So I hear time and time again “if only X number of leads turn to sales then the service will have paid for itself” when agents talk about Home Gain, House Values, or any other lead generation site/service. There is one major flaw in thinking like this. There is a little thing called ROI (return on investment) that should rule any advertising purchase.
A smart business person would ask how many deals are needed to create the ROI that I expect for each dollar spent on advertising. They would have NO interest in working for FREE and breaking even is just working for free. A smart business person would figure out that it would take X number of deals to make the ROI they expect and that would be X conversion rate. Then they would decide if that conversion rate is realistic based on their past experience (not what the lead generator sales person claims to be “normal”). From there they would make a sound business decision.
If you are thinking about buying real estate leads from any source please don’t say to yourself that it will only take X number of leads to break even. Figure out if you can make your expected ROI and make a sound business decision.
Please post your experiences with lead generators, if possible include as much information as possible to help other agents make informed decisions about buying leads.
Ken,
I agree 100% that ROI is what is important and additionally - where can I get the best ROI right now and in the future. I have used Homegain extensively in the past and can tell you that I have received a tremendous return from them.
In the end if you can produce enough leads on your own without outside help - this is the best and most productive scenario.
If you cannot produce enough leads on your own to fill your pipeline then I think Homegain is an excellent choice.
On a side note I have used Housevalues as well for over a year and could not produce a ROI. We just spun our wheels with that one and eventually dropped it.
This has been my experience.