The Builder1440 Blog

Only one third of new home sales agents follow up with prospects… Are you capitalizing on every lead that contacts you??

Sales1440’s exclusive Closing Action Plan (CAP) Follow-Through System developed exclusively by Bob Schultz and the New Home Specialists makes it easier than ever to follow up with leads and prospects by email, direct mail or telephone.

In June 2008, users of Sales1440’s SaaS application generated over 9,500 documents, which enabled sales representatives to stay-in-touch with and follow up with prospects.

To learn more about CAP system or any of the products in Builder1440’s software suite, visit www.Builder1440.com.

In the down housing market, many home builders wonder the benefits of spending valuable sales and marketing dollars on a customer relationship management (CRM) system. Budgets are tight and the idea of incurring the expense for a CRM software system may be the furthest thought from any management team’s mind. However, the reality is without utilizing a CRM system, many builders are missing out on opportunities and potential sales.

Discover below the key reasons builders should consider implementing a CRM into their sales and marketing strategy.

1. CRM and sales systems allow home builders to manage all traffic to the fullest potential. From the time the prospect visits a website, or walks into the sales center, to follow-up and email marketing, lot and floor plan selection, home configuration, contract generation, and change order management, an effective CRM system will streamline the processes and increase the number of sales based on a multi-touch approach.

2. Management teams should empower sales people with best possible sales tools. A great sales team is important but without the right tools, sales people are not given the best opportunity to succeed. A comprehensive CRM system will offer the resources to track, follow up with and close the sale with prospects

3. Management teams must consider software that will offer thorough reporting analysis of prospect opportunities and closed sales. Without reporting functionality, home builders suffer the loss of determining the most effective way to drive business and succeed in the competitive market.

4. A market upswing is inevitable. As a result, now is the pivotal time to get a jump start on developing best business practices and equipping your sales team for success, so when market turns you will be forward position with a competitive edge.

According to the National Association of Realtors^® (NAR) Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers, 80% of all homebuyers use the Internet as an information source.

With nearly all of today’s home buyers utilizing the Internet to find more information about builders and their communities, it is imperative to develop and commit to an eLead follow-up program. Read on below to learn some of our recommended best practices that will generate prospects and help you develop sales.

Best Practice #1: Identify the opportunity. As noted above, Internet eLeads are readily available. Develop and implement a lead capture form on your website and on Internet Listing Services (ILS), like Move.com and New Home Source to capture information from any prospects that review your lots and homes. For a more efficient process, forms can also be integrated with traffic cards in customer relationship management (CRM) systems.

Best Practice #2: Follow-up in a timely manner. Unlike a visit to a sales center or a phone call from a prospect, eLeads expect immediate feedback. This can easily be accomplished by setting up an automated response, once a form is submitted, or by having a general bucket email address that disperses the information to all of your sales agents.

Best Practice #3: Continue systematic follow-up. Immediate follow-up is necessary but staying in touch with a prospect through an organized follow-up plan will help you close the sale. Once an eLead is assigned to a sales agent, have a multi-touch follow-up plan based on the lead’s attributes activated and tracked in your CRM system.

Best Practice #4: Track conversion ratios. By determining from where the majority of your eLeads are coming from, your website, an ILS or another source, sales and marketing dollars can be better proportioned. This will improve the quality and quantity of your eLeads. In addition, tracking conversion rates allows sales team members to test follow-up methods and find out which are most successful. When you integrate your website and CRM system, you can easily report on eLeads and track them from capture to close.