Sales

Posted by Wendy Forsythe

At the recent Inman Connect conference in San Francisco there was a noticeable change in the voice of blog advocacy. In previous years technologist and vendors were on stage singing their praises to the power of blogging. This year practicing real estate professionals were on stage sharing their successes and insights into building and enhancing a real estate practice using the blogging medium.

A lively debate erupted questioning which is a better inquiry generator– a website or a blog?

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One thing that I do every day is to make sure I am working on building relationships. Real estate is a people-intensive business and could easily be argued that we are actually the business of fostering‘relationships’, as opposed to managing‘transactions.’ As a result, the most critical activity for real estate sales associates, managers and owners alike, is to strengthen their relationships. This applies to both business and personal contacts and needs to be worked on a daily basis. Whether prospecting for buyers, sellers, hiring a top producer, or zeroing in on an M&A opportunity, effective relationship-building is the key to continued success.

Before going any further, it is important to draw a distinction between good relationship building and what is commonly referred to as ‘networking.’I would submit that networking,as it is now practiced,is a passé concept. The implications surrounding some networking techniques almost defeat the purposes for which they were designed. Terms such as ‘speed networking’ and other similarly impersonal ideas almost offend the senses. Stop and ask yourself… how can anyone build a relationship while moving at warp-speed? I always remind myself that the most important thing one person can give to another is their time and thoughtful attention. This is where quality relationships are born.

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Posted by Wendy Forsythe

It’s no secret that our industry doesn’t score high marks for customer service or trustworthiness. We are usually ranked on the bottom half of the scale, alongside used car salespeople and mechanics!

To see how one small change, or even one degree, can make a huge difference watch this video.  Then challenge yourself and those around you to commit to making small changes that will result in changing the public’s perception of today’s and tomorrow’s real estate professionals.

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Posted by Wendy Forsythe

I often talk to real estate agents who tell me they are not numbers people. I don’t accept that. We all retain and recite lots of numbers at the drop of a hat. Some of the most common are:

• Age
• Height
• Weight
• Income
• Price of gas
• Miles per gallon

Most of us can reel off these stats with great ease (well maybe discomfort, but we still know them!!!). Proving we are numbers people. We just need to expand this list to include our real estate vital statistics.

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Posted by Wendy Forsythe

I’ve been hearing many people give agents advice that in order to prosper in today’s real estate market you need to get “back to basics.” Honestly, every time I hear this phrase the hair on the back of my neck stands up.

It’s not that I don’t absolutely believe that there are fundamentals that every agent needs to focus on in order to be successful. I do. However, I think to define these fundamentals as “basics” is misleading. There is nothing basic about our business. Those that are successful are so because they have adapted to the market, to consumers expectations and have worked hard at doing the right things along the way. The tasks they fill their days with today are different then they were 5 years, 10 years or 15 years ago.

The issue I have with “back to basics” is the time frame. What basics, in what market, in what year should you get back to? If you go back to the basics of 2004 you are likely not going to last long in 2008. Should you go back to the basics of 2000, or how about 1995 basics? My point is that the business has changed and how agents attract, retain and meet clients expectations has changed with it.

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