An agent at Irongate Inc., Realtors®, Eric Free employs Delta Media Group® technology to make it easier for him to help his customers who live in or are relocating to the Dayton area.

Eric Free, an agent at Irongate Inc., Realtors® in Dayton, OH, worked for many years as a minister before transitioning to real estate in 2016. While his faith is still very important to him, after he and his wife had their three children, he decided it was time to pursue something that would enable him to further grow his income. Not only was entering real estate a great business opportunity, but it was also the perfect fit for Eric due to his passion for working with people.

Eric says, "I was actually at a church growth conference when I made the decision to get into real estate. There was a speaker there giving a TED Talk, and she made a statement that day that all business owners need multiple streams of income. On the way home that night, I decided to pursue real estate and immediately got my license. It was a natural fit for me to transition from church and ministry work to real estate because they're both all about people."

Over the nearly seven years he's been working as an agent, Eric has earned a reputation locally as a trustworthy, helpful, and knowledgeable real estate expert. He has also gained great experience assisting members of the U.S. military with buying homes from a distance and relocating to the area. 

Eric is currently one of the region's top sales producers. He was recognized in 2022 as one of Irongate's Top 15 producers and as the #1 Sales Producer for the Beavercreek office. In 2022, he also earned the Dayton REALTORS® Sales Club Award of Distinction and the Ohio REALTORS® President's Sales Club Award of Distinction. Plus, Irongate named Eric a Peak Producer for the first quarter of 2023.

Adapting to Change

Despite seeing many changes both within the industry and with technology since getting his real estate license, Eric's ability to adapt allowed him to rise to success rather quickly. He has continued to grow that success by getting on board with new opportunities.

One of the biggest changes for businesses in the past few years is the need to use social media for marketing their brand. Eric can be found on just about every platform, from Facebook and Instagram to YouTube and LinkedIn. His commitment to using social media has certainly contributed to him making a name for himself and his brand. One of the ways Eric stays committed is by keeping a content calendar.

"I try to have a content calendar that's mapped out so that it's not always last-minute spur-of-the-moment putting content out there," he explains. "I try to be specific. I put new listings and just solds and pendings, but also value content for customers. What's going on in the market, what are the trends, what's happening in real estate?"

Another great advancement that has made a difference in business communications is digital signatures. In a world where virtual transactions are highly sought after, Eric has found that the ability to sign documents virtually and enable his customers to do the same is extremely valuable. There is nothing that customers appreciate more than convenience, so offering them the opportunity to do more digitally is part of providing great customer service. 

"Obviously, digital signatures have been a huge thing," says Eric. "It was already in place, or it was just coming into place when I started. But whether it's Dotloop or DocuSign or some of the other platforms, the ability for me to collect digital signatures is a game changer. It cuts down processing time on paperwork, all of those kinds of things. For me, the human aspect of real estate is huge. So having the convenience of technology but still being able to maintain the human side, it's kind of the best of both worlds."

Embracing New Technology

Although Eric had always used technology to better serve his client base, it wasn't until he came to Irongate from another brokerage that he was able to experience what Delta Media Group had to offer. He previously had to pay for his own tech stack, and what he had didn't match up to the systems he now has using Delta. He liked that Irongate had a platform that provided him with the tools he needed.

"I came over to Irongate from another brokerage about three years ago, and obviously Irongate was using Delta," Eric says. "What I loved about that, coming over from another brokerage where I was having to pay for my own platforms and systems, is that Irongate had that in place already."

Eric especially loved that he was given the ability to customize his real estate website to fit his personality and branding.

"I was able to plug and play the customizable website," says Eric. "Even though the system, the shell, and the skeleton were there, the ability for me to be able to customize and put my personality, my imprint, on that was huge, and it was something that Irongate was providing for me."

He feels that having a customized website with proper SEO is imperative for driving new business and staying top of mind. 

"The first thing we do is go to Google and put that in and see what comes up, see what kind of reviews there are, and what kind of experiences other people have had," he says. "So I think the website is major. It's my online business card. The ability for me to be able to customize that and make it look like me and sound like me so that when a customer Googles, 'Eric Free Real Estate, Dayton, Ohio,' my site comes up, and the SEO makes sure that I stay top of mind as far as search results go is important."

Features to Love

There are a few features of his Delta website that Eric loves most, such as the ability to add client testimonials and add regular content through his blog.

"The client testimonials are huge," Eric continues, "And the ability to customize, update, change, and add valuable content to the website is a big deal."

Eric also finds the ability to customize home searches for specific clients to be extremely beneficial, especially since such a large portion of his client base comes from out of state. He acknowledges that he wouldn't be able to do this using only his local MLS.

"Another thing that I love is the home searches that I'm able to set up for homebuyers," says Eric. "With me being in an Air Force town here, I do a lot of work with people coming in from out of state. I don't use my MLS system at all. I use Delta simply because of the ability to customize those home searches for clients because we have several MLSs in my area. If I just used my local MLS, I would miss a ton of listings for buyers. So the Delta site makes it much more user-friendly for my buyers searching for properties."

Of all the tools and resources he provides through his website, Eric believes that the home valuation tool has had the most impact on his business. He finds it to be popular among customers and is skilled at generating new seller leads.

Eric says, "The most valuable is the home valuation tool on my website for people who are just thinking about possibly selling their house. What's my home worth, what's my value?"

A Platform That's Easy to Learn

Aside from his website, Eric also finds great value in DeltaNET®, Delta's all-in-one CRM platform. He's looking forward to when Irongate switches over to the latest version, DeltaNET® 7, which will be happening soon. This new version includes the same tools he already loves and more.

He says, "I know that the new version of DeltaNET is just getting ready to roll out here at my brokerage, and I'm super excited about being able to implement that for my customers."

One of Eric's favorite tools in DeltaNET is My Customer for Life, which he uses to send out automated real estate-focused emails to his sphere of influence. He appreciates having the ability to maintain lifelong customers by staying in touch and communicating regularly. 

"I love My Customer for Life." Eric continues. "I'm a big proponent of lifelong relationships with customers." 

Although he uses a great deal of technology to power his business, Eric doesn't consider himself to be a tech expert by any means. But, he does find it simple to learn to use new tools by watching YouTube videos, particularly those provided on Delta Media Group's YouTube channel. 

"I don't consider myself a tech wizard," he says. "I don't know that most REALTORS® are. That's why YouTube is a big deal, and I know that Delta provides ongoing training through YouTube, and that's certainly something that I tap into and take advantage of. I use Youtube videos for training as far as staying on top of trends and things that are coming out."

Expanding His Network

Along with using technology, Eric builds connections by attending in-person events. Being near an Air Force base, this is one of the ways he networks with those in other military towns. He's looking forward to attending several events coming up later this year and growing his business further.

"We've got some events coming up this year to network and some educational things that are going to be very helpful here in the Dayton area because of our proximity to an Air Force base," says Eric. "Making those connections nationwide with other military towns and other agents has helped grow my business over the last couple of years. That's something that I'm actively working on right now."

By expanding his network and making new connections, Eric is upholding his commitment to helping others and making the Dayton area a place more people can call home. Already a helpful hand in his community and beyond, as Eric progresses in his skills and his use of technology, he will only be able to extend his reach even further and impact more lives.

To contact Eric Free, visit his website ericfreerealestate.com, or give him a call at (937) 657-6595.