Discover our best practices for your realtor referral and rewards program. We cover all the steps, from creating your program to ongoing promotion.
We all know referrals are the highest-converting channel. But if that’s the case, why isn’t everyone taking advantage of it? Usually, it's because they don’t know how.
Ask yourself the following:
If any (or multiple) of these sounds like you, you might be missing out on your largest lead channel: referrals.
But don’t worry — you came to the right place. Here’s your complete guide to referrals and incentives. We’ll show you how to reach this untapped market by using your current database to improve your word-of-mouth business.
Let’s keep this short, because in the real estate world, we are all familiar with referrals. A realtor referral and rewards program is:
“A referral program is where you offer a fixed amount or percentage of your sales commission to past buyers, other agents, or anyone else who refers a friend to you upon a closed deal. A rewards program is when you offer rewards to your database for events, contests, or anything else you can think of.”
Referrals and rewards go hand in hand. Referrals are direct incentives to get someone to introduce you to a new client. Whereas rewards are more focused on rewarding your current database. Both result in more business and a happier client base. Using them together will bring you more leads and a successful real estate business.
Referrals are one of the most valuable leads for one main reason: they are the most likely to complete your desired action. In your case, this is likely to buy or sell a home through you. This means more business for you and time saved from qualifying leads. Plus, referrals are one of the most affordable ways to bring in business. You only need to pay on a successful deal (i.e., contract signing), unlike ads and other methods where you pay to get people to come to you.
When you ask most realtors where they get most of their business from, they’ll say referrals. But the majority of real estate agents get less than 20% of their past clients to send them leads. With referrals being the highest-converting channel, this is a huge market that you may not be reaching. Tap into this market to boost your business and reward your loyal clients for sending you leads.
Some businesses do rewards and referrals the old-fashioned way: a lengthy form that no one has time to fill out to get referrals and going to the nearest store to buy a bunch of gift cards for the rewards. There is an easier solution that is proven to save you time and get more leads: referral and rewards platforms.
Referral and rewards platforms (often alled referral software, referral platforms or rewards platforms) that allow you to create, manage and track incentive programs - like Locorum. These platforms help you make the referral and rewards programs easy by having everything in one place.
As we said above, it’s a lot easier for you to start and manage a referral and rewards program with a platform. But here are some other reasons why you should consider Locorum:
Heard enough? Talk to our team to get started.
There are three things to keep in mind with your referral program: reward all referrals, choose the right times to ask and be consistent.
Offering incentives for successful referrals is crucial in your strategy. If you got a reward when a deal was complete, you’d be more likely to want to close it and get the offer. Your customers are the same - 79% of people are more likely to close if there’s a reward involved.
So, the first step is to set up a rewards program and budget (learn how with Locorum here).
Let’s fast forward a bit. Say someone referred a friend to your program, but it might be a year or so until the deal closes and either of them sees a reward. Instead of waiting, send a small gift to show your appreciation. It only has to be $10-$25 and will keep your clients happy and wanting to refer. Send a message alongside the reward like this:
"I'd like to buy you coffee to thank you for the introduction to [friend name]. I've sent over a gift card via Locorum as a genuine thank you from us. Introductions like this are the lifeblood of small businesses, and I want to express my gratitude. If the deal closes, you'll be eligible for $[amount] through the same Locorum referral program. Any other introductions are greatly appreciated. If it's more convenient, you can use this link to refer."
Timing is everything when it comes to asking for referrals, and the answer is simple. Ask for referrals when your customers are happiest. Put yourself in your client's shoes. If you bought a house and got an email asking for referrals on move-in day, you might ignore it because you are busy. But if you got the same email one month later, when you’re unpacked and settled in, you’re more likely to consider it positively and send a referral.
Consider adding these top times to ask for referrals to your communication strategy:
This one’s simple: Keep mentioning your referral program. Highlight it anywhere you can think of. You may think you’re talking about it a lot, but chances are that your client won’t remember. The “rule of seven” indicates that something needs to be seen seven times before someone remembers it in any detail or takes action.
Make sure your referral program is prominently featured across all of your marketing channels to make it as easy as possible for clients to find. If it’s hard to find or understand, clients will be less likely to complete it. We’ll go over where to promote your program in a bit; just keep this in mind when creating your strategy.
Make asking for referrals a natural part of your interactions. Mention it as much as possible and on as many channels as possible without being pushy. A great way to do this is by mentioning it in all your marketing materials rather than outright asking.
We recommend always including the dollar amount of the reward in your messaging to increase the appeal. Consider messaging like this:
These are casual ways to ask them to keep it in their minds and highlight the reward they can earn.
We may sound like a broken record when we say that you should include your referral program as much as you can, but it’s key to your success. We’ll go through the top places you should consider promoting your program.
Want the TLDR? Here are the five best practices for skyrocketing your referrals.
There are hundreds of ways to promote it, so let’s start with the basics that everyone should be doing. Start by incorporating your referral program into your existing marketing collateral. Every realtor should incorporate all the following options.
While you’re at it, feel free to take a look at our referral program and refer a friend to earn $150 (see how easy it is to mention)!
Now, it’s time to announce your referral program to your audience. We suggest doing this through email and social media.
Start with an email blast to all past and potential buyers. Introducing your program, highlight its benefits, and include the program link.
Pro-tip: Locorum offers a variety of email templates for announcing your referral program. Simply choose one and add your details!
Here’s an example from The Parker Coulter Team that you could send.
Learn more about this campaign, the results and why we like it here.
Share the announcement across all your social channels, including Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and X. Remember to include your program link or where to access the referral program and the reward amount. You can re-use content from your announcement email. For example, you could post:
Your next reward is just a referral away - earn $250 🤑
In the spirit of giving back, we’re introducing our brand-new referral program to reward you and your friends. If you introduce us to a friend who buys or sells with us, we’ll send a $250 pre-paid Mastercard to both of you.
Let’s make property dreams come true together. Use the form below to start referring today and turn every successful recommendation into a win-win celebration!
[Program link]
Include an eye-catching graphic, and you’re good to go!
Post about your program on your social media channels regularly for effective frequency. We recommend posting monthly to remind clients about the program continually.
In addition to your monthly newsletter (which you should already be sending), consider adding these campaigns or sequences to your communication plans.
Now that we’ve gone over some digital campaigns, let’s go through some physical marketing collateral where you can promote your referral program. As part of your Locorum subscription, we can generate a QR code for you to include in the following materials (reach out to learn more).
Including a referral QR code in these marketing materials will get you in front of more past or potential clients.
Talking about it in person is usually more direct, also known as a “hard ask.” When meeting with clients, whether in person or over the phone, talk about your referral program. Plan when you will ask to avoid bringing it up too much.
We’ve already mentioned to talk about it when your clients are happiest. Mentioning your program at key milestones increases the chances of referrals. Consider asking when clients are likely to be most satisfied, such as:
Asking people who were referred to you previously is a great strategy since they are already familiar with the process. Referred customers are even four times more likely to refer friends.
After they’ve had a positive experience, whether they bought from you or not, it is a great time to ask for referrals. Let the conversation flow naturally, and bring it up at the end of your meeting.
Ask people who aren't interested in buying from you if they have friends in the market. Just because this home wasn't the right fit for them doesn't mean it won't be perfect for one of their friends. Everyone appreciates rewards, so why not offer them? Be cautious and only mention your program to people who have a positive impression of your business.
You might already host some community events, so we recommend mentioning it to clients there. Additionally, consider the following events or seminars for past or potential buyers. These will help position you as an expert, meet clients, maintain relationships and give you a chance to highlight your referral program. Each of these could be in-person or online.
If you want to go the extra mile, consider offering a reward to attendees or those who refer a friend to your event. You can give $10 each or hold a draw for $100 at the end.
A referral program where a client or another realtor refers a friend to you isn’t the only type of campaign you can run. There’s actually lots you can do, and we’ll go through a couple of our favourites.
Our number one recommendation (other than your general program) is a Home Equity Report Program. There are two sides to this program for your clients:
So, if someone signs up for a home equity report, they get $25. Then, encourage them to refer friends, and they and their friends will each get another $25.
Here’s everything you need to know about setting up a Home Equity Report Program.
A program that encourages people to sign up for a customized home search isn’t about referrals but will still get more clients through your door. We recommend framing it as finding their “dream home” to encourage them to sign up. When someone signs up, all you need to do is set them up for a customized home search and send them $10-$25. It’s a small budget for more clients.
You could also run a campaign where once they sign up, they get a reward if a friend signs up too (i.e., give $10, get $0 when your friend signs up)
We’ve talked a lot about referral programs. Now, let’s get a little more into rewards. Scheduled rewards, such as those for birthdays and home anniversaries, can go a long way toward showing appreciation and keeping clients engaged.
It doesn’t have to be a huge reward; anything from $10 is a nice bonus for your customers, depending on what the reward is for. We’ll outline some of the top times to reward your clients, along with some tips to personalize them.
Check out our examples for birthday, closing gifts, and home anniversary reward emails.
While we recommend sending a reward at these times to show appreciation, you can also send an email campaign if you don’t have the budget to send a small reward.
Make your rewards more personal by sending a custom-branded Mastercard through Locorum. Branding your own cards not only enhances your brand image and professionalism but also fosters customer loyalty and sets you apart from competitors. Every time they use their reward, they’ll think of you. Contact our team to learn more.
Anita Lamarche, a realtor in Calgary, has revolutionized her referral program using innovative strategies with Locorum. Here’s what she’s doing:
On top of that, Anita’s strategy is resulting in a 50% deal success rate and more new deals.
Learn more about Anita’s story here.
Running a successful referral program requires more than setting it up and hoping for the best. It demands consistent promotion and strategic implementation to achieve its full potential. But don't worry; Locorum is here to help. Did you know that we offer a dedicated onboarding manager service to help you get started?
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