ELITE AGENT Issue 18 Aug Sep 2017 by Elite Agent

WINNING BIG PAGE 14

REVIVING INDUSTRY WELLNESS PAGE 36

WHAT’S YOUR WORKFLOW? PAGE 56

LEARN FROM THE BEST #18 AUG-SEP 2017

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Getting to know

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Leadership Marketing Strategy People Sales PM Culture Technology The Future TO GROW28 10 SOURCES BASE PAGE YOUR DATA

ALL OVER IT’S WRITTENPAGE 40 YOUR FACE

WINNING BIG PAGE 14 DISRUPTER SPOT THE 72 PAGE

LEARN FROM

#18 AUG-SEP 2017

THE LEARN FROM 2017

BEST

SALES

SOLVING THE 10 PAIN POINTS OFG PROSPECTIN

Getting to know

GAVIN RUBINST EIN

y Mighkta Mac y UERY LEANNE DR

THE BEST

MARKETING

The ship Leader Issue

OUR TOPSTRY 50 INDU CERS 2017 INFLUEN

WHAT’S WORKFLOW?YOUR PAGE 54

GET HOW TOING S LIST M FRO LINKEDIN

#17 JUN-JUL

LE RICHARD BOOT KYLIE DAVIS TANJA M JONES OD MATT LAHO FORD PETER MUM NICHOLLS CAMERON TONY ROWE + SUZANNAH TOOP GENEVIEVE

REVIVING INDUST WELLNESS PAGE RY 34

CUSTOMER SERVICE

ROBOTS AND THE NEED FOR SPEED

SPRING SELLI NG SPECIAL KONDO: THE JOY JOSH HART’S OF DECLUTTER AGENT MARK ETING REVIEW ING // THE WIND OW WOW-FACT OR

Bonus All attendees also receive a 1-year complimentary personal subscription to Elite Agent Magazine*

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Issue 18 Aug | Sep 2017

eliteagent.com.au | eliteagent.online SAMANTHA MCLEAN Managing Editor samantha@eliteagent.com.au

MARK EDWARDS Publisher/Commercial Partnerships mark@eliteagent.com.au

JILL BONIFACE Sub-Editor jill@eliteagent.com.au

TIM DUNK Videographer/Editor tim@eliteagent.com.au

SHANTELLE ISAAKS Marketing Assistant | Producer shantelle@eliteagent.com.au

CHORUS DESIGN Art Direction | Design thegoodpeople@chorusdesign.com

FEATURE WRITERS Samantha McLean, Sarah Bell, Azal Khan, Shantelle Isaaks

COVER STORY PHOTOGRAPHY Carla Martin, topsnap.com

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EDITORIAL SUBMISSIONS The publisher welcomes editorial submissions from individuals and organisations within the real estate profession. The publisher reserves the right to edit, modify, reject or contribute to the content of the material provided. EDITORIAL DISCLAIMER: Some opinions expressed in Elite AgentMagazine are not necessarily those of its staff or contributing editors. Those opinions are reproduced with no guarantee of accuracy although Elite Agent Magazine endeavours to ensure those opinions and comments are factual. Our subscriber list may sometimes be made available to relevant brands who might be of interest to our readers and from time to time we may be in touch to inform you of new Elite Agent products and services. Please visit eliteagent.com.au/privacy for details on how we collect and use your personal information. Please email subscriptions@eliteagent.com.au if you would rather not receive these communications. © Elite Agent Magazine 2017. All rights reserved.

4 ELITE AGENT • AUG - SEP 2017

Contents Regulars 006 EDITOR’S LETTER Samantha McLean 010 READER PROFILE Sam Bevan 012 WATERCOOLER Catch up on what you may have missed 020 PEOPLE PARTNER Alison McGavin 022 MINDSET CORNER Jet Xavier 024 DATA INSIGHTS Eddie Cetin 026 BUSINESS DEPOT John Knight

028 ASK THE COACH Claudio Encina 052 AGENT PROFILE Nathan Najib, Najib Real Estate NZ 056 THE HOME STRAIGHT Mark McLeod

First Person 014 WINNING BIG Josh Phegan 016 KNOW YOUR CUSTOMER: USING DATA TO BUILD TRUST Lisa Claes 018 INTERNET TRENDS Anton Babkov

Cover Story 030 GETTING TO KNOW GAVIN RUBINSTEIN Samantha McLean

Features

034 SUCCESS ON YOUR OWN TERMS / DANE ATHERTON Sarah Bell 036 REVIVING INDUSTRY WELLNESS Sarah Bell 040 THE UN-MILLION DOLLAR AGENT / ALEX WATERS Sarah Bell 042 SPRING SELLING / KONDO: THE JOY OF DECLUTTERING Shantelle Isaaks 044 SPRING SELLING / THE WINDOW WOW-FACTOR Mike Toweel 046 SPRING SELLING / PERSONAL MARKETING REVIEW Josh Hart 048 WHY AM I HERE? Jacob Aldridge 050 TEAM BUILDING: WHAT’S STOPPING YOU? Nick Boyd 054 THE SOFTER SIDE OF SOCIAL MEDIA Tiffany Wilson

34 eliteagent.com.au 5

” EDITOR’S LETTER

"TO HUSTLE, OR NOT TO HUSTLE, THAT IS THE QUESTION:

Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer The slings and arrows of keeping up with the competition, Or to take Arms against a Sea of Stress, And by opposing end them: to feel more in tune With what we desire; and go ‘hug a tree’ or do some Yoga Without guilt or heart-ache, but if we said so the thousand natural shocks That would ring out? 'Tis a battle to continually to elevate our state. To drink, to sing karaoke, To sleep, perchance to dream; of the phone to be answered, for in that sleep of grinding exhaustion, what dreams may come, when we have shuffled off this mortal coil, must give us pause." Those words are not quite Hamlet’s from the eponymous work of Shakespeare written around the turn of the 17th century, but might have been what he would say if he were a real estate agent back then, contemplating the hours, the competition, the start-up years or even what his coach had said about keeping up the ‘grind’. He’s just talked himself out of picking up the phone again if they had been invented. And who’d blame him? It sounds exhausting. Hamlet wasn’t a real estate agent – he was Danish royalty with a bickering family – but his famous ‘to be or not to be’ speech musing on the meaning of life was probably not that far off something relatable to us in its meaning.

Hamlet, basically, is beating himself up a bit about what he sees as his weaknesses: his own indecision about whether it’s his job to be avenging the murder of his father. Does he take the hard road that is basically ‘doing the work’ (and doing right by Dad), or doing himself in – which even he decides might not be the best option on the basis of FOMO (i.e. death might not be all it’s cracked up to be)? Then, acting under stress

"This above all: to thine own self be true." (Hamlet, Act I, Scene III) One of my favourite quotes this issue is from Dane Atherton (page 34), “I don’t reckon Captain Cook had a why; I reckon he just liked being on boats”. Hamlet wasn’t too sure of himself and I don’t think he really liked doing any of what was doing; he was just doing what he thought was expected of him, and what people

Then, acting under stress and ill-advice from family and friends, Hamlet takes a few reckless actions which have devastating consequences for everyone, including himself.

BEHIND THE SCENES Our in house videographer Tim Dunk is a big fan of Gavin Rubinstein

6 ELITE AGENT • JUN - JUL 2017

and ill-advice from family and friends, he takes a few reckless actions which have devastating consequences for everyone, including himself. Yes, there are many lessons there – but it would take way longer than the word limit I have here to get them all out; I’ll leave you to ponder those on your own... But there are several themes in this issue for which there are parallels all the way through Hamlet, so let’s have a chat about them instead.

were telling him to do. We know nothing good can come of that. I look at Gavin Rubinstein (page 30), the total opposite of Hamlet, who is sure of himself, totally dominates his market, and clearly loves what he does and how he does it. He’s not afraid of the hard work, the detail, the hours. He is at the top of his game and loving it. I’ve enjoyed spending a bit of time with Gavin; his energy, his charm, his work ethic and his sense of fun about life all say

he is exactly where he should be, being true to himself for 80 hours per week for most weeks. But it’s also true that Gavin’s world is likely not for everyone. "Words, words, words” (Hamlet, Act II, Scene II) Hamlet was the king of jargon. Speaking of jargon, from now on I’m going to try to stop using the word ‘hustle,’ and possibly also ‘grind’ for that matter. Alex Turnbull of the cloud software company Groove says ‘hustle’ is the most dangerous word in the entrepreneurial community. “If you’re not hustling, you’re losing….The word hustle...it’s captivating, it’s motivating, it’s inspiring…yet it’s possible it’s destroying us.” "Though this be madness, yet there is method in't." (Hamlet Act II, Scene II) So was Hamlet acting crazy because he thought that was what was needed to get the job done? Or did his choices make him go a little crazy? “If you’re Gary Vaynerchuk, then sure,” continues Turnbull, “Building mega-brands with the goal of buying a multi-billion dollar football team absolutely requires the work Gary advocates. But his It is probably not your It. Nor is it the It for the most of us.” So if you are grinding just because you like Gary Vaynerchuk videos, please stop and look at your It. If, like Alexander Waters – ‘the Un-Million Dollar Agent’ (page 40) – you are loving your work, being challenged by it and learning and growing every day, then that may not require such ‘hustle’. It may require you to work hard, but start thinking about what your It is (rather than your why) and what it will take to achieve that, rather than blindly following the pack.

"That it should come to this!" (Hamlet Act I, Scene II) Hamlet was in part lamenting his own mess, made greater from too many knee-jerk reactions to situations he found himself in, comparing his eventual position to an overgrown garden. The industry’s first ever Wellness Survey (page 38) has turned up a few interesting statistics, with many industry professionals apparently suffering under the weight of stress and exhaustion as we speak. If we’ve partially created the problem through our own jargon, it’s good that Jet has started a different conversation before there are too many weeds and no garden. "There is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so..." (Hamlet Act II, Scene II) Was Hamlet talking about the property market in Denmark back in 1603? (joke!) Not exactly… but he was lamenting a difference of opinion with childhood friend Rosencrantz. Hamlet feels Denmark is a prison and Rosencrantz thinks otherwise; he suspects Hamlet feels like it’s a prison because the place is too small for his “large mind”. But for Rosencrantz, the place is totally fine. He’s saying ‘nothing is really good or bad’ in itself – it’s what a person thinks about it or makes it mean for them. I hope you can use this as a metaphor next time you are sizing up your goals and achievements against the next person. Everyone’s definition of ‘success’ is different. And whatever yours is, it’s OK; the choice is yours ‘to be, or not to be’.

eliteagent.com.au 7

TIFFANY WILSON FOUNDER, CHRONICLE REPUBLIC The softer side of social media

CARLA MARTIN PROPERTY PHOTOGRAPHER, TOP SNAP Cover Story Photography

Where are you from originally and where do you call home now? I was born in the UK and spent most of my childhood on a farm outside Cape Town in South Africa. Sydney is definitely my home now; I moved here when I was 12. Currently I’m living in the inner city. Who or what inspires you at the moment? Ariana Huffington’s determination to encourage us to get back to the joy and simple things in life is very inspiring to me. There’s so much pressure in our society to do everything and at high speed. I think this is detrimental to our brain function; we’re missing out on the present at times. What’s the most important project you are working on right now? Building my team. I’m working hard to develop an amazing, empowered team where we have each other’s backs. I think this is the key to providing exceptional service and innovative, fresh ideas to our clients. Trend to watch in the industry? Entrepreneurship is a big one; the number of small and niche businesses in Australia is growing rapidly. I’ve seen this transcend into the real estate industry, with many agents going out on their own and opening independent agencies. In many markets, being ‘boutique’ is no longer a point of difference, so independent brands need to find new ways to differentiate themselves. Favourite quote or words to live by? “Courage starts by showing up and letting ourselves be seen.” – Brené Brown

Where are you from originally and where do you call home now? I’m originally from a small coastal town in Victoria called Barwon Heads. I’ve moved around quite a bit but have finally settled in another small coastal town, Mona Vale.

8 ELITE AGENT • AUG - SEP 2017

Who or what inspires you at the moment? My mum (cliche, I know). She was also a photographer and after losing her a couple of years ago I cherish everything she taught me. She was the most positive person I know; she loved life and lived it to the absolute fullest. What’s the most important project you are working on right now? My fiancé and I have just bought a house, so that’s probably the most exciting project happening in my personal life. We also adopted a rescue puppy recently so she’s keeping me pretty busy! Trend to watch in the industry? Although drones aren’t exactly ‘new’ they have quickly become a big part of our industry, and with CASA’s change in regulations it has become easier for businesses like Top Snap to provide quality, cost-effective services without the hassles. Favourite quote or words to live by? “Do what you love and you’ll never work a day in your life.” And I love what I do here on the Northern Beaches, for sure.

CONTRIBUTORS NICK BOYD COACH, SPEAKER, HIGH PERFORMANCE SALES ACADEMY Team building: What’s stopping you? Where are you from originally and where do you call home now? I grew up in Sydney as well as Vancouver, Canada. I now call Cremorne, Sydney home. Who or what inspires you at the moment? I always find inspiration from my setbacks, as I always grow from the experience. What’s the most important project you are working on right now? Currently, I’m writing a book on sales leadership about how to create and grow high-performance cultures. Trend to watch in the industry? A potentially dangerous trend is the sole focus to grow digital relationships, distracting from the need to also form

50 real relationships. Favourite quote or words to live by? “Change your thoughts and you change your world.” – Norman Vincent Peale

48 JACOB ALDRIDGE DIRECTOR, BUSINESSDEPOT Why am I here? Where are you from originally and where do you call home now? I’m a proud Brisbane boy and Queenslander, and I’m a happy traveller having previously lived and coached in the UK, with current clients as far afield as Hong Kong and South Africa. Who or what inspires you at the moment? My clients, riding the emotional rollercoaster of business ownership. They all know they could chuck it in and take a job somewhere, maybe even make more money that way, yet their desire to wake up every morning and face the next challenge motivates me to do the same. What’s the most important project you are working on right now? Most principals I meet with are drastically undersupported when it comes to business strategy, wealth creation and achieving their family dream. I’m part of an awesome collaborative team bringing together real principals and real experts, solely in that business owner space, to help them reach their definition of success sooner. Trend to watch in the industry? When I started in real estate, 17 years ago, agents were chained to the desk and their company tie. Today, self-awareness, selfresponsibility and personal energy management are increasingly separating the top performers (by revenue or lifestyle choices) from the oldschool transactional salespeople scrapping to make a living. Favourite quote or words to live by? A business owner is someone who does for a few years what most people won’t, so they can spend the rest of their life doing what most people can’t.

DON’T MISS WHAT EVERYONE IS TALKING ABOUT #THEBRIEF brings you the latest real estate news, tech and marketing tips, how-tos, and inspiration. Make sure you are on the only list that matters and be ahead of the game before you reach the office.

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READER PROFILE

TAKING CONTROL Drawn into real estate by chance, Sam Bevan is now making her mark. Having started out on reception, single mum Sam gradually made her way up the ranks and is now a property consultant with Abel McGrath Claremont in Perth, WA. After just 18 months in sales Sam has written about $220K in GCI, and says that everything she has overcome on the way inspires her to aim higher. How many years have you been in real estate? I started on reception 23 years ago, straight out of Uni, and progressed into property management, where I stayed for 20 years before moving into sales. I would have gone into sales sooner but I was a single

mum for many years, and the gamble to give up a steady income was too much at the time. A friend who worked as a property manager offered me a job on reception to tide me over. The ‘short stint’ turned into a 21-year career in property management! After I’d achieved

everything I could in that field I jumped over to sales about two years ago, firstly as sales administrator at Abel McGrath and then I moved into selling. It was a natural progression for me, and I’m thankful every day that they allowed me the opportunity. What is the market like in your area at the moment? I moved into sales at a time when the market in Perth is in a huge slump. I tell you, if you can survive in this market you will thrive when it improves. Perth went through a massive boom a few years ago and has recently undergone a big correction. We started going backwards in 2012-2013. Values in Wembley went up marginally by about four per cent in 2013 and since then we have gone backwards by about 10 per cent. Compared to many suburbs in

“I tell you, if you can survive in this market, you will thrive when it improves.” Perth, that’s actually a good result. Average selling days is around 70. If you have no choice but to sell right now, you’re probably hurting. Who or what inspires you? Actually, I do! I spent many years doing whatever I had to do to put food on the table and pay my bills. Now that I’ve taken control of my career, I can honestly say I do what I do for the incredible feeling of achievement I get. If you focus on helping others, you’ll be amazed at how that will serve your soul. There is a rep who works in my office, Michelle Kerr. In a very short period of time she has become a massive success, and has been recognised on a state and national level, yet I never hear her brag. She has incredible generosity towards others and teaches me every day that just doing the best you can by serving others is its own reward.

10 ELITE AGENT • AUG - SEP 2017

In your ‘briefcase’ right now is… Mini tripod and lapel mic for taking quick videos on the road (videos for social media have become a big part of my marketing strategy). Mini Cherry Ripes for open homes; about six pens, of which I will lose all but one by the end of the day; phone charger; Coco by Chanel (a girl’s gotta smell good) and my AREC 2017 notebook, which I reflect on constantly. Something you couldn’t live without? My iPhone. On the last day of AREC this year my iPhone completely died. I had no idea until that moment that my entire life is inside my phone. I had no contacts, no emails, my plane e-tickets were saved on the phone... I had to go to the Qantas counter [at the airport] and say “My name is Sam Bevan, I have a flight today but I have no idea what time and I have no ticket”. What do you enjoy most about Elite Agent Magazine? I used to read the mag when I was a PM, and now I can just flip it over and keep reading about sales. It’s genius! There are too many sales reps who know nothing about PM and too many PMs who know too little about sales, so now there’s no excuse. The information is right there! Words to live by? ‘Don’t compare your Chapter 1 to someone else’s Chapter 7’ and ‘We’re all on our own timelines and our own journeys’. If you’re putting in your 100 per cent it will be different to the next guy’s 100 per cent. It’s ok. Make your own way. What advice would you give to someone starting out in real estate? Don’t lie to yourself. If you pretend you’re putting in the work but you’re lying to yourself about the real effort you’re making, it will hurt no one but you. Don’t want to make the phone calls or knock on the doors? Then don’t be surprised when you don’t get the results that someone else is getting. Your results will speak for themselves.

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TRANSFORM MASTERS 2017 WILL INCLUDE: C Tickets to ARPM 2017 on August 27 and 28 C 12 weeks coaching by the best in the business C Tickets to "How to lead a winning team in 2018" on November 14 CT he opportunity to completely transform your business and lead the market in your area in 2018 + MORE TO BE ANNOUNCED! SIX PLACES ONLY! Applications are open now, for more information head to eliteagent.com.au/transform.

THE WATER COOLER D

Our daily newsletter #THEBRIEF brings you the latest real estate news, tech and marketing tips straight up every day. In case you’ve missed anything, here are some of this month’s trending stories. Subscribe to #THEBRIEF eliteagent.com.au/subscribe.

Why your marketing is a long-term investment By Ash Farrugia LEAD GENERATION IS the

new buzzword. Every person I come across talks about how much money they’ve spent identifying potential vendors on Google, LinkedIn and Facebook. I don’t blame them; I use these services myself and they are effective platforms for securing leads. My concern is that agents are doing it prematurely. They are paying for contacts they don’t nurture and therefore the money they pay is a one-off expense rather than a long-term investment. In my experience, real estate agents can be so worried about growing their database that they forget to take care of it. They determine its value by the number of people it contains rather than quality of the relationships within it. This mentality means real estate agents often lose contact after learning that their lead isn’t ready to sell. They write the person off as a dead end and move on to find more immediate prospects. Instead of watering the farm, they let it run dry and have to get new crops to replace the old ones. This is a lot of work; it’s a gross waste of potential. Just because a person doesn’t have a house to sell right now doesn’t mean they won’t have one to sell in the future. I’ve conducted extensive research on this. Within a year and if the right communication is in place, an office with 10,000 contacts will typically generate 80 appraisal requests from their existing database. I’m not saying you shouldn’t outsource prospective vendors; I’m saying you shouldn’t do it until you have the communication processes to nurture and build a relationship with them first.  Interested to know more about how to nurture your customers? Look out for an upcoming article from Ash in #THEBRIEF during August. Meanwhile to find out more about Activepipe visit activepipe. com.au. 12 ELITE AGENT • AUG - SEP 2017

FLAGSHIP OFFICE OF THE AGENCY IN BONDI OPENS ITS DOORS

Designed by award-winning architects Redgen Mathieson, The Agency’s stunning new office holds prime position in the new Pacific Bondi Beach development overlooking the iconic Sydney Beach. The open, transparent, striking space has been designed to embody and foster the brand’s

dynamic approach to real estate. CEO Matt Lahood says that he views the Bondi office as more than a workspace, but there for the community, whether it be staff, clients, business partners, family or friends. “Our vision was to create an environment where our staff could share ideas, network and engage. Energy is everything in this business and the Pacific Bondi Beach offers agents the best lifestyle and work environment we can deliver. We want people to pop in, have a coffee, enjoy the view and plug in to our ‘open’ hot desk,” explains Lahood. (More online)

@realty launches training academy for group members @realty has launched a training academy for its 400 agents around Australia to upskill and expand learning for members. The Queensland-based group, under the leadership of JJ (James) Taylor, is teaming up with industry-leading trainers to provide training for innovative products and upskilling in particular areas. Mr Taylor said education is key to being an agent who can adapt to disruption. “The whole idea behind educating our agents is that we want to reinvest back into our agents. We want to make the academy as valuable as possible for our agents and ensure they get a variety of resources and services.” (More online)

FOR LONGER VERSIONS OF ALL OF THESE ARTICLES VISIT ELITEAGENT.COM.AU/CATCHUP

TRENDING

10 SIGNS YOU NEED TO WORK ON YOUR EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE Emotional Intelligence accounts for 85%-90% of success at work. Ush Dhanak, an Australian Emotional Intelligence and HR Expert, says if you are displaying any of 10 definite signs then you may need to work on your own level of EQ. (More online)

SOTHEBY’S INTERNATIONAL OPENS FIRST OFFICE IN HOBART Tasmania Sotheby’s International Realty will provide premium residential and lifestyle real estate services throughout the state. The company’s first Tasmanian office has just opened its doors on Hobart’s waterfront, with an additional office servicing the north of the state due to open by 2019. With the addition of this Hunter Street-based office, led by Managing Director John Huizing, Sotheby’s International Realty now has offices servicing South Australia, New South Wales, Queensland and Victoria, adding to over 880 offices around the world.

TRENDING

CORONIS PARTNERS WITH DIAKRIT Queensland supergroup Coronis has launched state-of-the-art marketing software across their 22 offices across the state in partnership with digital real estate marketing company DIAKRIT. The technology allows clients to interact with online listings using tools including magazine quality photography, virtual reality plus 2D and 3D floor plans, allowing potential buyers

to “mentally move in” and engage with the property. Before buyers walk through a property, they can use the tools to plan, furnish or renovate it online and visually create their new home so that by the time they attend the open home, they have already visualised themselves in it. Coronis Managing Director Andrew Coronis believes the technology will significantly enhance their clients’ buying experiences. “I’m very excited about our new partnership with DIAKRIT; they are the world leaders in delivering innovative digital marketing solutions for the real estate industry,” Mr Coronis said.

Best Practice: Some advice for creating better digital ads (Part Two) by Jed Carlson, ADWERX WE DON'T NEED statistics or industry reports to tell us today's real estate consumer looks for homes on the internet. An unfortunate by-product of that reality is the astounding volume of noise that interferes with the marketing signals agents are trying to send. To remain relevant amidst the rattling feedback of online competition, here are some more best practices to help you along the way.

BE CONSISTENT Whatever your message, invest in it. If you're a locals' agent in a town of second-home buyers, stay in front of locals. If your promise is savvy digital marketing for listings, your listing appeals should be all-in on digital listing ads and smart online outreach. The best marketing messages are those that can be proven authentic. If your digital ads are edited weekly based on the whims of a wide audience, you can put at risk the long-term stability of your brand. BE ACCURATE It's not always easy to find your audience online; but it's easier than it's ever been to stay in front of them. Retargeting, for example, allows digital adverts to ‘follow’ those who have responded to them. Email capture tools allow real estate agents to populate the inboxes and news feeds of their ideal ‘personas’ (a profile of your best potential prospect). AUTOMATE Real estate agents can benefit from taking advantage of the many ways to automate digital marketing. If outreach efforts get stalled by ‘not having enough time’, consistency suffers and opportunities get missed. Online advertising is a great way to get a message out without having to dedicate time to constant oversight. For example, digital ad campaigns can be scheduled weeks in advance and designed to target specific audiences. Click-throughs can land directly on related pages designed to capture email addresses using short forms and free content incentives, such as access to ‘coming soon’ listings. Once email addresses are in your database, you can enhance their value by adding them as targets for your online advertising campaign. Digital advertising company Adwerx has a patent-pending tool called QuickAdder® that lets agents add contacts to their online advertising audience simply by sending an email to their QuickAdder® account. An entire database can become subject to your message in moments. In summary, real estate agents have a lot to overcome in the age of internet marketing. Thankfully, the tools and technologies are out there to help you do it. For more information about Adwerx visit adwerx.com. eliteagent.com.au 13

FIRST PERSON

Josh Phegan

Winning Big

JOSH PHEGAN EXPLAINS how to focus attention on the things

that can make all the difference in building a solid pipeline.

listed you send a letter with a brochure and then an SMS on the day of the open. Why? Because there are two campaigns: the first to get the property sold and the second to find the next seller. Then after every sold call you send a letter of confirmation around what happened in the campaign. To do that you have to have a saved search list of the individuals in your campaign so you can work them from beginning to end. It’s extra work and it takes effort – but it’s remarkable and it shows that you’re a true professional. In practical terms, you can’t do any of this without mastering your list of potential sellers. You need to be able to progress this list through a series of steps

Let’s be honest: no piece of amazing technology is going to do it all for you. Let me tell you about an amazing App for your phone. You don’t need to download it from the App store; it’s already there and it’s the best way to get organised in the new financial year. I’m amazed by how many people wait until the end of the calendar year to reflect on achievements and set goals for the year ahead. These are best documented, dreamt up and planned when they actually happen. I’m equally blown away by those who say they have no time, but if you look at the home screen on their phone you will see social media apps, games and more time-wasters. But you want to know about this amazing app I’m talking about, right? It’s called Notes

14 ELITE AGENT • AUG - SEP 2017

and it’s where you can organise yourself to focus on your pipeline day in, day out. Most people over-complicate this, but it doesn’t have to be rocket science. In my phone’s Notes, I have an ‘achievements’ list where I write down every great thing that happened for me during the week. Usually I’ll have three to five items; it doesn’t seem like much, but it gives you perspective. When I get to the end of the year, I’ve got somewhere between 150 and 250 achievements for the year. These form the base for my goals. The more you achieve, the more ambitious you become. Nobody came here to play it small. For everything that didn’t go to plan, have a ‘lessons learned’

list. It forces you to consider the gaps in your systems and reveals opportunities for improvement. Start making these simple lists in the place where your attention is held, and your mission of building a pipeline will become crystal clear. Ask yourself if you really know where your business comes from, and then work out how you can be there to hang out where your customer hangs out before they need you. Think about how you can pre-influence the customer into selling well before they even think about selling. How do you do that? You move from one-off isolated random acts of prospecting to following a system. After every call for a just-

until they make the decision to sell their property and select you as their agent. This is another list for your Notes section. While you need this information categorised in your database, it pays to have a handy hit list at your fingertips to pore over between calls. Let’s be honest: no piece of amazing technology is going to do it all for you. It’s about having the discipline and focus of attention to wake up every morning and grind away at your ambition. 

Josh Phegan is a high performance real estate speaker, trainer and coach to some of the best agents and agencies around the world. For more information visit joshphegan.com.au.

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FIRST PERSON

Lisa Claes

Know your customer: using data to build trust and advocacy

IN A SLOWING HOUSING market, relevant data can be a valuable

asset to both real estate professionals and their clients, says CoreLogic CEO Lisa Claes.

In a notable change in direction to the spiralling property values of late, the latest CoreLogic data has revealed a 1.1 per cent drop in dwelling values across five capital cities in the past quarter, with Sydney down further at 1.6 per cent. It’s only a small decline. But at a

time where housing affordability challenges, home loan interest rate rises and tighter lending regulations have hampered activity for many downsizers, upgraders, investors and first time buyers, it throws another shred of uncertainty into the mix. As a rule, people tend not to make big decisions on a whim.

They want to make informed choices: Is it better to buy or rent? What are the trends in my area? Should I extend or upsize? Where should I invest? So, as consumer sentiment declines and the market shows signs of slowing, how can the industry build trust and confidence in the real estate process?

THE DATA ADVANTAGE In an environment tinged with uncertainty, market data and insights can be an incredible resource for real estate professionals, as well as a powerful tool to advise and engage buyers, sellers and investors. Property market data can help prospective buyers and sellers identify growth opportunities and mitigate risk, and track market trends over a prolonged period using personalised digital alerts that are relevant to them. It’s well known that the cost of acquiring new clients far outweighs the cost of keeping the ones you have. A retained client has a greater share of wallet – they will come back

16 ELITE AGENT • AUG - SEP 2017

to their broker next time they want to remortgage; they will remember and recommend their agent next time their friends and family are in the market, and they will use that same buyers’ agent who helped them successfully the last time. So during periods of instability and change, data can be a real differentiator for brokers, real estate agents, buyers’ agents and lenders to inform clients appropriately, help them make their decisions and in turn build trust and advocacy.

KNOW YOUR CUSTOMER AND YOUR MARKET Data has the potential to be an indispensable asset in the decision-making process, so it’s important to get the formula right. Think about it from your clients’ perspective – how can you make the property market easier for them to navigate and succeed in? Speak to your clients so you know what they are looking for. Analyse market trends to create insights you can share and make the most of digital technology to alert yourself and your clients to changes that may have an impact on the

During periods of instability and change, data can be a real differentiator. buying and selling process. When the stakes are high, the market competitive, and the environment uncertain, data, knowledge and client advocacy will help you stand out from the crowd. 

Lisa Claes is the Managing Director of CoreLogic Australia/ New Zealand. For more information visit corelogic.com. au.

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FIRST PERSON

Anton Babkov

Internet Trends 2017 MARY MEEKER KNOWS Internet Trends, and her annual report

is one of the most highly anticipated events on every Silicon Valley resident’s calendar. What is Meeker seeing for the next 12 months and how will it impact real estate? Anton Babkov from REX Software breaks it down.

Mary Meeker – an American venture capitalist – gives an extraordinarily comprehensive report on the state of the internet and technology once a year. Her Internet Trends report for 2017 is a 355-slide mammoth – focusing largely on video gaming, online advertising and the adoption of technology in China and India. However, there are some salient points that we should all probably be aware of.

SMARTPHONES A few key takeaways on the mobile revolution: • Growth for smartphone sales and internet penetration are both slowing, though existing internet users aren’t using the net any less. • Of these new smartphones, Android is eating the market while iOS’ share continues to slow. • Desktop usage still refuses to decline in any meaningful way. • Mobile usage has skyrocketed in the US, where Americans now spend over three hours a day on their phones. • Mobile devices are heralding the Zero UI revolution. Now that speech recognition’s accuracy is hovering at around 95 per cent, more and more users are searching with voice over their tiny keypads. In fact, 20 per cent of mobile queries were made via voice last year.

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ONLINE ADS AND SOCIAL MEDIA As you might have already figured out on your own, online ads and social media amount to the same thing. • Despite Snapchat, Twitter and other platforms’ best efforts, Google and Facebook now control 85 per cent of online ad growth. • Meeker predicts online ad spending will finally surpass television within the next six months. This is a huge milestone and something large franchises should definitely keep in mind moving forward. There’s a reason why advertising is more popular online. • Modern technology with better-targeted ads is driving more foot traffic to physical shops. Google now tracks visits to over 200 million stores with 99 per cent accuracy, helping online advertisers really see the benefits of their campaigns. GENERAL CONSUMER TRENDS The web has truly fused social media, advertising and business together – and the results are beginning to show in consumer behaviour. • Angry customers storming to social media to vent their frustrations are forcing brands to be more accountable. • Customers now expect to know exactly how things work. ‘How it works’ pages are now receiving

a lion’s share of traffic for many enterprise websites. Make sure your agency shows off how you operate in an attractive and simple page online. • The new trend towards realtime, online conversations with support and sales staff is rising rapidly. By the end of 2016,

like voice recognition, once considered a gimmick, are going to change the way you work while you’re on the go. The ‘remote office’ is set to become a reality, so don’t invest too heavily in your bricks-andmortar location just yet. • Online advertising continues to become more and more effective. Agents are sales and marketing professionals, so you need to keep up with the latest technologies. Why not take a Udemy course or two on Facebook and Google advertising tools? • Consumers expect more and more from your agency online. They demand transparency, convenience and accountability. Make sure your website is in tip-top shape, works on every device and clearly explains your business offerings. Plus, you need to leverage social media

Things like voice recognition, once considered a gimmick, are going to change the way you work. Intercom recorded almost 400 million online conversations with businesses started by consumers.

KEY TAKEAWAYS FOR REAL ESTATE So what can the real estate industry glean from all this? • As smartphones become a bigger part of everyone’s lives, mobile technology is going to continue to improve. Things

to ensure you’re available to your potential and existing clients wherever they are. 

Anton Babkov is CEO of Rex Software, a real estate software provider with 60 staff and more than 1,000 agency users. He talks regularly with Rex users about technology and innovation in the industry. For more information visit rexsoftware.com.

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People Partner Alison McGavin

The long-service myth How can principals attract and retain good staff at a time when average job tenure in the modern workforce is under four years? What do employees look for in a real estate agency, and what makes them move on? Alison McGavin examines the stats.

ong-service leave is practically a myth in today’s jobs market, where the common trend amongst Australian workers is to change jobs instead. I am constantly faced with questions and statements by prospective employers, such as ‘Why have they moved around so much?’ or ‘Their CV is too jumpy’. As a collective, I think it’s important that we all understand what is actually happening in the market today and let the facts and stats guide our thinking. We could be putting ourselves in a position where we miss out on a fantastic candidate just because we think that they haven’t shown longevity in their roles. Recent research shows that the average Australian will have 17 different jobs between 18 and retirement. That’s a lot of training! Interestingly, most people also change career paths or industries an average of five times. Today the national average tenure in a job is three years and four months. That’s nearly

three jobs per decade. A common misrepresentation is that it’s today’s millennials to blame, when in fact young people have always been more prone to job movement than their older counterparts. It turns out that four decades ago the average tenure of under-25s per job was one year and eight months, which is the same as today according to stats from the Department of Employment. Job tenure starts to grow with the age groups thereafter; two years eight months for 25 to 35 year olds, four years for 35 to 44 year olds, while people of 45+ stay in their positions for an average of six years and eight months. The top reason cited for job change was a desire for further career progression. The next most cited reason was an interest in expanding skills. As I’ve mentioned previously, these reasons suggest that employers and department leaders can increase employee satisfaction by creating more opportunities for development and job satisfaction. Surprisingly, only 38 per cent of workers cited as their

Recent research shows that the average Australian will have 17 different jobs between 18 and retirement. 20 ELITE AGENT • AUG - SEP 2017

reason for a move a desire for more money. By becoming aware of the statistics, as well as the reasons people move, it allows us to develop more effective strategies in staff retention. We know from the above that to hold on to top performers we need to be focused on fair compensation, providing career progression as well as opportunity. Our workforce is more empowered today than ever. Progression and opportunity is now the number one

quality candidates look for, as opposed to the old-school job security. Flexible working arrangements and the chance to progress within a company are more important than stability and loyalty. This means that we will have to use a lot more than salary and age-old benefits such as long-service leave to attract and retain our teams. 

Alison McGavin is a Senior Recruitment Consultant with Real+. For more information visit realplus.com.au.

Mindset Corner Jet Xavier

How to grow your business in less time If you are just starting out in the property industry, or feel like you want to move things along a bit faster, Jet Xavier has 9 ways you can potentially accelerate your progress.

MODEL SUCCESS If you look at many of the top agents in Australia, the one thing they did was find somebody who was very successful and work for them. This way they learnt from the best and grew their business on the experience of the super-agent. Not always easy to do, but if you are serious there’s no shortage of top agents who would welcome somebody who is keen, hungry and wants to learn.

said, “It’s not who you know, it’s who knows you”. You cannot build a sustainable business with consistent momentum and traction without having great networks and relationships. Get good with people ASAP. Commit to meeting as many people as you can in your area; join groups, move into the area and immerse yourself in the community. Become the agent of relationships.

SELECT AN AREA YOU RESONATE WITH Market knowledge is king in the lounge rooms. Vendors sign with agents who are the area specialist, and that means they try to know every single dwelling and owner, and all the goings-on in every aspect of that area. If you spread yourself too thin, it dilutes your intensity and impact. Once your business is built it will naturally expand to outside areas as your service becomes more well known.

DON’T BUY STUFF YOU DON’T NEED Invest in your business first, not in things you don’t need at the start of your career. Too many agents get over their heads in debt on things they don’t need when they start. Mat Steinwede says to keep it simple and basic and stay within your means. This way you will not succumb to financial pressure that can debilitate your energy and performance.

BUILD NETWORKS AND RELATIONSHIPS FAST Tom Panos said it best when he

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LOSE THE EGO Your ego will be the biggest roadblock to your success if you do not manage it. You need a healthy ego in real estate for sure, but the wrong type of ego can become arrogant. One of Australia’s most successful agents, Jason Boon, talks openly about being sacked by John McGrath numerous times and almost losing everything because of his ego. I asked him in an interview what was the biggest change in his career and his response was, “Understanding that I was delusional about who I thought I was and allowing my ego to get in the way”. Leave your ego at the door, as they say.

MAKE SURE IT’S FOR YOU OR GET OUT ASAP! Talk to most top agents and they will say they love their job, and in many ways are addicted to it in a good way. They could do it all day because they have an intrinsic passion and desire for it. It fits their skill set and personality style, and there is a perfect synergy with the ebb and flow of the job. They can work at

high intensity and be energised, not burnt out – because when you’re doing something you’re passionate about time flies; it’s a joy to do, not a slog. If you find it a slog all the time, it’s the wrong career for you.

LOVE BUYERS – THEY BECOME YOUR SELLERS The biggest mistake in recent years is that buyers have been pushed aside and not taken care of professionally by the agents. With the real estate landscape changing rapidly, some progressive operators now have specific systems and programs in their businesses that focus only on buyers,

on bringing that to the table every day. People who focus on using their strengths experience faster growth and development, are more engaged in their work, are more confident, experience less stress, feel healthier and have more energy.

TRAIN LIKE A PRO If you want to be the best, you need to train like the best daily. Not only when a conference comes around, when you make all these notes that sit in your drawer and nothing happens. I mean a training program that requires you to learn every day. If you don’t you will always be playing in the

Don’t try and become a miniclone of some super-agent you saw on a video. understanding that the way a buyer is managed and treated by their organisation now will determine in years to come who they choose to sell with.

PLAY TO YOUR STRENGTHS Don’t try and become a mini-clone of some super-agent you saw on a video. Yes, glean as much of their skill-based knowledge and model their success, but don’t try and be them. You never will, because everybody is unique. Work out what your strengths are, what your best skills are and what is awesome about you that you do well, and focus

park and never in the stadiums. Treat your business like an Olympian would treat their Olympic Games training. Be a corporate athlete. Work on your skill set and work on your mindset. Train your mind, body and soul to be an agent of excellence, not mediocrity. By doing this you will overtake those who do not place daily importance on consistent improvement. 

Jet Xavier is one of Australia’s leading mindset coaches for real estate sales professionals. For more information visit jetxavier.com.

Data & reporting - everywhere you need it

Data Insights Eddie Cetin

Work Smarter, Not Harder A life in balance is the goal for many of us; the conundrum, however, is how to get there. Can that elusive sense of balance and health be achieved as a real estate agent? Eddie Cetin says emphatically that yes, it can – but good systems, processes and tools are key.

any things work against the agent when it comes to achieving a life in balance, most notably onerous administration, clumsy technology and internal systems that burgle your time, taking you away from the people and activities which bring you joy. It’s this very lack of time – a poverty of personal resources – which makes us feel under pressure and unbalanced. It burns talented agents out, and has them leaving an industry they love. One way of reclaiming your personal time is by increasing efficiencies in your real estate practice. As the saying goes, ‘work smarter, not harder’; choose to use an intuitive CRM that alleviates the demands upon your time and your mind. You shouldn’t be regularly waking up at 3:00 am in a panic, wondering if you’ve called that ‘hot list’ vendor, or sent that pre-listing kit. Unfortunately, many agents are used to working with a lack of balance and a lack of control – they’re attempting to keep abreast of business on their memory and wiles alone. This approach causes mental clutter, anxiety and an inability to switch off from your work. It’s the very opposite of living in balance, where your mind is in flow, you sleep soundly at night, and you have time

24 ELITE AGENT • AUG - SEP 2017

for yourself and others. Free your mind, stay in the rhythm of listing and enjoy a life in balance; it’s possible when you use a CRM that does the heavy lifting (and heavy remembering) necessary to own your market.

MAKE WORK EASY Contrary to popular opinion, success in real estate isn’t the result of an uphill slog day in and out. Your CRM should automate your day, allowing you to easily pull up all tasks you need to action and people you need to call. Whether on

means being mindful of the environment and leaving paper records to the dinosaurs.

END TIME-BURGLING Vendor reporting can be an agency’s biggest timeburglar. Some agents take all day to collate their vendor reports – or they neglect to complete them at all. Neither of these situations are ideal. Your software should be able to produce you a datarich, attractive report in five minutes. Just there, you’ve reclaimed your day and informed your clients as you’d promised.

You shouldn’t be waking up at 3:00 am in a panic, wondering if you’ve called that ‘hot list’ vendor or sent that pre-listing kit. the go or in the office, your system should be able to quickly help you nurture those valuable relationships and limit any lost opportunities.

ON THE ROAD AGAIN Take a leaf out of the digital nomad’s book: work your real estate business from anywhere in the world. Your CRM should offer you mobile access to all you need whilst away from the office, whether that’s in your vendor’s lounge room or at Disneyland. Additionally, going fully digital

THE CHASE Does daily anxiety have you reaching for the Rescue Remedy? Regain equilibrium by releasing the idea that doing

well is the result of relentless chasing and working 24/7. Your CRM should be a nurturing system of its own, producing attractive marketing campaigns such as email newsletters that have people calling you. Working hard or being busy doesn’t mean you’re being effective. In fact, those who prioritise life balance rather than hours in the field are likely to enjoy greater success!

A SENSE OF PURPOSE Imagine the sense of wellbeing that comes from arriving at the office each day knowing exactly the actions you have to take. From buyer and vendor calls to marketing, each day should be planned perfectly with the assistance of your CRM. Enjoy the clarity and confidence that comes from knowing that your business day has been captured by your database. All you need to do is follow the path to success each day, as it’s consistency that brings about results. Life balance and a thriving real estate career are possible: they just take a little time, care and technology to implement. If the support you require from your team and your database is in place, you can leave the seesaw of working 24/7 behind you. Now, wouldn’t that be nice?  Eddie Cetin is the founder of Agentbox. For more information visit agentbox.com.au.

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Business Depot John Knight

Ready, set, start! Is it time to open your own office? John Knight points out the pitfalls and suggests key elements to consider before taking the plunge.

any a successful salesperson has walked into my office exclaiming, ‘I’m ready to start my own office’. Many do start, but not all survive. It’s not uncommon to hear a new principal declare it is not what they thought it would be and ‘I just want to sell again’. Firstly, I do not think selling and being a principal are mutually exclusive. Secondly, just because you are a great salesperson, it doesn’t mean you should own your own office.

SHOW ME THE MONEY Just like talking to established principals about opening a second office with a key person, or bringing in a salesperson as a shareholder, one of the first questions I ask the individual involved is around their motivation for wanting to be an owner of a real estate business. If the answer is associated with simply wanting to grab a greater share of the sale commission, I would almost guarantee that the salesperson will not be a successful principal in the first office they open. They may survive, learn from their lessons, give it another go later in life

and make a success of it; but I cannot think of anyone with this motivation making a go of it with their first office.

LIKE A BOSS One of the biggest motivations is actually around control and just wanting to ‘be the boss’. Frustrated high-performers see decisions made in the office and often don’t agree with the decision or how it was implemented, and sooner or later want absolute control. Unfortunately, the reality for many principals is once they are the boss they end up feeling like they have even less control. Their time is often consumed with keeping the team happy, engaged and motivated.

BURNING DESIRE The best salespeople who take the leap and successfully open their own office will typically have some type of itch they need to scratch or burning desire they need to satisfy. Usually when I ask their motivation for opening their own office they will respond with something like: • I want to make a difference • My customers deserve to be treated better

RIGHT HERE, RIGHT NOW The right time to start your own real estate business, whether it is a franchised operation or independent brand, is when: 1. You have proven performance consistently over the last three years, even in the tough times. 2. You already operate as a business within a business; maybe you have one or two assistants or sales

You will not earn as much in the first year as a principal as you did in your last year as a salesperson.

26 ELITE AGENT • AUG - SEP 2017

• I pride myself on training team members in the right way to do things • I am embarrassed by the industry and I want to show others how to do it with professionalism and ethics • I just want to be the boss • I want to grow a rent roll for my future • I’ve had enough of selling but am driven to create something of my own • I’ve always had the idea in the back of my head

associates already helping you with your sales. 3. You have saved or can access enough cash for six months’ worth of your estimated monthly expenses, assuming you are paid nothing for the first six months. 4. Your profile is already established and known in your target market; you can grow this without the cost of opening your own office. 5. You can articulate what your vision is for the business, what it will look like now and three years down the track. 6. You have a clear point of difference in the market that will make you stand out from the crowd and differentiate you from your competitors. 7. You have already thought about the costs of operating your own business; of course others can advise, but if you are serious you need to start yourself. 8. You are prepared not to earn as much as you did last year; it is important to accept that you will not earn as much in the first year as a principal as you did in your last year as a salesperson. But probably the most important trait of a successful new principal is appreciating that sales are vanity, profits are sanity and cash is reality. 

John Knight is the Managing Director of businessDEPOT, a team of energetic accountants and advisors. For more information visit businessdepot.com.au.

Q&A ASK THE COACH – Claudio Encina Top coach Claudio Encina is back to answer your burning questions regarding work/life balance and what to do to have a brilliant final six months of 2017.

I feel that at the moment I don’t have a good work/ life balance. Any advice? – Sasha Tasic, Laing+Simmons St George Here are some tips around personal and work balance: Set goals, plan and prioritise Having clear goals makes life so much easier, because you know where you are going, how to get there and you have more control. Without clear goals you can experience feelings of confusion and frustration, and this can drain your energy and decrease your productivity. Have structure in place Work/personal balance is all about flexibility, but to have flexibility you need a solid structure around you – both at work and at home. Structure is important because it brings certainty to the world and freedom. Practise good time management Central to good time management is to do the right thing, in the right way, at the right time and for the right duration. To be able to do this, it’s necessary to establish your priorities and then focus only on those tasks that advance important goals. We’ve all heard about creating an ideal day and week. Schedule ‘me time’ first, family time, personal development and then finally your work stuff, such as prospecting, appointments and so on. Happiness starts with you. Take holidays and long weekends Everyone needs a total break from real estate so that they can freshen their perspective on what needs to be done. I find three breaks a year to take time off helps me work at my highest level. Normally these times are around December/January, April and mid-year, before the spring madness arrives.

28 ELITE AGENT • AUG - SEP 2017

Reward yourself Rewards are important because they are the something extra you have been working towards. So, after you have set your goals and achieved them – take the reward. Stay healthy It’s important to eat well, sleep well and exercise. Love your job Real estate is a journey and with every journey it’s more enjoyable if you enjoy every stage. Enjoy the sales/listings, the people and the opportunities. To enhance your work/life balance it is so very important to enjoy what you do. I say in life play level 10: Work hard and play hard!

Anything I could be doing to improve my business halfway through the year? – Tristan Cavarra, Dunsheas Ingleburn It’s check-in time; we’re at the halfway mark of the year, when I always ask my clients to review the year so far. Are there any adjustments or changes

we need to make to crush the next six months? I recommend you prepare and answer the questions below to make sure you continue to grow and reach your goals between now and the end of 2017. • How many Hours of Power did I do this year – the Profit Zone? • How many times did I reach over 200 calls or doorknocks per week? • How many market appraisals did I do? • How many listing opportunities did I go on this year? • How many sales have I made? • On track to reach my goal GCI for this year? • If not, what are the new adjusted numbers to reach my goal? (MAs, listings, presentations and sales.) • What’s my marketing plan for the next six months? • Best thing happened in the first half of the year? • What do I need to do differently over the next six months? • What were my biggest

struggles in the first half of the year? • Do I have a morning routine to support my goals? • Am I in rhythm daily in my business? • If not, what does my new basic day/week look like? • Are there checklists and systems for my business? Lastly, all the power is in making good decisions. Here are the final questions to help you crush the final part of the year. In order for me to win and achieve my goal by the end of the year: • What do I need to be doing more of (what’s working in my business)? • What do I need to schedule more effectively? • What do I need to start doing? • What do I need to stop doing? Take the time to reflect for a moment and pause to finish the year with a bang! 

To have your question answered email askthecoach@eliteagent. com.au. To connect with Claudio visit claudioencina.com.

I say in life play level 10: Work hard and play hard!

cover story

30 ELITE AGENT â&#x20AC;¢ AUG - SEP 2017

Getting to know

Gavin Rubinstein TOP DOUBLE BAY AGENT Gavin Rubinstein is on everyone’s radar right now as a

beacon of success, and no wonder. Carrying 15 to 20 listings at a time, in the last 12 months, Rubinstein has sold $283 million worth of property. Named Ray White’s Top Salesperson in NSW five years ago at just 24 years old, today he is on track to break a long-standing record with five years in a row at the top. From what we see on social media, for Gavin, it’s the glamorous life of real estate that is usually most sought after. But what does it really take? There were a few surprises when Samantha McLean got to know the super-hard working ultimate professional behind the Rubinstein brand.

O LOOK AT GAVIN RUBINSTEIN’S stellar career so far you would hardly believe

that he started his working life at McDonalds. But he says it taught him early on about what good customer service really is. “I’d highly recommend young people start out there regardless of what industry they desire to work in,” he laughs. Despite operating in one of the most competitive and expensive areas in Sydney and being an eastern suburbs local, readers may be surprised to know that Rubinstein was not given any sort of ‘leg up’ at any stage. “I love my parents. But - my family doesn’t have connections or much money. My father was a pharmacist and drove a Daihatsu. I’ve worked extremely hard to build my business and referral network to where it is today.” Rubinstein has now been in the industry for nearly ten years. Starting as an assistant, he says he was attracted to real estate because of the potential to earn an income without a tertiary education – one of the factors that made him aspire to the lifestyle he had been exposed to. “Because I went to the private schools and I was the poor kid, no joke (laughs), I was surrounded by a lot of money and wealth. Families welcoming you into their homes, going on holidays with friends, car lifts at the school. It was a lifestyle I didn’t have so…. yes, I wanted it.” While he may have had the private school education, Rubinstein confesses that he hated traditional studying. But he did want to learn from the best. “I found mentors really early on; you can learn a lot from successful agents and gain so many valuable insights.” Obviously every agent has to start somewhere, and in the early days Rubinstein found himself up against agents with long established relationships and impeccable track records

in the area. But he says it was persistence and building rapport that eventually paid off. “Frequency builds trust. I made sure I had such regular contact with the people in my area that by the time they were ready to sell I had a foot in the door. The vendor could feel a strong sense of commitment,

“I work like someone is going to take it all away from me tomorrow.” energy and enthusiasm which even today still puts me ahead of my competitors. “If you asked me what the best form of prospecting is in the beginning, the answer is simple: it was cold calls. I built this business on cold calling. It doesn’t work for everybody, but it worked for me; I had an angle and it worked.”

eliteagent.com.au 31

cover story The angle is obviously his charisma, as pretty much everyone who knows Rubinstein would agree there is some star quality there. It comes through in everything he does, although he seems a tad shy fessing up to this. Now; he is adamant that at the end of the day it’s about doing the work. “The readers should know I just did the calls. That’s what most people don’t do. I used to lock myself in a room, I used to get the phone books and my notepad. All day I would hit the phones. “And I would be really efficient... when I made one call I knew what number I was calling next and qualifying along the way to make sure I wasn’t wasting any time.” Three to five years of solid calling, says Rubinstein, gave him a qualified database of people that over time took him from being the junior on the phone to starting to see his name everywhere. Which, he says, is where the magic happens. “I’ve now got people walking through

open homes I haven’t met before face to face who will say to me, ‘Oh wow, you don’t remember me but you used to call me every single week’. That happens regularly now,” he says, again with a laugh.

A DAY IN THE LIFE: COULD YOU KEEP UP? If you were to spend a day with Rubinstein, here is a taste of his 80hour a week schedule. • Alarm set for 4:45am Monday to Friday – out of bed at 5am • 5.30am in the gym • 8am breakfast (ordered in advance) • In and out of appointments all day • Constantly on the phone • Eat lunch at my desk/in the car • Usually finish up sometime after 8pm, often later if negotiating a deal or late appraisals.

As far as advertising is concerned, his approach was all about activity and perception in the early days. “Listing and sale activity on signboards and online is the best form of advertising. Achieving an amazing result for your vendor, and then for them to talk about it to their circle of influence is very powerful. Use your sales and great service as a platform to promote yourself. This is all I focused on at the start.” Work-life balance is a hot topic in the industry right now; for Rubinstein it’s about cycles. He admits to working ‘flat out’ with regular extended breaks. “I work 80 hours a week on average. The reality is I’m always on and contactable. I find balance by taking four breaks throughout the year, during school holidays as this is when there’s a downturn in my markets cycle; it’s on these breaks where I recharge, to ensure that during the high cycle I’m always performing at my peak.” The other thing is time management.

STRUCTURED FOR SUCCESS Rubinstein runs a tight ship and has plenty of support around him to provide the world-class level of service expected by his clientele (which he is fastidious about). Here’s how the team provides support to Rubinstein throughout the week. Jerome Srot – Operations Manager and 2IC Jerome has been in Team Rubinstein for more than six years, handling the process from listing to settlement. If a property needs to be prepared with tradespeople, decluttering, styling or storage he will organise it and handle all the moving parts behind the scenes. With an accounting degree, he also organises Rubinstein’s financials, insurances and so on. Remi Quinlivan – Executive Assistant Remi handles all admin and property marketing and controls Rubinstein’s calendar, including his personal life. Rubinstein says, “She is very efficient – knows how I think, what I like and brings great energy to the table.” Oliver Lavers – Sales Executive/ Buyer Consultant Part of the team for three years, Rubinstein says Lavers has great talent at matching buyers to properties, building relationships and reading the plays. “He has a huge future in the business.” Cae Thomas – Project and Development Sales Ultimately Thomas is on the phone to create new business. “We also run a very efficient open day schedule and he makes certain it runs smoothly,” says Rubinstein.

32 ELITE AGENT • AUG - SEP 2017

Rubinstein says, “You need to become an expert at managing your time. When at work, be at work. Limit distractions and outside noise. Focus on the task at hand. Have a team to handle problems and other non-dollar productive activities so you can focus purely on listing and selling, and providing an outstanding service.” Much of that time is still spent on prospecting. “Every minute of every hour of every day I’m constantly working for new business. Whatever avenue is available to me, I’m constantly looking for the next listing opportunity.” And he is driven to maintain his position. “I work like someone is going to take it all away from me tomorrow.” These days, Rubinstein is a media brand. With a digital profile that is talked about right across the industry a common catchphrase is, ‘If you want to have a top-notch digital profile, take a look at Gavin Rubinstein and copy him.’ And Rubinstein is okay with that. “I welcome it; I get energy out of helping other agents.” But not everyone has the budget that Rubinstein has. Over the years he says he’s probably spent hundreds of thousands on his digital profile, as well as “enormous time and effort”. But he also says that, if managed correctly, it does a great job of generating business. “Everything digitally related I take extremely seriously because of my belief that it’s a big part of what makes a successful

“I still lose listings. The more successful you become you are going to miss more and more listings. The positive out of this is that at least I’m on the shopping list.” agent, and will become even bigger in the years to come as the world becomes more digital by the minute.” But again he warns that there is no quick route to success here either. Although Rubinstein has almost 14,000 followers on Instagram this is something that has been in the making for over seven years. “With Instagram it started kind of socially and then really started ‘blowing up’ when I started doing property uploads; I found my following would respond really well. Then I started to put up photos of me at properties and I would get enquiries from people looking who would say ‘Can I come through before the open?’. In some instances I

would even sell the property from that. “The amount of time, effort, energy that has gone into that I cannot tell you. With Instagram, with calling, all that stuff – the secret is just doing the stuff and working hard at it. You know what I mean?” Despite Rubinstein’s success he says he loses more listings than he did in the early days, but everything is an opportunity to learn. “I still lose listings. The more successful you become you are going to miss more and more listings. The positive out of this is that at least I’m on the shopping list. I’d rather get an opportunity to pitch than not being considered at all. You can always learn things about yourself and what you could have done

differently in that situation. “Progression is my sole biggest motivator. Never rest on your laurels: complacency kills real estate businesses. There’s a constant challenge to grow the business year in year out; next year has to be better than this year and the year before that.” Having got to know Rubinstein a little better, I have no doubt he will continue to set a very, very high bar based on drive and sheer hard work.  SAMANTHA MCLEAN You can also get to know Gavin Rubinstein better at his event in Sydney on October 13 called ‘What it Takes’ by Gavin Rubinstein. For more information visit witgr.com.au.

eliteagent.com.au 33

leadership

SUCCESS on your own terms DANE ATHERTON’S critical leadership skill is his ability

to guide agents on the road to success, based on their individual traits and preferred way of working. Sarah Bell caught up with Dane and Harcourts Coastal business partner Philip Chillemi, to explore how agents can reach success on their own terms.

INTENSIVE RELATIONSHIPS

PROCESS FOCUSED

THE PROFESSIONAL Matt Lancashire

THE CARER Melita Bell

THE PRACTITIONER Ash Weston

THE STAR Josh Hart

EXTENSIVE RELATIONSHIPS

34 ELITE AGENT • AUG - SEP 2017

PEOPLE FOCUSED

Dane Atherton

Phillip Chillemi

HEN IT comes

to helping agents reach their potential, Dane Atherton is peerless. The recordshattering operation at Harcourts Coastal shows that as Managing Director he knows what it takes to create a cluster of highperformance agents. Dane offers a unique insight into the agent experience. Reflecting on his current agency practice, drawing on his experience of training thousands of sales agents around Australia and by observing much more through his award-winning auctioneering, he believes there is more than one way to be successful in real estate. The model of ‘grinding’ to success, by becoming an auction agent with highvolume vendor paid advertising, is simply not a model suited to everyone. Moreover, Dane believes it limits the potential of agents who perform differently. By suppressing the natural abilities of those who do not fit the mould, these agents lose motivation because work is no longer enjoyable. “If you are not aligned with that one way of doing real estate, it is never going to feel right. If you have to have a ‘why’ to get you motivated, you kind of need to find a job you enjoy; I don’t reckon Captain Cook had a ‘why’; he probably just liked being on boats. “There are people doing eight to ten sales a month, yet that sort of one-dimensional

management is trying to get them back over here in this column because they think everyone has got to perform at real estate in a certain way. But the reality is when you actually look at all the stars, and AREC is really the showcase of all of the stars, it is so obvious that there is more than one way to

do it,” says Dane. “If you are trying to be a different kind of agent to what you really are, then you will feel out of alignment and you will look for a ‘why’. I think ‘why’ lets people down because it does not really take the place of a plan, skills, passion, energy and

environment. All those things that are really important.” He goes on, “Whereas if you actually align yourself with, ‘Well, hey, I’m going to be the agent I am supposed to be’, then you will find that the ‘why’ will take care of itself.”  SARAH BELL

FOUR UNIQUE ARCHETYPES WITH FOUR DIFFERENT PATHS TO SUCCESS THE PROFESSIONAL

THE CARER

THE STAR

THE PRACTITIONER

Key skills: • Guts • Self-belief • Willing to lose and move on • Skilled professional • Natural salesperson. Challenges: • Sometimes feels unfulfilled by a deal • Gets bored easily • Has high expectations of others. Tips: • Set clear 90-day goals • Master delegation • All on/all off work balance • Improve ‘carer’ skills to find more purpose (mentor, train, team) • Energise by spending time with other successful ‘professional’ type agents. Celebrity ‘professional’ agent: • Matt Lancashire, Ray White New Farm • $2 Million + gross commissionable income • Works in the Brisbane prestige market. Key focus: • Vendor paid advertising • Generally above-average sale price • Fewer relationships with key clients • Referral business from key clients and contacts. Dane on ‘The Professional’: “You will see them at the top of the newspaper. You will see them with ten pages, and that attraction model is what they believe in. What they are good at is obviously self-belief, winning and moving on. They can sometimes lack empathy.”

Key skills: • Super-caring • Loves people • Strong networker • Sociable • Has a focus on community involvement. Challenges: • Can sometimes care too much • Can carry disappointment around • Can be difficult to grow, can lack systems. Tips: • Build a team or work in pairs regularly • Quieten the noise • Get a mentor or spend time with a ‘professional’ type agent. Celebrity ‘Carer’ agent: • Melita Bell, Re/Max Success Toowoomba • $1.2 million + gross commissionable income • Average sale price $400,000. Key focus: • 50 per cent of business is from referrals • Relationship focused • Networks heavily • No database. Dane on ‘The Carer’: “They go and get their nails done, they will get a listing – you know, those kinds of people. Their clients love them. Massively connected to them, massively loyal. They often have problems giving up to grow because they spend a lot of time servicing clients. They get trapped in the servicing mentality. My tip to help build them is to hang around pros, because they need to get that harder edge.”

Key skills: • Happy to be in the limelight • Tech-savvy • Charismatic • Has a following • A people-person • Artistic (photography, styling, creative). Challenges: • Clients can feel it is about the agent, not them • Spends too much time on nondollar productive activities • Gets side-tracked by new opportunities • Jumps from one thing to another (markets, jobs, strategies). Tips: • Be disciplined with routines to stay on track • Improve ‘practitioner’ skills • Be willing to do the work • Use numbers to stay on track. Celebrity ‘Star’ agent: • Josh Hart, One Agency – Launceston • $1 million + gross commissionable income • Average sale price $400,000. Key focus: • Being a product in the market • Being authentic • Passionate • A provider of information • Create a following • Use social media • Presenting • Auctioneering Dane on ‘The Star’: “A star builds their brand around themselves. The star would say to you if you are putting a sign up, ‘How big can my photo be? Can we go full length?’ They are very big into social media. They are very big into video. They will do personal promo videos, and they just love being the centre of attention. The star’s view is that ‘they’ are the product.”

Key skills: • High call volumes • Numbers-driven • Super-disciplined • Organised • Focuses on a core market Challenges: • Being a practitioner takes excellent discipline • Hears ‘no’ more often than ‘yes’ • Can take longer to gain traction • More linear growth. Tips: • Improve skills • Control your environment • Play to your strengths • Do not compare yourself to other agents. Celebrity ‘Practitioner’ agent: • Ash Weston, Ray White – Frankston • $1.3 million + gross commissionable income • Average sale price $400,000. Key focus: • Not necessarily the most natural salesperson • Tends to be analytical • Numbers-driven • Willing to work hard • Fits well into the dominant real estate business model. Dane on ‘The Practitioner’: “Practitioners are not necessarily gifted salespeople, and they will openly admit it. They are more methodical. They are very good prospectors; very disciplined. The good thing is, if you are a practitioner long enough and good enough, you will develop pro traits.”

“I don’t reckon Captain Cook had a ‘why’; he probably just liked being on boats.”

Complete Dane’s and Phil's quiz and find out “Which AREC 2017 speaker are you?” by heading to eliteagent.com.au/ successonyourownterms

eliteagent.com.au 35

wellness

A Reviving Industry Wellness

LOT OF PEOPLE have had a ‘knowing’ that the model of profitfirst real estate may be doing harm, but that is a difficult conversation to start in a competitive industry where vulnerability can be taken as weakness. While aspects of physical health for optimum performance are front and centre of the national conversation, it is the emotional and psychological cost of labour in the industry which, in the absence of human sustainability measures, could see our most precious resource strained and depleted.

WHAT IS REVIVE 2017?

AS PROVIDERS OF PROFESSIONAL services, the wellness

and wellbeing of people in real estate needs to be a core consideration of industry sustainability. We’ve been focused on the digital and the dollar while a silent epidemic affecting the physical and emotional health of our agents, principals and property managers appears to have crept in at higher rates than other industries.

Revive 2017 is an initiative of Jet Xavier, which began with a vision for a ‘different’ type of event that focused on people and the wellness and wellbeing of the agent as a key differentiator of real estate success. Through preliminary scoping, the scale and the need for more complete research emerged and so The Revive 2017 Project took shape, with the principle objective being to understand, support and value the wellness and wellbeing of people in the real estate industry. The research took place over three phases: • A broad, national self-report anonymous survey which yielded over 1,000 responses. • A series of roundtable meetings held in Melbourne, Adelaide, Brisbane and Sydney with industry leaders, frontline practitioners

Revive (v) – To return to life, consciousness, vigour, strength, or a flourishing condition. and experts to discuss the results of the survey and the experience at ground level. • A first-of-its-kind wellness and wellbeing summit, Revive 2017, held in July 2017.

DEFINING WELLNESS AND WELLBEING The World Health Organisation (WHO) define ‘health’ as a state of complete physical, mental and social wellbeing and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity. They define ‘mental health’ as a state of wellbeing in which every individual realises his or her own potential, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully and is able to make a contribution to her or his community. This holistic understanding of wellness and wellbeing frees the issue up for everyone in the industry to participate.

36 ELITE AGENT • AUG - SEP 2017

AROUND THE ROUNDTABLES 1 Emotional and mental wellbeing is good business While physical fitness and nutrition seem to dominate the national conversation on ‘health’, the roundtable participants have found that mental and emotional wellness and wellbeing is just as important – although the industry lacks a blueprint for how to build protective factors for wellness into an organisation. Most states and territories have parallel legislation in place relating to workplace health and safety. However, in deliberations at the roundtables few employers were aware of the obligation on them to provide mentally safe workplaces – indeed, many felt under-qualified or at stretched capacity with existing responsibilities. A national study in 2014 by PwC, commissioned by Beyondblue, placed the direct economic cost of mental health to Australian businesses at around $11 billion annually. That same report also suggested that for every dollar spent on mental health initiatives, the returned benefit to the organisation was around $2.30, and higher returns for small to medium workplaces. “We started an employee assistance program… whereby corporate at Laing + Simmons pays for counselling for any of our team, confidentially…” said Leanne Pilkington, Managing Director of Laing + Simmons and President-elect of REINSW. “I launched it at a regional meeting on a Tuesday morning and Tuesday afternoon they had already had two phone calls. It’s not that we get a huge volume, but we are getting people on a regular basis.” “We have to lead by example,” said Nathan Casserly of Ouwens Casserly. “If I am expecting my team to come to me… then I need to be leading by example, showing some vulnerability back to them.”

2 Alternative narratives of ‘success’ A critical theme from the discussions was the lack of diversity in ‘success’ stories. Where we are geared to emulate one path to success in a rigid sense, there is a lack of available role models for achievement on other terms than GCI or financial outcomes. In the study of motivation, the prospect of financial reward as an external contingent motivator has been robustly tested (Edward L. Deci and Richard M. Ryan. Self-determination. John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 2010) and found to be a pale and impoverished form of motivation – even demotivating. Success in family and personal relationships is perhaps something that the industry should be placing more focus on. Valerie Timms, Director of Timms Real Estate

SURVEY RESULTS

40%

said they often felt ‘overwhelmed’ by the demands of the job

26%

said they used alcohol ‘often’ to cope with work stress

50%

36%

said they felt only limited support by their co-workers and colleagues

said in the past 12 months they have often felt physical symptoms of anxiety

46%

felt work often impacted upon personal relationships

ROUND TABLE ROLL CALL National Jet Xavier, Sarah Bell QLD Antonia Mercorella, CEO REIQ Marianne Dyer, Organisational Psychologist Rachel Byrne, Jean Brown Properties Stacey Holt, Real Estate Excellence Steve Hodgson, McGrath Zac McHardy, Raine & Horne Lisa McLean, Direct Connect Felicity Moore, REIQ Scott Lachmund, Richardson & Wrench James Bell + Ben Salm, brad bell SA Phil Harris, Harris Real Estate Nathan Casserly, Ouwens Casserly Valerie Timms, Timms Real Estate Dale Gray, Ouwens Casserly Rob Caruana, Toop & Toop Michael McPhee, Direct Connect Mark Lands, Lands Real Estate

23%

28%

responded ‘not at all’ when asked if they had hobbies and interests to balance work

40%

said were not satisfied with their physical health and fitness

responded ‘no time at all’ to pursue interests outside of real estate

25%

said they experienced physical symptoms of burnout

35%

said they had sought medical advice one time or more regarding work related stress

VIC Kate Strickland, Marshall White Penni Nicholls, Direct Connect Tanja M Jones, TMJ Coaching Glen Coutinho, RT Edgar Boroondara Michael Choi, Area Specialist Marcus Washington, Harcourts Tim Longmore, Noel Jones Darren Hutchins, O’Brien Real Estate Kylie Charlton, Charlton King NSW Doug Driscoll, Starr Partners Kon Stathopoulos, McGrath James Price, Hudson McHugh Leon Axford, Leon Axford Auctions Georgi Bates, Cunninghams John Cunningham, REINSW President Leanne Pilkington, Laing + Simmons David Eastway, Hudson McHugh Dr. Nic Lucas, Optimisation Specialist Lisa McLean, Direct Connect Nick Papas, Century 21 Grant Herbert, Emotional Intelligence and Leadership Coach

eliteagent.com.au 37

wellness (South Australia), said, “The industry only seems to recognise the top 10 per cent and the spotlight is always on those people. So there isn’t reward for those doing consistent good business; the spotlight is always on the million-plus earners – for a reason… everyone wants to emulate them, but maybe there isn’t recognition for other successes.” There is also the issue of not getting the full picture. “Balance is the issue and it is the message that is the problem,” said Doug Driscoll, CEO Starr Partners. “We put people on pedestals and we ask the wrong questions… We hear about the 15-hour days but not the two months they have off a year. We focus on the 15 hours a day then the young up-and-comers think, ‘I’ve got to do 15 hour days’ and they literally work themselves to the bone.” “There is a pervading disease in our industry at the moment and it is the ‘hustle and grind’ movement. No doubt hard work is required to achieve anything, but this misinformed, unresearched or studied, Hollywood blockbuster movie-perpetuated message focused on financial success is creating unhealthy work practices,” says Jet. In the same vein, the onboarding of new agents ought to include frank and realistic discussion about the financial realities of beginning a career in real estate. There is a great disparity between tales of fame and riches and the reality of the sales commission or debit-credit model – both of which involve a gruelling start-up phase of very little income for a lot of output. “As the market turns a lot of people are going to bail because they just can’t cope,” added Glen Coutinho, Director of RT Edgar Boroondara (Victoria). “I always want to find out what [a person’s] financial commitments are before they join me… it is a pretty open conversation… I think the onus is on a principal to find that out and they need to be skilled at having that conversation before they put a [debit-credit or commission only] noose around someone.”

3 ‘Harden up’ doesn’t cut it any more The real estate industry in 2017 has faced a gruelling expansion in the scope of work and responsibilities. Increased access to personnel through technology, public expectations of service, disrupters and emergent technology as well as increasing legislative and regulatory burdens all require greater output from agents and a higher expenditure of emotional and mental labour. The need for industryspecific resources, programs and assistance was also highlighted in deliberations, due to the unique challenges faced in real estate and the insular nature of the industry.

38 ELITE AGENT • AUG - SEP 2017

You don’t need to be dealing with a mental illness or have some physical ailment to become involved in a movement that is about thriving and reaching potential. “It [real estate] is a different environment and I think we need to treat it as such,” commented Rob Caruana of Toop & Toop. “You are selling a service, you aren’t selling a product. When you are selling a product and the customer doesn’t want that product, it is easy to say that it is the product. You can’t help but take it personally when you don’t get that listing, because it is me... You can work for five months on weekends and nights and not get paid.” “Technology has turned up our expectation on everything and the world just isn’t coping,” said Tim Longmore, Director of Noel Jones Mitcham. “There are too many things and all that noise can overwhelm people… I also feel that everyone has the glasses of judgment on; there is not much care.” In Queensland, Rachel Byrne, REIQ Property Manager of the Year, and National Property Management trainer Stacey Holt highlighted that, even within the industry sectors, there are diverse needs for support. “Property managers have to deal with exposure to trauma, death and domestic violence as par for the course,” said Stacey, who noted that in other professions dealing with this type of subject matter there is a wide range of support and counselling available.  SARAH BELL

OPTIONS FOR BETTER WELLNESS AND WELLBEING The options that exist for our industry to improve wellness and wellbeing range from simple, low-cost initiatives through to bold, ambitious national projects. The next phase of the Revive Project will be to gather feedback on these options and to include that feedback in the white paper, due for release later this year. Options include: • National Revive Wellness and Wellbeing in Real Estate not-for-profit organisation • Workshops • Online education – videos/materials • National Revive Wellness and Wellbeing Day • Blueprint for how to implement wellness and wellbeing initiatives into an office • Social welfare support/crisis help • Wellness at work partners – workplace assessment/programs • Revive yearly summit • Wellness and wellbeing app • Alignment with existing positive organisations such as beyondblue and Lifeline • An office mental health first aid officer; not necessarily the business owner but someone who has been educated and empowered to refer the person seeking help to the right support, and to maintain confidentiality • A manual with ideas on how to run a wellness and wellbeing day in the office • A mentorship, or mate-ship, program across Australia that pairs agents with each other – outside of their local competitors • An onboarding resource that explains the nature of the debit-credit and commission-only lifestyle, and how to cope with financial uncertainty when you are starting out in real estate • Awards for corporate citizenship and wellness/wellbeing-related topics, such as a Legacy Award instead of just financial/GCI and VPA-focused awards.

If you would like a copy of the Revive 2017 Project white paper, or want to stay updated with news and resources on wellness and wellbeing in the real estate industry, go to eliteagent.com.au/wellnessatwork to join a growing community of agents, principals and property managers who are committed to creating a more positive industry.

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feature interview

The Un-Million Dollar Agent ALEXANDER WATERS WROTE over a million dollars

in his first year selling real estate. Rapid success for a young man brought fame and accolades, but for Alex it lacked balance. In an incredibly brave and honest interview, Sarah Bell caught up with Alex to learn how becoming the ‘un-million dollar agent’ has resulted in new heights of success and a new grounding in happiness.

Tell me about becoming a million-dollar agent. I basically worked about four years of normal working hours in that first two years. I was switched on all the time and shut myself in, doing the job, getting the next listing, transacting. There was almost a sense of anxiousness if I wasn’t doing something work-related like being on the phone. It was relentless sacrifice. I literally didn’t do anything else; I didn’t play sport, didn’t socialise much. I went to the gym and that was about it, but I’d be in the office till 11:00 pm most weeknights. I didn’t have any assistance at all. It was just doing three or four appraisals a day plus all the prospecting in the morning and doing all my admin late at night. I don’t know how I did it. To be honest with you, I think it was the fact that I had moved to Karratha and there was just nothing else to distract me; I was here to work and earn money. I had set myself a two-year limit. I think it was just about maximising that two years at that point. You reached some highs – what was speaking at AREC like? It was a certainly a real honour to be asked to speak at AREC. I definitely didn’t think that I had done anything special. I had probably done what most people weren’t prepared to do, which is work extremely hard – unrelenting. It was a great feeling, but it was probably at that point that I started to want to pull back. I think when you’re at that level it’s just

40 ELITE AGENT • AUG - SEP 2017

you’re being egged on by everyone to keep pushing harder. You know, double your numbers this year – it’s going to be double [again] next year. It’s just I think I lost sight of actually why I was doing it and what I was doing it for.

What triggered the change? When I went from being a salesperson to a business owner, I was going through staff pretty quickly because I still had that false mindset around intensity – thinking I’ve got to be super-intense, I’m going to be on

“Everyone thought I was arrogant and disliked me because I was too hard to work with – who wants to live that life?” everyone’s backs, getting them to be the same way. I realised if I wanted to retain staff and build a good culture I had to shift away from that. I’ve always learnt from adversity quickly. I also went through a relationship breakup, and at the same time things started to get tough within the first six months in business – you know, cash flow was getting tight. Having gone through a relationship breakup plus not having an abundance of money any more, I sat there and went, ‘Well, what else do I have?’. I didn’t have much else; there was

nothing in my life that was fulfilling me. I learned how to live within my means again on a much smaller scale and realised that I was no less happy or happier. When I started up the business I went through a legal battle with my previous employer, non-compete type stuff. That was very draining on me and probably one of the hardest times of my life emotionally. I was drinking a lot. I couldn’t sleep, I was drinking about a bottle and a half of wine every night by myself. I let my health go. I wasn’t working out. I guess I was trying to distract myself really from what was going on and was just using alcohol as a way to do that.

How did you go about designing a better life for yourself? I just realised that the high-strung intensity that I had in my life, and what it was pushing me to be like, wasn’t making me happy at all. I started to do some things to make sure I had better support. I couldn’t pull myself out of sales right away because, obviously, I was driving most of the income for the new business; but it was about really selecting and doing the things that I really want to do rather than doing it all. Like not being afraid to set boundaries. Set boundaries around when I was going to work, when I was going to take phone calls and making sure that people respected that – and funnily enough they do. I decided I wanted to travel a lot more and take even more time off.

What I really wanted to do was just be a good person and do work that was really fulfilling for me.

What happened next? I remember in the past looking up to different mentors and people who were in business and [them] saying, ‘You know what, Alex – I get that you’re doing your sales thing, but for me it’s more rewarding seeing people grow and develop within my business’. I never

“I lost sight of why I was doing it and what I was doing it for.” really got that until I started changing the way I work and putting time and energy into the people in my businesses. I ventured out and opened an outsourcing business [in the Philippines] and to be able to offer career opportunities to my team there is very fulfilling. To see some of the changes that people have undergone and to have their partners or their friends tell me that that person has just changed for the better and I’ve impacted their life in a meaningful way... It

just makes me feel so good, in comparison to when I was writing $1.1 million in gross commission a year, and everyone thought I was arrogant and disliked me because I was too hard to work with – who wants to live that life?

How is being an un-million dollar agent different? I’ve been able to build more wealth now than I ever have before because I’ve done the right things in a business, and obviously we’re building an asset with property management as well. It’s having a meaningful impact on people’s lives. I guess being a bit more normal and not [feeling] self-loathing if I don’t always do the things like getting up at 5:00 am, and accepting that it’s okay to not go to the gym now and then. Yes, health and fitness are still really important to me. I care about the way I look, and I care about feeling good, but I’m not going to be intense to the point where I’m going to beat myself up over it if I don’t go now and then. I definitely enjoy taking a lot more time off and travelling. On top of a three or four week holiday over the New Year period and mid-year, I now try to take seven to ten days away every six weeks. That is also personal

development, just taking time in a different location to refresh and get creative again. And not being afraid to trust my team with the responsibilities that are at hand. Specifically concerning real estate sales, I think I’m enjoying dealing with each transaction more, because when you’re at that fast, rapid pace the emotion leaves the deal. Funnily enough, I’m still attracting the same amount of business as I was before. We’re getting better reviews. We’re getting better customer feedback because they’ve obviously felt that we’ve cared about their situation more.

What’s next for the un-million dollar agent? There are quite a few things happening this year. I now have 35 staff across four businesses in four locations, including Perth and the Philippines. Late last year we opened a Capita Finance business, we are just about to launch our new commercial agency, Realmark Commercial Pilbara, and we have plans to open another office in Port Hedland later in the year. What is most rewarding is that by changing my values and the way I operate as a person I’ve been able to achieve my goals much quicker and I’m a much happier, more fulfilled person.  SARAH BELL

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Spring Selling

KONDO The joy of decluttering THE REBOUND EFFECT OF CLEANING: it happens so

frequently people don’t notice. You (or your vendors) have tidied the home – again – but everyone has lost count of the number of times. But, when we talk Marie Kondo, we are not talking about simple dusting or polishing, we are talking about a revolutionary type of decluttering that is game-changing. Shantelle Isaaks has done the research so you can prepare your vendors for sale this spring, or simply give your own home or office a ‘spark of joy.’

ONDO SAYS tidying must

happen before moving house. Not only does a well-maintained home become more attractive to buyers, but it also helps clients find their next perfect home based on what they really need to take with them. After reading Kondo’s best-selling books, The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying and Spark Joy, I’ve condensed her main principles into five steps that can be shared with your vendors in preparation for a sale – and a new lifestyle.

42 ELITE AGENT • AUG - SEP 2017

VISUALISE THE RESULT AND COMMIT

The first step to tidying is envisioning the end product and imagining the lifestyle a tidy environment would bring. Kondo says by doing this you are clarifying why you want to tidy. Remind your vendors to declutter in preparation for OFIs and listings, and to think about the kind of ideal home buyers want to see. If they need inspiration, direct them to interior design magazines and Pinterest boards. Show them ‘before’ and ‘after’ photos from others who have adopted the KonMari method.

Ensure your vendors stay committed and put the time aside. Kondo recommends tidying at the beginning of the day when your brain is most alert and refreshed. Decluttering on consecutive days is also key. For example, the last thing your vendors should do is discard one item per day. The problem with this is they’re accumulating new things at a faster rate than discarding them. Tidying too little per day means you will be tidying forever.

CATEGORISE THE ITEMS AND FOLLOW THE ORDER

Kondo is notably adamant about the order in which you must discard and store your items. The KonMari order for tidying is: 1. Clothing 2. Books 3. Documents 4. Miscellaneous items (or ‘komono’) 5. Sentimental items. If your vendors sort through sentimental items, such as photographs or family keepsakes, before anything else, uncertainty could dissuade them from tidying the rest altogether. Start with things that are accessible or of commercial nature because they’re easier to let go.

You can get your vendors to gather every item of each category and lay them out. Kondo says this is more efficient than decluttering by room or area in the house. They will be able to identify what they have an excess of in their home. Something to note during this step is if your vendors suddenly remember they have misplaced items at the last second. If possessions are so forgettable, it’s highly likely they need to be discarded straightaway.

DO YOUR ITEMS BRING JOY?

Learning to choose your belongings will leave you with only the things you need. Kondo suggests focusing on the feeling you have when you hold the item you plan on discarding. Does it bring you joy? If it does, keep it. If not, discard it. If the item you’re trying to discard was expensive, is in pristine condition or was a gift from someone, it can make this decision-making difficult. A good way to get around this is to either donate the item to their local op shop, have a garage/ moving sale, or sell the item via eBay or Facebook Marketplace.

but there are exceptions to this rule. Your vendors could be large families, for example. In this case, keep quantities of the same kind in one place, taking into consideration the KonMari categories mentioned earlier.

SIMPLIFY YOUR STORAGE

Storage should be kept simple. Kondo illustrates particular ways to fold clothing and compartmentalise belongings in her book, Spark Joy, describing her methods as like packing a bento box or folding origami. You can find her techniques everywhere on YouTube. There is an abundance of other solutions or ‘life hacks’ to adopt for decluttering, so the important part here is to allow vendors to make it their own, but work towards a home that brings joy. The aesthetic of our home is one of the only places where we have total control. Experiment with existing storage solutions in the home before deciding to buy new ones. The less gimmicky, the better. Kondo also says to avoid piling your items; instead, arrange them vertically. When

Focus on discarding what’s no longer of use and keeping what brings you joy. The results will be life-changing. By the way, we’re not suggesting that you get rid of everything that doesn’t spark joy, for example a toilet brush. It’s not likely to spark joy, but if serves a purpose obviously you keep it.

DESIGNATE A SPOT FOR EVERYTHING

To avoid the rebound effect of finding yourself disorganised after tidying, Kondo says to assign specific locations for certain items. Keep your jeans or trousers in the same part of the drawer. Hang your coats on the same section of your wall. This way, you prevent yourself from misplacing items somewhere else in your home and gives you the incentive to return things where they belong. Convey this to your vendors, because it will prepare them for any unexpected drop-ins by a buyer. They will be more efficient with any last-minute tidying that happens in preparation. When moving, packing will also be more effective when you know where your belongings are sitting in your home. Kondo also discourages stockpiling,

moving, you’ll reduce the number of containers required by folding and vertically arranging your clothes into boxes, for example. The same goes for storing them after the move; you’ll need fewer elaborate drawers or wardrobes for them. Marie Kondo is a self-confessed tidying freak. If you pick up her books for your vendors before they move home, don’t be too surprised by her strong passion for putting things into order. If anything should be taken away from the cult of the KonMari method, it’s to show appreciation for what we own. The framework of the KonMari method can be applied to life, too. Kondo reiterates throughout her books that our belongings reflect our state of mind. Clinging to things we have no use for is a likely indication we’re better off without them. Encourage your vendors to declutter, but it’s worth doing some self-reflection and ‘Kondoing’ your lifestyle. Focus on discarding what’s no longer of use and keeping what brings you joy. The results will be lifechanging.  SHANTELLE ISAAKS

TIPS FOR EACH CATEGORY CLOTHES • Avoid downgrading clothing to ‘loungewear’. If you’re already reluctant to wear them outside the home, you might be better off discarding them. • Folding your clothes eliminates the issue of lacking storage for them. Fold thinner items tighter and thicker items looser. Keep coats and delicates on the hanger. • Avoid using storage containers for offseason clothing like coats or sweaters, because you’ll forget about their existence in the long term. BOOKS • Categorise them as the following: general (books read for pleasure, such as fiction), practical (references, cookbooks, and so on), visual (photobooks and scrapbooks) and magazines. • The moment you first obtain a book is when you should be reading it. Saving it for later or ‘sometime’ likely means ‘never’. DOCUMENTS • Only keep papers that are needed for a limited time, currently in use or needed indefinitely. • Keep warranty documents in a single transparent file. MISCELLANEOUS ITEMS (‘komono’) • This category includes CDs and DVDs, skincare products, makeup, accessories, valuables (passports and credit cards), electrical appliances and household or kitchen supplies. • Label your cords and cables, and avoid keeping excessive amounts of them. • Some things to discard straightaway may include spare buttons (otherwise sew them to the tags or linings of your clothing), free novelty items from events and product boxes (unless they’re of high enough value to resell). SENTIMENTAL ITEMS • Not many of these will be discarded. Be especially careful with family heirlooms or keepsakes; they are still important to others if not necessarily their current owner. • Photographs are the last thing you must tidy. Keep those that bring the most joy in photo albums or get the kids to create a scrapbook.

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Spring Selling

THE FRONT WINDOW WOW-FACTOR IT’S ONE OF THE GIVENS

in real estate: be noticed. And a cost-effective place to start, says VitrineMedia Australia’s Managing Director Mike Toweel, is your shopfront window. Here he shares tips on how to give your shop windows a spring lift and get those listings noticed.

REMEMBER YEARS ago first coming across the marketing maxim that ‘doing business without advertising is like winking at a girl in the dark… you know what you’re doing, but nobody else does’. It rang true then and is as valid today, particularly with the shopfronts of businesses offering a great advertising medium that, when used correctly and

4 4 ELITE AGENT • AUG - SEP 2017

creatively, will go a long way towards making you stand out from the crowd. Much of what’s happening in windows these days is being driven by the vendors, who are moving away from wanting their properties displayed on a television loop – where their frequency could be limited to 30 seconds every seven minutes – and towards static backlit LED displays, where their properties are on show, all the time. The good news is that, regardless of the building you’re in, the windows you have or whether you’re in the city or the country, there’s an LED solution out there to maximise and flaunt what you’ve got. What works for a great big ground floor window looking out onto a busy footpath and main road seldom cuts it for an upstairs office, one within a shopping mall or one located in a heritage building. It’s all about marrying the display with the architecture or ambience of the buildings, as well as their settings – and that’s why our approach starts with a visit to the premises, where we photograph and measure the shopfront before selecting the number and sizes of the displays we think best suit the site and feeding all the information into our CAD systems to ensure it fits.

The design process, from raw information to superimposed photography and on to installation

The information then goes to our design team, who superimpose the to-scale design onto the customer’s window photograph to provide them with a highly accurate digital version of the real thing in situ. Let’s consider the various scenarios. Buildings with big, generous windows offer great flexibility in terms of display sizes and layout, with city locations generally benefitting from a ‘less is more’ approach where branding is key. Country locations – which tend to have many rental

LED display screens exhibited at various angles create a contemporary feel compatible with modern glass and chrome buildings.

Angled displays following the curvature of the window deliver an eye-catching result

What works for a great big ground floor window overlooking a busy footpath seldom cuts it for an upstairs office, one within a shopping mall, or one located in a heritage building.

and sale properties on their books – profit from a ‘more is more is more…’ tactic. Chrome and glass buildings and façades in new neighbourhoods where there’s a younger demographic generally cry out for a stylish, modern, open and even minimalistic ambience with a distinctively arty feel, created perhaps by having large LED display screens – maybe A2 or A3 – exhibited at various angles. More difficult challenges are posed by upstairs offices given their visibility from the street, which makes a few big format A1 or even A0 window displays the best way to be noticed and lure the prospect into the premises, where smaller wall-mounted interior A3 and A4 displays can then carry the bulk of the agency’s listings. It’s a similar scenario for real estate agencies housed in heritage buildings, as there’s a strong chance that heritage regulations will restrict what they can do to their windows or other external surfaces. Again, they’re best served by a big, bold corporate branding display in the window, with modern and creative wall-mounted screens juxtaposing the old with the new. The same solutions work best for buildings with small windows – and so

long as they’re wider than about 750mm, they can comfortably and stylishly take a single A1 or a couple of A2s, with the rest displayed internally. Curved windows, far from posing challenges, are rich with potential and opportunity. Yes, our screens are flat and we can’t curve them to follow the lines of the window, but we can create that effect. We start by drawing a curved line about 10 cm back from and parallel to the curved window and then cut our rails to fit almost perfectly along our line that follows the curvature of the glass. Each screen is then placed at a slightly greater angle from the one preceding it to create a spectacular look. So switch on the lights, figuratively speaking, and start winking! 

Managing Director Mike Toweel was appointed to establish French-based parent company VitrineMedia’s Australasian operation in 2013 and build the brand across the region. VitrineMedia is available in all states of Australia and now also in Christchurch, New Zealand. For more information visit vitrinemedia.com.au.

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Spring Selling

Putting some Spring into your marketing

WITH SPRING AROUND

the corner, just like a good clean in your own home, you need to review and prepare how you’re presenting yourself to the marketplace to have your busiest season yet. Josh Hart explains.

YOUR PROFILE AND HEADSHOT

Authenticity is key here. There’s nothing worse for a prospective client to read or see your profile and find it doesn’t match the person they meet in real life. Worse still, your information is not current or up to date. Take time to review and identify your value-add proposition to prospective clients, including:

46 ELITE AGENT • AUG - SEP 2017

• What is your ‘stand out’ point of difference and how does it relate to past results? • What are your achievements over the past twelve months? • How are you relatable? For example, you might have lived in the area all your life. You’re on the local school’s parents and friends association. You’re a life member of the Lions Club or the auctioneer at the school’s charity. Your photo should be welcoming and engaging so, most importantly, have fun and smile!

VIDEO PROFILE

Once you’ve got a brilliant written profile – and made sure it’s updated across all your digital assets – it’s time to either review your current video profile or find a brilliant videographer and bring your written profile to life! Remember, video is different from a written profile. It’s always easier and more credible for others to speak about your successes rather than doing it yourself (less ego and arrogance). Think about having your staff, clients or local community members speak about their

experiences and dealings with you. It’s all about being authentic and true to yourself. Don’t be someone you’re not.

business associates to recommend you, not only on Google review but also Facebook and LinkedIn. Don’t be afraid to ask.

SOCIAL MEDIA

Consistency is key with social media and there is no better time to start than now! Create a Facebook business page and download your database list into Facebook. There you will be able to target your contacts through their newsfeed. Write a strategy that incorporates recent success, news about community events, competitions and giveaways, property videos, testimonials and blog articles that will inform your marketplace. Become a media company and the recommended authority in your area with relatable content. As well as Facebook, create an Instagram account and video blog the more human side of real estate through Instagram stories; share the journey, the highs and lows with your followers. ers.

WEBSITE

If you haven’t already done so, have an agent website created. This is a fantastic tool to send prospective clients

STRATEGY

Who are you and what do you offer? In a crowded market your message needs to be clear and concise. Create a campaign that will be memorable, based on facts or data. My team created a twelve-month campaign across all advertising material saying, “Josh Hart sold a home every 4.3 days” based on my days on market, or “Josh Hart, Launceston’s most recommended agent” based on how many reviews I had compared to my competitors. Don’t keep changing the campaign either; you want it to become instilled in the community. I also worked closely with our local advertisers to buy my media packages a year in advance – affording me the best market rate for the advertising space.

TESTIMONIALS

What people say about you will hold more credibility than what you say about yourself. Try to collate testimonials

from every transaction you’re involved in and create a ‘recommendations’ booklet which you can leave in a pre-list pack, on your website or on your social media. Even better, try to have it as a video testimonial which you can place on social media and have it run as an advert to generate further leads. There are so many ways you can market yourself to stand out. However, the main rule is to play the long game, be consistent and be authentic. People buy people, and do business with people they trust. Does your marketing show that? Get ready for a busy spring, and good luck. 

Josh Hart is one of Tasmania’s most celebrated real estate agents. Affectionately known as “the attraction agent” because of his innovative approach and ability to marry traditional real estate marketing methods with disruptive digital technologies including social media and video. Hart recently spoke at AREC 2017 and is a Director at One Agency Launceston, winner of the 2016 REIA small agency of the year.

It’s all about being authentic and true to yourself. Don’t be someone you’re not. to as an online pre-list kit, as well as for prospective clients who are searching for you online. Items to include are a profile video, recent testimonials (video and written), recent sales and results, current listings and profiles on your team, as well as information to assist buyers and sellers through the property process. This could include tips to sell, how to present your home for sale, step-by-step guide to buying your first home, and so on.

ONLINE PRESENCE

This is a great time to jump onto business.google.com and ensure all your business information is correct. If you work for an agency, you can create your own business listing (such as One Agency China – John Doe). Ask friends and past clients to rate and recommend you. This will help with your search engine ranking and ensure that when your prospective clients Google your name they can find your correct phone, email, website and address (and not those of your competitors). This is a great time to get past clients and

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productivity

WHY AM I HERE? 2

in common: they recognise that great meetings flow and the energy is positive throughout. When you run a meeting focusing on the energy more than any other element, you will create better meetings. To make that easier, my clients use what we call the ‘Momentum Meeting Model’ – an easy approach to keep things flowing.

AFTER 17 YEARS IN REAL ESTATE, business coach Jacob

Aldridge has sat through more than 6,800 meetings. You’ve probably been to a few yourself. If you’ve ever found yourself asking ‘Why am I here?’ you need to check out these five steps to making meetings more productive and valuable to all participants.

AVE YOU EVER been to a

meeting that was a waste of time? Surely not! The ‘Why am I here?’ team meeting. The ‘We did this last week’ sales training. The ‘Death by PowerPoint’ conference. The ‘Can you cut your commission?’ listing presentation, and the ‘At least the alcohol is free’ awards function. Been there. Bought the T-shirt. And

48 ELITE AGENT • AUG - SEP 2017

thankfully, I’m here to tell you that it doesn’t have to be this way! Here are the simple steps you can implement immediately to make meetings work for your business.

IT’S ABOUT ENERGY

Sort through all the ideas about running better meetings – do them standing up, walking around, for 45 minutes instead of an hour – and you’ll realise there’s one thing they have

THE QUESTION MARK AGENDA

A good meeting needs a clear agenda that every participant is aware of. For regular meetings, I recommend a set agenda that repeats each week to make this process easy. Whether there’s a set agenda or not, take the time at the start of each meeting to check with your team what else they want to cover; there may be some burning issues that warrant discussion, and you don’t want to leave those to the end. Take the time to confirm the entire agenda before you start dealing with items. This allows you to triage what can be covered in the time available, and prioritise items. So many team meetings go bad because too much time is wasted on the first thought that comes up, and your team runs out of time to discuss specific items that are actually more important. If you find your regular meetings usually descend into circular, pointless discussions, try this trick: make sure every agenda item ends in a question mark. This limits discussion to specific questions you can answer and resolve, saving everybody time.

GREAT EXPECTATIONS

The next step in the Momentum Meeting Model is confirming expectations. Usually a 30-second process, this avoids an enormous amount of meeting frustration. How much time does everybody have? Nothing worse than a key person leaving in the middle of an important discussion. Is anyone expecting any interruptions? It’s great you have a contract being signed this morning, but if you’d let us know in advance it would have been less disruptive. And who is taking notes? Very few meetings require formal minutes to be recorded, but if you and your team are making agreements or committing to actions then you want someone to be responsible for recording those and sending them around afterwards.

DISCUSSION, SOLUTION, AGREEMENT

The bulk of most team meetings loop through these three steps. Take an item on the agenda, discuss it, review solutions or actions required, and then confirm there is agreement around that solution. Then move on to the next item. As a leader, it’s important to distinguish

between items that need communication and those that need a decision. Plenty of meetings descend into chaos when something needing communication – say a website update, or new admin process – turns into a debate. Also remember that meetings are not the place for implementation. This is where you communicate and decide, and then go back into the business to execute.

energy, you will spot when you need to step in and shut down discussion in order to maintain momentum.

CONFIRM AGREEMENTS AND ACTIONS

Meetings are a valuable tool often poorly applied. Blaming them for hours wasted is like blaming spoons for making you fat.

The last item in any meeting is taking the time to confirm any agreements that have been made or actions that have been agreed. Make sure you allow time for this process. Meetings are a valuable tool often poorly used. Blaming meetings for hours wasted is like blaming spoons for making you fat. Start applying the Momentum Meeting Model, and you’ll quickly begin to discover the value of the right people having the right discussions at the right time. 

In the context of momentum, I recommend the first two or three agenda items you address be simple ones where you can discuss, solve and agree quite quickly. Seeing agenda items being crossed off helps energise everyone present. It’s also okay that your agreement in a meeting is that you agree to disagree, or that a smaller group go away after the meeting to continue seeking a solution. If you’re running the meeting and feeling the

Jacob Aldridge is the approachable business guy who makes genuine change happen, both in the real estate industry where he began his career and more broadly. Over the past 12 years, more than 300 active growth businesses in Australia and internationally have worked with Jacob as their business coach, partner and advisor. For more information visit businessdepot.com.au.

eliteagent.com.au 49

sales

TEAM BUILDING

What’s stopping you? THE TREND TOWARD having a high-

performance team around a lead agent is only at the infancy stage of opportunities this type of arrangement can deliver. If you’ve been putting off reinforcing your business because of cost or some other reason, coach Nick Boyd says it’s time to look at things in a different way.

50 ELITE AGENT • AUG - SEP 2017

CROSS THE INDUSTRY the majority of agents are

still operating on the solo lead agent model, which means they need to be the ‘jack of all trades’. There are some significant shifts that great agents take when growing a team, and several pitfalls that prevent them from growing a team and ultimately growing their business. The following tips will help you to overcome, develop and grow into the great agent you are capable of being.

FEAR The number one reason I hear which stops agents from taking that leap of faith and adding a support person is money. ‘It costs too much; I don’t have the money right now.’ But what is occurring

here is the agent giving into their fear as a reason not to take that step forward. If you treat a support person as a cost, it will always be a cost and the right time for expanding will never come. The big shift that needs to occur first is in your mind. The support person is an investment in you, in them and in your business. So instead of telling yourself ‘I can’t afford it right now’, ask ‘How can I make this work for me?’. This question will force you to look for answers and solutions to find a way to hire, as opposed to giving yourself the reasons and excuses to stay as you are.

AUTONOMY The second biggest mistake I see real estate agents make when they put a team member on is to not empower them right away. Training and skill are vital to any business operation; however, autonomy of task and skill is far more powerful. Empowering your support person to think freely within the task or skill and take full ownership of the activity is vital to the team’s success. The reason this does not occur is when the lead agent struggles to let go. I get it: after so much struggle, heartache and dedication to growing your business, it is scary to think you are now relying on

If you treat a support person as a cost, it will always be a cost and the right time for expanding will never come. another person to look after your baby. However, if you are at the initial stage of contemplating putting on your first support person you should enter the decision with one sole focus. Ask yourself: ‘What can this person do to give me more time for more dollar-productive activities?’ By answering this question, you have created the job description of tasks you can now train and ultimately empower your support role to do moving forward, which will allow you the time to prospect, pitch, list and sell more.

DIRECTION This leads to the final mistake I often see, which is letting go of the right things, not just the things you don’t like. As mentioned before, the initial support person is designed to buy you time to do more of what you are great at. However, many times I see agents fall into the trap of hiring a support

role and then offloading all the prospecting activities because they are tired of prospecting themselves. The one thing that will never leave your side is your ability to prospect. It is and will always be the heart of your business. The way to avoid this trap is to draw up two columns and divide your current activities into ‘what makes you money’ and ‘what saves you money’. For example, prospecting your pipeline makes you money; designing letterbox drops saves you money. What makes you money is what you can now do more of, which means letting go of what saves you money by empowering the team around you. Have the intention to grow the people around you to be better than you are and watch your business flourish! 

Nick Boyd is coach, trainer and speaker to many elite real estate agents and brands. With at least 50 workshops and 10 keynote presentations every year, his expertise in sales and personal development has been recognised and utilised in many different industries such as financial, fitness, FMCG and of course the industry he loves, real state.

MUSCLE UP AND RAISE THE BAR IN REAL ESTATE [ insights into real estate businesses beyond the numbers ]

REAL INDUSTRY KNOW HOW There’s a good a chance our real estate accountants have done it before so lean on us to help you reach your potential.

STARTUP, GROWTH OR SUCCESSION We can help at all stages of the business lifecycle. Love helping out individuals with their tax returns and personal planning too.

YOU DON’T KNOW WHAT YOU DON’T KNOW We are specialists in Real Estate Industry. We are specialists in accounting, tax, superannuation, bookkeeping, business, etc. Lets collaborate for a better outcome that allows you to focus on what you are good at.

[07] 3193 3000

Level 1, 27 James St, Fortitude Valley Qld 4006

info@businessdepot.com.au

businessDEPOT.com.au/realestate

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eliteagent.com.au 51

agent profile

PEOPLE FIRST

CHRISTCHURCH NZ AGENT Nathan Najib had a vision: to create

the most customer-focused real estate company on the planet. Now Managing Director of Najib Real Estate, he talks to Elite Agent about building an agency that cares about its people and empowers each to perform at their best, while contributing rich value to those they serve. What was your first job and what did it teach you? At 13 I worked at an internet café, cleaning and tidying up after the customers and occasionally standing by the door greeting people. I learned three profound lessons that have shaped my working life: hard work, attention to detail and customer service. This shows in everything we do at Najib; everything must be done to the highest possible level, a world-class benchmark. How did you get your start in real estate? My older sister advised me to get into real estate. When I started, it wasn’t very common for a 19-year-old to sell property. I remember during my first interview I was told, ‘Nathan, you talk too fast and your hair’s too long; you aren’t a good fit for real estate’. I didn’t give up and eventually got a job as junior salesperson. The company I was with had a vision that their agents worked for the company. I believed the company works for the agents; if the agents were built up, trained and treated right, they would build the company bigger and better than they had ever imagined. Eventually we reached an impasse and I left to build an organisation around values that put people first. Tell us about yourself and your business now. I’ve been selling for almost 12 years and I’ve seen a lot of

52 ELITE AGENT • AUG - SEP 2017

“DURING MY FIRST INTERVIEW I WAS TOLD, ‘NATHAN, YOU TALK TOO FAST AND YOUR HAIR’S TOO LONG; YOU AREN’T A GOOD FIT FOR REAL ESTATE’.”

different business models. When we started Najib, I wanted to shake up the real estate industry by building an organisation that puts their customers first, treats their people right and empowers each team member to perform at their best. We are doing this and we will continue to do it better every day. What is the market like in Christchurch? Christchurch is one of the most beautiful cities in the world.

Canterbury itself is a mecca for outdoor enthusiasts. Sitting between beaches, mountain ranges, gardens, rivers and plains, there is truly an amazing lifestyle here. The housing affordability compared to other New Zealand centres, along with the lowest unemployment rate ever, makes Christchurch the best place to live and raise a family. The devastating earthquakes of September 2010 and February 2011 have given us an enviable opportunity to reshape Christchurch with an eye on how we want it to work for the people living, working and visiting the area. With billions of dollars allocated to new infrastructure and developments, it has the brightest future imaginable. Here in New Zealand, especially Christchurch, we’re at least six years behind the rest of the world when it comes to technology and innovation. Real estate is no different. The majority of agents work parttime and a lot of old-fashioned

“WE’RE MORE INTERESTED IN THE NUMBER OF SATISFIED CLIENTS AND RAVING FANS WE CREATE THAN THE NUMBER OF TRANSACTIONS WE DO.” agents believe the way real estate was sold many years ago is still relevant. They don’t discuss the price of a property at all or don't have enough information online. The market has also changed. Properties don’t just sell as soon as you place them on the market. The new generation of agents knows how much the world has progressed. They are obsessed with improvement, work full-time, are easy to deal with, genuinely nice people, and most importantly they turn up to work each day and look for ways to serve their communities. What is the best advice you’ve received? Coming from a very humble and loving family I owe my parents a lot. They taught me the foundation for a balanced success: honesty, character, integrity, faith, love and loyalty. They never told me what to do but I observed the way they live their lives.

The best advice I ever received was, ‘Stay humble’. We have a saying at Najib, “Leave your ego at the door and always put the interests of the client first.” What prospecting method works best for you? I find keeping in touch with past clients works best for us through two to three hours of prospecting most mornings. The majority of our business is repeat and referrals, although as a young agent I used to chase private sellers, do deliveries, door knocking and cold calling. What are some of your personal rituals that you think have contributed to your success? Most of the things I do are rituals adopted over time, which have become habits. One of the most important is rising early so I can work on myself for a few hours. Each day I study for an hour, exercise for an hour and spend time in silence, solitude and stillness before I head to

work. You can’t be great in one arena and mediocre in another; you have to be fit mentally, physically and emotionally. I have the best team, and they enable me to concentrate on the things that are important to me at work. When I’m supposed to be working, I work, and when I’m supposed to be with my family and friends, I’m totally with them. What advice would you give someone who is starting out in real estate? Find a company and an office with good values, support and leadership. A company that

is innovative and provides frequent training, with a leader who has done what you’re doing and is in the trenches with you, who can make clear judgements and decisions. Ask yourself what it would take to be the best real estate agent that has ever lived and then become a student for at least six months before you start selling. Attend every conference you can, research the best agents and reach out to them. Everything you want to do has been done before. No one is self-made; no one succeeds alone.  SHANTELLE ISAAKS

eliteagent.com.au 53

technology

The softer side of

SOCIAL MEDIA IF YOU ARE PLANNING an online marketing campaign,

it’s vital to set the right tone to avoid alienating your audience. Digital marketing expert Tiffany Wilson explains why the hard sell doesn’t work on social media.

T’S TEMPTING. You have a few

followers on social media and you just can’t wait to tell them about your amazing service, results and listings. Unfortunately, this approach seldom works on social media and self-promotion can alienate and annoy your audience.

THE REALITY People use social media to socialise and see what their friends and family are up to. Constantly popping up in their feeds with promotional and irrelevant content will just annoy them and they will likely ‘unfollow’ you or block your content.

WORKING AGAINST THE ALGORITHMS The other big reason to avoid the hard sell in social media content is that most social media algorithms are designed to give the user – not you or your business – the best experience. They therefore give higher preference to content which they deem to be ‘good content’ in the news feeds. One factor used to determine this is engagement. Are people engaging with your content? If they aren’t, your posts are unlikely to receive much reach (if any). In other words, your posts are really a big waste of your time because no one is seeing them.

54 ELITE AGENT • AUG - SEP 2017

3. Involve your audience Get your audience involved in your social media content. They don’t enjoy being talked at, so ask questions and respond. This interaction is the key to success within Facebook and Instagram’s algorithms. It gives you brownie points within the algorithm and your content will receive more reach and airtime in the news feed. When creating content which is of value, you can use content from your potential audience – this is called ‘user-generated content’. Sharing a relevant blog post or a photo from an audience member that is relevant to your industry and on brand will make them feel recognised, and strengthen your relationship with them.

4. Get the content ratio right

HARD VS SOFT SELL MARKETING Hard sell marketing is when the marketer or business gets straight to the sales message. They are there to promote their product or service and make sure you know all about it. This type of approach is typically seen with traditional advertising and promotions such as print advertising, internet display ads, DL flyer drops or billboards. Soft sell marketing takes a subtler approach and focuses on building long-term relationships, cultivating trust and nurturing the audience.

of your job and give examples of your performance – Facebook Live and Instagram Stories can be a great way to do this. Thinking of your customers’ pain points or typical objections to doing business with you, consider how you can overcome them by demonstrating your worth.

We find that when it comes to structuring your social media content for the month the 80:20 rule is a good application – as in 80 per

WHAT’S THE SOLUTION? Your social media content strategy requires a specific approach to acquire and retain an online audience. Try implementing these tips to turn down the hard sell in social media content:

1. Offer value Write about or video what you know and share it with your audience, ensuring it is relevant to your industry or audience. Businesses which are successful on social media offer value to their audience, rather than bombarding them with reasons why they should do business with them. By posting helpful content, readers can learn more about your area of expertise and see that you are committed to your following as well as providing them with entertainment. If you aren’t sure where to start with this, write down the top five questions you are regularly asked by your clients. There’s five content ideas to get started with!

Most social media algorithms are designed to give the user – not you or your business – the best experience. cent value, 20 per cent promotion. It’s okay to include some promotional messages and ask for the sale. After all, that’s why you are creating social media content in the first place. The way you approach this should be subtle and conversational. You may not be asking them to buy right now, but by adding a call to action you can simply ask them to commit to your business in some way. This might be signing up for a newsletter, downloading a report, visiting your website or attending an event you are planning. Invite them to give you a call or stop by your office or shop for more information. 

2. Show, don’t tell Instead of telling your customers how great you are, show them. This ties in nicely with the above point on providing value, but it is also a great way to get your happy customers involved. Ask your clients for a video testimonial or a photo and share these stories on your social media platforms. Another way to show and not tell is to showcase what you do behind the scenes

Awarded the first-ever real estate industry award for digital marketing in 2014, Tiffany Wilson founded boutique digital marketing agency Chronicle Republic to help property, interior design and home improvement industry brands bring their stories to life. Visit chroniclerepublic.com.

The blueprint to succeed in real estate

13 OCTOBER 2017 Register your interest www.witgr.com.au

Hosted By Jason Andrew Phil Marcus Chiminello Harris

William Phillips

Tom Panos

Steve Carroll

Mark McLeod

Pancho Mehrotra

Chris Fellas

Justin Doobov

The Home Straight Mark McLeod

What’s your workflow? The past few months have seen several conferences highlighting the careers of many new and established agents in our industry. Focusing on the newer ones, one question that is often asked of these big-writers is, ‘What do you do?’ But as Mark McLeod points out, a better question is, ‘What did you do?’

et’s say, for argument’s sake, someone started writing $1 million GCI in their first or second year. Logic would tell you the suburb or suburbs they work in didn’t start producing an extra $1 million of GCI because agent X started working in the area. So who did they take it from? In simple terms, they were able to take this business because the workflow from settlement to listing was broken, no matter how long the timeframe. The broken workflow enabled the new agent to insert themselves into a different workflow, which was contact to listing. You see, the incumbent has the inside running and

therefore the advantage, but all advantage is lost when the workflow breaks down. Our industry is just a series of workflows: from meeting someone to database, from database to pipeline, from pipeline to list, and so on and so forth. The real estate business is made up of a collection of workflows that can be documented, that can be process driven and can be supported by breakthroughs in our technology systems.

However, what occurs is people’s interpretation of these workflows can change. Often an office is made up of a series of interpretations that will cloud and in some cases break down the workflows. The other thought pattern that clouds acceptance of workflows is immediacy, as people don’t want to invest in the future. I have just finished watching a movie on esteemed American billionaire investor Warren Buffett, who spoke at

I have a strong belief that the days of the single agent are diminishing.

length about his best strategy – his patience. Often businesses are set up for immediacy. Another issue is capacity. I have a strong belief that the days of the single agent are diminishing; with our customers’ expectations and the reality of what is required to work at a high level and manage all the workflows in a real estate business unit, it is becoming increasingly impossible for an agent in a single capacity to handle. Workflows allow us to build our core product, which is trust. I have written before how we build trust through consistency and the experiences that we give our customers. I have no doubt that the real estate business of the future will be about workflows, but also allowing individuals to add some personality to these flows. I believe there are somewhere between 10 and 12 workflows that should be forming the basis of any great career. So the next time you see a top performer why don’t you ask a different question – who did they take the business from and how were they able to do it? 

Mark McLeod is the Ray White Group’s Chief Executive of Growth. He works alongside both agents and businesses across Australia, helping them reach their ultimate potential to achieve success.

56 ELITE AGENT • AUG - SEP 2017

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CPD ONLINE

Ready when you are! Elite Agent delivers distance CPD and other short courses online for NSW Agents in association with MRT (RTO 41529).

Standard online courses from $89 including assessment and certificate (or contact us about having our team put together a bespoke CPD course for your office)

Visit eliteagent.academy for more information

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