Real estate sales may be slow around the holidays. But this doesn’t have to be a bad thing. As a busy real estate agent, you can use the extra time on your hands to give back this holiday season. It’s the perfect time of year to nurture existing client relationships and engage in community outreach. We consulted top real estate coach, Sherri Johnson, to learn how agents can give back during the holidays.
#1: Host a client appreciation event
Celebrate your clients and show them you appreciate their business—and the relationship you’ve developed—by hosting a fun holiday event.
“A lot of people do client appreciation events where they hold an event either at their house or a local charity in the community,” says Sherri Johnson, leading real estate coach with over 20 years of experience. “It doesn’t have to be fancy. They could do anything related to the holidays for kids and offer free crafts or something like that.”
If possible, hold your holiday season event at a local business you want to support. “If you host your event at a local restaurant,” Johnson explains, “then you’re promoting that local restaurant owner as well. You are intentionally promoting your own community where you work and get referrals from.”
#2: Donate to a local cause
Another way to give back this holiday season is to donate a portion of your real estate commissions to your favorite local charity.
“Have some sort of giveaway in which a percentage of every home you sell in December or whatever month you choose, a portion goes to a local cause or charity in your clients’ name,” says Johnson.
#3: Reach out to your past clients
Take the time thank past clients around the holidays. Not only is it a nice gesture, but it’s also a good way to stay top of mind and grow your referral network. You might mail out a holiday card or send out a holiday newsletter via email to wish former clients and their families a warm and happy holiday season. You could also send out branded gifts to clients who have given you referrals within the past year.
When it comes to selecting a gift item, Johnson recommends picking something that people use everyday or almost everyday “like the retractable straws that are big.” Phone chargers are another popular choice. Or, she says, “you could have three different giveaways and let them pick one.”
However you choose to give back to past clients this holiday season, take the opportunity to remind them of your real estate services and encourage them to stay connected.
For example, Johnson explains, you can grow your online presence by sending an email to your clients “that says how grateful you are for the relationship and that you would love to have them visit your new, updated Facebook page so they can follow you and see about everything real estate-related that’s happening in their community.”
#4: Sponsor a community event
Another way you can give back this holiday season is to sponsor an event offering free goods or services to people in your local area. Come up with something that members of the community will find helpful or useful. And spread the word so people will know when and where it’s happening.
Johnson offers the following example: “Sponsor a day. Hire a shredding company and sponsor a day where anybody in the community can come and have all their stuff shredded for free. Put it on social media, blast it out on an email, put an ad in the paper. Get people to know about it.”
