Landlord lead generation. Clearly a top priority for any agent. But generating landlord leads to your agency isn’t always a walk in the park. Not only are landlords notoriously difficult to pin down (after all, pretty much anyone could be one), they are also generally suspicious of agents, don’t like the fees and often think that self-management is a viable route. We feel your pain, as we often encounter the same thing with property inventories. People think they can do it themselves. We know better than anyone that if things get ugly, judges won’t be impressed in the slightest by an amateur attempt at an inventory, cobbled together by a landlord. Nor will they look favourably upon a self-managing landlord who has  fallen foul of the law, whether on purpose or by accident. Whatever the case, with legislation in a state of near constant flux, they’d have been significantly better off had they left their property management in the hands of a decent agent, right? So essentially, the messaging is the same. ‘Not only are you are saving yourself time, money and hassle; you are protecting yourself and your property by opting for a high quality, third-party service.’ But how best to attract landlords to YOUR agency?

Landlord lead generation: Tip #1 Demographic targeting

Think about your target audience. Yes, landlords can be difficult to find, for obvious reasons. But they do all have one thing in common. An interest in property. So use that to your advantage. You don’t have to spend a fortune either. You just have to get it right. You also have location as a target, because you know the area(s) you want to find them in. So, it’s worth setting up a low budget Facebook Lead Generation ad (more money spent doesn’t always achieve better results – start at £3 a day and see how it performs in the first week.) We would suggest selecting ‘all genders’ age ’40+’, ‘your town + 10km’ and select 3 interests (it’s tempting to select more but it’s best to stick to 3.) Seeing as you already know that they are interested in property, you could confidently select, for example, ‘buy-to-let’, ‘property investment’ and ‘property management’.

You can also target by job title. Some landlords actively say that they are a landlord or property manager on their profile.

Use clear, concise, compelling copy that either highlights your USP, offers a discount/incentive or invites them to receive exclusive information that they may be interested in, such as ‘local investment opportunities’ or ‘property news’, as opposed to selling your services immediately. This can be a far more effective and intelligent way of gathering data. Whatever your approach, make your visuals stand out on the feed and stop the scroll! A picture of a typical property in the area you are targeting often works well because they can relate to it.

Landlord lead generation: Tip #2 Keep your form simple

You’ll need a data capture form to accompany your ad. People don’t like giving a shed load of information. Keep your Facebook form short to avoid losing a potential customer. Name, number and email are the only three things you need at this stage.

Landlord lead generation: Tip #3 Nurture those leads

If you have opted for a direct sales-driven ad, then obviously, you just need to pick up the phone and convince them to use your services, which is the best position you could possibly be in. This is a lead who has a) expressed a direct interest and b) given you their permission to be contacted. Hopefully we don’t need to tell you how to sell your business to somebody who is already interested. If, however you do find yourself repeatedly failing at this, it might be a good idea to review your sales team and your approach.

Is your new contact interest-based only? Well… they are still a landlord. And you were only offering them free information. They didn’t say no to using you. They said yes to a communication channel. So, it’s a chance to ‘make friends’. Give them what they were expecting via email and make them like you over time. It will increase the likelihood of them using you over another agency. Or use an agency at all. Not everyone is ready to make a decision straight away. Plus even the ones who say no initially can still be turned around, especially if you have been building trust by giving them something they want for nothing. That’s why ‘nurture journeys’ exist. A subject for another time.

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Are you an agent or a landlord looking for support with your property management, we offer a full range of property inventory services. Assist Inventories provide award-winning services, underpinned by a powerful inventory management platform. First inspection half price.