7 Ways to Gain Referrals Through Customer Service

You’ve created a well-established agent identity and you craft messages that express it. But, no matter how much you pour into your marketing to be recognized by prospective clients, no message will be as strong referrals. Referrals are gifts that your past and current clients will give you, and the best way to receive this gift is to earn it. Once you start recognizing customer service as the bearer of all of your messages, your clients will begin to tell these messages for you (that’s some seriously inexpensive marketing). By simply providing your clients with personable customer service, you will find loyalty, growth and unbridled success.

Here are 7 ways to give memorable customer service.

1. Build relationships, the old-fashioned way. 

   The relationship that counts the most for your client is the kind between them and a real person, like you. True and honest human interactions are what your clients will remember, and what they’ll talk about. Go ahead and meet a prospective client for coffee or a quick lunch – instead of meeting in an office for your first presentation. This way they can get to know you as a real person instead of an agent hoping for a sale.

2. Sweat the small stuff.

   Let’s be honest, your clients turn to you because they need help. They have a handful of online tools already at their disposal. You should be aware that when they turn to an agent, it is because they need someone who can help them make the right choice with the highest value, and least amount of effort. Think beyond the questions they ask you and infer that there will be a few follow-up questions. For example, if a client asks, “what are the HOAs at this condo?” you can not only provide them with the information they’ve asked for, but go above and beyond to find comparable condos where HOAs are lower. Ask questions about what is important to them, and then move forward with your search. The extra effort will go a long way.

3. Write hand-written cards and notes.

   Writing a thoughtful thank–you card doesn’t have to take long and can make a huge impact. Immediately after meeting with a seller or buyer, write and mail a thank-you card for their business, time or interest. They’ll believe you truly care about their largest investment, and are likely to continue to work with you as their agent (and tell their friends and family how much they enjoy your assistance). When you close on a home, send your buyer a “Welcome Home” card and let them know you’re excited to have helped them achieve their goal. If you appreciate your client’s business, tell them.

4. Keep your client’s pace, not your own.

   Remember that your client is the most important person in the room. When doing so many things as fast as possible, it’s easy to miss the mark. By creating an emotional connection with your client first, you can customize your process to meet their needs specifically. For example, you might find that they are the slow and steady type who isn’t looking to rush into a sale. So if you’re telling them what to do to sell their home quickly, or buy a home tomorrow, they may feel overwhelmed and begin to look elsewhere for someone who can slow things down a bit. In order to give these types an experience that they will want to write a blog post about, help them sell or find their home without being fast-paced and over-bearing. Remember that this is the largest investment in their life, and some are more hesitant than others.

5. Treat clients like your personal VIP guests.

   Clients remember great experiences and unexpected surprises. It is the element of surprise that will truly build your reciprocity and reputation. When it comes to your most valuable clients who are hoping to sell quickly, offer them free staging with your own stock furniture. Or, if you’re working with a buyer who is interested in a luxury home, plan for them to be picked up from their current residence via a car service or go the extra mile and pick them up yourself. Let them travel to the homes they would like to see without the hassle of finding directions, or following you from one place to the next.

6. Make yourself available.

   Even the smoothest transactions can be stressful for your clients. It can be even more stressful if their agent doesn’t provide them educational insight and information. Or, if that agent doesn’t answer the phone when it’s not between so-and-so hours. Now, take a deep breath. Being available to your client does not mean you need to answer every single text and phone call that comes your way. But it does mean that when a client is stressed, push your pause button and take the time and initiative to work out a solution. Remember that your clients do not breathe, eat and sleep real estate, and that some will find the entire process confusing and unsettling. If you are the agent who takes the extra step to be available to talk no matter what you’re doing (if you’re physically able), your client will appreciate the additional effort.

7. Create a long-term reputation, not a short-term profit.

   To become a great agent, the one who gets the referrals, you must think differently than the others. This means building your service model around your customers first, and profit last. In doing this you will be able to build a reputation that will sustain your business in years to come. It’s the choice between earning your reputation first by adhering to the needs of your prospects and clients, or earning a bit of profit quickly and later wondering why you don’t have any leads calling. Become a source of industry information for your neighborhood; provide your knowledge and time to your current clients as well as anyone who asks. By being available to answer questions and showing appreciation to those with whom you do business, it is likely that people will pass your message to the ears who need to hear it – and send you referrals.

Take a note from Zappos reps, the leaders of customer service excellence. Last March, a customer service rep in Las Vegas physically went to a rival shoe store to get a specific pair of shoes for a woman staying at a nearby hotel when Zappos ran out of stock. A few months later, another representative overnighted a free pair of shoes to a best man who had arrived at a destination wedding shoeless.

We’re not saying you can give someone a new house, but you get the idea. Don’t be afraid to go above and beyond what is asked to provide your clients with the type of experience that they will want to share for years to come.