If you have been working to get your name and your listings in front of your region's top producers, you know that your work is far from over. The next step is getting them to appreciate you. This can be accomplished several ways, but one way that really hits top producers in the pocketbook is to give them first shot at your expired listings. You pocket the referral fee, and they have a chance to list and sell a home they wouldn't have otherwise. It's a win-win.

Over a period of time, as you stay in contact with other top agents, you will find that you lose listings and so do they. It is just a fact of life.

Contrary to popular opinion, top agents do lose listings - many more than you think. Why? Because they are often too busy to give the sellers the quality and quantity of personal service they feel they need. Top agents appear to get the lion's share of the listings, but they also routinely lose, depending on the market, between 30 and 50% of them. Agents know that losing a listing is sometimes out of their control (unrealistic sellers, home overpriced, change in the market, etc.,) so it is no shame when you lose a listing either.

The question is - how can you turn a negative into a positive? Use your top agent network to gain additional revenue from a listing you anticipate losing and additional revenue from listings they anticipate losing.

Here's the strategy:

You have a listing which is about to expire. You know your chances of saving the listing, for whatever reasons, are about nil. You've already spent an enormous amount of time, energy and marketing dollars on this particular property and all seems lost. Instead of admitting defeat, you call Sally, a top listing agent in your network. You tell Sally you have this listing which is about to expire in two weeks and give her permission to solicit the listing prior to it expiring.

You can give Sally the inside track on why you feel the listing failed, which will make her presentation to the seller easier. She will know what the seller's hot buttons are, making it more likely that she will not only bag the listing but get the house sold. If the situation allows, you even introduce her to your sellers as the answer to their current dilemma - an unsold house. The agreement you and Sally make is pure genius. She takes the listing and when it sells... Sally pays you a 25-30% referral fee.

This fee is wonderful!! It is "found" money. Money you would not have had otherwise. Money which fully reimburses you for your time and efforts.

Then, about three weeks down the road, Sally calls you. Sally, it appears, has a listing she is about to lose for whatever reason and Sally was wondering if you'd like the opportunity to solicit this listing without competition. Of course, if you secure the listing... Sally gets a 25-30% referral fee when it sells!

Now think about the possibilities. How many top agents can you establish this relationship with? If you establish this "expired listing referral system" with 3 or 4 top agents in your area... I guarantee your listing inventory will explode. And likewise your pocketbook.

The best approach, by the way, to establish this relationship is in person... usually over a lunch or dinner - your treat. An impersonal contact or a direct mail campaign will only look cheesy in this instance.

Be bold, be personable, and simply outline how they can profit by such an arrangement. It works and works mightily. In fact, one agent we know makes over $500,000 in commissions using this one marketing strategy alone! Imagine. The only difference between you and her is the fact she has taken the time to set up this agent network.

Published: March 5, 1999

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Editor's Note: This article reflects the opinions of Rob Fore only and not necessarily the views of this or any other publication, organization or Website owner.

Robert Fore is the president and CEO for Realty Profit Systems. He is a nationally recognized marketing trainer and strategist who specializes in combining the proven principles of direct response marketing with the cost-effective, worldwide penetration of the internet. Realty Profit Systems publishes the Online Real Estate Marketing Report at http://www.hometeam2000.com and offers a free, weekly e-zine of real estate marketing tips at http://www.top10realty.com.