Reconnection Letter Help Please

[lifefanatic]

I need help!! I've been an agent for 7 months now, and I feel comfortable letting everyone know I'm a realtor. Well, I've actually let most people know in person through lunch, and on facebook, but I gathered all the names I know and came up with 400 people (via facebook, etc). And..I've only contacted the 50 or so in my Group 1.

I really don't have a physical addresses for everyone, in fact hardly any, so I was thinking an email would work best. What do you guys think?  I live in Vancouver, BC, and the Stanley Cup is going on right now- since there aren't any holidays coming up (Canada Day, July 1 maybe), I was thinking I could send out a Go Canucks email, with an update about me

It's hard, because I really feel awkward getting in touch with some of these people- some of them I worked with 5 years ago and haven't talked to since, so calling them up out of the blue is just awkward. If I send an email and they respond, I'd feel much better about callign to catch up.

[RealtyRon]

I've been thinking about this same thing although I'm still working on becoming knowledgable enough to be comfortable sending out my intro letter (which will be de-dorked when the time comes .  Just off the top of my head, it sounds like a good idea to tie it in with the Stanley Cup, but I would also think about dividing up your list and creating different letters. I assume that a letter going to your group 1 folks will need to be worded differently that a letter to your past co-workers that you haven't spoken to in 5 years. Maybe an exciting Cup letter to the people you have stayed in contact with and more of a "where has the time gone?" letter for those you haven't spoken with in a long time with barely a mention that you are in real estate. If it were me getting a letter from someone I haven't talked to in 5 years, I would be put off by them mentioning what they did for a living and assume that was the only reason they contacted me. However, if you send one letter to warm up to them again, then follow it up later with something RE related, that might be received better. Just my 2 cents as I have been thinking about the same stuff. I'm interested to hear Jennifer's take on it.  Good Luck!

[lifefanatic]

Thanks Ron! I was hoping to do just the one letter, but you might be right. I didn't really want to put real estate in the email (as in, I'm a realtor now!). I was thinking if I had a reason to contact them- like, a funny canucks video- it wouldn't be so off putting. I could have a "haven't talked ot you in ages, what have you been up to" paragraph. Hopefully they'll get back to me, and I can let them know about real estate when they ask what I do.

It would sound better than that, though..there's a funny video going aorund that my friends keep sending..I was thinking of sending the link out, cause it's funny- but there are several swears in it, which might offend some. So, I need something else I could always do a Canada Day email, but that seems so boring. Everyones in this hockey fervor right now, I think people would be more open to hearing from me.

[Jennifer Allan]

I'm okay with starting out emailing - at some point, it's nice to do a physical letter to send out your business card although bcards may be becoming a thing of the past as we all rely much more on our data devices...

Don't overthink your communications though - by that, I don't mean to be Dorky - I mean that you shouldn't worry too much about writing Just the Right letter to your various audiences. I recommend that you think of one person in your SOI that you would be comfortable writing to - maybe not your best friend, but someone you know fairly well - and write your letter to them. It will probably come out warm, natural, confident and non-pitchy, which is exactly the right voice to write in. If you try to write something "appropriate" for your entire audience, it won't be nearly as good (or even get done).

Err on the side of being "too" friendly or familiar as opposed to not friendly or familiar enough. Most people won't think twice about it, especially if you don't include any referral-begging or salespitching. If a few do question your motives, don't fret about them - the majority will simply enjoy hearing from you.

I like the idea of an entertaining Stanley Cup email - as long as it's not just a ho-hum "Go Canucks!" Make it funny or otherwise enjoyable - so that the recipient smiles and thinks of you fondly. THAT's the goal - not simply to remind people you exist, but to remind them you're someone they like!

[RealtyRon]

Wow, something for me to think about too. Thanks Jennifer! When I get my letters written, I'll post them on here before I send them out to get opinions. I was out in left field on my thinking on this. Should we also concentrate on one person when we write our intro letters or should those be made more generic but not dorky? I have a very small SOI so far since I haven't lived here long and am planning on also sending them to business owners that I have been frequenting. Or do you suggest letting the folks know I'm in RE in a more personal, face-to-face approach since I have a small SOI? **Side note - I love the Rookie School, JA, It feels like I am learning more by doing it your way with a daily, methodical approach, than I did while trying to simply absorb what has been given to me. We have a formal training program, but it runs twice a year and I am impatient to actually get some clients instead of waiting for it.**