r/realtors • u/CallCastro Realtor • 1d ago
Discussion Lead Programs Drying Up
Looks like Zillow is pushing for Flex. Realtor dot com is now pushing for teams to buy zip codes. Redfin is now giving all their leads to their partner brokerages (Compass mostly).
Have you guys heard any news on other platforms? How's your lead flow?
I do a lot of Realtor. They went from having 20+ leads in just my town to having 20 ish leads for the entire county.
How's Facebook, Youtube, and Google doing?
And I know. I know. "All I do is work with my family and I do 1000 deals a year with ninja selling!"
This isn't about that. I'm curious how people paying for ads are doing.
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u/addictedtothatass 1d ago
I gave up on lead companies. Zero control and too expensive. I have had success with Google LSAs. Outside of that I find my own leads from public records and tax data.
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u/Potential_Name4072 1d ago
Very curious what your doing with LSAs. I have put a lot of effort into my google page collecting reviews, adding pictures, doing blogs on my website, etc to get my profile to come up. I set my budget to a very large budget (over $500 a week with optimized bidding, since it only charges per phone call) and i havent gotten a single phone call. What are you doing differently?
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u/addictedtothatass 1d ago
If you’re at $500 a week and not getting any calls…that means you’re being outbid and not at or near the top. I’m in a medium size market and mine is set at $800. I get 3-5 calls a week and it probably runs me $500 a month. I was scared of the big number at first but then I realized the budget is never met. It does go dry sometimes, that’s why it’s so important to create your own business. Stop waiting for the phone to ring.
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u/Emergency_Special182 1d ago
Facebook is great. Organic and paid ads. I crush it on marketplace. There’s a seasonality to the business so this is a time of year it slows up. So you have to double down on lead gen
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u/Mike-Smith81828 Broker 1d ago
How many Zillow preferred agent until December when mine ends as well, I took one day and was annoyed by it, but then I reminded myself that in Real Estate nothing is consistent.
I do Google ads and I consistently get 15 leads a week from that. I will continue to refocus on my existing database of all the Zillow leads. I have received over the last 10 years and continue to follow up with them and provide value and see where I can help.
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u/Ok_Caterpillar6789 1d ago
How much are you spending per lead and what's your conversion rate for google ads?
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u/Mike-Smith81828 Broker 1d ago
This is my Google add on What is my house worth:
Conversion on google from Ad to clicking into lead funnel is 10%
Conversion to client is under 1%
CPC is $1.14"Just listed ad's" perform much better:
Conversion on google from Ad to clicking into lead funnel is 7%
Conversion to showing the listed house is 5% (as you know meeting them in person greatly increases your chances to becoming your client)
CPC is $0.316
u/Ok_Caterpillar6789 1d ago
What's your monthly spend?
I met with a marketing company that said the minimum amount of money to spend per month on Google PPC is 8k a month, to see anything real.
Right now we're spending 2200 a month on cold calling and getting 1-4 listing agreements signed per month.
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u/MajorSyko2021 1d ago
If you're cold calling, what are you spending 2200 a month on?
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u/Ok_Caterpillar6789 1d ago
Vulcan 7 for 3 different MLS markets: 600
3 different MLS: 130
Dialer: 300
CRM: 100
Off market data: 175
Dialer: 280
VA: 8003
u/benjaminPietras 18h ago
I use a similar cold calling system. I have a few questions if you don't mind? I've always used RedX, for years and years but I just recently got Valcan 7 to work in parallel. I pay everything for the year ahead and have 2 months left on my RedX and wanted to see if there is a tangible difference. It appears the information is better but I don't have hard numbers yet. Have you every used RedX and switched to Valcan or have you always used Valcan?
Then secondly I have a couple ISAs connected to the dialer but as you probably know it's hard to find good agents that are willing to consistently call. I see you use a VA. Do you use the VA for calling and follow-up?
Also, it's great to hear there's still agents out there that are committed to the tried and true. You're right, you can't beat the return. Drop me in the middle of a state I've never been to and with the proper prospecting and discipline I'll be back up and running profitable within 90 days.
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u/MajorSyko2021 4h ago
I personally prefer Mojosells. It's slightly cheaper and I find they provide more contact data that's accurate and they don't charge extra for "premium" contact info. I also like the dashboard which is simple and easy to navigate imo.
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u/Pitiful-Place3684 1d ago
My hunch is that there aren't many buyers entering the top of the funnel. Maybe it will change in the early Spring, but given the state of the economy....?
I'd spend on anything that gets you in front of sellers. Maybe dust off the seller-focused "what are my options?" mailers.
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u/CallCastro Realtor 1d ago
Sellers cost more, and 50% ish of listings are expiring in my area. My seller leads have been ROUGH.
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u/Pitiful-Place3684 1d ago
What's the saying? You want to be the first love, the second wife, and the third Realtor.
Some of those folks will relist in Spring.
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u/Mindless-Complex-459 1d ago
realtor dot com pulling the zip code thing is wild, theyre basically turning it into a franchise model where the deepest pockets win
my google ads are still steady but the cost per lead has crept up maybe 15% from spring, not terrible but not great either
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u/CallCastro Realtor 1d ago
Honestly it's more affordable. It used to be $600 for shared leads in Castle Rock. Now it's something like $800 exclusive for the whole county. They are a lifeline for me.
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u/pachewychomp 1d ago
Is that… per month?? 😳
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u/CallCastro Realtor 1d ago
Yes. Rural areas are affordable.
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u/frank_datank_ Broker 1d ago
I don’t think the surprise was about how affordable it was….
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u/CallCastro Realtor 1d ago
Then they don't know the industry well. It's relatively common for Zillow to charge over $800 per connection
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u/SghettiAndButter 1d ago
If people go on Zillow and click on the connect with a realtor button but have zero intention of buying a home. Does that mean that you wasted $800 for that connection for a client that doesn’t want to buy a home? Not a realtor but trying to understand how the Zillow thing works.
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u/CallCastro Realtor 1d ago
That is correct! It's a number game. 1/10 people who click should eventually buy. If you spend $8k for a $15k commission check you are still making (a little) money.
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u/SghettiAndButter 1d ago
Yea that makes sense. I was just wondering what’s stopping people from doing it in mass if there is no consequences? Like what if it became a TikTok trend to click on the button and then ignore whoever contacts you or something?
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u/CallCastro Realtor 1d ago
Nothing stops them. I often get calls from other Realtors who think Zillow connects you to the listing agent. That's why a lot of Realtors get frustrated and refuse to pay for the service.
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u/SuperPineapple7033 1d ago
It's going to be absolute junk. They send a lot of scam fake signups, people asking to meet on Zoom etc. Terrible.
And now Zillow moving to Flex. I bought a lot from them when they were cheap 2020-2022ish. Now the prices skyrocketed and they moved to Preferred. I wouldn't mind joining and paying the 40% fee, but I don't want to be a ZHL pusher
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u/Ok_Kaleidoscope_5837 1d ago
This all sorta depends on your overall strategy. (So…your budget, market, target, differentiators, etc.) Also knowing what you’re currently doing, and current results helps too.
So I’ll just make this somewhat broad.
Google ads. Use a combination of high intent, but longer tail keywords so it remains more cost effective. If you’d like examples, let me know.
If you go for social media, you need a real actual social media strategy. (Simply posting online is not a strategy.) I can go more into this if you want.
I’m sure Facebook ads work for some people out there but IMO there’s better options. It wouldn’t be my first choice… but it can help especially with an Omni-channel approach.
For an overall strategy I definitely recommend doing something that’s a longer term tactic like SEO. Using local long tail keywords are surprisingly easy to rank for.
This is a little bit of a secret weapon… but Direct mail has been fucking killing it. The trick is to have an actual offer, (no generic “just listed”, “just sold” or whatever BS.)
AND also calling out a more specific target market than just broad messaging.
Also having a referral engine setup to ask for referrals (and reviews) from past clients and staying engaged with them. I could go into a full list of “do’s and dont’s” for when it comes to engaging with past clients. The most important thing is not making it about you.
I could literally go on and on about this kind of stuff. Im happy to share more if you want.
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u/helpmeimanactor 1d ago
Curious abt your do's and don'ts for engGing with past clients!
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u/Ok_Kaleidoscope_5837 7h ago
So when asking for reviews specifically, you should ask at the “peak of excitement”. (Right before closing.) And by making it easy for them. For instance I create a link/QR code that takes them directly to the literal review box (Google: “Review Link Place ID”, for instructions on how to do this.
Shift from the mindset of a salesperson and thinking what they can do for you. Instead focus on what you can do for them as a helpful resource for all things related to their home (and not just “real estate”.)
For instance setting up automated emails to remind them about home warranty policies/reminders.
-Seasonal checklist reminders.
-Being a connector to local home service vendors.
(Also by providing referrals to a trusted network of home service vendors sets you up to get introductions from them in return.)Build a network of out-of-state agents in case you can refer past clients who are moving out of state and then those same agents can refer you in return.
I’ve also sent small holiday gifts. Example: for Mother’s Day we sent to all the mom’s a small package with two Korean sheet masks, and some high-tea, and a card.
Around Christmas we dropped off nice olive oil to people’s door steps with holiday cards.
Speaking of which: Keep TONS of info on past clients in your CRM. (If you plan on having a long term career in RE, I can’t recommend this enough.)
Not just their home buying/selling preferences.
If they have kids, pets, their bdays, hobbies, whatever - keep note of all that!
This can literally help you to time engagement around milestones where they might be looking to buy/sell.For instance, determining when empty nesters might want to downgrade, or a young couple’s kids are getting older and are around the age where they want to upgrade. You can set alerts to notify you to do check-in around projected milestones.
In terms of “DON’T’s”:
- don’t be salesy and inauthentic. Be genuine and be helpful without expecting anything in return.
- absolutely do not exchange gifts/giftcards for good reviews. This is against TOS (esp. on Google) and there can be serious consequences.
- Don’t ask for reviews on 5 different websites. I recommend focusing on asking for reviews on Google. If they leave them elsewhere on their own, great.
- don’t provide referrals kick-backs (this is illegal)
To be honest, I could keep going with more, like more places to get referrals… but I don’t want this to get too long.
If it’s helpful I could keep expanding or maybe I should just write a separate post. lol
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u/Educational-Log2884 Realtor 23h ago
I added Upnest/Realtor.com this year. This is not my primary lead source as my referrals and past clients are. I did Zillow maybe 10 years ago when it was cheaper by zip code. I did close maybe 3 but it was not a popular zip code. I thought I'd give this one a try. I did get some leads but nothing has panned out. My contract is done in March and I complained to the supervisor and he gave me a 30% discount until the contract runs out. Will not be pursuing these platforms again.
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1d ago
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u/CallCastro Realtor 1d ago
They are hurting and having a hard time meeting their lead flow obligations. They are legitimately down by 50%+ in inbound leads in most markets.
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u/Austin_360 1d ago
So can you still buy leads as a solo agent from Zillow and Realtor.com? I heard those went away and Zillow Flex was the only funnel for Zillow leads. Are there any other lead providers who are worth it? May stop doing flex, looking for alternatives.
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u/bryansumait 1d ago
with portal leads getting thinner, the paid ones you do get are worth more, so speed to first reply matters a lot. Agents I've seen hold up better have an instant text going out within a couple minutes of any form fill, then a short check-in at day 2, day 5 and day 10 for the ones who go quiet. Most of the deals from paid leads seem to come from that later follow-up rather than the first call.
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u/Fit_Block_2556 1d ago
The portal squeeze seems to be the common thread: the lead cost keeps rising and you don't own the relationship. The agents I hear doing better are building a channel they control alongside the paid ones, like a Google Business Profile that's actually maintained, a site that ranks for their area, and very fast follow-up on every enquiry. It's slower to build, but nobody can raise the price on it. Are the people here seeing paid lead cost go up faster than their close rate?
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23h ago
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u/That_Reaction4474 23h ago
Try embeddable AI on your website to drive those on the fence home buyers. They may not want to talk to you (yet) but nurture them. When they ar ready they will think of you.
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u/RealEstateinFlorida 22h ago
I restarted my Zillow premier advertising because it got slow for me and it’s terrible. 2-3 months in and all the leads have been garbage. I asked them if all same and they snuck in that now they ask people if they rather be texted than called. Seems like it went totally downhill with that. Will do a couple more months and then I will not renew contract. Total garbage compared to when I did 2 years ago
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u/SuperPineapple7033 11h ago
Realtor is mainly such junk, and did you hear they're moving to "MarketVIP". They've really gone down hill. They send a lot of Zoom scams and pawn them off as leads. It's probably why they are launching MarketVIP, but charging way more for super low quality.
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u/Late_Touch2541 2h ago
Plugging our startup, it's a flat fee year-round shared lead pool for agents. Coverhome.app
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u/SteveTomaselli 1d ago
The Google piece of this is where I'd put the energy while Flex and Realtor.com squeeze. When I audit agents who run Google Ads, the most common pattern is an unclaimed or messy Google Business Profile getting all that paid traffic. Categories wrong, no description, reviews scattered across Zillow and Facebook instead of Google. Google feeds review count straight into LSA ranking and local results, so reviews are the cheapest lever in the whole paid stack. Ask yourself: how many Google reviews do you have versus the agents outranking you in your town? That gap is usually the entire story.
I run free Hidden Presence Audits for agents that score exactly this. Happy to run yours if you want.
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u/TakkYamaguchi 23h ago
You just shouldn’t. Glad they are drying up. Build your business the right way and you’ll thank yourself a decade from now!
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u/CallCastro Realtor 23h ago
That was a tremendous amount of value and help to this thread. Thank you for your contribution. Never would have thought of that.
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