292 | How to Sell More Homes by Referral (Part 2)

About this episode

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Haven't listened to Part 1? Check that out first!

Most real estate agents want a referral-based business. They just don't have a system for it — and good intentions without structure will always lose to life, busyness, and distraction.

In Part 2 of this referral series, Garrett Maroon breaks down the exact 36-touch system he's used to sell 50+ homes a year for ten consecutive years — never missing a single month, even through personal loss. Built from a combination of the Brian Buffini method, Keller Williams systems, and years of field-testing, this isn't theory. It's a repeatable, low-cost, relationship-first framework that any agent can install and run.

Last year, Garrett spent $7,500 on this system and generated $700,000 in GCI. No Facebook ads. No pay-per-click. No cold outreach. Just consistent, intentional touches with the people already in your world.

This episode is the actionable follow-up to Part 1 (mindset). Here, Garrett walks through every single touch — mailers, emails, video texts, handwritten notes, pop-by gifts, and client events — structured on a quarterly calendar so simple you'll know your exact lead generation strategy five years from now. If you've been wanting to build a business by referral but didn't know how to make it consistent, this is the episode.

Key Takeaways

1. Consistency beats creativity — every time. Only 11% of agents consistently send anything to their database. The agents who win in referral-based real estate aren't the most creative — they're the most consistent. Garrett has never missed a single month of his 36-touch system in ten years. That consistency is the pipeline.

2. The 36-touch system broken down. Each month includes three core touches: a mailer sent on the 1st, an email sent on the 15th, and one personal touch. That's 24 low-level touches per year (12 mailers + 12 emails) plus 12 personal touches — structured in a quarterly rotation of phone call/video text → handwritten note/pop-by gift → client event/client coffee. Rinse and repeat.

3. Use Wise Pelican for postcards and keep costs low. Garrett sends a simple postcard every month — not a fancy mailer in an envelope that gets tossed unopened. Postcards work because people see your face before they throw it away. Pro tip: split the cost with a mortgage lender by co-branding the card.

4. Emails don't build relationships — but they still matter. Don't spend hours crafting a polished monthly newsletter. A simple email sent to a blind-copied database on the 15th keeps your name in front of people. Toss the content into ChatGPT and send something clean and easy. The goal isn't a deep read — it's a consistent presence in the inbox.

5. Video texts are the highest-ROI personal touch for most agents. In the first month of every quarter (January, April, July, October), send a 20–30 second personal video text to everyone in your database. No tracking needed — bold their name in your Google Sheet as you go. It's warm, it's human, and it doesn't require a phone call most people don't actually want to receive.

6. The handwritten note is a superpower — less than 0.7% of mail today is handwritten. In the second month of each quarter, send a handwritten note to everyone in your database and do pop-by gifts for your top 10–20 people. The note doesn't need to be long — a single line of genuine gratitude is enough. Hand-address the envelope. They'll open it because they can see a real person wrote it.

7. Pop-by gifts under $2 outperform expensive mailers. The value of a pop-by isn't the gift — it's you showing up. Garrett has used $1 spatulas, chapstick, and turkey basters with clever real estate puns attached. Spend under $2 per person. Pre-plan your route. Don't go inside — protect your time. The relationship deposit happens at the front door.

8. Client events are the highest-touch, highest-yield quarterly activity. In the third month of every quarter, host a client event or aim for 10 client coffees. Garrett's team runs the same four events on repeat every year — a movie event in March, ice cream social in June, family photo event in September, and a Christmas lights drive-through in December. They've done all four for six-plus years. Partner with your mortgage lender to split the cost.

9. Your database doesn't need to be in a CRM — it needs to be worked. Garrett runs his database on a Google Spreadsheet. No expensive software. Just bold the name when the touch is done. Simplicity scales. The system only fails when agents over-complicate it before they've proven they can execute it.

10. A referral business is the only pipeline nobody can take from you. Facebook changes its algorithm. Google updates its search rankings. But no one can take your relationships. A business built on genuine, consistent care for the people in your world is both the most sustainable and the most biblically aligned way to build — because you stop treating people like transactions and start building a real community.

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