Using tech to turn open houses into cash cows

John Grimes once hosted an open house for a listing that he didn’t represent. While the event didn’t reel in a buyer for the home, Grimes snapped up a client from the 10 or so people who showed up. That sparked a referral chain that led to three sales and two active clients today. Grimes was offered the chance to host the open house through an online platform that lets agents outsource open houses to each other. He’s one of a growing number of agents who are leveraging technology to tap open houses for more business. Open house tech helps increase ROI John Grimes Sign-in apps, digital marketing and software that let agents easily farm out open houses are helping agents use open houses to capture more clients and earn additional income. Grimes got the open house gig that generated him five referrals by using a platform developed by his brokerage, Atlanta-based Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Metro Brokers. Listing agents can post open house “donationsâ...