If you’ve been in the Mogul community for a minute or read any of my lessons, you’ve probably learned that marketing is a major factor in our industry.
Practically speaking… we’re in the marketing business.
Marketing = leads.
Hey Moguls, Dolmar Cross back with you again, and I can’t say enough how important solid and consistent marketing is for your success.
And, you have to not only convey that to your property scouts (aka bird dogs), but you also have to provide them the tools and resources so they can help you (and themselves) with all that marketing.
So, in my previous lesson, I shared with you several marketing options that you can teach your scouts about—including business cards, flyers and print ads. Make sure you give that one a read.
We have plenty more options to go over, so let’s get to it…
Bandit Signs
You’ve probably seen bandit signs while you’re out driving... they read something like:
“I BUY HOUSES”
“STOP FORECLOSURE”
These signs tend to work really well! They typically cost around $1–$2 each. And there are a TON of companies that make bandit signs—here’s just a few:
Many online companies require a minimum—usually 50 or 100 signs per order. (You can check with local sign shops if you prefer less.)
But hands down, I’ve found that the most effective signs are 18” x 24” plastic corrugated and hand-written. And, you can just buy the blank corrugated plastic signs from Home Depot and hand-write your message on it with a big, fat Sharpie marker.
I’m not kidding… these really do work well.
Just remember to keep your message simple and include your phone number:
“CASH FOR HOUSES”
“SELL YOUR HOUSE FAST”
I recommend a white or bright-colored background and bold lettering. And make sure your phone number is big enough so people can read it as they drive by…
But, tell your scouts that the best location to place signs is near intersections where drivers tend to slow down or stop.
You should also try to keep track of specifically where you place your signs. An easy way to do this is mark them on a map you keep in your office.
And, you may want to check with your city/county before putting them out because some cities don’t allow them. The trick is putting them out Friday evening and taking them down Sunday evening—when Code Enforcement isn’t working.
Scanning the Internet
Lots of websites have motivated sellers posting their houses for sale ALL. THE. TIME!
Here are just a couple to get you started:
Tell your property scouts to hop on those sites and search with keywords like motivated, fixer upper, must sell and FSBO.
Scanning Newspapers
Yes, actual printed newspapers still exist… you may even be one of the few who reads the Sunday paper.
And because people have forgotten about this resource, you should definitely add it to your scouts’ arsenal of marketing options.
So, suggest that they take a few minutes to scan the houses for sale. Again, they should look for keywords like motivated, must sell, fixer upper and FSBO.
Still More to Come…
Well, I just gave you 3 more awesome—and effective—marketing options for you and your property scouts.
In my next lesson, we’ll touch on direct mail, door hangers, driving for dollars and more. See you then!
What’s Your Fav Marketing Method?
I’d love to hear what works best for you and your scouts. Tell us about it below.
Order bandit signs, hand write a simple, concise message in bold with your phone number.
Advise your scouts to place bandit signs at busy intersections.
Scan websites and newspapers for leads.
Dolmar Cross
Dolmar is a guy who struggled, at first, to get his investing business off the ground. But, thanks to some fierce determination, raw persistence, and a savvy mentor’s friendly guidance and help, he eventually starting making it happen.
But the money went right to his head; he started splurging… snazzy luxury cars, taking friends on lavish trips. He thought he was on top of the world and could do no wrong. Unfortunately that’s when it usually all hits the fan—which is exactly what happened to Dolmar.
When the market crashed in ’08 Dolmar lost everything (literally – everything; he had to file for bankruptcy). Discouraged, he met with an investor who gave him some powerful insight, basically kicked his butt back into dusting himself off and getting right back to it – for the sake of his kids – to teach them that when things get hard, we don’t just quit. We fight on.
So with this powerful, new mindset and very little money left, Dolmar found himself with a sincere need to get good property leads without spending any money. Thus sparked the inspiration for the Property Scout Pipeline.