WEIRDLY GOOD GUIDE TO REAL ESTATE B Y
D I L B E C K
R E A L
E S TAT E
L I C E N S E
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YO U ’ R E A C E O N O W… COOL! For someone chaffing beneath strict or traditional business hours, becoming a Realtor can be a life-balance saver. The flip side is that it requires some self-discipline and the ability to prioritize and see tasks through to the end. As a CEO, your priority is making sure the time and money you spend will have the highest probability of getting you business. Like any great empire, your business will probably not be built to greatness overnight. It’ll take time to build up a reputation, reach out to the right people, and get your first clients…and that’s OK! Every hour you spend, every task you tick off the list, and contact you reach out to is one step closer to closing your first deal (and securing a referral from that deal). So start thinking like a powerful CEO and ask yourself, will this get me business? If not, what else can I be doing right now that will bring me those first clients?
FIRST STEPS TO WEIRDNESS We know there’s a ton on your plate! You’re deciding on a brokerage and taking a huge leap in your professional career. Congrats!! But once you’ve chosen where to hang your hat, the real fun begins! Let us walk you through the first steps you should take to get your business started Day One!
IDENTIFY YO U R NICHE Your niche is the one thing that you can do better than anyone else, your unique selling proposition (USP). As a new Realtor, you don’t know if you’re going to be an expert at selling unique historic homes or fixer uppers, be a listing agent or primarily a buyers agent. But you DO know your strengths in the rest of your life. Think about how to answer these questions: What am I passionate about? What am I skilled at? What trait or feature can I offer my clients that no one else can? Once you’ve answered those questions, congrats you’ve found your niche, your USP, that one thing that sets you apart from the crowd. Now use that niche in your marketing, in choosing a target audience, and writing your bio. It will be the cornerstone of your business.
WRITE YO U R BIO
As a new agent, writing a bio might seem like an impossible task. Never fear! It’s not. It just takes a bit of prep work, some organization, and maybe a bit of help. First things first, your bio as a new agent isn’t going to come action packed with a ton of testimonials from clients. But that’s ok, most agent bios don’t have that either. The goal of any bio is to showcase your niche expertise and communicate a little about you. The best bios let the personality of the agent shine through. Stringing a bunch of buzzwords usually won’t compel someone to contact you. Create a list of the top 5 things you want your bio to convey. Do you have a previous professional career that sets you apart? Do you volunteer locally? Are you involved in any groups or associations? Do you have any other professional credentials? If you have none of those things, that’s okay too. You have a collection of unique experiences, knowledge, and insights that makes doing business with you an important part of your potential clients journey. Find those key elements and showcase them. Remember, bios written in plain conversational language will be better received by the audience. Think of your bio as a quick conversation with a friend about why you decided to become a Realtor.
This one is a no brainer, but new agents will often put off putting their best face forward. But you shouldn’t. A ton of your brokerage-provided marketing materials (and even your website) may be incomplete without a professional headshot. So get ready for your close up! Here’s some best practices for getting photo ready: leave it to the professionals. Seriously. It’s that easy. Use a professional photographer. Wear simple business attire and avoid bright colors that can conflict with your branding. The current thinking is a headshot should be refreshed every 2 years (or whenever it looks stale). Above all, don’t fear. Professional photographers are basically wizards and can direct even the most camera shy agent to a rockstar headshot.
GET CLOSEUP READY
GET A GREAT HEADSHOT
HONE YOUR SPHERE OF INFLUENCE Sphere. You’ll hear that word quite a bit. Plainly put, your sphere of influence is the collection of contacts that can range anywhere from family and close friends to acquaintance, business contacts, and people who have or will be referred to you. It’s everyone you know, and everyone that could possibly do business with (or refer you business) in the future. Step one is downloading your phone and email contacts to an Excel file. Here’s how to download for Gmail, Yahoo, AOL, & Outlook. After you’ve downloaded and compiled your full list of digital contacts, prioritize them by buying or selling potential.
BREAK DOWN YO U R SPHERE
CLOSE FRIENDS & FA M I LY
COWORKERS & BUSINESS CONTACTS
CASUAL ACQUAINTANCES
ONLINE LEADS & REFERRALS
CREATE A SCHEDULE Once you’ve broken your sphere down into segments, decide on a contact schedule for each group, how often each should be contacted, and what kind type of contact should it be (informative or personal). Rule of Thumb: you can contact close friends and family more frequently than former coworkers or business contacts, but once a month is standard for all contacts. Suggested methods of contact: Social Media Messenger Text Messages Emails Postcards/Direct Mail & the Almighty Phone Call
WEIRD WORD OF ADVICE A word of advice: don’t always reach out to push your real estate agenda. Most of your contacts will be put off by pushy salesman tactics. Aim for genuine interactions and interest. Make notes in your excel sheet, address book, or CRM about important dates related to each contact (birthdays, anniversaries, and other important dates and facts). Once you have those dates, set a reminder or schedule a message for those milestones. The more detailed their contact info is, the more personal and genuine your interactions can be. Set goals for reaching out to your sphere each day, and keep them without fail. Start by reaching out to at least 10 people a day through any of the these methods.
I D E N T I F Y YO U R PRIMARY AREA & GET LEARNING The ideal area is one where you have local contacts and a vast amount of knowledge. Once you’ve identified the areas you want to work in, get learning. You should be able to answer and share these questions about your area off the top of your head if anyone ever asks: •
What’s the market like? Is it a good time to buy or sell? (Hint: the answer is always yes…but why?)
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What are the schools like?
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Have properties been retaining their value?
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What are the key features of entertainment in your area (food, drink, night life, and family activities)?
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How long have homes been staying on the market? Why are most people moving to or from the area? Shorter commutes? Family friendly?
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Have there been and significant changes to the city? Have any new homes been built, are there are major city renovations planned or already completed?
B U I L D YO U R ONLINE PRESENCE Building a website with local resources is a great way to showcases your local knowledge. Your chosen brokerage should have provide a customizable agent website (ask about it, its important). Once you’ve set up shop at a brokerage, set yourself up as a business on Google My Business. It’s super easy and comes with a powerful suite of tools and insights, find out here. Next step is choosing your preferred social networks and establishing a consistent brand across whatever channels you choose. It doesn’t have to be wickedly fancy, just unique to you and consistent. Your profile photo should be your headshot, and cover photos should be a high-resolution image representing your brand. Don’t forget to fill out the “About” sections completely, social media platforms are more likely to put you in searches with a completed profile.
IDENTIFY YOUR BRAND HEROES Referrals from friends and family are a pretty powerful thing and it’s more than likely that your first transaction will come from a family member or a close friend. According to NAR, "Sixty-four percent of sellers found their agent through a referral from a friend, neighbor, or relative or used an agent they had worked with before to buy or sell a home.” Brand Heroes are contacts that are most likely to offer you business, champion your brand, and share your content. Chances are, your close friends and family are going to be your Brand Heroes. They want you to succeed and really do want to help…they just might not know how.
HOW BRAND HEROES CAN HELP • Hand out business cards • Forward emails • Like and share online content. • Refer a friend to you These steps might seem obvious, but even close friends and family might not realize that a few key social shares and a business card in the right hands can be the difference between success and failure for agents.
YO U D O N ’ T H AV E T O H AV E BUSINESS TO GET BUSINESS One of the biggest challenges a new agent will face is the lack of transactions and previous clients to showcase experience. But agents overcome that hurdle every day. While you may not be able to send Just Listed or Just Sold flyers and postcards to your contact list, you still have content available. What kind of content should you be posting online or sharing through your marketing channels? Simply put, whatever would be of greatest value to your target clients. Any marketer has to overcome the desire to only share information THEY want their audience to hear, and share the information their audience wants to hear. The sad fact is even people actively looking to buy or sell a home might not be terribly interested in a ton of real estate info. They’re more likely to click on local news, store openings in the area, pop-up shops downtown, or learn about the latest weird food craze SoCal is raving about. You want your marketing and content to become part of peoples daily lives and how they experience their city. So don’t sweat the lack of transactions, and wow them with your insider local knowledge!
NOW GO OUT & GET WEIRDLY GOO D! DILBECK
REAL ESTATE
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805-660-0524
WA N T T O KNOW MORE?
MERILEE.IVERSON@DILBECK.COM
WWW.DILBECK.COM