign post valuation.  Here are a few tips on how you could increase your 'touch points' and increase your chances of becoming the agent of choice:  

1. Create a Newsletter: An automated newsletter allows estate agents to stay in regular contact with potential clients and provide them with relevant content specific to the local market.  Share details of new instructions, sales agreed, market news but also maybe some interesting local content. Using Rezi you can automate this process by integrating with tools like BriefYourMarket or MailChimp 

   
2. AutomateSocial Media: Use automated tools like Rezi or Buffer to post your newest listings, industry news and content related to your business on a regular basis. This will help to keep potential clients informed and engaged with your brand. (talk to me if you need to know how Rezi can do this for you)  

3. Leverage Database Marketing: Use your CRM system to increase the number of touch points with potential clients. Automate email messages, surveys and other personalized communication that can be send to clients when they take certain actions.  Use Rezi and integrate with an automated email nurture campaign management tool like BYM, Drip or MailChimp to send personalised messages to your database of potential sellers or landlords, by sharing informative content that they’ll find useful and interesting you can increase the number of valid touch points they have with your business.   
   

4. Introduce Referral Program: Establish incentives for clients to refer other potential clients to your business. Automate your referral process with online forms, email invitations and personalized messages.   
   
5. Re-target Interested PartiesWith Ads: Use online advertising to stay in front of those who have previously expressed interest in your business.  Utilising Facebook or Google adverts is a great way to keep ‘magically’ re-appearing in front of your potential clients as the travel around the internet.   
   
6. Valuation toolkits to share information before an appointment and to send proposals following your market appraisal, use a rezi integration with a tool like Acaboom, or our bespoke development service to create your own version of something similar   
  
7. Use video - video can be shared across a multitude of platforms, emails, whatsapp and of course social media platforms like YouTube or Facebook  

If you would like to lean more about how Rezi can help you elevate your marketing to hero status using clever automations and integrations to increase your clients touch points then