800 # s

As soon as Rick and I started Dean's program, we got our 800 number set. We used the company that Dean referred to in one of his books. We get a few calls, but mostly are hangups. Some listen to the whole recording, and still don't leave a message.

I thought to myself that if I was in the process of losing my home, the last thing I wanted to do was listen to a recording. I told Rick that these people need to hear a real voice, one that they could talk to. Rick agreed and I changed the numbers on our bandit signs to our cell number. I didn't care if the phone rang off the hook, at least we were there for serious people that needed our help. I also put our cell number in our ghost ads, which gets alot more response than the bandit signs. You do however, have to remember that were in Los Angeles California where the people have a whole different mind set. We've gotten calls from people that are just looking for investors to save them from losing their homes, not wanting our help, just our money (which we don't have)....they are complete denial.

I think that the 800# could work for some, but I know that if I were in trouble, ready to lose my home, I would want to talk to a live person and not a recording.

Rick & Peggy

Rick & Peggy,

Thanks for your feedback in this post. We are still debating what type of number to use because I know I would not want to listen to long recordings either. I am contemplating using my cell for now. I read an earlier post that some DG er's are using www.phonebooth.com. I will be checking this out to see if it will be feasible. Happy investing.

Jill & I have been doing this full time for 10 years, & here in Fl. since 2001 ... since we stay in our own county we just use a local #, we think
it seems more personal to callers, plus it's free to us, so we keep more profit in our pockets.

I was sooooooooooooooo hesitant to create another phone bill to pay, but I "obediently" did it. (I can see both sides of this equation.)

When I call someone for information ... 90% of the time I loathe getting a recording instead of a breathing person. So, I really relate to those who cringe at it.

However, because I've decided to focus on probate property investment deals, I believe it may be a nice "ice breaker" to allow people to LISTEN without the necessity to TALK AND INTERACT initially --- unless they take that additional step to ask me for a call back. (It remains to be seen if this approach is too mellow.)

Plus, Dean provides really helpful pre-recorded messages I can use. Anyone want to hear an example of the message that comes with Dean's Probate Finder? Here's my toll free number ... 1-800-633-9770

Mostly, I believe this 800 # will be a huge time saver for me. I don't need to personally repeat the same information (again and again) when the recording can do it for me. The system can help sort out the serious folks for me, too.

I'll try it for awhile. I really appreciate the feedback! All other comments welcome too.

~ Sherri

I TRYED THEM TO, AND THEY DID NOT WORK FOR ME. NOW I USE MY CELL PHONE AND ANSWER ALL CALLS.

RANDY

Hi ~

1) Did you have to increase your cell phone plan to make it unlimited calls, and if so, was the cost increase the same as if you had purchased the 800 # ?

2) Do people call (inconsiderately) at all times of the day and night on your cell?
I know calls to make money are always welcomed ... but I do enjoy occasionally being selfish with my personal time.

3) I think it's a big plus to use a cell phone (if for no other reason than the feature of Caller ID, which gives you info on all incoming calls ... missed or otherwise) and that's not a perk of the 800 #. So, I'm wondering if that factored into your decision about the cell being a better choice?

4) Can you please share a reason (or two) why you felt the toll free number wasn't the best way to go for you?

5) Do you answer your cell phone "SOUNDING PROFESSIONAL" like a business now? Or still answer it casually?

Thanks for letting me pick your brain !!!!

~ Sherri

I would like to here some feedback on this also. My cell phone plan is only 750 min but I can see the pros and cons of the pre recorded message. 800# does build your credibility and a lot of people might just want to call for some info and not have to talk to a real person....but will they actually leave their information like Rick and Peggy stated. I do however like the ideal of having your business on "cruise control" so still debating if I should get the COA network message system Dean suggested in his book.

Sherri,

Starting out, definitely go with the local #. Don't worry about calls at all hours of the night, you can just put your phone on silent or vibrate when you go to bed, or just consider it one sacrifice on your way to financial freedom! =)

I use bandit signs a lot, and we get a way higher return with using a local # over 1-800 #. My experience is that people want to deal with someone who is personable and not someone who is corporate. They feel intimidated and threatened by the whole corporate thing. Now this is not true for all of my leads, but I'd say a good 80-90% of them. Heck I'm using hand written bandit signs with my local # and they are pulling way more leads than any professionally pre-printed signs with an 800 number. Save your money for now and just use your cell phone. If you are doing bandit signs just be careful of the code enforcement laws in your town. They will usually never mess with you unless you start stapling them to poles if your area doesn't like that (I got several calls from code enforcers in my area for stapling them to poles, but never got a call for just putting them in the ground). Poles last much longer, but I'll leave that decision to you. If they call, just play dumb and tell them you won't do it anymore. The first call is always a courtesy call letting you know that you can't do it.

Even when I get to the point when I am bringing in 30+ leads a day (almost there!! =D), I would still use a local # and forward that to a professional answering service to sift and sort my leads. The local # just gets a much better response!

- Larry

Just read your profile --- and I'm sure everyone on here wishes they had figured out REI when they were your age !!! Good for you !!!

Yeah, I think it may be a crap shoot (at least at first) whether people leave their information on the 800# but maybe the "carefully crafted messages" by Dean's camp have been statistically proven to engage them? I don't know.

Common sense tells me that you're going to lose some of them (but maybe they weren't the serious ones, anyhow) and it also tells me that some others will appreciate -- and respond positively to -- such a seemingly non-pushy approach.

It all boils down, I think, to being a numbers game in the end. We have to keep making enough contacts --- so that it doesn't matter when some fall off.

Stay tuned. I'll report back here on my experience with this.

Love your Screen Name ... and the double entendre of it! Of course, it refers to "flipping" real estate --- but it also makes me grin because it jogs a memory of childhood and my mom's scoldings: "Don't Be Flip With Me!" ... I had a tendency to talk-back. I was, occasionally, a flippant little thing. (It wasn't funny at the time ... those were the days of spankings!)

Anyway ---

I had to read your post a couple of times in a row. It was full of good perspective. (Thanks...) I sure wish I had created this forum and gotten such feedback before I paid for the toll free number, and first tried marketing the other way. Hearing other experiences still helps me a lot.

I confess, I'm not just talking about being stingy with my personal time while
attempting to sleep. In general, I have learned not to be a slave to my cell phone and run to answer it every time it rings ... even if it's 12 noon. I just dislike being at the mercy of a ringing cell phone, regardless of what I might be concentrating on, or simply enjoying. ( I think of it as "practicing" to be financially wealthy -- where I don't have to jump when everybody calls ... LOL!)

Excellent idea from you about using a local number and FORWARDING the calls.
I had not thought of it.

Great info (all of it) about your personal experience with bandit signs. Thanks for taking the time to write such a comprehensive post here! Many of us will get 'something' out of it for ourselves!

I just decided that I'm going to send you a PM ... please watch for it.

~ Sherri

How about the idea of using your 800 number and your cell. Good for those who are looking for more of a personal touch and also allows you the credibility that an 800 number can provide. Callers would have a choice of which number to use. I think using both numbers and an email address would bring a lot of leads. Just my thought

Best of both worlds. Duh. So simple in its brilliance !!! Why didn't I think of that? Just goes to show, sometimes the obvious still needs to be stated, huh?

Especially now that I've paid for the 800# ... I should "test drive" both ways simultaneously and compare. (Not as dangerous as texting and driving.)

For those who have not, yet, invested in a toll free 800# ... let's keep the conversation going with everyone's personal experiences shared here to learn from.

I'll also report back here. Stay tuned.

Thanks, let me know how the 800# works and if it generates a lot of leads!

Okay, here's some feedback !!!

I just checked my messages on the new toll free 800 # ... and there were lots of calls on there (which made my heart leap, on one hand, and freaked me out on the other!)

But I have figured out that it's "you guys" --- because the calls have been coming from all over the United States --- and I have not marketed in any of those places yet. So, then I remembered that I posted the number here on DG in case anyone wanted to give a listen to the pre-recorded message.

By the way, no problem, you still can call (and hang up on it) if you wish.

I am impressed to see how sophisticated this system is.

Let me share with you some of what the features are on it.

First, there's Caller ID, which I thought would not be a perk since I have no actual phone to look at. However, it automatically e-mails me the caller ID data !!! (How cool is that?)

Second, it also tells me how long the caller listened before they hung up. This may be a good future indicator of how interested someone really was, even if they did not leave a message.

Note: I see where I personally called my 800# and listened for over 300 seconds. Conversely, I had asked a good friend to call it and also listen --- so I could get another opinion that I trusted about the pre-recorded message. This friend called me back later and "pretended " to have listened to it ... but I know NOW that it's untrue ... because that particular call showed a hang-up time after only after 4 seconds !!! Busted !!!

Other features include "Call Forwarding" if desired, and a menu of ways to sort and save the different calls in categories where you can find them later.

I'm still learning the system. But it seems worth the $30 per month.

Some friend hahaha, Sounds like a good investment so far. I think with the 800# you just have to market like crazy getting it out there for the system to be used effectively. Good job tho and thanx for the update!

Thanks to all for the great feedback on this helpful blog. I've learned plenty from it.

800#s were more necessary to do biz nationally before cell phones since people had to pay separately for long distance calls, and they do seem to add a polished corporate cred to you ad media. With the added tracking features Grazi2Graziosi is using, it seems that the major considerations here are: live vs. recording for best results, and the extra expense.

I was one of those national hangups, Grazi2Graziosi, who found your recording to be very professional, but long. Dean apologizes a lot for long video blogs as he realizes that people are just short on patience. I suggest a rewrite to shorten the message as much as possible, in order to sell the sizzle rather than the steak over the phone, and direct them to your website, or offer to mail complete info. Then, a polished letter with a biz card, or website, with testimonies from clients, can be long enough to cover everything that need be said, with instructions to take the next step in the process.

This method adds an extra expense for you, and an extra step for the callers, but rather than loose serious callers, you'll get action from them more often.

Call Dean's 1-888-286-7712 after hours to listen to his recording for a great example.

Good luck!

I know, I know (funny about the friend, huh) ...

And, of course, I had to milk it.

I called him again, and asked more detail about what he thought of the content of the message, length of the message, and provided additional "twine" for him to hang himself. His memorial service will be next week !

~ S

Guess what? That marathon-length message on the machine came from DG and was (somehow) instantly uploaded when I purchased the toll free number! I was shocked to discover it there --- but it was a pleasant surprise (too) because it gives me a template to work from.

Yep -- it's true. Those 800 #'s were a marketing brilliance when customers had to pay to dial long distance (pre-cell-phone era) but now it's not so much for the caller as it is for the business. It's a level of 'cruise control' that will come in handy as I do more volume. This soon, I think it may be a premature expense. (Hoping it will prove me wrong!)

Needless to say, one nice deal will enable me to pay for it (for a year) without blinking. That's how I'm trying to look at it, since I've made the commitment.

All opinions still welcomed here !!

I just called moments ago. That's a very good recording. If I was a probate customer, I would ask for your help. Actually, I now some people who recently passed away and their families may want your advice now. Any such thing as a probate bird dog? Thanks for sharing. Rick in georgia

I'm going to expand on this particular message to you in a PM (maybe not quite as much as book length, LOL, as you promise to do with your own profile.)

But -- yes -- probate bird dogging exists, and is worthwhile.

I welcome you to participate in the deal with me, or would simply give you a generous referral fee (if probate is not your cup of tea).

If able, I'd like to assist the family that you are speaking of.

~ Sherri

Is there a large menu of pre-recorded messages (generated by DG) to choose from

and utilize as we customize our own REI business?

Where do I find them ?

I was provided "one" already, but am seeking other language too.

Thanks a bunch !

check Deans Book Profit from real estate right now. They have a recorded message for almost all parts. Sellers/buyers/investors/agents/brokers ect If you dont have book let me know and I will send you them. Im not sure about other languages tho