Some of us still use bandit signs. The Internet and my Automarketer software has largely replaced placing signs, but there are some areas it’s still VERY effective. However, sometimes there are issues with bandit signs.
“I’m finding it very hard to obtain local buyers from my buyers list. I put out signs on the side of the road and it exits the shopping centers but the city warned me to take them down otherwise I’d be fined.” – Julie
This is the problem with bandit signs. In some areas, you can put bandit signs out and they’ll stay out for months and you’ll get leads out the wazoo. You’ll get lots and lots of deals through bandit signs. We’ve had great luck with bandit signs over the years.
But there are some areas, like one that’s only five minutes from me, where if we put out bandit signs and we go the whole circuit, by the time we get back to the first sign, it’s already been taken.
The sign police would have been out and taken it. Every place we put them out, we seem to get calls from the sign police telling us to take them down. So you have to decide what your level of comfort is about whether or not to put out bandit signs.
I don’t do very much of it very often because Craigslist and the sign in the yard sells our properties every time. As long as we structure the deal properly and price it right, we always get these deals sold without having that.
Now, you want to build a buyers list without having anything to sell. And I’m going to suggest that you put that concept aside for a while and not build your buyers list. We’ve done it both ways.
At one time, we used to build our buyers list first because it helped us when we talked to our sellers. It gave us credibility to say, ‘Hey, I’ve got 75 people that are interested in this area that want to buy a lease option. Would you consider selling your home rent to buy?’ It made it a little easier and it gave us a little credibility with the sellers.
But since then, we’ve got the “Automarketer” that goes out and makes these offers already for us. It makes things a bit easier. And once you get one or two lease options done, you’re going to have 50, 100 or 500 people on your buyers list just because of the advertising you do to sell that property through Craigslist and the sign in the yard.
You’re going to build your list just by getting more inventory, so focus more on the inventory. Get the houses for sale. Talk to the sellers – that’s your main focus, and once you do that, then you can go to the next level.
It’s a wonderful thing to have a buyers list that’s 500 to 1000 strong because 10 to 20% of the deals that you do, when you put it out to your buyers list, will sell almost immediately to that buyers list. Your buyers list can be very valuable, but even then, it’s still only 10%.
To me, that’s a phenomenal number. It’s a wonderful thing to be able to sell immediately to that list simply by sending out an email. But also keep in mind all you are going to have to put on Craigslist and the sign you have to put in the yard. You have to do both effectively.
They have to be structured and priced properly. Also, the monthly payment has to be at or below market value, so it has to be put together properly to make that work.
“I also made Craigslist ads and created a Twitter and linked an account and I’ve used Google AdWords. In addition, I’ve had my boots on the ground place small flyers on cars and doors of local apartments. My buyers site regularly gets people signing up from around the state but not from my area. “
Again, don’t worry about Google AdWords. Don’t worry about search engine optimization. Worry about getting a seller to give you a deal so that you can advertise it on Craigslist and put a sign in the front yard and get people to call you.
That’s going to be your best source of traffic and your most likely buyers to do all of this stuff. It’s not that difficult. Focus on the sellers not the buyers.
