6 Key Benefits of Using a Real Estate CRM

CRM stands for customer relationship management, but it can mean many different things: Some agents regard it as software designed to help manage clients, some consider CRM to be a business philosophy and others view CRM as a process that involves strategy, software and systems to gather, nurture and ultimately convert contacts to clients — and then keep the relationship going after the sale.

Regardless of your definition, nearly every top real estate agent uses some form of a CRM solution in their business. Which particular product they use isn’t as material as what they do with it.

In talking with dozens of agents who use a real estate CRM to convert contacts to clients, six benefits rise to the top of the list.

1. A CRM organizes tons of information in one place

Most successful real estate professionals have multiple lead generation streams. You probably get contacts from sources such as your sphere of influence (SOI), website, social media platforms, direct mail campaigns, farming, online advertising sites and others. Maintaining individual databases for all these lead generation sources is cumbersome at best, and likely horribly inefficient.

With a CRM, however, you can consolidate information from all your lead generation sources in one place. Contacts are easily collected and organized, and you can access the information from various platforms (desktop computer, laptop, tablet or mobile device).

2. A CRM allows you to make immediate responses

Responding immediately to inquiries, particularly online inquires, is a critical component of successful conversion. Many real estate CRMs include a customizable auto-response feature that enables you to provide an immediate response to contacts.

You might be thinking, “But auto-responders are so impersonal!” While an auto-response such as, “Thanks for contacting us. We will get back to you ASAP” is indeed impersonal, you can (and should) customize auto-response messages to each specific contact or group of contacts.

Try telling it like it is. “Sorry for the auto-response! I’m currently out with clients and I wanted you to know that I received your message. Our team is already working on your inquiry. As soon as my schedule clears, I will get back to you.”

In the field, a good mobile app, like the Premier Agent® App, can serve as your CRM, notifying you of incoming leads so you can immediately reply to them. Being responsive — and doing it sooner rather than later — is the key to starting the client relationship.

3. You can also use a CRM to keep in touch with past clients

Many agents seem to think the primary purpose of a real estate CRM is to help cultivate and manage new prospects. While that is a key benefit, don’t forget about that group of people who already know you and your services well: your past clients.

According to the 2015 NAR Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers, 88 percent of buyers said they would use their agent again or recommend him or her to others. Yet only 12 percent of repeat buyers actually used their previous agent.

Read that again — 88 percent said they would use their past agent but only 12 percent actually did. Why the discrepancy?

People don’t buy homes every day. For many, years go by between home purchases. Over those years, clients might forget who their agent was. The solution is simple, yet is missed by many agents: Stay in touch with your past clients so they can’t forget you.

That’s not to say you have to bombard them with newsletters and mailings. A few “touches” a year is often enough to stay top of mind. With a real estate CRM, you can keep track of clients’ birthdays and anniversaries. One of the best ways is a short and simple “home purchase anniversary” email:

“Hey Bob and Jane! Did you realize that today is the four-year anniversary of your home purchase? Remember all those houses we traipsed through, thinking we’d never find the right one? Well, we did! Hope you are still enjoying that lovely deck!”

No selling, no “Do you know anyone looking to buy?” Just a quick note to let your past client know that you remember them, appreciate their business and value the relationship.

Other non-intrusive ways to stay in touch might include wishing a client a happy birthday or checking in on their kids (record the children’s names in your CRM and then use them in your messaging).

4. CRMs let you customize and personalize your services

You should record all the “intel” you gather about a prospect in your CRM, including areas and neighborhoods of interest, types of homes they are looking for, price range, desired number of bedrooms and even preferences like carpet vs. wood flooring. Every detail you capture can be used to personalize the service you give prospects, which will help you get further down the road in converting the prospect to a client.

How do you think it feels if a prospect gets listings from you that don’t really meet their criteria? Compare that to a personal email like this:

“Hello, John! I was looking at houses today with a client of mine and came across one that I think you and Sally might like. It’s got exactly the color of cabinets in the kitchen that Sally likes, and — knowing how much you love dragging a water hose around the entire yard — the property has automated sprinklers! Check it out and let me know what you think.”

Even if your prospect isn’t ready to buy, your attention to detail will go a long way toward helping them choose you as their agent when the time comes.

5. You can automate tasks and workflow

With a real estate CRM, you can combine the personal touch with the ease of automation. For example, that “home purchase anniversary” email you want to send? You don’t need to page though a database every morning, looking for past clients who are having said anniversary that day. Real estate CRMs are very good at remembering dates and doing something with them.

Simply compose your email and program your CRM to send it on the anniversary date. You can do a bunch of these at one time (how about quarterly?) and trust the CRM to remember tasks and do the heavy lifting.

6. You get instant feedback about what works

It’s easy to just keep throwing things out there and hoping something sticks. However, if you can track and measure what does (and doesn’t) work, you will be far more successful over time. A good real estate CRM can give you information about email open rates, click-through rates on links, which listings clients are looking at and other helpful data.

Focus on the things that work. Toss the things that don’t. Experiment with different mailings, subject lines and calls to action. If you can’t measure it, you can’t improve. With a CRM, you’ll know what works rather than guessing and hoping that what you’re doing is effective.

…and more

There are, of course, more benefits to using a real estate CRM than just these six. Talk to an agent who has been using — really using — their CRM for a couple of years. They are likely to gush with excitement about all it has done for their business.

Wouldn’t you like to gush about something that has taken your business to the next level? Get, and USE, a CRM.