I'm pretty darn good at SOI'ing - that is - staying in touch with the people I know so that they remember who 
the heck I am and why they might want to think of my name when the topic of real estate comes up. My SOI enthusiastically supported me in my rookie year and throughout my real estate career... and I have no reason to doubt that they will continue to do so.
But, alas, even I'm not perfect. Sigh.
I just did an annual review of my mailing list to see if anyone hired someone other than me to sell their Denver home in the last year. The Denver MLS allows me to input an address and it tells me if there has been any activity on it in the last three years. It's always a bit of a rush when the address pulls up NO ACTIVITY, but then such a crashing disappointment when I see a SOLD ON date (or even worse, an ACTIVE SINCE date which means I JUST missed them!).
So, since I'm getting ready to launch a big SOI Reconnection campaign, it seemed like a good time to go through the list.
So, how'd I do?
Not bad, actually! Out of 156 contacts who own a home in Denver, only FOUR, yes FOUR of them hired someone else to sell their home! A few more did list elsewhere, but the homes never sold, so they're fair game.
The best news is that the people who "strayed" weren't people I'd made much effort with, so I can't feel too bad. In fact, none of them were anyone I'd actually had a conversation with since the closing - I'd just sent them stuff on a semi-regular basis.
And that's the thing about SOI. There's only so much you can do and you'll go crazy if you try to be perfect. If you could have a personal, non-salesy conversation with every single person you know twice a year, you'd probably bat 1000 with your SOI, but no one can do that! Well, maybe you can, but I can't.
So, I'll just quietly celebrate my 3% shrinkage and commit to making some new friends tonight at the neighborhood Super Bowl party!
Make copies of all the HUD statements from last years closings. Call those clients and offer to bring it by. Let them know they will need it for their taxes.
Okay - get this. Not even an hour ago, one of the people noted in my blog who listed his house with someone else (but it didn't sell) sent me an email asking for the HUD statement from his 2001 closing. Unfortunately, I shredded it about a month ago (can you believe it?), but I said I'd check with the title company for him.
THIS IS A GUY I HAVE NOT HEARD FROM SINCE 2001!!! Coincidence???
Jennifer.... amen on your last part, about having conversations several times a year with each one. It's just so hard, hence why I send out hello e-mails. Besides, the other stuff..... glad to see that you retained so many... good luck to you in '08.
Wait, first you go shopping and are NICE to people, now you are saying you are heading off to a Super Bowl party with NEW people? Uh, did I dream up the comment you once made about your clients saying you were very good at what you did, but not particularly friendly? One of my all time favorite quotes! LOL
Oh, wait, it's not a party, it's an SOI opportunity. Whew. Okay, I get it now. ;-) Have fun!!!
A Super Bowl party in your new neighborhood? You are outstanding! Making your neighborhood an SOI all ready.
Bringing up the point of not being perfect is so good. I am one to freeze in the pursuit of perfectionism. That is why my house is out of control!!!!
Jennifer,
Your network is something to maintain and value, thanks for the post!
Bradley - my social network is like gold to me...
Lisa - Too big, eh? Do you get most of your business from your SOI?
Latonia - LOL = well, it's 4am and I've been up working since 2am... so... NO!
Patricia - me too! It's a pleasant surprise, though, isn't it?
Kim - Yes, I'm hoping to do most of my business in my own neighborhood which I know backward and forward. And, fortunately, I know a lot of people here. I can also be a perfectionist which I consider a blessing most of the time. Nothing I can do about it anyway, might as well enjoy it!
Susan - Yep! I'm actually kinda friendly these days! Maybe I'm finally growing up. But yeah, you're right. It does help me be braver when I think of it as a business effort, even though, as you know, I never prospect at such events.
I read a blog recently where the poster wrote about not hearing from a buyer prospect for some time and when they finally reconnected, she found out they had a 5 month old child she was unaware of. The point of the post was the say just because you do not hear from your clients doesn't mean they don't like you, they may just be busy.
Of course, all I could think of was, that means a minimum of 14 months with no personal contact! I agree totally about the personal contact part and I need to get better at that. Some clients make it so easy to stay in touch on a personal level; other clients, particularly those with whom you may not have as much in common, are more difficult. That's where I tend to procrastinate!
Susan - Frankly, I don't stress much about having personal contact with people I don't have anything in common with. I focus my PC efforts on people I'm not scared of and just hope that my secondary SOI efforts will reach enough of my "everyone else" group.
In fact,I just went thru my database and took out a whole bunch of people who I just don't feel good about, for whatever reason. Not people I don't know well, but those who I think don't like me or I don't like them! Now, my goal is to replace all those folks I "lost" with people I feel more comfortable with!