In today’s real estate market, getting listings is as competitive as it’s ever been.

The combination of a shortage of inventory and a flood of new agents hitting the real estate market can make it tough to get consistent listing business.

With this as the current reality, no agent can afford to be their own worst enemy in generating and then converting listing opportunities.

It can damage your listing business...potentially irreparably.

Here are five listing business killers you must avoid:

1. Avoid being a telemarketer

Telemarketers have one job and one job only: make as many dials and contacts as you can until you make a sale.

They don’t build relationships.

They don’t make multiple calls to the same prospects.

The do three things: pick it up, talk it up hang it up. And if they don’t get a sale, they move on to the next person.

That’s essentially what agents have been doing since 1908 when the National Association of Real Estate Exchanges was founded. 210 years of doing nothing more than hunting down now business.

It’s no surprise that 80% of the people who get their license are out of the business within two years and that the average income of agents with less than 7 years experience is roughly $37,900.

Most importantly, it’s no shock that most agents do more buyer business than listing business.

Many of them rely too heavily on only making outbound sales calls and not doing other things to generate and nurture leads that they can convert to sales down the road.

2. Avoid making listing sales calls yourself

Inside Sales Agents ( ISAs ) are a super popular solution to listing lead generation and conversion these days…and rightly so.

ISAs not only help you get in touch with prospects faster, they help bridge the gap between first contact and the point at which sellers are ready to list their home.

Taking into consideration the that only 3 to 5% of the listing business you come across is now business and adding to that the fact that nurtures convert to sales at an 8% clip, having an ISA to make calls for you - day in and day out - is a no brainer.

Now, you might not have deep pockets, the space for an ISA or even a clue where to start, but that shouldn’t prevent you from dipping your toe in the water.

There are a number of U.S.-based companies that you can use to at least make first contact with the leads you are generating.

In addition to setting you some appointments, they’ll also uncover some nurturing opportunities for you to stay on top of until the sellers are ready to list their homes.

If you execute this 1-2 punch effectively, you’ll be able to make more sales and set aside some money to hire a full-time ISA...a decision that will positively impact your business forever.

3. Avoid losing contact with prospects and past clients

Have you ever said this to yourself: “I can’t believe they didn’t list with me. I’ve helped them buy and/or sell houses in the past and they listed their home with someone else. I just can’t believe it”?

Well...believe it.

It’s safe to say that any time someone you know or that knows you lists their home for sale with another agent it’s likely because you didn’t do the best job you could have staying top of mind with them.

Now, that doesn’t mean you get all of them, but it puts you in position to get your unfair share of them for sure.

If you maintain consistent contact with your prospects and past clients, you put yourself in position to be the person they call when it’s time to put their home on the market.

Agents who use a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) platform with solid email, text and voicemail drip campaigns to help nurture listing leads in between phone or in-person contacts generate more listing appointments and listings taken than agents who simply pick up the phone, dial for dollars, hang up and then never talk to people again.

4. Avoid paying for sub-par listing leads

Not all leads are created equally.

And, while there’s no such thing as a bad lead...there are listing lead sources that are significantly better than others.

The key to solid listing leads is the data augmentation.

More specifically, good listing leads have lots of information about the seller with whom you are looking to get in contact: name, at least phone number, correct address, email address...everything you would want to know about a prospect that you’re trying to reach.

Unfortunately, there are lots of providers out there who are happy to give you a name and either an address and/or an email address for the seller prospects you pay them to cull for you.

Many times, you don’t get good phone numbers (and often, you don’t get a phone number at all).

All of this adds up to a lot of work and not so great results.

If you want to avoid having happen to your business what Mick told Rocky Clubber Lang would do to him -  “...kill ya’ ta death...” - you need to get good seller leads with excellent contact information.

5. Avoid winging it

If you don’t have your sales calls and listing presentations scripted out, then you are at a huge disadvantage when it comes to getting consistent, predictable results.

Winging it is never a good thing.

Lots of agents don’t use scripts because they don’t want to sound robotic. I wouldn’t want to sound robotic either. But I also wouldn’t want to say the wrong thing and get my “lunch eaten” by a seller prospect over the phone or at the kitchen table.        

Oddly enough, when you say the same thing at the same time in the same situation when you’re talking with a seller...you’re using a script.

The important thing is to make sure that what you’re saying works and works well.

If not, there are lots of resources and we can even get you some great phone scripts and a solid listing presentation if you need one.

You only need to put your comments below and let us know you need them.

We’ll gladly provide our best materials to you at no cost.

With all the resources there are out there and the ability to improve your systems and skill set dramatically, there’s no good reason for you not to build your listing business consistently.

If you avoid these five listing business killers and do what you’re supposed to do when you’re supposed to do it, you can become the go-to listing agent in your marketplace.

This post was originally published by Market Maker Leads.