Happy Agent Co. — Real Estate Podcast for Women hosted by Lindsay Dreyer, Real Estate Coach

The Open Method: Make Six-Figures in Real Estate with Open Houses

• Lindsay Dreyer • Season 1 • Episode 7

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Are you ready to build a thriving real estate business without sacrificing your sanity? In this episode, discover the power of open houses as a lead generation goldmine! You'll learn:

  • How The OPEN Method (Organize, Promote, Engage, Nurture) transforms open houses into a six-figure lead generator.
  • Tips to overcome common objections like "open houses don’t work" or "people give fake info."
  • Pro hacks for preparing, promoting, and hosting like a pro—making you the go-to agent in your market.
  • Systems to ensure every open house builds your client pipeline for consistent, long-term success.
  • Exclusive bonuses available in The OPEN Method Course, including:
    • Foolproof Host-for-You Script
    • Open House Survival Kit Checklist
    • Buzz Builder Blueprint
    • Six-Figure Sign-In Sheet
    • ChatGPT Super Prompt: writes a 12-month nurture drip campaign custom to you!

Don’t let open houses intimidate you—they’re your ticket to growth!

👉 Learn more about The OPEN Method and snag your bonuses at happyagentco.com/openmethod

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Speaker 1:

Do you ever feel like holding open houses is a waste of time? What if I told you that they could be your secret weapon for generating very affordable, if not free, leads and closing six figures this year? Okay, maybe I have your attention now. I am here to share my secrets of open house success with you and how they have absolutely been an incredible lead generation source for me in my business over the past 20 years. I started my real estate career in 2004 as a new construction sales rep for Pulte Homes in the Northern Virginia area, and I don't know if you're familiar with that job title, but basically I sat in a model home and I held an open house every single day. I have greeted, conservatively over 8,000 quote unquote open house visitors in my new construction sales career as well as my general brokerage career, so to say that I understand how to host an open house is an understatement. I really think they are one of the most important ways to get in touch, get face-to-face with buyers and even potential sellers, even in today's tech-driven online lead generation market. So today I want to give you my peek into the OPEN method, which is a system that I created to help agents maximize their open house results. I'm going to share what the OPEN method is, some actionable tips. Under each of the letters of the acronym EN is an acronym and I'll tell you what they stand for, and I really hope that what I share today will encourage you, if not get you so excited, to host an open house this weekend.

Speaker 1:

Let's dive into some common objections that I hear about open houses. Open houses don't work. The market's slow, no one's going to come, people always give me fake information or they refuse to sign in. So what's the point? I am telling you, if you have a system and you have tools in place, those objections get completely blown up with water. Open houses are the best way to get face to face with motivated buyers and sellers. This leads to not only clients, but it leads to building your database, which means that you can get referrals and future transactions. This is such a great way to reboot your real estate business. Or, if you are brand new and really struggling with getting clients, open houses are such a powerful way to make that happen.

Speaker 1:

So let's dive in to what exactly the open method is. It is a four-step system that is designed to help you master each stage of the open house process from planning all the way to follow up. So the acronym stands for organize, promote, engage and nurture, and we'll dive into each four of those steps and give you some tips on how to have open house success. The first step is organize, and this is where I think a lot of real estate agents don't do a great job. This is all about doing your homework and getting prepped.

Speaker 1:

The first thing, and the most obvious, is know the property that you're actually holding open is know the property that you're actually holding open. This means review the MLS data If it is in a condo or an HOA. Make sure you understand exactly what that monthly fee is, what it includes. Also, know what terms the seller might be looking for. Anything that a potential buyer or open house visitor would ask you, you should know the answer. Nothing makes me more irritated when I walk into an open house and the person holding the open house says I don't know to what should be very obvious questions. So that is the first thing. You need to know that property inside and out. Second is know the neighborhood. If someone does not know where the closest grocery store is, maybe they're interested in a dog park, maybe they'd like to know what schools it's districted for. You need to know the information about the surrounding neighborhood as well. So if you're holding it open in a neighborhood that you're maybe a little bit unfamiliar with, go out there, find out what coffee shops are there, what grocery stores are there, what are the neighborhood lifestyle features that a potential buyer would be interested in. So, knowing the property, knowing the neighborhood so key to holding an effective open house.

Speaker 1:

The last thing is I love to have an open house survival kit. I keep this in a large Tupperware container in my car and this is everything that you might need. Things that I have in there would include and this is not the exhaustive list, but it would be sign-in sheets, pens, tape, light bulbs, disinfecting wipes, paper towels, toilet paper, for sure. Just, you never know what you're going to walk into. So, whether it's occupied or a vacant home being prepared, know what you're going to walk into. So, whether it's occupied or a vacant home, being prepared means that you're going to feel confident and it also shows your professionalism. There's nothing worse than needing a sharpie marker and a piece of paper and a piece of tape to write a sign for people to call XYZ on the call box at a condo building and you don't have it. It's just. It just creates this ripple effect of feeling scattered and not feeling on your game. So anything you can do to feel organized or organize yourself it is so crucial.

Speaker 1:

First step lay that foundation O get organized. P P is for promote. People sometimes think you can just throw it in the MLS and people are going to show up. And yes, sometimes that is the case. But you are here to make this a lead generation magnet for you. So we want to use multimedia campaign. Yes, we're going back to marketing school. We want to make sure that we are using a lot of different media to build buzz. I personally have a buzz builder promotion checklist and I use that to essentially figure out what my plan is for that particular open house. This could include social media. This can include email blasts. It could also include personal invites to your sphere or lead Neighbor invites. Door knocking could be promo or partnering with a local business, direct mail if that's in your budget, but really making sure that this open house is promoted. So I encourage you to figure out what types of media you're going to be using for your open house and then have your promotion checklist. All right. So we've covered the O and the P of the open method. So we've organized, we've got our nice foundation, we have our promo plan and we've been promoting it. We're going to get some visitors. I believe it. If you have done that, you're a promo machine. You're making this happen. The E stands for engage.

Speaker 1:

Now this is another place where I feel like a lot of agents really fall down on this. You have to make this open house your party. You're the host of the hottest real estate party that has ever happened in whatever market you're in. Now I'm not saying that it needs to be extravagant or you need to spend a ton of money on it, but you need to be the ultimate host. Now, what does it mean to be a good host? When people come in, we're greeting them warmly.

Speaker 1:

I also like to ask an easy to answer question. So often agents are asking these complex questions Maybe what are you looking for? Or very open-ended. I like something very simple, very easy to answer. So my favorite favorite question to ask is where do you live? And this is easy. I live in Fairfax, I live in Boston, and that can lead you to oh where in Boston or oh where in Fairfax. So really it helps you figure out. Are they owning, do they rent? Where do they live? What context of a neighborhood are they going for? Are they way outside of where they live or are they close? Are they relocating, are they not? I love this question because it's easy to answer and it also gives you some information to start asking a little bit more specific questions. Now, if people just aren't in the mood to talk, totally get that. But I have found more often than not, this question is the money question when it comes to open houses.

Speaker 1:

The other thing is that I make signing in a non-negotiable. Now, a lot of people struggle with getting people to sign in, but my sign-in sheet has items of value to entice them to want to sign in. So these are things that would be helpful for a buyer or a seller, and they just check off if they're interested in receiving something. So I also am a big believer in paper because it allows me to write notes on the back. So I have a special sign-in sheet that I like to use that has contact information plus items of value, and then each person gets their own sign-in sheet. So it's a really great method.

Speaker 1:

I think it works really well for signing in, and I make sure that everybody signs in. It's a non-invitable. Also, I like to keep the pressure off when I invite them to tour. So once I've greeted them, they sign in. I say make yourself at home. Please take a tour. Don't forget to see the primary bedroom closet it is a stunner. Or don't forget to check out the amazing patio in the back. So call out a few things that you would like them to see, or make sure that they see, and then I just let them make themselves at home. I think that that's a really great way to take the pressure off. Let them digest the home and then make sure you're catching them on their way out.

Speaker 1:

This is where I like to ask for feedback. So I'll say what did you think of the home? And they'll give you some feedback. Are you interested in potentially making an offer? If it seems like they are, I ask that question and then we go from there. But I make sure that I am catching them on their way out and then, if they have checked one of my items of value, I say you'll be hearing from me X, y, z. Or I just say I'll be chatting with you, or I'll follow up with you tomorrow, if that's OK. So I'm planting the seed that they'll be hearing from me. So that's E engage.

Speaker 1:

Let's dive into N nurture. This is another piece that I feel like so many agents fall down on. Is this becoming a trend? Maybe? I just think agents aren't good at this, which is why I want to teach it.

Speaker 1:

First thing is send a personalized thank you email or text within 24 hours of the open house. That is a non-negotiable. If you are using the items of value technique, make sure that you're sending that item of value within 24 hours as well. I also like to set up a longer nurture campaign to stay in touch with them. So this could be valuable content like market updates, new listing alerts, it could be tips for buyers or sellers, and I like using a combination of automation plus personalization. So I really think ChatGPT is very useful for drafting a 12-month nurture plan, and I have a custom prompt that will actually not only take into account my brand voice so it sounds like me but I can tell it which methods I want to use, what area I'm focusing on. So I really like using AI to draft out a 12-month plan for me and then I just plug that into my CRM as an action plan, which is so convenient.

Speaker 1:

So making sure that you're nurturing for at least 12 months is a really important piece, because not every open house visitor is ready to act right away. You will find some that are, which is great and it's a huge reason why you should be doing open houses. But another reason I love open houses is that it's building a longer term pipeline for you and what we're really focused on is making sure that you have business only today, but 12 months from now. If you do open houses consistently, on a consistent basis, you're really kind of removing those ebbs and flows of that feast and famine cycle of your real estate business. So that is the open method we have organize, promote, engage and nurture. I am telling you, the open method works in any market and it is such an effective, no to low cost lead generation method and not enough agents are taking advantage of this, I'm telling you. I would say 80% of real estate agents are not doing open houses to the maximum.

Speaker 1:

I firmly believe that if you just did open houses and really took them as seriously as you should in the open method, I would be shocked if you didn't sell a house every single month. What if you don't have a listing to hold open? What if you don't have listings? What if you're a brand new agent or you just don't have any listings? This is such a good opportunity to partner with other agents and hold other people's listings open. There's nothing preventing you from doing that.

Speaker 1:

Most top producers have zero interest in holding their own houses open, so they're always looking for professional, organized, effective agents to hold their listings open. And if you are using the open method, those agents are going to respect you so much more because you have a process and it's not just willy-nilly. So you will actually build relationships with some of these top producing agents who would love to give you their open houses. You'll probably be their first choice because you are so organized and following a process and a system. So, if you are sold on open houses, I'm so excited because the open method is now an online course that you can take. It is a quick 30 minute training and it's packed with all of the strategies that I've outlined, and it also has all of the bonus tools that will help turn your open houses into a lead generating machine. So what are the bonuses? So, in addition to the full training.

Speaker 1:

I have the host for you script. So this is an email template that you can send to any listing agent of any property you want to hold open, and it's going to outline why you are the best person to hold that house open for them. I would be shocked if an agent said no to you using this email script. The other thing is you're going to get my open house survival kit checklist and this has everything you need to make sure that you are ready for your open house physically. I also have my buzz builder blueprint, which is everything you need in terms of promotion. So we're all the channels that we talked about and it walks you through all of the things that you need. So if you have an open house you're holding, you can go through this checklist to make sure that you're addressing all of the ways that you can get traffic to that open house. I'm also including my six-figure sign-in sheet, which includes those items of value, the specific ones. It's a template that you can just plug your logo into and it's ready to go. And then I'm also including my ChatGPT super prompt, which writes your 12-month nurture campaign. That is totally custom to you and your brand voice.

Speaker 1:

So if you'd like to learn more, you can head to happyagentco slash open method to learn more. Check out the course and also all of the bonuses, and I hope that you do check it out because agents have been sleeping. They've been sleeping on open houses and I don't want you to sleep on it anymore. Open houses do not have to be a chore. They can be a powerful tool to grow your business when you have the right systems in place and I love a good system. In the open method course, I go into full detail about each step Plus, you get all those tools to make open houses a cornerstone of your real estate success. I tried to make this as easy as possible. This is really a plug and play system and I really know that if you follow the open method, you will make some money.

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Lindsay Dreyer

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