How to Determine the Best Real Estate Agent Lead Generation Methods for Different Types of Agents

Most agents don’t fail because they “won’t work.” This is the excuse that a lot of team leaders come to us with. “This agent just won’t work!”

This isn’t it. They fail because they’re running the wrong lead generation plan for how they’re wired — and they’re trying to force it with willpower.

That’s the real problem with the way the industry trains. A broker says, “Everyone is calling expires.” A team leader says, “Everyone is door knocking.” A coach says, “Everyone is running online leads.”

One-size-fits-all is lazy leadership. Do you think all of your agents are the same? No? Then, why should you lead them all in the same way?

If you want the best real estate agent lead generation methods, you have to match the method to the agent — not just based on skill level, but based on behavioral tendencies, motivation triggers, and tolerance for rejection.

That’s where DISC becomes a practical tool. It’s not an excuse. It’s a strategy.

In this article, I’ll walk you through how to use DISC to determine the best real estate agent lead generation methods for different types of agents — and how leaders can train, coach, and hold accountability without turning prospecting into daily misery.

VIDEO: How to Determine the Best Real Estate Agent Lead Generation Methods for Different Types of Agents

Why Most Lead Gen Plans Break Down

Real estate lead generation isn’t complicated.

You either:

  • Generate leads from people you don’t know (expires, FSBOs, circle prospecting, internet leads, door knocking)

  • Generate leads from people you do know (SOI/referrals, networking, past clients)

  • Generate leads from a defined segment (farming, niche demographics, targeted communities)

The breakdown happens when the plan doesn’t fit the person executing it.

Some agents need fast wins. Some need stability. Some hate rejection. Some don’t mind it. Some can follow a system for 18 months. Some quit in 10 days if they don’t see results.

DISC helps you stop guessing — and start assigning the right strategy, the right expectations, and the right coaching approach.

The DISC Framework in Real Estate (Fast Breakdown)

DISC is four primary behavioral tendencies:

D — Dominant / Driver

  • Fast, direct, competitive

  • Motivated by winning and results

  • Biggest frustration: wasted time

I — Influencer

  • Social, optimistic, energetic

  • Motivated by recognition and relationships

  • Biggest pain point: rejection

S — Steady / Supportive

  • Patient, loyal, service-oriented

  • Motivated by stability and consistency

  • Biggest resistance: discomfort and conflict

C — Compliant / Analytical

  • Detail-oriented, process-driven

  • Motivated by accuracy and logic

  • Biggest fear: failure or being wrong

Here’s the key: none of these types are “better.”

But they do have different lead gen strengths — and if you align those strengths, you get more activity, higher consistency, and better conversion.

That’s how you determine the best real estate agent lead generation methods for each agent.

The Non-Negotiable Rule: Every Lead Gen Method Must Feed SOI

Before we get into the matching, I need to make something clear.

No matter how you generate business — expires, FSBOs, internet leads, farming, open houses — your long-term goal is the same:

Build a database that produces repeat and referral business.

Lead generation creates relationships. Relationships must be captured, nurtured, and followed up.

If you generate leads but don’t build a database, you’re stuck on the hamster wheel forever.

So even if a method fits your DISC style perfectly, it still has to feed your CRM and your SOI system.

That’s how you stop being dependent on your next prospecting session for income.

  • DISC: Understanding Behavior in Real Estate (Icenhower Institute)

    $299
    ICT Online Course

    DISC: Understanding
    Behavior in Real Estate

    DISC course Icon

    Understand people better and close more deals with DISC.

    • Learn the DISC behavioral model and how it applies to real estate

    • Identify client personalities to tailor your communication style

    • Build stronger relationships with buyers, sellers, and teammates

    • Strategies to resolve conflict and improve negotiations

    • Use DISC in recruiting, coaching, and team management

    • Downloadable DISC charts, worksheets, and training tools

    Add to Cart

    Communicate Effectively

    Adapt your approach to match client and team personalities for stronger connections.

    Improve Sales & Negotiations

    Use DISC insights to build trust, reduce conflict, and close more deals.

    Lead with Awareness

    Apply DISC in recruiting, coaching, and managing agents to boost team performance.

    Designed for all learning types

    Video Training

    In-depth video training walking you through each module of the course, explaining the strategies, tips, and best practices for using Canva for real estate agents.

    Written Workbook

    Detailed and downloadable written workbook that provides you with a bullet point outline, summarized text, action steps, key takeaways, as well as space for taking notes.

    Instructor Materials

    Teach this course at your organization with the help of our downloadable presentation notes, presentation files, and Instructor's Manual.

    Course curriculum

    Enrollment includes access to the following course materials for 6 months

    Module 1: What is DISC?
    • Video: What is DISC?
    • Workbook: What is the DISC?
    • DISC Profiles
    • DISC Behavioral Assessment
    Module 2: How to Identify DISC Profiles
    • Workbook: How to Identify DISC Profiles
    • Video: How to Identify DISC Profiles
    • DISC Style Identification
    • Graphic: DISC Quiz
    Module 3: Mirror & Matching
    • Workbook: Mirroring & Matching
    • Video: How to Mirror and Match
    • Mirroring and Matching Cheat Sheet
    Module 4: Using DISC with Clients
    • Workbook: Using DISC with Clients
    • Video: Using the DISC with Clients
    Module 5: Using DISC with Lead Generation Methods
    • Workbook: Using DISC with Lead Generation Methods
    • Video: Using DISC with Lead Generation Methods
    • DISC Behavioral Assessment
    • DISC Lead Gen Tendencies
    Module 6: DISC Profiles for Different Real Estate Team Roles
    • Workbook: DISC Profiles for Different Real Estate Team Roles
    • Video: DISC Profiles for Different Real Estate Team Roles
    Module 7: Training Team Members Using DISC
    • Workbook: Training Team Members Using DISC
    • Video: Training Team Members Using DISC

    About this course

    • $299
    • 26 lessons
    • 2.5 hours of video content
    Add to Cart

    Immediate Takeaways

    Here is what you can expect to gain from taking this online course.

    • CHARTS that demonstrate the differences between the DISC profiles. Learn what makes a D behavior, I behavior, S behavior, and C behavior, and what makes them different from each other.
    • GRAPHICS to illustrate key concepts as they relate to learning about DISC behavioral profiles. You will be able to visualize the differences between the profiles, which will help you identify them as you learn through the course.
    • CHEAT SHEET on mirroring and matching DISC behaviors to help you learn how to better communicate with all behavioral styles.
    • OPTIONS for how you learn best. Each module provides a downloadable PDF chapter as well as a featured video of Brian Icenhower, teaching the topic at hand. At the beginning of the course, you are also provided with a full audiobook to listen to. So however you learn best -- we have an option for you!

    DISC: Understanding Behavior in Real Estate

    More about this real estate training course

    Reviews

    "I use ICT systems, the Icenhower Institute, and the coaching program to coach and train my team of over 30 agents. I use the ICT dashboard systems to keep my entire team accountable for their activities and set proper expectations." Jake Rockwell Over 500 Units Sold Annually "I have coached with ICT for over five years. ICT has helped me quadruple my luxury business through marketing strategies so that I receive listings and sales through lead generation and multiple pillars of income." soi audio workbook Dennis Adelpour Luxury Agent - West Los Angeles "When we started coaching with ICT we worked all the time with some degree of success. Now, seven years later, we have grown to have the #1 market share in our area, we more than tripled our income and production, while also improving our work-life balance to enjoy our personal life with family and friends." recruit audio workbook Tammi Humphrey #1 Market Share & 100 Million in Annual Sales Volume Instructor

    Brian ​Icenhower.

    Discover the crucial relationship between human behavior and every facet of the real estate business.

    This course, DISC: Understanding Behavior in Real Estate, gives invaluable insights into the nature of behavior and how to apply it to everything you do in real estate. You’ll learn to identify different behavioral types and modify your communication style to effectively build relationships with all types of clients, as well as vendors, stakeholders, and all the other people you'll meet in the course of doing business.

    Not only will the client leads that you generate significantly increase, but your level of customer service and lead conversion rates will dramatically improve as well. You’ll gain insight on which types of business marketing and lead generation methods are the best fit for your behavioral style, and even how behavior impacts hiring and training within real estate teams.

    This course will show you how to harness your strengths while overcoming the behaviors that are holding you back from success.

    Harness your strengths.

    Understand the people you interact with, and use that information to your advantage with this DISC: Understanding Behavior in Real Estate course.

    Add to Cart

    Talk to a coach

    If you've been considering hiring a coach, now's the time. Book a FREE coaching consultation session with your purchase of this course! Book Your Call Team Onboarding Real Estate Coaching See all courses
    Quick View
  • Team Coaching Program

    $1,250 / month

    The Team Real Estate Coaching Program is for smaller teams looking for internal structure, leverage and leadership.

    Quick View

Best Lead Gen for D Agents (Drivers)

D agents want results now.

They don’t want long conversations. They don’t want to “check in.” They don’t want slow-burn strategies without immediate payoff.

They want a scoreboard.

Best real estate agent lead generation methods for D agents

  • Expired listings (high conversion, clear pain point, fast wins)

  • FSBOs (direct objections, clear outcome, competitive environment)

  • Door knocking (especially targeted knocking around listings/turnover areas)

  • Online leads (if they can treat it like a chase + follow-up sprint)

  • Circle prospecting (only if it’s framed as volume + competition)

How to coach a D agent

  • Use competition, metrics, and time blocks

  • Keep training short and practical

  • Make it a game: contacts → appointments → contracts

  • Don’t over-explain. Give the play, then hold accountability

Watch-outs for D agents

D agents often resist SOI work because it doesn’t feel immediate. They also avoid “marketing to friends” because it feels fake or inefficient.

Your job as a leader is to:

  • Tie SOI activity to a clear objective

  • Make it measurable

  • Keep it structured and short

Example: 10 daily “real conversations,” logged, with a follow-up plan — not endless social chit-chat.

Best Lead Gen for I Agents (Influencers)

I agents are the “prototype realtor” — they’re social, visible, and naturally relationship-driven.

But they hate rejection.

If you throw an I agent into heavy cold-call rejection environments without a plan, they’ll burn out fast.

Best real estate agent lead generation methods for I agents

  • SOI and referral-based systems

  • Networking groups (BNI, community groups, boards, service orgs)

  • Open houses (high people exposure, high energy)

  • Social media content (branding + relationships at scale)

  • Client events (they love hosting and being seen)

How to coach an I agent

  • Give them structure so they don’t “wing it”

  • Tie activity to visibility and recognition

  • Use accountability that feels social (scoreboards, group challenges, partner roleplay)

Watch-outs for I agents

I agents get bored quickly. If they don’t see results fast, they jump to another shiny lead source.

They also struggle with:

  • consistent follow-up

  • data entry and CRM discipline

  • low-conversion activities like circle prospecting (too many hang-ups)

So the coaching focus is:

  • simplify the system

  • automate what you can

  • keep them in front of people

  • build follow-up habits through structure, not motivation

Best Lead Gen for S Agents (Steady / Supportive)

S agents are dependable, service-based, and relationship-loyal.

They can build an incredible referral business — if they stay in the business long enough to let it compound.

Their biggest issue is they avoid discomfort. They often wait for business instead of generating it.

Best real estate agent lead generation methods for S agents

  • SOI/referrals (they nurture naturally)

  • Past-client systems (check-ins, events, “client for life” approach)

  • Geographic farming (slow build, consistent repetition, predictable cadence)

  • Open houses (if they’re trained and confident)

  • Warm follow-up on team-generated leads (they convert well when lead is “handed” to them)

How to coach an S agent

  • Give them a steady schedule and simple standards

  • Don’t overwhelm them with too many tactics

  • Use supportive accountability: “Here’s the plan, here’s the expectation, here’s the cadence”

Watch-outs for S agents

If an S agent is new and needs income now, SOI and farming may be too slow initially.

That’s where they must “hold their breath” for a season:

  • take on a short-term prospecting tactic (like expireds/FSBOs or structured circle prospecting)

  • until their longer-term systems start producing

Leaders: don’t let S agents hide behind “I’m not that type.” Train them to stretch temporarily — then transition them back into their long-term strengths.

Best Lead Gen for C Agents (Compliant / Analytical)

C agents want clarity, data, and certainty.

They don’t like vague scripts. They don’t like winging it. They don’t like being put on the spot.

But if you give them a system with measurable expectations, they can become machines.

Best real estate agent lead generation methods for C agents

  • Online leads (follow-up sequences, automation, process control)

  • ISA-style calling/follow-up roles (if they’re on a team)

  • Geographic farming (systems + patience)

  • Email marketing / direct mail (structured messaging, repeatable campaigns)

  • Niche targeting (specific demographics with a repeatable process)

How to coach a C agent

  • Show them the math: contact-to-appointment-to-client ratios

  • Give them scripts, objection trees, and measurable benchmarks

  • Create a process they can trust, then enforce consistency

Watch-outs for C agents

C agents will overlearn and under-execute. They will want 100% certainty before taking action.

You have to coach them into movement:

  • “You’ll learn the rest while doing”

  • “We adjust after the first 100 contacts”

  • “We track results and refine weekly”

They also don’t like putting themselves out there on social media — so if branding is part of your team strategy, you need to systematize it for them.

How Leaders Use DISC to Build a Team Lead Gen Model

If you’re a team leader or broker owner, DISC changes how you build production.

Instead of forcing 20 agents into one lead pillar, you build multiple lanes:

  • Prospecting lane (D-heavy, some C)

  • Conversion lane (S-heavy, some C)

  • Relationship lane (I and S)

  • Farming lane (C and S)

Then you set standards and accountability by lane:

  • contacts

  • appointments

  • follow-up tasks

  • weekly pipeline review

This is how you increase retention too. When agents aren’t miserable, they stay longer — and they produce more.

The Truth: DISC Isn’t an Excuse — It’s a Training Strategy

Let’s be clear.

Behavioral profile isn’t permission to avoid hard work.

Every agent has to do uncomfortable things early.

But DISC tells you:

  • where they’ll win fastest

  • where they’ll need more coaching

  • how long they’ll need to “hold their breath”

  • how to communicate so they actually execute

That’s the difference between average leadership and real leadership.

Conclusion: Match the Method to the Agent, Then Build the System

If you want the best real estate agent lead generation methods, stop asking “What’s working right now?”

Start asking:

  • What fits this agent’s behavioral tendencies?

  • What will they actually do consistently?

  • What can we measure weekly?

  • How does it feed the database long-term?

Because the best lead gen method isn’t the trendiest one.

It’s the one the agent will execute long enough to master — and systemize long enough to compound.

If you’re leading agents, the win is simple:
Put the right people in the right lead gen lane, coach them the right way, and hold them to a standard.

That’s how you build predictable production.