Gratitude in action: How Bev Blume is building a business on a pay-it-forward philosophy

Operation: Impact

Portland agent Bev Blume has always operated from a "Pay it Forward" philosophy. Whether in her personal or professional life, Bev tries to go one step further to provide value and a deep impact to everyone she meets.

This isn't always easy in the lead-hungry world of real estate. After farming to a title-provided list for nearly three years and not making much headway, Bev worried that she wasn't building the lasting relationships she needed to succeed financially and feel personally fulfilled.

Balancing Tech with a Personal Touch

Bev's business development coach noticed that Bev thrived when performing proactive outreach and recommended SmartTargeting as a platform that could bring Bev to new heights. SmartTargeting uses predictive analytics to identify likely sellers, then leverages automated marketing and recommended personal touchpoints. The result? Agents can land more business by getting in touch with the right message at the right time.

Initial Results

Bev keeps her SmartTargeting dashboard open during her workday so she can watch inbound responses, and check to see what marketing campaigns resonate best with her audience. In her first two months, Bev garnered an impressive 73 inbound respondents -- that's more than 11 percent of her full territory!

"When anyone responds to my marketing, I immediately check their seller ranking and how often they've visited my sites. That sets my follow-up plan."

Personalizing Her Follow-up

Bev also took her business coach's advice to heart, and began focusing on one-to-one outreach to top-predicted sellers who hadn't yet responded to her automated marketing. She worked with her SmartZip account manager to write follow-up letters that described how the market was affecting various audiences like absentee owners.

Her first absentee owner letter led to three in-market listings from homeowners who knew they had been building equity but hadn't previously considered how much selling could benefit them financially.

Meeting Prospects Where They Are

Of course, it wasn't just a letter that made Bev land listings, it was also her approachable and knowledgeable personality. Two of her first SmartTargeting sellers were cautious when they first met Bev, as their respective properties had emotional back stories. They soon realized that Bev was the exact type of agent they had been hoping for.

"I treat my clients like they are family, I care about how they feel, and I treat their money as if it's my own. I just need more chances to meet new clients, and SmartTargeting gives me so many opportunities to talk with potential sellers."

Paying It Forward to Other Agents

Bev's clients recognize the benefit of her generosity every day, but we also want to take a moment to thank her for the kindness she's extended to other agents using SmartZip. SmartZip's Facebook Hub is a closed community with 1,900 members, and it acts as a predictive analytics mastermind group. Daily discussions include sharing best practices, recommending product features and celebrating listing wins.

Bev has been instrumental in creating our community, and in helping other agents find their balance between analytics, automation and personal action. She recently shared her (now infamous) absentee owner letter to hundreds of other agents in the Hub, and we're excited to continue this spirit of sharing resources and proven strategies in the future.

Ready to take advantage?

SmartTargeting isn't just an analytics and marketing platform, it's a vehicle for building lasting relationships that lead to first-time listings, repeat business and lifelong referral opportunities.

Join the SmartZip community today to see how you can "level up" and land more listings. Hear testimonials from agents who use SmartTargeting.

To view the original article, visit the SmartZip blog.