A tried and true prospecting strategy, door knocking can help establish you in your community
By Ellie Stimmel
Even as the real estate industry evolves with changing technology, some REALTORS® continue to use traditional prospecting strategies to connect with homeowners. Door knocking is one strategy that has withstood the test of time. But is it worth the time and effort?
We spoke with two CRS experts with extensive experience to learn more about successful door-knocking techniques.
Steve Rath, CRS, owner and broker at Rath Real Estate in Roseville, California, and Marilyn Burke, CRS, a sales agent at Keller Williams Realty Boston Southwest in Westwood, Massachusetts, both learned door-knocking strategies early on from their mentors in the industry. Now, decades later, they still swear by this tried-and-true prospecting strategy.
“I’ve been doing this for 35 years. In my very first class, they told us you must door knock and get to know your neighborhood,” Rath says.
Burke emphasized the importance of this strategy early in her career, “I listed 55 houses in my first year by knocking on doors because I thought that’s what you did,” she says.
While some agents may find this approach outdated and even intimidating, there is plenty of success to be found door knocking, especially with a warm approach.
Warm vs. cold door knocking
When approaching neighborhoods, residents may not know you. But, if you are strategic, you can find ways to “touch” your audience multiple times beforehand. By distributing mailers, hosting open houses and building your social media presence, you can combine old and new real estate techniques to ensure homeowners in the area know you before they open their front door to you.
Burke and Rath began their careers cold door knocking but have both shifted to a warmer approach, becoming more familiar with neighborhood communities beforehand.
“It’s about touching people X number of times to ask them to do business with you, and it’s many different touches. It’s texting, it’s calling, it’s writing, it’s door knocking. It’s not one thing,” Burke says.
1. Advantages and challenges of door knocking
Door knocking has plenty of advantages that come through face-to-face communication. Some benefits of door knocking include:
2. Immediate feedback
“When you go to their door, they receive your marketing more readily, and they enjoy it and give feedback,” Rath says.
Creating a face-to-face connection
With a saturated market of agents, it is important to stand out among the crowd. By door knocking, you remind homeowners in your community that you are engaged and actively working alongside people in their own neighborhoods. This builds trust and can lead to a vast network of clients. As Burke says, “Face-to-face wins the race.”
While door knocking allows for an immediate in-person connection, there can be some challenges when undertaking this approach, including hostile homeowners and pets. It is important to trust your intuition in these encounters and leave the situation if it grows hostile.
Agents may also have difficulty approaching someone’s home. Whether you are more extroverted or introverted, if you are confident and kind, you can find success in this technique.
How to find success door knocking
Any agent can find success door knocking by creating their own unique approach. These tips are helpful for an agent just getting started on their prospecting process or looking to build new clientele.
1. Provide value
Burke hosts themed open houses to entice homeowners and create community comradery, including ice cream socials and cheeseburger grill-outs. If you want to build relationships within the community, provide them with something of value first rather than an “ask.” This can also include door hangers and pamphlets that provide the homeowner with a way to check their home value.
2. Start small
Start small in one neighborhood to ensure that you don’t get overwhelmed and can efficiently follow up with anyone you connected with. Door knocking in a neighborhood where you are hosting an open house is a great place to start.
3. Dress for success
Dressing for success can mean different things to different people. In this case, Burke prefers to dress formally “down to the shoes.” She wears a branded jacket, name tag and recommends minimal perfume and jewelry to her team.
On the other hand, a more casual style may be more suited to your door-knocking approach. Rath felt that people were made to feel uneasy when he approached them in a suit on the weekend. Now, he chooses to sport a “country club casual” look, which he says has been received well by homeowners in his community.
Door knocking is an extremely helpful prospecting tool for real estate agents and can be catered to your specific personality and community. Find an approach that works best for you, and you are sure to find success door knocking.
Stand out amongst the competition with our CRS marketing materials at CRS.com/resources/market-yourself.
Photo: iStock.com/sturti
