Posted by Kristine-CA on March 16, 2002 at 09:53:13:
Tom C: I do not do bandit signs, but a lot of people who call my “I Buy Houses” ads are people looking to buy, thinking I have something. Also, thinking that I will have something with the right kind of financing for them. So I keep a list.
With the signs, of course, people looking for a house are driving around and writing down numbers and so who knows if they actually read your sign…
Marketing for the motivated seller seems to be a numbers game. And it looks to me like you’ve got the numbers working in your favor.
Bandit sign results/confusion - Posted by TomC (Md)
Posted by TomC (Md) on March 16, 2002 at 09:29:49:
Hi Everyone,
I put out another 20 bandit signs last night at about 2:00AM and then took a well-deserved snooze. And I just got my first call of the day!
This is the 3rd week that I have done this, and I am getting some interesting results. I average 1 call per sign placed (so I expect 20 calls this week). So far, no decent leads.
Here is the kicker - most of the calls are from people asking about the house for sale!! I’m not sure if this is par for the bandit sign course, or if I am posting in the stupid people neighborhoods! :o
Here is the text of the signs, on 18x24 colorplast:
I BUY HOUSES
I BUY CONDOS
I Take over payments
Any Price Any Condition
Quick Close Call Tom
(301) 555-1212
The top 2 lines and the phone number on the bottom are in the large text, the rest is medium.
Those look like good numbers to me. I have no idea why so many are asking about the house for sale, but Kristine’s comment sounds realistic.
Last fall I bought some signs. The first week I put out 5. 2 were stolen within a day or two. The other’s lasted a week and I got 15 calls.
I didn’t put any up over the winter. But I started again last week. I’ve got 8 signs out at the moment and haven’t had a single call from them yet. So I guess it’s up and down like all marketing.
It looks like the spring buying rush already started a month ago in my area and is going to be insane this year, so who knows, I might not find any deals until summer. By then the people who haven’t sold will realize they really are desperate. I hope interest rates go up by then too, that should dry up some of the buyer pool.
Anyway, it looks to me like you’re doing just fine. I wouldn’t worry about the buyers calling. Just take their info, and mention your referral fees, should they come across houses they don’t want.