Communication is the number one complaint about real estate agents.
We hear this a lot, but often, it’s avoidance that gets agents into real trouble.
So I want to walk you through how I communicate with active clients. This includes buyers I’m showing properties to regularly, buyers I have a buyer agreement with, and active sellers with a listing contract.
There’s one core principle I believe in above everything else when it comes to keeping clients informed and keeping your business solid: a weekly phone call.
Text message exchanges and email threads won’t cut it. You need to get on the phone with your active clients every week.
When clients stop hearing from you, they fill in the silence with doubt. They start wondering whether you’re doing anything at all.
And once that doubt takes hold, regaining their trust (or building any) gets a lot harder.
The Weekly Seller Call
With active sellers, the weekly call is critical. You may not be in constant communication with sellers the way you are with buyers, so that call is often their main touchpoint with you.
You can schedule it in advance or block out three or four hours every Thursday so you’re ready before the weekend picks up.
Talking Points for Sellers
Three talking points to cover with sellers every week. Be ready to answer every question for each of these:
- Showings and feedback. How many people came through the property? What did they say? Good feedback, critical feedback, all of it. Your seller needs to hear it from you directly.
- Online traffic. How are the views looking? Is the listing getting enough exposure to bring people in the door? What online marketing has been most effective so far?
- Market activity. What’s happened in the last seven days that’s relevant to their home? Rates moved, a comparable sold, school just let out and foot traffic tends to dip. Whatever it is, they should hear it from you.
After you’ve run through those points, give them a rundown of what you’ve personally done in the past week to drive more traffic to the property.
- The open house you’ve got coming up and how you marketed it.
- The agents you’ve talked to who may have buyers.
- Everything you’ve done to get more eyes on their property—or everything that’s working
There’s a lot of behind-the-scenes work in this business that never gets communicated, and sellers fill that silence by assuming nothing is happening.
Set Up the Next Call Before You Hang Up
Before you end the call, tell your seller exactly when they’ll hear from you next. This is a bonus tip that sounds simple but makes a real difference.
“You’re going to hear from me on [day & time].”
“I’ll have an update for you by [day & time].”
Either sentence creates certainty in their mind. They’re not texting you out of anxiety or calling their neighbor who sold two years ago to ask whether this is normal.
You’ve given them a date and a time, and they can relax until then.
The Weekly Buyer Call
Buyer calls get a little more complicated because you’re often in touch with buyers constantly anyway.
A lot of agents say, “I don’t know what to tell them, there’s nothing new on the market.”
Here’s what I do.
Start with macro developments. What are rates doing this week? What’s happening seasonally? You want them to feel like you’re watching the market on their behalf every single day, because you are.
Some examples of what that sounds like:
- “It’s the last week of school. I expect inventory to pick up after the Fourth of July.”
- “Rates moved this week. Here’s what that means for your purchasing power.”
- “We’ve got a seasonal slowdown coming. Here’s what I’m watching for you.”
Then give them a local update on what’s actually happening with properties. Did something they looked at two weeks ago go under contract? Did a new listing come up worth knowing about?
This keeps them grounded in what the market is doing, even when the right property hasn’t shown up yet.
Talking Points for Buyers
When there’s nothing new to report on the listing front, here are the three talking points that keep the conversation valuable, with scripts for each one:
#1: You’re watching.
“I want you to know we haven’t found the right place yet, and I’m keeping an extremely close eye on the market every single day.
“Anything you’ve been on the fence about touring that might be worth our time? Because online photos and video don’t always tell the whole story.”
#2: You’re proactive.
“I’m actively reviewing new listings and off-market opportunities that could make sense for you. We’re going to be the first people to see anything that comes close to meeting your criteria.
“Why don’t we keep a standing time open, maybe Friday afternoon or Saturday morning, so we can move fast when something hits?“
#3: Ask for adjustments.
“Any adjustments we should be making to your search right now?”
This is where you find out that the four-bedroom is now a nice-to-have, or that the next town over is actually on the table.
Phone conversations let you hear tone, work through questions in real time, and pick up on hesitation that a text message will never reveal.
Too many agents rely on automated property drips and email updates and wonder why clients go cold.
Block the Calls and Stick to the Schedule
Get weekly seller and buyer calls on your calendar and know exactly when you’re going to make them.
If you’re doing your seller and buyer calls at the end of the week, you’re less likely to get an unexpected Saturday call from a client who feels out of the loop.
Your clients stay informed, stay confident, and stay with you when it’s time to transact. This approach has worked in real estate for decades.
All you have to do is run it every week and be consistent. That’s the secret.
