Recently I was on an inspection of a "beautiful" vacant office/warehouse that a broker hired a locksmith to change the locks.  The broker said the last time he was in the building there were 12 squatters, not to mention some wild dogs. The inspection turned out to be no big deal.  However, I was intrigued when the locksmith named Manny gave me his business card.

Manny and I have never met so I found it interesting that he gave me no less than 11 of his business cards.  What did he think I was going to do with all his cards?  Perhaps immediately drive home and give them to my friends and family. However, it did get me thinking about business marketing. 

I am a huge fan of Sandler Sales Training. I think it's the best most straightforward way of communicating with your prospects.  One of the many things they teach is to not give out your business card. The technique has more to do with engaging your prospect with relevant questions rather than throwing paper in their face.

As I was driving away with Manny's stack of cards I was laughing, not at him but his methodology. He had no idea if I had a need for his services. I might, but he never asked me any questions much less my name or what I did for a living.  A better method would be for him to find out if I own or manage properties that might require locksmith services.  Then he could go back to his office and track all my pertinent information in a customer relationship management (CRM) for future communication, tracking and follow-up to turn a prospect into a long-term customer.

How much do you know and track about your appraisal customers?  Who are they - loan officers, credit officers, borrowers, developers, brokers or other appraisers?  Where do your appraisal leads come from, referrals or the Internet?  Are they local or out-of-state?  How often do you communicate with them?  How much work do they provide you? 

Manager, our new appraisal workflow product is configurable to include a CRM, the holy grail of tracking everything about your customer.  It's super easy and has a very small learning curve for the firm owner and staff appraisers. Business development and appraisal tracking should not be random.  As an appraiser you are so precise in your valuation analysis, so why not in the way you track your customer and appraisal workflow (bid, track, invoice and deliver your appraisals)...Unlike Manny, it's the key to your success.

If you would like to join a discussion about this topic or Appraisal Best Practices contact Jeff Hicks.