I hope I have been keeping you busy and you have been trying out my tips and marketing advice. This stuff really works, but the key as I said before is to DO IT!
Don’t plan on doing it, don’t get ready to do it, just do it.
If you can’t do it yourself, pay someone to do it for you. All of these techniques will pay off for years to come, but you won’t get there unless you START TODAY!
If you are in dire need of work and you have not taken the biggest step to get the most work the fastest, then break out the piggy bank and get a good list of appraisal management companies. I still make 8-10k every month just from AMC work. Sure it blows to weed out all the bad guys, but my list makes it easier. The top 40 companies send me over 95% of my AMC work and they are all national companies. I would sign up to all the companies on the list to ensure you will be busy and to ensure that you are also serving the highest paying AMCs with the most realistic turn times, etc.
In this weeks email I am going to tell you a little secret on picking up a few extra orders a month. You can also use these skills to market more attorney and lawyer work.
If you don’t remember my email about marketing to lawyers, it is below with the addition of bailbondsmen added to it. If you haven’t called any lawyers or attorneys yet, I would just go ahead and make a small list of lawyers, attorneys and bailbondsmen and start making some calls.
For example, some of the work I get are from bailbondsmen, lawyers and attorneys that have included me on a list that they give to their clients when they need an appraisal. This is excellent work and if there is any chance you have to go to court, just set a reasonable rate (I quote $250 an hour) and if you are not already certified an Expert Witness, you will be after your first time appearing in court. Then you can add Expert Witness to your list of qualifications. That always looks nice!
So, do this right now after you print the email out.
– Go to Google and search for [your city name] + bankruptcy attorney or bankruptcy lawyer – write down the top 5 results, if you want more, go ahead and get 10
– Search for [city name] + divorce attorney or divorce lawyer and get as many as you would like
– Seach for [city name] + estate attorney or estate lawyer
– Search for [city name] + bail bonds
– Put the names in some type of document, I prefer excel and I put all the contact information to include names, phone number and complete address
– Call each of the numbers and find out who you could speak with to offer your services and possibly get on a list of approved appraisers that are referred to clients.
– Follow up by mailing them a business card, a follow up letter and any marketing materials if you have any. Otherwise stopping at their locations while you are out doing appraisals always seems to work the best to get more of these types of clients.
You can make notes on your list of when you made initial contact, what was the result and when you mailed your marketing materials or stopped by their office. Write down names of the people you spoke with so you can follow up in the future.
Give this a try! If you are nervous and are already thinking of hesitating or making excuses, pick the area you have the most experience with. Most likely all of you have done appraisals needed for estate purposes, divorce or bankruptcy, but one might be easier for you to talk about.
Pick the one you are most comfortable with and get 5 names and numbers. Call and let them know all about your services and experience. Once you get the hang of this, you will open many doors and they will call you first because you are the only appraiser that called them for business. They will be impressed.
Let me know how it goes! I would love to get your feedback if you have been implementing any changes in your appraisal business. If you are ever in a bind and you have no work coming in, you really need to just pick up the phone and start making some phone calls. I guarantee you will get work this way.
The easiest way to get this work is to have a top ranking website. If you have not set yours up yet, please visit http://www.appraiserwebsites.net for more information. Some lawyers and attorneys do have a list, but most just tell their clients to search Google for a local appraiser. But you still do not want to neglect marketing direct either over the phone or in person. I have picked up numerous 5 to 10 property appraisal deals this way. Some of these complete estate appraisal deals have paid my wages for a whole month from just one client / order.
Until next time! Happy Appraising!
Bryan Knowlton
Appraiser Income
http://www.appraiserincome.com
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