3 Tips to Build Better Relationships with Your Clients

We've all received those dreaded "sales calls" after filling out a form or requesting information online. Someone who is too pushy, not helpful enough, or doesn't respect your time or what you're trying to say can lead you to make a long-term decision to not work with them. On the flipside, an initial contact that leaves you feeling positive can create a lifelong relationship with benefits for both sides.

With online leads and referrals accounting for a huge part of the real estate business, it's important to set up measures to ensure you're building a great relationship with your prospects and clients from the very beginning. We've put together three tips to help you build better client relationships that will ultimately help you close more deals.

1. Establish Communication Preferences

As part of the initial on-boarding process with your new client, set expectations for how they prefer you communicate with them. Millennial client? Maybe they prefer text messaging over calling. Others may only prefer to talk over the phone or via email. Asking them for their preferences demonstrates that you care about the details and want to provide them with the best service possible.

In addition to how they want to communicate, try to establish preferences for when they want to communicate. What's their work schedule? Would they prefer to talk about their real estate needs during the workday or after hours? Letting them know your own availability will also help to set their expectations for when they'll be able to easily get a hold of you so there's never a disappointed feeling if you're "never available to them" (at 10:00pm!).