People take time to make decisions
As a sales person you might worry that if a prospect walks out the door (or clicks away from your website) without buying, you’ve lost your opportunity. You’ll never see them again.
But that doesn’t need to be the case. Get your long term sales funnel working and you’ll find that when the time is right, that prospect will come back ready to make a purchase.
It stands to reason that the larger the purchase price, the longer a buying decision can take. A property is arguably the biggest investment we make as individuals.
And when we’re talking about an international move, it’s not just the price that can stall a decision – after all, it’s a huge life change to consider.
But they don’t usually enquire without some intention to buy
Dean Jackson of emailmastery.com reports that “50% of ALL people who enquire about something…about a service or a product… buy that service or product within the next 18 months. But only 15% of that 50% will buy in the first 90 days.”
The very fact that someone is enquiring suggests they are in the market for whatever it is that they’re enquiring about. A buyer in France is unlikely to take the time to email you about a property in Spain unless they have at least a reasonable intention to buy at some point.
This makes them a pretty good prospect for a sale in the future. It may not happen immediately. They may end up choosing a different property. But the point is that there’s an opportunity – one that you need to nurture rather than dismissing them as a lost cause just because it didn’t happen straight away.
Hang on to them
Using Dean Jackson’s stats above, 35% of people who go on to buy after enquiring do so between 3 and 18 months after their first enquiry. That’s quite a long time. Which suggests you should hold on to those leads. But how?
From first enquiry, make sure you understand what they’re looking for. Stay in touch. Send emails, make contact regularly to find out how they’re getting on with their search, and let them know if something they may like comes onto your books.
Share useful information about the Spanish housing market, for example episodes of Kyero’s podcast that you think could help them with their decision making.
Be helpful, and genuinely add value to your prospect’s search, and when they are ready to buy, you’ll have far more chance of it being from you rather than one of your competitors.
As Dean Jackson suggests, “think of each lead as an asset that appreciates over time”. Help move them closer to that buying decision by offering genuine support. And don’t be surprised when it takes a little while longer than you first thought. After all, an international move is a huge undertaking – it’s not a decision to be taken lightly.
Keep feeding into the funnel
Finally remember that in order to keep the sales coming in you have to keep feeding the funnel from the top. The more committed you are to your marketing plan – whether that’s advertising, content marketing or enlisting the services of a property portal like Kyero – the more likely you are to see results.
If you’re just getting started with the process then yes, you may have to wait a little while to see the results. But soon the drip will turn into a steady stream of enquiries and then sales. All it needs is consistency and a bit of strategic patience.
