Do you believe in the power of setting the next appointment?

I cannot stress this enough. 

Setting that next appointment is crucial, no matter what category the new contact falls into: 

  • a prospect you’re trying to set an initial appointment with
  • someone you’ve met and want to get a second appointment with
  • a seller who needs a follow-up conversation where you can talk about adjusting pricing, accepting an offer, or reviewing some documents
  • a buyer who’s ready to make an offer and needs to talk things over. 

Do not, under any circumstances, end the conversation without getting a commitment for the next time you will be speaking, whether it’s an in-person meeting, a phone conversation, or a Zoom meeting.

Three reasons to set the next appointment 

Many agents say, “I’ll text you,” “I’ll let you know some times,” or “I’ll follow up later.” But that doesn’t cut it. 

This is one of the most basic and important skills in any sales job. You have to set the next appointment. To drive this point home, here  are three reasons  to set the next appointment: 

#1—It formalizes the process

Too many real estate agents are too casual these days. I won’t go to an appointment without a tie on, let alone show up the way some agents do. They believe in a casual, no-pressure sale. 

And I’m not talking about giving pressure. I’m talking about formalizing a process so everyone knows the next time you’ll touch base. Make sure it’s in their calendar (as well as yours) to show a high level of commitment. 

#2—It’s confirmation that you’re taking the right steps

By securing the next appointment in the calendar (yours and theirs), you’re taking the right steps as a real estate professional to help them with—

  • Their home search
  • Selling their home
  • Meeting with them to help them understand what’s going on in the market
  • Keeping them educated about current conditions

We all know there’s a lot of volatility right now. And you need to be the professional to guide them through it all. 

#3—It gives you a gauge of their sense of urgency

If the client or prospect you’re working with has the intent and is motivated, they will say yes to the next appointment. In turn, they keep moving through the funnel. 

But so many people don’t ask for that next appointment. 

So, here are a few examples to show where you can do this. 

On the prospecting side, start by setting up something tentatively. Say something like, “Why don’t I call you on Thursday and make sure Friday afternoon still works?” Get some sort of commitment as to when your next phone call will be.  

You can do the same thing for an active client. If they want to write an offer on a house you’ve shown, say,  “I’ve already done all my research. Let me send it to you, so you can see it through your own eyes. We can talk later today at 4:30 and can go over the strategy once you get a chance to review all the sales data pertinent to this particular property.” 

That’s a commitment—one that will gauge their sense of urgency. If they say yes, it means they’re ready to go. And that’s something that’s going to be critical in any sales process. 

It also works with sellers. Let’s say the house is getting showings, but no offers. “Hey, Mr./Ms. Seller, why don’t we talk on Tuesday after this weekend’s showings? That will be enough time for me to gather feedback for you, so we can see where we are with the goal of selling your home and what sort of buyer reaction we’re getting right now.”

By setting the next appointment like this, you create importance around that call. And you can do this when you need to discuss a price adjustment or extending the term or anything else that may be going on. 

This works in every single phase of the sales funnel. The question is—will you actually do it?

If you want to sell a lot of real estate this year, the answer better be yes. 

Set the next appointment. Don’t leave it to chance. Don’t be too casual. This strategy works—and the winners are going to implement it.