How are you handling BP Leads

Question

Hello!So I have been receiving many people reaching out to me that are finding me through BP. Some of these people are out of state investors and some people are local. I always take the time to talk to each of these leads or attempt to contact them in some way.My question is: A lot of times we hear David and Brandon talk about providing value to someone, especially when networking or reaching out to agents, contractors, influencers and so on. Now it's clear what these people want from me; my knowledge of neighborhoods, my connections with trades and property managers and so on...and that's usually how the conversation goes. "Hi my name is Jeff and I'm an out of state investor, I'm looking for X and want to know what areas you are seeing this in".....and so on. So right off the bat they are already going for the jugular in seeking my knowledge, which is completely fine, I have no problem taking the time to help with some basic questions. I think the problem I have is that "what am I getting out of this relationship"? They haven't offered anything of value to me in any way, shape or form and I wanted to see how other are approaching this or what ideas do you have? If you say right off the get go "Hey thanks for reaching out, lets sign a buyer agency agreement and then we can talk" they are just gonna move on. What seems logical and fair?As a note, I have spoken to a few local investors and actually converted them to clients and I'm currently helping them find properties (we have agency agreements signed). So that's great and I'm grateful for those clients. Any ideas or insights to what you're doing is appreciated!

Jay Hinrichs · Answer

there is some thought process on BP with some folks that other members are basically at their beck and call.. and when you get a pm from them that other members should just help them with all their questions etc etc .. To me it has to do with simple social skills those that are polite and courteous with please and thank you.. I will engage usually .those that send crytpic PMs with no social graces get the same in return.. And some folks just are not realistic they have no intention of doing any business but want you to write out a business plan for them or give them all your hard earned tactics and secrets that we have all spent decades to garner.. they expect it just becasue we are all BP members.. Now for me.. I have my Charity and if they like to make a donation I am happy to engage with those folks.. but most folks on BP when you ask for a simple donation to a great charity in exchange for information they seek its crickets.. so those folks are just looking for free info wherever they can get it.. AND thats exactly what the forums are for.. ask their questions there get your responses its free.

Jonathan Greene · Answer

75% of the "leads" from BP are just spammers looking for private money or to sell you something even if it's guised as a local market overview. I have a long Google form for investors to fill out, a Buying Partner Questionnaire, and until it's filled out I won't be on a call. I do have two meetups a week where anyone can come, but if I am going to do an advice call, I need someone to take 10 minutes to fill out the form so I have some background.

Jason Coleman · Answer

@Jonathan Greene Would love to get a look at that google form as well if you can send it my way. @Jeffrey Edwards You are not alone. I love BP. It's such an amazing platform that is seriously changing lives. However, 80-90% of DM's from this site are tire kickers who don't have a deep interest in RE. Most of them are newbies and they want you to hold their hand and not make any mistakes. Just like @Joe Cassandra said, I try to pay it forward with these newbies and tell them as much as I can in 15-20 minutes over the phone but I know they probably are never going to buy anything. I was a scared newbie a few years ago so I don't want to shut people down. I'm fine with sifting through the fluff to expose true investors. I've met clients through BP that have purchased many properties so I'm not complaining. Even if those newbies don't buy anything now, they might buy later. Recently I had a client that reached out to me to "buy his first rental". A couple of months went buy and he turned around and bought a 300k owner occupant home. Average home in Triad is around 200k mind you ;) I plan to implement a google form like @Jonathan Greene. That should help. Thanks for posting this btw. Thought I was the only one that gets drained from the BP traffic at times haha.

Jeffrey Edwards · Answer

I typically ask them what they are exactly looking for and in what specific areas. Some know and some don’t. If they ask me for suggestions, I normally help them out with that. I ask them if they are buying cash or financing and if they need help with financing, I offer suggestions as well. I then do a “test”. I send them 1 property that exactly meets their criteria and then you see who the serious ones are and who the tire kickers are.

Joe Cassandra · Answer

Like Jay says...Because ATL is hot, I get a lot of DMs from out of state people basically saying "How are you finding deals, then funding them, and where should I invest?" :)I try and reply to as many as I can, but never hear from them again...but I try and pay it forward as much as I can as more experienced have helped me before.

Will Gaston · Answer

Jeff, the way I decide on how to handle it is based on specificity of the inquiry. If they have a very specific question then I know they've spent time and energy in the investing process. Examples of things I'll respond to: What do you think of _____ neighborhood in Columbia? What commercial lender in Columbia do you recommend for this duplex I'm buying for $220,000? I've heard _____zip code in Columbia is a bad zip code to invest. What is your experience? Specificity shows (at least to me) that there is some skin in the game from the other side. They've done some work on their end and it makes me more willing to help them as they're more likely to follow through. Lots of people on this site want to and will help others. But none of those people want to waste their time. Me included.

Chris Pasternak · Answer

All aboard the drain train! Google form is a great idea I will implement. Anyone have a retainer or flat fee service setup for this?

Kristin Kiddy · Answer

@Jonathan Greene I'd love to see your Google form too. Can you share to me?

Bob Okenwa · Answer

@Jonathan GreeneWould you mind sharing your Google form with me as well? Thanks

Jonathan Greene · Answer

@Jeffrey Edwards I DM'd it to you.