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Clients are becoming less lenient when communicating with businesses, including real estate firms. In fact, 57% of customers are willing to switch to competitors after one lousy interaction.
Business process outsourcing (BPO) services are a strategic approach to enhancing client communications in real estate transactions. It empowers you to provide seamless interactions around the clock across multiple channels.
If you want to learn more about these benefits, then keep reading. This article explores how leveraging real estate BPO services can improve client interactions.
1. Provide round-the-clock client support and services
In this fast-paced world, missing a lead due to unavailable support can mean losing a valuable client. Real estate BPO services empower you to accommodate client needs beyond regular business hours.
To better understand how outsourcing can help you achieve 24/7 client communications, let’s first answer the question: What is BPO? BPO is a practice that involves delegating non-core functions to a third-party team.
This arrangement gives you access to specialized expertise and technologies relevant to your delegated processes. Here’s how outsourcing translates into round-the-clock operations and enhances client communication for your real estate firm:
Global workforce distribution
Most outsourcing companies have a team of real estate virtual assistants (VAs) in various countries. But what is a real estate VA? It is a remote professional dedicated to supporting outsourced tasks.
This global workforce distribution allows providers to implement the “follow the sun” operating model. Like relays, this strategy enables team members to pass issues and workloads across different time zones, allowing uninterrupted support.
Artificial intelligence (AI)-powered chatbots
Outsourcing teams don’t rely solely on staffing to achieve 24/7 support. They also utilize technology to streamline operations and maximize efficiency. One prominent tool they use to attain round-the-clock operations is AI-powered chatbots, which can perform the following tasks:
- Answer frequently asked questions (FAQs) (e.g., inquiries about properties, scheduling, and real estate processes)
- Guide clients through simple interactions (e.g., scheduling appointments for viewing and downloading property brochures)
- Capture lead information (e.g., primary contact data, property search criteria, qualifying information, and engagement details)
Split staff scheduling and shifts
Split shifts are another way BPO services can help enhance the client communication efforts of your real estate firm. This strategy involves dividing a regular workday into two separate schedules, with a substantial break in between.
For example, an employee might work from 8 a.m. to noon and then return to work from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. Most VAs can cover any shift, which is one of the reasons to hire a real estate VA.
2. Facilitate seamless communication and personalized interactions
Reputable BPO providers leverage cutting-edge technology to personalize interactions and create a seamless communication flow. They can integrate these tools with your existing customer relationship management (CRM) system, so you won’t have to invest in new ones.
Let’s discuss how outsourcing works in streamlining and personalizing client communication:
Streamlining data entry and management
Maintaining accurate and up-to-date client information is essential for effective and seamless communication. One mistake can cost you their loyalty. According to Zendesk, 57% of customers switch to competitors after just one bad interaction.
To ensure consolidated and personalized interactions, outsourcing teams assist you with the following tasks:
- Lead capture and data entry across multiple channels (e.g., integrating with website forms, phone calls, social media leads, etc.)
- Data cleansing and duplication reduction (e.g., identifying, merging, flagging, and deleting duplicates and establishing data entry protocols for consistency)
- Data enrichment (e.g., researching public data, listening to social media, and integrating market research)
Leveraging reporting and analytics
Enhancing your client communication strategies includes learning from your real estate firm’s previous customer interactions. Outsourcing teams can extract raw data from your CRM system and transform them into actionable insights, helping you with the following:
- Generating comprehensive reports (e.g., frequency and nature of interactions, the effectiveness of email drip campaigns, and the journey of leads through the sales funnel)
- Identifying trends and patterns (e.g., preferred property types, geographic search areas, and specific features clients are interested in)
- Creating data visualizations (e.g., appropriate charts and maps, data callouts and annotations, and view filtering and customization)
- Developing communication strategies (e.g., tailoring email content to client segments, adjusting campaign timing, and focusing efforts on high-demand neighborhoods)
- Training real estate agents (e.g., training for CRM and data entry, utilizing report tools and CRM insights, and implementing automated workflows)
Automating and personalizing responses
Unity Communications’ real estate case study illustrates the importance of prompt responses. A real estate firm was losing clients due to limited capacity, and the BPO company helped it regain control of the situation through its services.
One way BPO real estate services can help you accommodate surging volumes without compromising personalization is by automating the following:
- Administrative tasks and workflows (e.g., setting up follow-up reminders, assigning tasks based on client interactions, and adding appointments to agents’ calendars)
- Email drip campaigns (e.g., segmenting client lists, personalizing email content, and setting up email sequences based on the client’s journey stage)
- Tex messages for a more personalized approach (e.g., sending quick updates and reminders and using two-way text messaging)
3. Integrate multichannel communication strategies
You can further enhance the client communication efforts of your real estate company by leveraging external resources to implement multichannel platforms. This approach allows you to reach clients through their preferred channels, such as:
- Phone
- Text messages
- Live chat
- Social media messaging (e.g., Facebook Messenger, Instagram, etc.)
- Video conferencing (e.g., Zoom, Skype, Google Meets, etc.)
Clients feel valued when communication happens on their preferred channels. This leads to increased engagement and a more positive client experience.
To help you integrate multichannel capabilities in your client communication system, BPO teams first conduct surveys or analyze interactions. This analysis allows them to understand your client’s preferred channels.
They also segment clients based on demographics, preferred property types, and tech-savviness. Understanding these criteria enables targeted communication strategies.
Once done, your BPO partner selects and integrates various tools into a single platform, allowing agents to seamlessly switch between channels based on conversation flow or client preference. They also merge with your CRM system to centralize client interactions and history.
Multichannel communication strategies at work
The following scenarios illustrate how the multichannel approach assists in enhancing client communications for your real estate firm:
- Initial inquiry. A potential client contacts your firm through a social media inquiry form. An agent sends a personalized email introducing the property and scheduling a call.
- Property tour. After a physical tour, your real estate VA sends a follow-up text message with additional property details, high-quality photos, and a link to a virtual tour (if available).
- Offer negotiations. Negotiations might occur via emails and phone calls, with the VA facilitating communication and documenting all details accurately.
- Closing process. The VA expedites the closing process by sending electronic documents for signing and informing clients through text messages.
The bottom line
Outsourcing gives you access to specialized expertise and technologies for enhancing client communication strategies. This practice enables your real estate firm to provide uninterrupted, seamless, personalized interactions across various channels.
These features translate to improved client engagement, increased lead conversion rates, and boosted reputation. Ultimately, outsourcing provides a competitive advantage in the fierce real estate industry.
Let’s connect if you’re interested in leveraging real estate BPO services or want to learn more about the strategy!
