Why You’re Leaving Money on the Table (And How to Stop)

Let me ask you something: how much time did you spend this week chasing cold leads?

You know the drill—qualifying strangers from Zillow, following up on open house sign-ins from six months ago, nurturing leads that ghost you after the third email. It’s exhausting, and if we’re being honest, the conversion rate is somewhere between dismal and non-existent.

Meanwhile, there’s data sitting in your CRM right now that could change your business. You’re just not using it.

The Math You’re Ignoring

Tom Ferry has been saying it for years: roughly 6% of the people in your sphere database will list their home in the next 12 months. Add in referrals, and you’re looking at 6-10% of your sphere generating business opportunities annually.

Think that’s just motivational coach math? Let’s look at what the National Association of Realtors actually reports in the 2025 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers:

• 60% of home buyers chose their agent through a referral or used an agent they worked with before
• 90% of sales volume at most firms comes from repeat business and past-client referrals
• The typical realtor earns 20% of their business from repeat clients and another significant chunk from referrals

Translation: the business is already in your phone. You’re just letting other agents capture it because you’re too busy chasing strangers.

If you have 200 people in your database, that’s 12-20 potential transactions just sitting there. How many of those people have you actually contacted in the last 30 days? How many have you touched at all in the last 12 months?

Why You’re Not Doing This Already

I know what you’re thinking: “Jerry, I know I should work my database. I just don’t have time.”

Wrong. You don’t have a time problem. You have a system problem.

You don’t have a segmented database. You don’t have drip campaigns set up. You don’t have a consistent touch plan. You’re winging it with random social media posts and hoping people remember you when they’re ready to move.

That’s not a strategy. That’s wishful thinking.

Most agents can’t even tell me who’s actually in their CRM—is it sphere contacts who know them, or is it a graveyard of cold leads from 2019? Without segmentation, you’re either spamming everyone with generic content or doing nothing at all because it feels overwhelming.

Your Brokerage Already Paid for This

Here’s something else to think about: your brokerage is probably spending thousands—maybe tens of thousands—of dollars per year to provide you with BoldTrail, Top Producer, kvCORE, or another enterprise CRM system.

They’re paying for the licenses. They’re paying for training. They’re investing in technology specifically designed to help you work your database and close more deals.

And what are you doing with it? Logging in once a month to pull a contact when you need it, then going right back to chasing Zillow leads.

That’s not just leaving money on the table—that’s ignoring one of the most valuable tools your brokerage provides. They gave you a Ferrari and you’re using it to drive to the mailbox once a week.

If your brokerage is investing in your success by providing enterprise-level CRM technology, the least you can do is actually use it the way it was designed to be used: to systematically work your database and capture the repeat and referral business that’s already there.

This program is about finally leveraging the tool you already have instead of letting it collect dust while you burn time on low-probability lead sources.

Here’s What I’m Testing

I’ve spent over 39 years in this business as a broker, office manager, and trainer. I’m a BoldTrail Certified Admin, and I’ve helped agents at brokerages like Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices, Dudum Real Estate Group and Bradley Real Estate actually implement and use their CRMs. Not just “get trained” on them—actually use them to generate business.

Now I’m piloting something new, and I need 3 agents to test it with me.

90-Day CRM Database Activation Program – What You’re Actually Getting

Let me break down exactly what happens over these 90 days, because “CRM setup” could mean anything, and I don’t do vague.

Phase 1: Database Cleanup & Import (Week 1-2)

If your contacts are scattered across your phone, old spreadsheets, business cards in a drawer, or multiple systems, we consolidate everything into your CRM. If you’re already using BoldTrail, Top Producer, kvCORE, or another enterprise system your brokerage provides, we’re building on that foundation—not switching you to something new.

We’ll scrub for duplicates, fix incomplete records, and make sure every contact has enough information to actually be useful. No more “John – met at open house 2019” entries that tell you nothing.

Phase 2: Database Segmentation (Week 2-3)

This is where most agents fail. They treat their entire database like one blob and either send generic garbage to everyone or send nothing at all.

We’re segmenting your database into meaningful groups:

• Sphere contacts (people who actually know you—friends, family, past clients, referral sources)
• Active prospects (people in your pipeline who are 6-12 months out from a transaction)
• Cold leads (the Zillow sign-ins and expired listings you’ll probably never convert)
• Life-stage segments (first-time buyers, move-up buyers, downsizers, investors, etc.)

Once we know who’s who, we can build campaigns that actually make sense for each group instead of blasting everyone with the same monthly market update nobody reads.

Phase 3: Voice Discovery (Week 3-4)

Here’s where we figure out how you actually communicate so your drip campaigns don’t sound like a robot wrote them.

I’ll have you provide samples of your writing—emails you’ve sent to clients, social media posts, blog content if you have it, even text messages. We’re looking for your natural tone, your personality, the way you explain things.

Then we’ll upload that into Claude or ChatGPT and train the AI to write in your voice. Not “professional real estate agent voice.” Your voice. The one that makes people want to work with you.

Phase 4: Campaign Creation (Week 4-6)

Now we build the actual drip campaigns for each segment. These aren’t generic templates I pulled off the internet. We’re using AI to write campaigns that:

• Sound like you
• Provide actual value (market updates, equity reports, move-up/downsize guidance)
• Include clear calls to action (schedule a call, request a home value estimate, refer a friend)
• Touch your database consistently without being annoying (we’re aiming for 30+ meaningful touches per year across email, text, and social)

For your sphere, we might include monthly check-ins, quarterly home value updates, and event invitations. For active prospects, we’re nurturing them toward a transaction with timeline-specific content. For cold leads, we’re running a last-ditch conversion sequence before we move them to a “stay in touch” list.

Each campaign gets loaded into your CRM with proper timing, triggers, and automation so it actually runs without you having to remember.

Phase 5: Execution Training (Week 6-8)

Setting up campaigns is pointless if you don’t know how to manage them. I’ll train you on:

• How to monitor campaign performance (open rates, click rates, responses)
• How to manually add contacts to the right campaigns
• How to personalize automated messages when needed
• How to handle responses so leads don’t fall through the cracks
• How to track which deals came from database touches (this is your proof the system works)

Finally, I’ll train you on how to execute these campaigns consistently so they actually run. We’ll do this whole process via Zoom or face-to-face if you’re local to me in the San Francisco East Bay Area.

Phase 6: Accountability Check-Ins (Week 8-12)

This is the part where most “done-for-you” services bail. I’m not building this and walking away on day one.

We’ll have three check-in calls over the final months:

• Week 8: Are the campaigns running? Are you getting responses? What’s breaking?
• Week 10: How many database contacts have you touched? Any deals in the pipeline from these touches?
• Week 12: Final review. We measure results, troubleshoot any issues, and set you up to keep executing on your own.

After week 12, the system is yours. I’m not your ongoing accountability coach—that’s on you. But you’ll have a working system and the knowledge to run it.

What This Requires From You

This only works if you’re willing to:

• Provide your contact lists and writing samples upfront
• Show up for training calls
• Actually turn on the campaigns and let them run
• Respond when your database replies (seems obvious, but you’d be surprised)
• Track your results so you can prove to yourself this works

If you’re not willing to do those things, save your $1,500. I’m not interested in setting up systems that sit unused.

Why $1,500 for the Pilot?

Because I’m testing this model and want agents who are serious but not broke. If this were a polished, proven program, I’d charge $3,000-$5,000. But since I’m refining the process with the first three agents, you’re getting a discount in exchange for feedback and a case study.

If you execute the system and close database deals in the first 90 days, I’ll document your results for my blog (with your permission). If you don’t execute, that’s on you—but I’ll still want to know why so I can refine the offer.

One More Thing

I’m capping this at 3 agents because I can’t scale 1:1 custom work to dozens of people while maintaining quality. If this pilot works and agents actually execute, I’ll either raise the price or turn it into a group program. But for now, it’s 3 spots, first-come basis.

Here’s What to Do Next

Use my Calendly Link to set up a free 15-minute strategy call: https://www.calendly.com/jerrykidd.  I’ll ask you a few qualifying questions to make sure this is a good fit, and if it is, we’ll get started.

The 6-10% of your database that’s going to transact this year doesn’t care whether you have a system or not. They’re moving either way. The only question is whether they’re calling you or someone else.

Your move.