Talk About it Tuesday
Talk About it Tuesday 7-14-26
Key Outcomes
The meeting focused on three areas: rolling out a customizable company newsletter, sharing marketing strategies from agent John Matthews, and discussing business-building tactics including lender co-branding, community festivals, and local video content. Agents were encouraged to personalize the newsletter, follow up with clients by phone after sending it, and explore partnership opportunities with preferred lenders.
Decisions Made
- Newsletter format: 4-page customizable Canva design; agents can add pages for co-branding flyers or listings.
- Newsletter intent: Serve homeowners with practical value (maintenance checklist) — not a listings showcase; a separate listings flyer will be created.
- Preferred partners (Seabreeze Title, Southern Trust Mortgage, Shaheen Law Firm) to be featured in customized newsletters.
- List Reports platform confirmed as largely locked behind lender co-branding paywalls; team to seek alternative tools.
Key Marketing Strategies Shared
From John Matthews (veteran agent feedback):
- Quarterly neighborhood letters covering lawn care + market updates generated repeat and referral business — one neighborhood of 66 homes yielded ~60% of listings.
- A single client relationship led to two simultaneous closings (~$750K + $1.2M) and made him top-earning agent at his prior company that year.
- Takeaway: A few targeted neighborhoods or consistent personal follow-up can sustain a real estate career.
From agent coaching session (Amber):
- Co-brand with 2–3 preferred lenders to produce shareable flyers and newsletter inserts.
- One week after emailing the newsletter, call clients to confirm receipt and use it as a natural conversation starter about their home.
- Attend HOA festivals and National Night Out to engage homeowners and renters in a no-pressure setting.
Chris’s local video content:
- Videos highlighting local businesses (Kabal Market, Wild Birds Unlimited) are being used to connect with communities; Amber tagged businesses post-publication to extend reach. https://youtube.com/shorts/Q7gEaa1ZBCQ & https://youtube.com/shorts/ta-qGXueo9c
- Amber replicated the approach at Scrap RVA (501c3 charity); content in production.
Listing Activity Updates
- Ed: One showing scheduled tomorrow at 4 PM on Peach Street listing.
- Mary: Had a showing yesterday; separately listed a property last Friday — under contract by Sunday (likely investor buyer).
- Tidal Bay condo (Amber/Mary co-listing): No showing requests recently; price reduction recommended with supporting documentation — seller still considering.
- Andre: Church contact interested in listing a condo in August; needs prep work first.
Action Items
- All agents: Customize newsletter, publish, and send to sphere; reach out to Amber for help if needed.
- All agents: Talk to lenders about co-branding materials and what marketing support they offer.
- All agents: Keep eyes open for a List Reports alternative that doesn’t require lender paywalls.
- Amber: Send Southern Trust seller credits / rate buy-down comparison flyer to all agents.
- Amber: Email Ben/Wendy (Southern Trust) to ask about available co-branded marketing tools.
- Amber + Christine: Create a listings flyer showcasing current active listings.
- Andre: Contact Ben (Southern Trust) to verify condo financing eligibility given new condo law changes before August listing.
- Chris: Continue local community video series.
Pending Confirmation
Newsletter best format (video vs. PDF) still being tested.
Canva analytics not functioning as expected after publishing — Amber monitoring. (Use free versions of Canva or Adobe)
- Huge thanks to Christine for finalizing the current newsletter for proofing and distribution. https://familyfirstrealtyinc.com/summer-newsletter/
- Invite all of us to Add the printers’ contact information (logo, name, phone number) to the contractor’s Facebook group. Partners page here: https://familyfirstrealtyinc.com/partners
- All Agents: Review and update the vendor/contractor list in the private office Facebook group and on the public website with their preferred contacts. https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=oa.2387661748212265&type=3
- All Agents: Send photos of neighborhood signs, local businesses, and themselves to Christopher for the Nextdoor.com campaign.
We found some helpful videos and added them to our private Playlist.
Only available with this link https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL0n5a9nfUKR7nCvAy07rnDTjttZIRzMTn&si=MkG6KWu-DfoevVrx
Our Preferred Partners:
https://familyfirstrealtyinc.com/partners
