How do you reach your buyers?

[CMO9]

Hello all,
How do you get potential buyers to answer your calls or ads? I have a small start up RE investment company that would like to specialize in wholesaling properties but we are having difficulty getting any buyers to answer our phone messages and ads that we have placed (Craig's list). Is there a certain marketing approach or "spin" that we need to convey with our message/business to reach these buyers?

[REI in PA]

If you want to be a wholesaler you need more than just a craigslist ad.  Read the Marketing Forum to educate yourself in marketing. Below are a few ideas I quickly listed on how to get the phone ringing:

Running Classified Ads, Bandit Signs, Vehicle Magnet Signs, Business Cards, Flyers, Postcards And Direct Mail; Door Hangers, Foreclosure Auctions, Landlords Who Run Classified Ads In The Rent Section, Property Management Companies, Insurance Companies, Networking With Professionals, Bird Dogs, Pre-Foreclosure, Tax Sales, REO's – Real Estate Owned, Old Listings, Out Of Area Owners, Calling Classified Ads, Driving For Dollars.

[tampasteph]

The best way to get investors calling you is to advertise a smokin' deal. 

The buyers are out there, but they are looking for great deals in this market. 

Once you figure out what a great deal is in the market you are working, you will have no problem attracting buyers once you get one under contract.  If it is truly a good deal, your phone will ring off the hook. 

Steph

[salazarproperties]

The way I found my buyers is to look on craigslist. I found 10 great buyers looking and searching through CL. What you do is look at every real estate ad on CL and if it seems like their an investor I simply email them telling them what I do and ask if they would like to network with another investor. 99% of the time if they are investors they will say yes. Here are signs you look for on CL.

-House completely remodeled
-Lease Option/rent to own
-for rent
-we buy houses

Look under every link on CL in your city you'll be surprised what you find. I even found a buyer who had an ad under "gigs" and "labor."
I think this is the easiest and best way to find buyers

[Jeff Corpuz]

You must be different then everyone else!

What do you have to offer to other investors?

What's your USP (Unique Selling Proposition?

Get creative with your ads/copy, and you will
get calls.

Don't be like all the same boring ads out there;

FOR SALE
CALL xxx-xxx-xxxx

That's not enough to get any calls.

Here's an ad that you can try:

Homes At 30-50% OFF!
Must Sell NOW!
Call xxx-xxx-xxxx

[salazarproperties]

You could also place a ad on CL saying you have a great deal and give some numbers then you'll have buyers calling you. Then just say it was a fake ad to get buyers to call you so you can build your buyers list. Most the time they will understand. And ask them if they would like for you to call them when you get deals. I have also done this and got a few good buyers.

[unicornrockinvestments]

There are several ways that I found buyers when I first started, which was recently, and now I have more buyers than sellers begging me for deals (seriously, I was shocked).

Post Ad's on Craiglist about the house right before you go to sign the contract.  I get about thirty hits before it is even signed!  Nutsoid responses.  I post them as "light fixer, 50k instant sweat equity" or "Posh Neighborhood, Crappy House, Rehabbers, Investors Dream!" or "easy money, light fixes, best offer takes it in three days"...I have buyers who contact me now regularly (some daily) asking me to please send them my "list".  I have also had buyer responses to my "We Buy Ugly Homes" ad.

I've posted a sample of one of my CL ads that drives them crazy below.  Hope this helps!

Also post these on backpage.com, kajiji.com, and when you get a deal make sure to post it on the different REI authors websites as well.  Many of them have listing websites so check around.

My ad looks like this... (make sure to keep it short, simple, sweet, and sometimes funny)...CREATE A NEED FOR URGENCY!!

$235000 / 5br - Dream rehab home awaits...100k in profits, easy! (Mountlake Terrace with view)

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Reply to: hous-1027013685@craigslist.org [?]
Date: 2009-02-09, 1:50AM PST



Imagine this...
Large lot, partial view of lake WA, great plumbing, electric and bones in a neighborhood where houses are STILL selling in the 700k range..needs some siding, cleaning, new flooring, and anything else you'd like to make it look pretty

You could rehab and rent for a pretty penny...hold...or even better..rehab and sell it in ten seconds flat for 300k-400k in a neighborhood that bears 700k+ and make an insane profit...

What are you waiting for? Contact us for details...make an offer...this one's going to fly and it could be your BEST deal of the year!
We just got it...it will be gone in 48 hours or less...we can guarantee it

Hope this helps!  Feel free to email me for more info!  I'm just getting started to but my marketing to buyers seems to be working better than I'd have ever expected and I really have not spent a penny unless you count the monthly fee I pay to have Comcast Internet in my home =) 
Best of luck and keep being positive, it works!

[unicornrockinvestments]

Just a heads up...I was a stellar sales person before this and learned that if you "paint a picture" or "tell a story" people will be much more interested than if you are cut and dry.  So tell them what they need to do with the property and HOW it can make them money afterwards.  Investors and all consumers are always looking for a way to save TIME, save MONEY, or MAKE MONEY...doing all three is best so before you sign a deal with a motivated seller make sure to examine your reasoning...
Will this make someone else money, save them money in turn making them money, or save them time while making them money because time is money...
D

[jbhollis1180]

Unicorn,

Just a FYI
 
-I have also had buyer responses to my "We Buy Ugly Homes" ad.-

I work for a HomeVestors franchise and using that tag is an infringment of the company logo, trademark, etc.  Anything with the word ugly, technically.  I'm sure it's very slim, but they have on occassion gone after people for it, I think more so when they use signs that are in violation.  None the less, just a heads up.



I would say based on what our company does, everyone has given great feedback for bringing in buyers.  Our franchise has built our investor list mostly from the houses we have to sell.  Everytime someone calls about a property, we get their information and email them when we get a new property. 

[CMO9]

Thanks for all the great advice!
Building on that...is there a list or contact available to hunt for particular types of distressed properties such as a probate list or pre-foreclosures?