In a previous article, Real Estate Agents Your Customers Are Checking You Out Online, I mentioned where things were heading with Augmented ID.

Here’s a video showing how Augmented ID is being used on a Google Android phone. (Note: This video has no sound. This is a case where actions speak louder than words).

Can you imagine using this at an Open Home to get someone’s details? Or alternatively, what if the buyers or sellers used it to pull up your details and social profiles, etc.

Using Augmented ID you could see what someone has been up to lately and start a conversation going about what they’ve been up to, for example their profile might say that they just saw the movie Valentines Day and you could start a conversation about what it was like, etc.

Well connected Gen Y’s no longer start conversations with ‘How are you?’ or talk about the weather, they say, I noticed your sister is due to have a baby soon, how’s she going? Or, similar. They don’t need to do small talk, they can go straight into a higher level conversation straight off the bat.

With Augmented ID, agents could potentially do the same with customers or vice versa. It will be very interesting to see how this technology continues to develop and how real estate agents start using it throughout the industry.

How else do you feel Augmented ID could be used?

A friend of mine Terri Cooper, recently posed this question, “What Is Your Top Prospecting Tip?” to the group of agents within the Australia & NZ Real Estate Professionals Open Network on Facebook. Whilst some of the responses were based around “Committment” & “Having a plan and consistently blocking out non-negotiable time each day! (At least 2 hours)”, etc I believe that there are now easier & more effective ways to prospect for business.

If you think about how prospecting for gold has been made so much easier since the invention of the metal detector, then it only stands to reason that prospecting in real estate should also become easier with the advancements in technology.

Real estate agents could do so much better if they focussed their attention on converting their online customers into business and using technology to provide them with strategies that will not only help them to provide real value to their community, but also increase the number of recommendations that they receive.

If an agent is determined to stick with door knocking as a prospecting strategy then I’d suggest that they consider implementing a planned, effective approach before wasting too much time out in the field going door-to-door.

Whilst door knocking is a great way to practice icebreaker scripts and build communication skills, with so many people away from home, at work or running around with the kids, etc going door-to-door can also be a big time waster. (especially if it’s done at the wrong time of day).

There are also a number of easier ways to meet up with people who actually want to speak with an agent.

Don’t get me wrong! I have done it the hard way. I’ve walked the streets in my neighbourhood, going door-to-door, looking for listings, but just because I did that over the past 20 years successfully doesn’t mean that it’s the way real estate agents should be doing it now.

Our industry is changing & the old way of doing it isn’t necessarily the most effective any more.

There are some really innovative ways that agents can find sellers, and I have included them in the Area Monopoly Strategy.

But, there’s one word of warning, if you’re not ready to find a new & easier way to generate more business than you’ll ever need then the Area Monopoly Strategy is definitely not for you.

On the other hand, if you think it could be worth considering, you can find out more about it by clicking here.

When searching for that needle in a haystack (a seller) agent’s like you should really consider using a metal detector (technology) to get faster & more consistent results with a lot less effort.

PS: Whilst I’ve developed an effective Area Monopoly Strategy, I also appreciate that there are a lot of dynamic thought leaders within our industry who have some great prospecting success stories to share as well. What’s your prospecting tip? Is there something that is working really well for you or for your agents?