Open House Intelligence Bridges the Digital and Physical Worlds

Open house intelligence refers to the digital tools mortgage loan officers and real estate agents use to fully engage homebuyer prospects before, during and after an open house event at a for-sale property. 

Open house intelligence tools implemented through a mortgage CRM can:

• Promote the open house event online and with printed flyers.
• Provide full property details online for interested buyers to view before, during and after the event.
• Present various mortgage loan options for consideration.
• Enable smooth, touch-free check-in at the event.
• Trigger automated text message and/or email communications regarding the subject property.
• Bring new prospects into the loan officer’s database for future marketing.
• Strengthen referral partner relationships through opportunities for cobranded marketing campaigns.
• Start working long before the open house.

As any event planner knows, the work begins long before an event takes place, and the same is true for an open house. 

In a mortgage CRM like Surefire, the planning for the open house begins with the creation of a single property site. Cobranded single property sites can be generated in just minutes using photos and data from MLS listings, along with a mortgage company’s automatically updated rate and loan offerings. 

Open house dates added to the Single Property Sites create an instant ad for the event, shareable on social media, through email marketing or through text messaging. Single property sites also provide a pdf option, which means that printed flyers can be produced to promote the event as well. A QR code on the flyer creates a bridge between the physical and digital marketing, making it easy to use a mobile phone to access full information directly from a printed flyer.

Open house intelligence tools can make check-ins easier, responsive and safer.

Surefire’s single property sites become a digital check-in interface during the hours of the open house. A loan officer or agent needs only to open the SPS on a laptop or tablet, and visitors can provide their names and contact information.

Visitors who are wary of moving among strangers can check in by scanning a QR code on their phone. Open house hosts can facilitate this by printing out flyers with the QR code and leaving them at different check-in points around the home. This way, there’s no waiting in line around a sign-in sheet and no need to touch dirty pens, keypads, or screens. 

When visitors use open house intelligence tools to check in, a couple of important things happen immediately. The contact information the visitor provided will immediately be added to the loan officer’s contact database in their mortgage CRM. Second, an automated text message or email can be triggered to welcome them to the home, provide important links, and offer assistance. 

Open houses serve as lead generation tools to build future business.

Why waste all the time on an open house when it’s likely going to result in only one deal? Because it’s not really just about that one deal. It’s also all the other potential buyers making their way through the home. In fact, it’s these potential buyers who make open houses the lead generation engines loan officers and real estate agents love.

Open house intelligence tools help professionals serve these potential buyers in ways that identify and meet their needs, rather than just blasting them with a one-size-fits-all marketing campaign. The process can start with a simple “sorry this home didn’t work out for you” message and an accompanying form that identifies factors such as the prospective buyer’s timeframe for purchasing, self-assessed credit score rating (excellent, good, fair, poor, for example), and their current ownership status. 

A strong mortgage CRM can then use rules to assign leads to the appropriate marketing campaign – credit builder workflow; a 30-day, 90-day or longer prospect campaign; or a first-time buyer series, for example. With regular check-ins – which can be automated through text messaging or as reminders to have the loan officer call the prospect – the loan officer can track the prospect’s progress and adjust the communications as needed.

The result is a set-it-and-forget it system that doesn’t leave the prospect feeling forgotten.

There’s one more thing open house intelligence can do.

In addition to serving the owner and purchaser of the property and acting as a lead generation engine, open houses and the intelligence tools loan officers provide real estate agents are relationship builders. Real estate agents love tools that make their jobs easier and help their clients at the same time. Loan officer-provided single property sites that are connected to mortgage CRM marketing tools deliver.

Furthermore, agents love getting their name “out there,” and with a mortgage CRM’s cobranding capabilities, all communications can carry both the loan officer’s and the agent’s contact information.

If you’re ready to see how a mortgage CRM with open house intelligence can boost your lead generation strategies, build referral partner relationships, and fill your pipeline, sign up for a demo today.