Details In Business Blog

Marketing without Money – Lesson 1

by Elizabeth Cusulas
Details In Retail, Inc

Talk is cheap – but it pays!

Many years ago, when I was a young and hungry real estate agent, my broker sat us down after our weekly meeting and said, “now call 5 people you know and ask them if they know anyone who needs a realtor.” My first response was that she was crazy. I’d already sent out my little announcement letters. Everyone knew I was selling real estate. My next thought was “who the heck do I know?” My friends were young and not in the home-buying mode yet. Everyone else seemed to have so many potential leads. How could I possibly compete?

The boss was watching and the other agents were dialing like fiends, so I picked up the phone. I called my mom. I explained what was going on and that I had to look really busy because there was this crazy-stupid, pointless exercise we had to do. Then I asked her (loud enough for my boss to hear), “Do you know anyone who might need a realtor?” My mother thought for a minute, then said the lady who owned the book store where she bought her used paperbacks might be selling her house because her husband was ill. WHAT?? She didn’t know their last name, but she was going to walk down to the store and stock up on gothic romance novels anyway and she’d ask. Mom delivered a name and address and I sent a little handwritten note. I was so new to the business that I also included a handwritten business card.

A week later I listed the bookseller’s home. And the best part? My boss lived a block away! She’d known the bookseller for years. She asked how I got the listing and was stunned when I told her. Then I asked my client why she didn’t list her home with my boss. After all, I was new to the business and my boss was one of the most successful realtors in town. Her reply was simple and surprising, “you sent me a handwritten note and she never bothered to send me anything.”

My boss had violated a cardinal rule of marketing – the very rule she taught me so well – never assume. Never assume the people you know will remember what you do for a living – or remember to mention it to others. Never assume that you know what’s happening in people’s lives. Never assume that someone else won’t swoop in under your radar and charm a deal out from under you. Never assume that you are ever the only option.

I learned to void an assumption of my own, as well: never assume you’re outgunned and give up without a fight. That phone call to my mom resulted in a sweet deal and a $1,500 commission.

The moral of the story?

TALK! It’s so simple that we forget to do it. You have to ask for the business – no matter how successful you are. It pays to talk to your friends, family, neighbors, local business owners – everyone. Ask them if they know anyone who might be interested in your services or anyone who could help you promote your business. Keep in touch. Make those calls, send those e-mails, write those little notes, and work your social network. The personal touch pays off, and it costs nearly nothing.

Related Posts:
Marketing Without Money – Lesson 2

Filed under: Marketing & Advertising