Let’s be honest: If you had the secret strategy to calling expired listings that would generate an appointment every time, you would call them every day and every week, right?

“Lacking the confidence” is something I hear from our coaching members, who admit, also, that they lack a strategy before making the call. You can be an expired listing rock star with these proven methods, which will not only increase your listing inventory, but also your personal income and that of your team members. Follow these proven methods to convert expired listings into sales. You will love the results and income you are generating from a segment most agents don’t go after.

1. Search back six months or 12 months. Don’t just search what has expired within the last couple of days or weeks. Go back months, even to last year, and see if these people are still interested in making a move, and explain that your marketing system and plan will help get them where they want to go. Many sellers were down on the market and decided to take the home off the market, so a new conversation from you will be welcomed. You can offer new market data and a much more effective marketing strategy that will help them achieve their real estate goals.

2. Specialize in homes that didn’t sell. Successful work with expireds means that you like helping them now since it didn’t sell. Take the approach that you specialize in homes that didn’t sell the first time on the market. Offer your expertise of staging and helping them prepare the home better, both from how it looks to a better pricing strategy. Either way, you have successfully sold homes that didn’t sell the first time on the market, making you an expert.

3. Add value and solutions. The best agents add value to the conversation and offer solutions geared to solving the problem, saving time and money and ultimately and confidently getting sellers where they want to go. When you ask questions and solve their problem with your value-driven system of service, you attract clients who want to hire you because they see value in your expert services. You can enthusiastically help them six months later or a week later, get their home sold at the highest fair market value and help them move. You have to communicate a good value proposition and differentiate your services better than anyone else. When you do this, they will meet with you and ultimately hire you to sell their home.

4. Tie down the appointment. During the call, you need to have good scripts that are, again, value-added. If you are able to communicate your value, you will secure a meeting with them. You may have pre-approved buyers that the home may work for, or someone on your team does. Once you have the appointment, you can continue to talk to them about how to get their home sold. If you are struggling with the script, I would highly suggest getting coaching on how to communicate effectively to close more leads into appointments. Work with your manager or team leader, read or watch training webinars or, for more accelerated results, hire a coach. Learning new script strategies will increase your conversion rate and lead to so much more success.

Remember: The expired listing seller needs your help. Once you master the dialogue, develop a strategy for how to solve their problem and communicate the value you bring to them, you will get yourself an appointment, and, better yet, get hired to sell their home.

Request a free copy of my exclusive How to Convert Expireds Playbook.

Sherri Johnson is CEO and founder of Sherri Johnson Coaching & Consulting. With 20 years of experience in real estate, Johnson offers coaching, consulting and keynotes, and is a national speaker for the Homes.com Secrets of Top Selling Agents tour and the Official Real Estate Coach for McKissock Learning and Real Estate Express. Sign up for a free 30-minute coaching strategy session or visit www.sherrijohnson.com for more information.