7 Great Tips for Real Estate Networking

Some people say that real estate is a people business, some say that it's a numbers business. I say it's both. In order to be successful, you need to connect with people. It really doesn't matter if you're an Investor, Realtor, RE Attorney, Mortgage Broker, Appraiser, Home Inspector etc. If you're going to survive in this business. You've got to make connections. Here are 7 great tips to help you with this.

Social Networking - This is a no brainer. If you want to connect and build relationships with people, you've got to be on the social media sites. There are literally thousands of them out there but the major ones like Facebook (1.5 Billion users) Twitter (500 Million users) and LinkedIn (238 Million users) are the ones that you definitely need to be on to connect with past, present & future clients ~ tenants ~ buyers ~ sellers etc.

Free Seminar/Workshop - Team up with local Real Estate Professionals and a Financial Consultant to conduct "Financial Wellness" Seminars at local non-profit organizations such as churches, colleges and specialty clubs. Make sure that you get the names and contact info from all in attendance and follow up with them later.

Reference Calls - Whenever you're calling character references from a perspective new tenant, you obviously want to ask how they feel about the tenant and blah blah blah, but after all of that, let them know that you're looking for more properties to buy. You never know, they might be looking at buying more too. Both of you could end up partnering on a deal, or maybe this tenant was so bad that they've now decided to get out of landlording all together and now they're a motivated seller.

Join a Real Estate Investing Club - These clubs/associations are a great place to connect with other like-minded individuals. However, make sure that you click here first to read this post to see the pros & cons of membership.

Interact with Local Blogs & Forums - There are thousands and thousands of blogs and forums on the topics of Landlording, Wholesaling, Flipping etc. Join these conversations by adding your input and interacting with the authors and followers. Hey, you can even start by leaving a comment below on this post and tell me how you like to network :-)

Sphere of Influence - These are the people that are closest to you. Let your family and friends know that you're in real estate. You should eat, sleep & live real estate. Anyone that's close to you should know that you're passionate about what you do. Share your experiences with them.  Let's say you have a great deal on the table but you don't know where to get the money from. One of them may go to work the next day with your deal on their mind and start a discussion in which could lead to your new private money investor. It's happened to me!

Learn the art of the chit-chat - Having a great conversation often starts with a little bit of back-&-forth. It's an opportunity for you to get a feel for the other person and for them to get a feel for you. Some people describe it this way: Conversation is a ladder, and small talk is the first rung that you step on. Don't worry if it feels unnatural at first. Just smile and remember to be confident in your abilities and listen intently.

• Look for an anchor. This is something that you have in common with the other person. Perhaps it's a school, or a mutual friend, or a shared experience, like a love of sky-diving. You probably need to ask questions in order to find one, but once you have one, you're golden.
• Reveal something about yourself related to the anchor. Asking questions is great, particularly if you're searching for an answer, but a conversation is a two-way street, and you gotta give a little in order to get something back.
• Encourage the other person to continue sharing. Once a few pleasantries are exchanged, keep asking questions about the anchor or share different experiences you've had about the anchor.

Regardless how you choose to meet new people, remember to always stay in contact with them via social media, newsletters or even just an occasional email or phone call. NEVER lose their information. Even if they're not ready now, they may be in the future and/or they may know someone who is ready now.