When you are running a real estate business, everything thrives on your ability to get steady qualified leads. There are plenty of well-known methods to do this task. However, in the online world, one tool outsmarts the rest; and that is a chatbot. It is the latest arsenal in the hands of a realtor. Also, now we have the proof to show you that it is merely not an overstatement.

Read on to find out how Steve Hutchinson, President of Treehouse Media uses Collect.chat for his real-estate clients.

"Real Estate" is a Relationship Business

In this market, it is the network of the people around you that adds more value and credibility to your business. The more the people you know and better the trust they have in you, the number of opportunities also increases. Lead generation tactics, generally used by realtors include

• Being an active community member - This gives you a significant advantage in helping you gain a reputation in the community where you are trying to buy and sell. Participate in all the community events from charity to school concerts, wherever your prospects are spending time. Volunteer yourself, try to be omnipresent and you will reap the rewards.
• Undeterred customer service - Ensure that your customer is satisfied from the very first step. Give them a personalised experience and go a bit out of your way to help them get settled. This is the best way to resell to your existing customers and get referrals.
• Having a strong online presence - The moment you share your calling card with a prospect, the first thing they do is they Google you. They want to know what you do, whether you are trustworthy and what your previous customers have to say about you. Whether it be on the social media such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn or on your business site, it is mandatory to have a lead-nurturing sales funnel setup in place.

One thing is common in all the above. It is about creating a human touch point and then building upon it. You need data to work on your leads and outreach them with relevant materials via mail or phone. These may be video testimonials or free ebooks that answers their common questions.

The First Impression is the Best Impression

This is so true in the world of real-estate. A great conversation starter can lead to a long lasting relationship. "Conversations" are exactly what we focus on at Collect.chat. We help you make automated conversational interfaces that interact with your website visitors and collect data. It's all DIY, with no coding involved.

Here is a quick demo of an embedded chatbot. The same bot can be used as a widget as well.

Pretty neat right? The above is just one type of conversation you can create. You can edit it as you see fit.  You can get the same one from here.

The idea that conversations can create a better impact is not new. Keller Williams Realty, one of the biggest names in the real estate business uses Kelle,  a virtual assistant to help their associates through conversations. Every real estate is investing heavily in this new technology to create that extra edge. It doesn't mean that bots will replace the human agents. In the words of Rich Barton, co-founder of Zillow, technology will only act as an enhancement and not as a displacement.

Treehouse Media - Our Customer

Treehouse Media is an Advertising Agency based in Victoria BC with clients in the local Victoria market and elsewhere including Washington State, South Carolina and Fiji.  While primarily working with Developers, they recognise the value that Collect.chat has brought to their client's websites.  Steve Hutchinson, the President, has tried numerous similar tools but has found Collect.chat to be the easiest and most affordable.  

“With the DIY aspect of Collect.chat, we are able to customise the clients chat at a moments notice and our clients appreciate that responsiveness. With so much focus on conversion optimisation, Collect.chat’s integration with Google Analytics, Google Ads and Facebook Pixel make it a seamless tool to integrate, report and optimise”.  

- Steve Hutchinson, President

Treehouse Media currently has close to a dozen chat bots active with more planned.

“Every time we present this technology and explain how it will impact their lead generation activities, clients can hardly wait to implement it on their site”
- Steve.

The bots made in Collect.chat are rule-based and functional. They deviate away from the hype of artificial intelligence and machine learning. Instead, you can create a conversation using a set of predefined questions induced with conditional branching. The advantage of this method is that it is easier to set up and doesn't ever provide a dumb reply to your user. Often with AI bots, a lame response is enough to turn the customer away.

Impact of Conversations

Buying or renting a property is a huge decision. People seek advice to make this decision. Only by earning their trust and creating a delightful customer experience, will you be able to convert your customers. They will not react to forms or pop-ups. Forms or pop-ups does not embrace the human emotion. But a conversational chatbot certainly does!

Try adding one to your website today and see the difference it makes.