How Vyral Client Lee Tessier Prevents Past Clients From Hiring The Competition in Only 1 Hour a Month

Read the press release about Baltimore Real Estate Agent Lee Tessier's database marketing results.

Lee: I'm Lee Tessier with ReMax, American Dream. I am a Realtor, which we always hate to say in a way, because I'd rather be a Real Estate Expert, which is what we really are, rather than a Realtor that's not giving good advice, true advice.

Frank: Okay. So why did you make the jump to use video and social media in your business? What trends have you seen out there? Obviously you're putting the time and the finances into this. Of all the other options out there, why did you choose this?




Lee: Well Facebook. Let where you go. Everywhere, you watch TV commercials. What's on everything? A Facebook icon. Everybody's on there. So you had better go where they're at and start fishing or you're going to be out of business. So you need the market there.

And for video, look at YouTube. How many videos are hit on YouTube on a daily basis? It's just amazing. So if you put good content out there or something funny or whatever else, people are going on and watching it.

Frank: What's an example of good content?

Lee: Like we just did one with our home inspector. We had a 3-4 minute video. He came in. And we talked about questions that buyers may have, what to look for in our environment, with homes in our area. Is it polybutylene? Or electrical issues? And people are interested in buying foreclosures. What can they look for when they go there: Is there going to be mold? Are there going to be things that the bank is not going to fix - electrical issues? roofing? Whatever it could be, he details it out in his report.

So it was good information and passing that on to our buyers.

Frank: So do you have any stories or results that you have seen from this that you can share with me of how these videos and social media have helped you grow your business and make money.

Lee: With Facebook and with Vyral Marketing, the videos we've sent out, like the ones we've sent to Boomtown, our lead provider, for our buyers, they would not respond to some of our leads. And on two different occasions, one replied back to us using a home stager for every listing that we sell.

So they were interested in what things a stager was looking for. Was it depersonalizing their house, or what was it that they needed to do? So that client contacted us, where they wouldn't even respond to our contact at that point.

So instead of them not responding to our calls, they're calling us. Now they're going to be a seller and buyer. Where, who knows? They may have gone to somebody else before.

Frank: Okay. So how have people in general reacted to your social media and videos?

Lee: I get past clients that maybe I haven't talked to in a few months. Thanks for sending us a video. It's good to see you. I haven't seen you in a while.

We do movie events every year as a way for us to get back in front of our clients on a yearly basis. But maybe they haven't seen me in a little while, and here they are getting to see me in a video. So they like the information that they're getting because it's educational and it's another way for me to stay in front of them.

Frank: So what are your biggest fears or frustrations to starting all of this? What held you back from doing video and social media and touching your database?

Lee: Time. When am I going to have enough time to do it? I know from talking to you before, it's like, when am I going to have time to do it?

So with hiring Rob as my marketing specialist, he's really helped implement, and getting us to do videos on a regular basis. And then with you having Josh as your coaching person, it really makes - we need these videos by such and such a date. Well now you're pushed and now you're held accountable. When are you going to get it done?

But the initial thing of why should I or why didn't I - it's implementation. So many people are like, yeah, come back from a conference, yeah that was such good information. I'm going to do it. And then it doesn't. It gets put on a shelf and you forget about it. It gets piled in a stack of papers, and you don't go back to it.

But with you guys, once I decided and you talked to me enough. Yep, this is a good thing to do. Let's start moving forward. And then you held me accountable on, hey, we need a video now. We need a video at the end of the month. And we can get those things done.

Frank: Are there any tips or advice you can offer to someone who is on the edge about getting started with something like this? Are there any tasks you can recommend to make it easier or just advice you can offer them?

Lee: Yeah. Take action and do it. If I would have kept on going, you get waylaid, you get busy, you get busy with work, you get busy with life, and you just don't do it. So just get off the fence and make your decision and do it. Don't not do it, because that's one of the things I would say. Make sure that you do go forward, because it's such a big thing.

Look how many people hit YouTube videos every day. So if you post them out there, you've got them posted on your websites, and you guys make it easy. You're telling us, you're giving us content, and then we can do our videos from that. And then it gives us ideas. And if we do something on our own, you'll write all the specs to get with it. It makes our life a whole lot easier. It takes 10-15 minutes, sometimes less.

As we get better with our videos, it's down to one take and 5 minutes and we're done.

Frank: Great. How much time a month would you say you dedicate to this?

Lee: An hour.

Frank: One hour a month?

Lee: Of doing the videos - one hour a month at most. Maybe it's a little bit more, but I have someone running around doing some of my leg work for me. And you guys are doing most of the leg work. So if I can spend less than an hour recording the videos and sending them to you and you edit it, post it, get it out to our sphere, I'm happy.

Frank: Good. What results from this do you expect over the next 12 months?

Lee: I expect it makes us - we want to be a celebrity in our market. I know I do. I'm in a restaurant and I see people waving at me, and I don't know who they are. But they know from our moving truck, from our signs, from the videos that we're sending out. People just get impacted in so many cases from all the marketing that we do.

And the video, they're getting it in their email and seeing me live and talking to them. It's just very impacting to them. So that generates more video from people that are talking to them all the time. So it's like, alright, if I'm going to sell my house, I better use him. Or if I'm going to buy a house, I had better use his team. You know, whatever that case is.

So that's what we're expecting - to be the celebrity in our town. People think of us before going anywhere else. It's just like McDonald's. I mean, you're driving down the road. You see the sign. You k now what it is. I want them to remember my sign when they ride by it.

Frank: So have you always been this focused on your database?

Lee: No. Not as much as I am now.

Frank: What made the shift to making a database oriented marketing approach?

Lee: Because it's so important. Your database is your bank. So it's like, alright, where are you going to fish? You've got your database where all your people are, or you've got this big ocean. Where are you going to go? You're going to go into the small pond, or are you going into this big ocean?

I'd rather go where I know the people already. They already know me, like me, and trust me. Why shouldn't I fish there rather than fishing in the ocean? It just gives you somewhere to tap into.

Frank: Tell me what you're doing right now to pull as much money as possible out of your database.

Lee: Calling them. We're sending them video emails twice a month. We're direct mailing them. Just constant contact to them. Because if you don't stay in front of them, somebody else is.

Frank: How many times a year would you say you touch your database?

Lee: 25-30. Probably more than that now. Maybe in excess of 40. Sometimes it's too much. But I would say, I'd rather have too much than not enough. What's the percentage on realtors that would use their agent again, but they never hear or know where to contact them?

Frank: 90%

Lee: Yeah. It's outrageous. They would use them, but they can't. Like 15% of the time they use them. With us, we're staying in contact with them, staying in front of them. So who gets the referral? We do. Who gets their business? Who gets their family members or whatever else? That's the first person they think of: us.

Frank: Awesome! So how has Vyral helped you with all of this?

Lee: The implementation. Once I finally said, hey, I'm going to do it, you gave us everything we needed. Your website's great because all your content's on there. If I'm looking, what am I going to do for a video this month? You've already got it mapped out. So I can go in for the 40 or so topics you have.

Maybe I don't even decide on one of them, but it gives me so much other information. I'm like, let's do this. Let's cross between two of them, like what we did with our home inspector. Let's bring somebody in, talk about it, have a conversation. And let's get that out to our client. If it's educational and it's helpful for them.
I think it's been fantastic. You do all the legwork for us. We shoot the video. Maybe it's an hour a month of vide. Sometimes it's 20 minutes. If I can get two good videos, and we're done in 10 minutes on each one, I'm rolling.

Frank: And what are you able to do now with all of this time that it frees up?

Lee: Work on more prospecting. If we prospect more, I'm going to get more business. So we're staying in front of the client, prospecting, following up with past clients and referrals, staying in front of them. Just in turn gets our business.

I need to double my business from this past year. How am I going to do that? Videos. Staying in front of the client. Making calls. Prospecting. Calling sellers. let my buyers' agents work with the buyers. Keep them focused.

Frank: And what stands out the most about the process of working with them?

Lee: I had heard about you from Matt Wagner, from one of his masterminds. And Matt's been great to work with. He was referred by another agent. And then he was also referred by Bob Corcoran. So I was like, alright, started using him and his systems are proven. Hey, they work.

Matt trusted you enough to share with the group we have. So I'm like, alright. Met you once. Met you a second time. Met you at the next mastermind. Alright, I'm gaining traction because I'm already starting to trust you. I'm already starting to like you. And the information you're saying makes sense. So it's like, alright.

Why don't we do it. And then you budget for it. What are my expenses? Where do I need to keep them? But I was listening to Jay and he was talking about what's your marketing budget. And he was like, you shouldn't really have one because it depends on what you make from what you're spending. As long as you're getting 4-5x a return.

And it's been great with you guys. I can't say enough good things. If people are contacting me, if I get one more buyer that wants to buy or one more seller, that pays for you guys for a year. And if I get 5, now I have leverage. If I get 5-10, now I'm happy, because I'm getting 5-10 cents on my dollar.

Frank: Good. Is there any one thing that stands out the most on Vyral Marketing?

Lee: Just the ease of use. Hey, if we need something we pick up the phone. You're holding us accountable. Hey, I need these videos. Hey, we need these videos. And sometimes we're lagging behind. Then we hurry up and get them done. Then the pressure's off again until the next month. But it's good for us, because we always wait until the last minute.

What do most sales people do? That's what I see all the time.

So I would say the ease of use more than anything.

Frank: Great.

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