Maximising your real estate follow ups with Dean Jackson's 9 words

You’ve just closed and locked the door behind you on a semi-successful open home.

There were a few buyers around, but most of them had poker faces, and you really couldn’t tell how keen or serious some of them were.

So the question is, when you start your call backs, email backs or Saturday afternoon texts, what do you say to open a conversation with your buyers?

First, let’s look at the usual follow-up message

I’ve just had a rustle through my phone (and Mark’s!), and here are some follow up texts I found:

Hi Mark, Hope you’re well.
[Name] from [agency]
Can you please give me a call in regards to [address]
Thanks.

Will Mark respond to this? Probably not…(also it’s in regard to… but whatever…)

How about this one?

Hi Sam
I just wanted to follow up with you about your recent interest in one of my listings to see if we could do anything else for you, whether buying or selling.
Kind regards, [name]
[agency]

Did I respond… I don’t know. I can’t remember this property (or the agent), which, let’s face it, is probably not optimal.

Let’s go for one final example.

Thank you for attending our open home at [address]
Should you have any questions or require a copy of the contract and further documents, please click here [URL]
If you would like to make an offer, use this link [URL]

I think this one would have worked super well in 2021 when interest rates were at an all-time low and properties were flying off the shelves faster than toilet paper at Woolworths. Now that interest rates are a bit higher, maybe not.

The real problem with all of these messages

These messages are all polite enough; I am sure the same or similar message is in every franchise or coach manual.

1. Once again, on the consumer side, we see a sea of sameness—all these messages look like automated follow-ups.

2. The examples I have given are not designed to engage, and how the message is worded leaves the power in the consumer’s hands to either respond or not. Often this is the only sound an agent will hear after an open home:

The Power of Pull Marketing in Real Estate

If you haven’t heard the terms “Pull Marketing” and “Push Marketing”, it might be helpful to explain them here.

“Push” marketing in real estate involves actively promoting properties and services to potential clients, often through traditional advertising methods like flyers, cold calls, or unsolicited emails.

It's an approach that aims to "push" information onto prospects regardless of their interest level or sales stage.

In contrast, pull marketing attracts potential clients by creating content and experiences that pique their curiosity and encourage them to seek more information on their own reconnaissance.

This approach focuses on building relationships, providing value, and addressing clients' needs and interests, ultimately "pulling" them towards your services.

Push marketing leaves all the power with the consumer - because you rely on them to respond.

Pull marketing lets you keep some of the power and encourages prospects to respond to a conversation with you through curiosity and personalisation.

How can ChatGPT help you sound less automated and more personalised? Well, as usual, I am glad you asked.

Enter Dean Jackson and the 9-word email/text

Dean Jackson is a legendary marketer credited with coming up with the 9 word email.

This innovative pull marketing approach focuses on creating short, compelling messages that pique curiosity and encourage recipients to respond.

The 9-word email concept is particularly effective for real estate follow-ups, as it cuts through the noise of the usual blah messages and prompts prospects to engage.

Here’s the AI prompt:

Act as an experienced real estate coach familiar with Dean Jackson's high-response marketing techniques. Create a follow-up sequence of emails and text messages for leads from an open house. The follow-up should be aimed at potential buyers who attended an open house for a [penthouse apartment] in [Surfers Paradise]. The goal is to elicit responses and gather information about the prospects' interests and objections. The messages should be short, curiosity-driven, and easy to respond to. The sequence should include three emails and three text messages, each designed to provoke a reply. Focus on asking simple, engaging questions that don't require long answers. Include elements like scale ratings, hypothetical scenarios, and permission for brief replies. The overall aim is to keep prospects engaged and encourage them to take the next step in the buying process, while gathering valuable insights about their preferences and potential objections.

Let’s break this down

This prompt includes:

• An emphasis on Dean Jackson's techniques

• A focus on eliciting responses like any good ‘Pull Marketing’ strategy

• Short, curiosity-driven messages

• Easy-to-answer questions

• Specific techniques like scale ratings and hypothetical scenarios

• Ideas and options through asking for a sequence.

Obviously, you’ll need to customise your property type and suburb - the bits in the [square brackets]

The result

I used Claude 3.5 Sonnet and ran this prompt, with a Penthouse and Surfers Paradise as the location, and here is Claude’s response:

Certainly, I'll create a follow-up sequence using Dean Jackson's high-response marketing techniques for leads from an open house for a penthouse apartment in Surfers Paradise. Here's a sequence of three emails and three text messages designed to elicit responses and gather information:

Emails:

1. Subject: Quick question about the Surfers Paradise penthouse

Body:

Hi [Name],

On a scale of 1-10, how would you rate your overall impression of the penthouse you saw at the open house?

Just reply with a number. I'm curious to hear your thoughts.

Best,

[Your Name]

2. Subject: Imagining your perfect Surfers Paradise lifestyle

Body:

Hi [Name],

If you could change one thing about the penthouse to make it perfect for you, what would it be?

A one-word or short phrase answer is fine.

Thanks,

[Your Name]

3. Subject: Your top concern about buying in Surfers Paradise?

Body:

Hello [Name],

What's the biggest thing holding you back from making Surfers Paradise your home?

Feel free to share just a quick thought.

Regards,

[Your Name]

Text Messages:

1. Hi [Name], quick question: What's the #1 feature you're looking for in a Surfers Paradise penthouse that you haven't found yet?

2. Hey [Name], curious: If you could wake up to your dream view in Surfers Paradise tomorrow, what would you see? Ocean, city skyline, or something else?

3. [Name], hypothetical scenario: If money were no object, would you prefer the penthouse you saw or a beachfront villa? Just reply "penthouse" or "villa" - I'm interested in your gut reaction.

As you’ll see, there are no links, no enquiries about your health, or offers of “can-I-do-anything-and-everything-for-you.”

These messages are simple, focused on the customer and designed to start conversations.

And… finally, you don’t need to send all of these messages in an automation - as recommended.

Maybe you use ChatGPT or Claude to generate the ideas and choose one or two you want to test. And then, when you find one that really works for you, double down.

So what do you think? - Will you give the 9-word email/text a try?

Happy Hunting 🚀