In a Florida market where home values have plummeted by 50 percent, broker Mitch Ribak is finding success and enjoying it – thanks to the HomeGain BuyerLink™ program.

“I was spending thousands of dollars with Google™ and Yahoo® for pay-per-click marketing that gave me an 8 percent conversion rate,” said Ribak.

“When HomeGain called me in 2006, I hung up on them. But then I agreed to do a test for $1,000. My leads doubled and I could pay 50 percent of what I was paying before.

“After a week or two, I cancelled my other contracts and moved all my marketing over to HomeGain,” he said. Ribak estimates he gets more than 95 percent of his business from his HomeGain leads.

How well is that working for him?

Since 2007, the Mitch Ribak Real Estate Team (Tropical Realty of Suntree) has been the #1 buyer brokerage out of 500 offices in the “Space Coast.” With one of the worst markets in the entire nation, Ribak’s team made 242 sales in 2008 and is on track to make 350 sales in 2009.

How Mitch works the system

HomeGain offers several online programs for real estate professionals. BuyerLink is a pay-per-click marketing solution that drives potential home buyers to the company/agent Web site. The program also includes a free lead-capture system.

Ribak “owns” all the cities in his market area, Brevard County, Florida. Potential buyers click through to his http://www.melbournehomesearch.com/ Web site, where they can search for homes and get information from one of his team of agents.

“What’s great about the HomeGain program is that you pay what you pay,” said Ribak. “You’re paying for a click without paying Google or Yahoo, where agents are bidding each other up. And I’m also not spending two hours a day managing my keywords. HomeGain does that.”

Of course, the key is not just generating leads, but also converting them. Ribak cites the book, The E-Myth by Michael E. Gerber, about “creating the McDonald’s in your business.” Meaning the system is crucial, and Ribak is a master of plugging agents into his lead-conversion system.

“What’s great is that ever since I opened my doors in 2005, I haven’t lost a single agent to another broker,” he said. “And 75 percent of my agents had no prior experience (in real estate). You just gotta have the right people and the teamwork is essential.

“With Internet leads, you have a 4-6-month period to build rapport before they buy. The phone call follow-up is essential to build that. Then we just have to make sure they are getting their home search information on a daily basis.”

For Ribak, it’s really about the numbers. “BuyerLink is the best program. If it wasn’t working, I wouldn’t be doing it!”

To read Mitch Ribak’s HomeGain blog, click here. Contact Ribak at Mitch@MitchRealty.com.