Is it millions or billions that are spent every year trying to generate leads in real estate? I’m not sure, but I can say with some confidence that most of it is a total waste of money. By now, most everybody in the industry has heard that the vast majority of REALTORS treat online leads with disdain: Studies by REALTOR.COM and the California Association of REALTORS have shown how some 50% of consumer inquiries don’t hear from the agent for 1-2 days on average. Why do these agents even bother putting their listings online? Oh, because the seller demands it. Well, maybe the seller should start demanding something else – like responsiveness to buyers – as a condition for granting an agent the right to represent their house.

Of course, this situation occurs because REALTORS continue to promote the wrong standards of performance. Like “hits” or “traffic” or visits on their websites. None of these make a single bit of different to a seller if the agents won’t quickly respond to any inquiries from those hits – and convert those buyers into offers.

The real killer, though, isn’t the standard of performance for sellers; it’s the standard of performance for agents when it comes to lead conversion. In fact, I bet that if calculated accurately, it might be provable that brokers would be better off simply buying their sellers’ homes themselves, then trying to re-sell them at a profit later, rather than throwing all the money they waste in online marketing down the drain. Simply because agents prefer cherry picking rather than prospecting.

Let’s agree to forget about the exceptions to the rule. Sure, some 10% of the business knows how to prospect; and some 20% has purchased a Smartphone to check their email leads in real time. But what about the other 8 in 10 agents that still throw away most of the leads their broker generates for them?

That’s right: The majority of agents throw away the majority of the leads their broker generates for them. We have worked with enough brokerages worldwide to know this is true. We’ve seen the reports. We’ve watched the brokers cry. We’ve even talked a few down from the ledge.

In fact, in our measly 20 years in the business, we’ve kept a simple running tab. And from what we can tell, about 88% of all leads delivered to agents by brokers are abandoned within a week.

Seven days.

How is it that most agents simply throw away the hard earned cash of their broker? Well, for starters, they may not know better. If you’re a broker reading this column, ask yourself the last time you put your entire sales force through a prospecting class. A real one – where they learned stamina and process and technique and tenacity. If you’re an Association or an Education Director, ask yourself which classes pack the house: the hard-to-do sales technique course, or the Feng Sheui program?

On the other hand, a smidgen of blame goes to the brokers who run around screaming, “It’s not my fault! They are independent contractors! I can’t make them go to training!” but then blindly offer them leads in the “hope” that they will do the right thing. As if they knew how.

On yet another hand (yes, there is a third) maybe it’s the consumer’s fault (nah, but let’s follow this out). What would happen if, all of a sudden, sellers demanded to see a transcript of the results of every inquiry on their home from potential buyers? Would it be shocking to them to see how agents handled the interaction? Would they be pleased – or some other “p” word – to learn how that inquiry was treated? Since consumers don’t really know better – remember, we told them it was all about website traffic – maybe it’s their fault for not asking for better from us?

On the left foot (let’s change appendages) we could even blame the market; When things were good and hot, who needed to prospect? Simply sit back and wait for the easy deals to fall in our laps. Respond to buyers who won’t give you their full name? Nah. They’ll call us on the telephone when they’re good-and-ready to buy. I’ve got lots of offers now….. Could the market have created an entire generation of diva-mentality agents? Remember, 50% of current REALTORS have been in the business less than 5 years. Many have never sold in the double-digit interest rate markets before; they’re complaining that selling in 6% mortgage land is tough… Isn’t it time to stop praying for a market that occurred years ago?

Maybe it’s all three; and maybe it’s none. But one thing is for sure: There’s no reason to keep marketing to generate consumer inquiries if the average “attempt” to turn them into business is less than seven days. Pull down your website, discontinue your email and unplug the telephone.

Or try something easier: Demand performance. Isn’t that what brokers are supposed to do – lead their company? Do you think that leaders at other sales industries would accept a 1 in 10 attention rate for inquiries? Especially incoming inquiries? We’re not even talking about cold calling, door-to-door or hard-sell prospecting. We’re talking about paying attention to INCOMING consumer requests for help, information, attention.

This is entirely a broker problem. NOT a technology issue. Not a marketing issue. Not some kind of consumer-has-evolved issue. It’s about managers holding their agents accountable. It’s about brokers billing every agent for every lead that the agent simply throws away. It’s about recruiting agents only after they can prove adequate graduation from a serious sales course – with a track record of some adequate results (or at least efforts).

Here’s the alternative: The industry will continue to decline. It will continue to sit around “waiting” for a miracle cure. Brokers will simply “wait” for the next bail out or economic boomlet to save the day. If they can wait that long. The decision to stop cherry picking and start prospecting leads is within the broker’s grasp today.

Go for it!