When you receive a real estate lead, you dive right in, ready to find a home for them. But you learn they aren't quite ready to buy a house. You wonder why they filled out a lead form if they aren't prepared to buy a house. It's not unusual for today's home buyers to fill out a lead form when they aren't ready to buy a house.  

Leads are often unsure how to get pre-approved for a mortgage; they don't understand why you want them to sign an agent exclusivity agreement, don't know how much they need for a down payment, etc. They're unsure or overwhelmed and need help from a real estate agent. The lead form was a way for the buyer to dip their toes in the home-buyer pool, but now they need your help to dive in and buy a house.

It's time to look at the various stages of the buyer's journey and put into action a plan that will get your lead from "I'm not ready to buy a house" to "I want to make an offer on a house ." Let's get started.

Awareness Stage

Many leads reach out in the awareness stage of the buyer's journey. They're looking at houses online and visiting open houses in their area. They know they want to buy a home eventually, but that's as far as they've gotten in the home-buying process. They fill out a lead form and expect you'll know what to do with them. They made the right decision.

In the awareness stage, the lead may have filled out a lead form in hopes of getting home-buying information from a real estate professional. As a real estate agent, you reach out but can't get them to commit to meeting with you. The lead may not feel comfortable meeting you face-to-face until they receive some coaching to get them to the next stage of the buyer's journey. During this stage, share the following content on home buying via email, text, DM, videos, etc., and build trust with the lead:  

• Personalized marketing reports
• Educational material
• Research reports
• Ebooks

This information will help the lead move forward and into the next stage of their home-buying journey, the consideration stage.

Consideration Stage

When the lead agrees to meet with you, you'll know when all of your emails, ebooks, webinars, and texts have paid off. At this point, they have moved out of the awareness stage and into the consideration stage. They listen to your podcast, have read your home buying guide, and are asking questions. They feel more prepared to buy a house and are getting closer to making a decision.  

In this stage, you get them pre-approved for a mortgage. You begin scheduling showings so they can view homes for sale in their price range. You understand their needs better, and they trust your professional opinions.

Decision Stage

It's the stage you've been waiting for, the decision stage. You have educated the lead regarding the possible outcome of making an offer in today's housing market. The lead has visited and compared various homes and is prepared to make an offer that will satisfy the seller. All of your hard work has paid off!

Conclusion

Understanding where your real estate leads are in the home-buying process enables you to provide the best guidance to get them to closing. If your lead is in the awareness stage, educating them and building their confidence to get them to the decision stage will take some time. Guide your not-sales-ready leads through all stages of the home buyer's journey, and you will find yourself closing more deals.

Get more tips on lead nurturing in our comprehensive lead nurturing guide: