• You need to keep your sphere of influence warm for it to keep producing benefits.
  • Social media tools have made it easier than ever to keep in touch with your network.
  • Your messages should be targeted, relevant and focused on the value you can deliver.

From generating new sales leads to finding the perfect buyer for a home or apartment, your sphere of influence can be the driving force behind your success as an agent.

Many agents make the mistake of building their sphere of influence — networking with influential people, connecting with customers to ask for referrals and more — only to let their network grow cold and inactive.

Your sphere of influence is the fundamental marketing force behind your real estate success, and just like any other business keeps its fundamentals warm, you need to keep your sphere of influence warm for it to keep producing benefits.

Here are four simple but effective techniques to keep your sphere of influence engaged and interested. These tactics will help you steadily produce new leads and create opportunities worth capitalizing on.

Connect on social media

Social media is a great way to connect with your sphere of influence. From business groups to your real estate agency’s Facebook Page, we know social media tools have made it easier than ever to keep in touch with your network.

The key to increasing engagement on social media is authenticity. Instead of posting irrelevant updates purely to appear in your audience’s newsfeed or inbox, give them real updates about your business and local area expertise that demonstrate your value.

Twinsterphoto / Shutterstock.com

Twinsterphoto / Shutterstock.com

Updates mentioning you’ve recently sold a home and notices that a new home is currently available for sale can keep your messages targeted, relevant and focused on the value you can deliver.

Reconnect with important people using direct mail

Direct mail is another great platform for keeping your sphere of influence engaged and interested. Like social media, it’s convenient, inexpensive and highly personal, letting you customize your message with each person’s name and other variables.

Unlike social media, however, direct mail is easy to notice. Today, most people’s online newsfeeds are more cluttered than their offline mailboxes, making direct mail a far more effective option for maintaining engagement with your sphere of influence.

The best direct mail messages are targeted, simple and relevant. Remind people that you have a property for sale or notify them of a recent sale to keep yourself — and the value you can create for them — top of mind.

Schedule your marketing to generate optimal results

Frequency is the key to engagement, and it’s one aspect of successful lead generation that many agents struggle to perfect. Connect too infrequently and people will forget you — too often and you’ll annoy them.

Schedule your mailings ahead of time to ensure continual communication without being overbearing. Create a consistent schedule — one mailing a month, for example — and stick to it over the course of the year.

Over time, your audience will grow accustomed to your marketing, and it won’t be seen as an intrusion into their lives but a friendly and effective reminder that you can help them with any of their property-related concerns.

Produce remarkable results that keep people talking

The greater your results, the more engaged your sphere of influence will become — and more importantly, remain — after it’s built. When you consistently produce great results, you gain two powerful tools:

  • You create a proven track record for your sphere to talk about.
  • You gain great content to share in your marketing postcards.

Sharing positive results creates more opportunities, and sharing your successes keeps your sphere of influence at attention and aware of your track record.

Eric Cosway is the EVP and CMO of QuantumDigital. Follow him on Twitter.

Show Comments Hide Comments
Sign up for Inman’s Morning Headlines
What you need to know to start your day with all the latest industry developments
By submitting your email address, you agree to receive marketing emails from Inman.
Success!
Thank you for subscribing to Morning Headlines.
Back to top
Only 3 days left to register for Inman Connect Las Vegas before prices go up! Don't miss the premier event for real estate pros.Register Now ×
Limited Time Offer: Get 1 year of Inman Select for $199SUBSCRIBE×
Log in
If you created your account with Google or Facebook
Don't have an account?
Forgot your password?
No Problem

Simply enter the email address you used to create your account and click "Reset Password". You will receive additional instructions via email.

Forgot your username? If so please contact customer support at (510) 658-9252

Password Reset Confirmation

Password Reset Instructions have been sent to

Subscribe to The Weekender
Get the week's leading headlines delivered straight to your inbox.
Top headlines from around the real estate industry. Breaking news as it happens.
15 stories covering tech, special reports, video and opinion.
Unique features from hacker profiles to portal watch and video interviews.
Unique features from hacker profiles to portal watch and video interviews.
It looks like you’re already a Select Member!
To subscribe to exclusive newsletters, visit your email preferences in the account settings.
Up-to-the-minute news and interviews in your inbox, ticket discounts for Inman events and more
1-Step CheckoutPay with a credit card
By continuing, you agree to Inman’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.

You will be charged . Your subscription will automatically renew for on . For more details on our payment terms and how to cancel, click here.

Interested in a group subscription?
Finish setting up your subscription
×