As you’re gathering engagement leads (see Prospecting Engagements article), you should be planning your engagement email drip campaign as well – a database kept separate from your normal leads and comprising solely of engaged couples. Once you’ve made your introductory call and gotten the couple’s address and email, it’s time to get on with the follow up. Some engaged couples may be buying within a year or within 5 years, but either way you should approach them like any other lead: shower them with persistent and consistent follow up to build trust and rapport until they’re ready to use you.

The first thing you should do with each engagement lead after adding them to your database is to blog about them. Put their picture up and congratulate them, then give the couple a call and email to let them know. Talk to the couple about their marriage plans, their dream home, where they’d like to move, what features they want in a home, etc. Save this information with their contact information and start keeping an eye out for their dream home.

As with any lead on a drip campaign, you should be regularly sending the couple useful information via email and regular mail. The only difference is the type of useful material to send. Anything related to information for first time buyers is a must, but you can also be fun and creative with what you send them. Get information from free wedding sites like TheKnot.com to send them stuff like free information that helps in planning a wedding. Yes, you’re an agent, not a wedding planner, but helping them with something you have no stake in makes them trust you more.

Recommendation: Put together a comprehensive packet of information for people who are engaged – and be creative. You can send them anything about planning a wedding, a humorous and useful article on the realities of marriage, honeymoon suggestions, just anything you can think of! Hook up with local wedding vendors (such has DJs, flower shops, banquet facilitates, wedding cake vendors, etc) that couples would usually have to go to a wedding show to obtain and ask them if they’d like their business added to the packet in exchange for a very minimum fee (just enough to cover postage and materials).

The vendors may even want to offer special discount coupons to be added to the packet (if they don’t bring it up, you may want to suggest it). This is a great way to prepare an AMAZING informational packet for your engagement leads that is sure to make them remember you. The best part is, if you get the wedding vendors to pay a minimal fee to be added to the packet, you won’t have to pay a dime to send it out!

Also remember to send emails to the couple for important dates – like a card to congratulate them when they’ve been engaged a year, or a thank you card after you’ve sent them the informational packet. Call from time to time as you come across new information that may interest them, and be sure to send them regular emails with listings of properties that fit their “dream home” description. Keep your name in the lead’s head with consistent contact but remember that you always need a reason to contact your leads. Pointless contact is just that: pointless!