Real estate agents: Know what to say when it's been a while.

It's been a while.

It's been a while. You'd like to reach out. You don't know what to say.

If your contact with a past client stopped at closing, months can turn into years. Then reaching out starts to feel like it needs a reason.

It's tempting to invent one: a market update, a holiday card, a "just checking in." Messages like those could go to anyone.

Where We Left Off starts somewhere else: with what already exists between you. You worked with this person. You know things about them and about that time. One of those things is your starting point.

You don't have to invent a reason. You start from something you already know.

Six steps, in this order.

1. Find ThemChoose five past clients you can still reach.
2. Remember ThemRecall what you know about each one.
3. Find the ConnectionPick one detail that passes the Three-Yes Check.
4. Write From ThereBuild a first message around that detail.
5. SendSend it.
6. LogWrite it down on your contact log.

You're finished when five personal first messages are written, sent and logged.

What you get

You write each message yourself, from what you already know. The guide shows you how, with three worked examples.

• The Where We Left Off guide (PDF). The method, how to find your five, the Three-Yes Check for choosing a detail, and three worked examples of a generic message next to a personal one.
• 11 Starting Points in four groups. Each one gives you questions to ask yourself, where to look in your own records if you don't remember, and how to turn it into your opening line.
  • Their home and the move
  • Their family and everyday life
  • What you shared
  • If you're drawing a blank
• The worksheet (PDF). A per-person page you use for each of your five, and a contact log.
• START HERE. A one-page sheet that tells you which file to open first.

At checkout you can add the optional Where We Left Off Companion: six ready-to-adapt Opening Frames.