You can dramatically increase your listing appointment conversion rate by bringing books to those appointments. If you’re not struggling to get appointments, but you are struggling to close deals, the books can make all the difference. 

There are a few ways you can get your books into your potential clients’ hands during listing appointments. 

1. Hand it to them as you walk through the door.

First impressions are everything, and immediately handing someone a book makes a great one. When you're meeting the seller, simply say something like:

“Hi! Thank you so much for meeting me today. I brought you a free copy of my book, {INSERT TITLE HERE}. It’s full of techniques to help you sell your home for more money. I will be referencing it throughout our appointment and want you to have it as a guide to the selling process.”

2. Slide it across the table during your appointment.

When you’re giving your presentation, bring up your book at an appropriate time. If you’re referencing a specific marketing technique, pull out your book and show them where they can read more about it. Don’t forget to leave it with them to keep after you’re done referencing it. 

You can also leave your book sitting out on the table during the appointment and let your prospects bring it up. At this point, you can give them the book to keep and reference. 

3. When you do a walk-through of the home, offer your book to the sellers and ask them to glance through it.

This frees you up to explore the home without as many intruding comments or questions.

4. Hand it out at the close.

If you’ve given a presentation and you can tell the clients are on the fence about hiring you, hand them your book as a parting gift and ask them to look it over. This is a great strategy if you want to be more strategic about handing out your books to people who are more difficult to convert. Your books can help you overcome any listing objections you might face. Say something like: 

“Thank you so much for meeting me today. I really appreciate the opportunity to show you how I can sell your home fast for top dollar. In fact, I want to give you a free copy of my book, {INSERT TITLE HERE}. It’s full of techniques to help you sell your home for more money.”

The key to this method is to consistently follow up after you’ve given them your book. 

Use Your Digital Book

If you don’t have physical copies of your books on hand, you can also use your digital book on listing presentations.

Before you get to the appointment, send your digital book link as a pre-listing package and encourage your prospects to look it over before you arrive. 

You can also bring a tablet or laptop to the presentation and reference different chapters or pages of your digital book at appropriate times. You can either use the book on its own or include a link to it in any slideshows or presentations you prepare. 

If you didn’t send it ahead of time, make sure you share your link with the homeowners after the presentation so they can read more on their own time. Even if they don’t list with you at the appointment, you’ve given them something they can reference later on to learn more about what you offer. 

Results in Action

Let's hear from some of our members about their success bringing the books on listing presentations. 

Mark Slade

Mark was already a successful agent, but in one year, he doubled his close rate using books. 

“The percentage of listings that I now get when I go on these appointments is up to about 90 percent, when it had been trending at about 45 percent a year ago. The book is an amazing tool to use.”

He called the book his “secret sauce” — the added component that helped him differentiate himself from a crowded field of real estate agents. A former brand manager, Mark understands that the books are an important component in an integrated marketing program.

“Brand management isn’t about one thing. It’s about total reinforcement. It’s the total package. It’s the total marketing effort, and so to me, the book is what seals the deal.” 

He’s been using the book as the final piece in his pre-listing package.

“When I meet with my potential listing clients and I show them all the stuff I do to market their home, I throw in that we have a book as well that shows you how we list homes and sell them for more money.”

When you give someone a book, you leave it up to them whether they actually want to read it, but it fortifies the position that you’re not the same as every other Realtor. 

“I’m a Realtor that now looks like I’ve written books on the ability to sell homes for more money — or the most money. Fortified by all the things I do when I’m marketing a home, I think it’s a one-two knockout punch.”

Tom Rineberg

When Tom Rineberg met with the sellers of a $300,000 listing, they told him they would be interviewing two other agents. 

He handed the couple a packet of information that included a copy of his book. 

“And when I handed them the packet, the husband and wife kind of looked at each other, and I knew the other agents hadn't given them anything like that.” 

When he followed up a week later, the couple was still on the fence. Ultimately, they called him back and told him they wanted to hire him over the other agents. 

“I asked him why, and part of the reason was no other agents had given them the material. And what I felt that was referencing was the book.”

April Hunter

When April Hunter was a newer agent, she used her books to beat out an established agent in her market. 

“And so what happened was an agent that had been in real estate, he went the day before me. He sat there with them for hours talking, talking, talking about himself — just talking about himself so much.

“That's not what I did. I talked about them. I talked about the move, and I talked about the book.”

The sellers chose her, and April was able to get that house under contract within the first two weeks. 

“The name of the book at the time was how to get your home sold fast and for top dollar. So it just put me to the next level. So the books really worked in my favor.”

Weyland Betha

Member Weyland Betha has been using the listing presentation included in his membership. 

“I liked the pre-listing package and the listing presentation. Your listing presentation is far above and beyond any other listing presentation I've ever done because it actually shows value to the clients and that you're actually on their side,” he says. “A lot of agents will come in and say, ‘Hey, I'm on your side.’ And then they'll try and differentiate a price from what the sellers have. But this listing presentation shows how to bring the house up to value to get what they want. And that's huge.”