INDUSTRY INFLUENCERS PAGE 19
VISION REIMAGINED PAGE 66
DIGITAL LEADERSHIP PAGE 78
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LEADERSHIP
10 WAYS TO FUTURE PROOF YOUR BUSINESS PROPTECH
STARTUPS MAKING WAVES CUSTOMER SERVICE
TECH DRIVEN PROBLEM SOLVING
THE ANNUAL TECHNOLOGY ISSUE
BUSINESS WITHOUT BORDERS
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Issue 31 NOVEMBER 2019
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SAMANTHA MCLEAN Managing Editor samantha@eliteagent.com
MARK EDWARDS Publisher mark@eliteagent.com
KYLIE DULHUNTY Deputy Editor editor@eliteagent.com
RENEE REID Marketing/Executive Assistant renee@eliteagent.com.au
EDITORIAL TEAM Cassandra Charlesworth Kylie Dulhunty Kylie Stevenson
MARC NORRIS Designer, Art Director
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BUSINESS MAGAZINE COVER OF THE YEAR FINALIST 2018 MAGAZINE LAUNCH ISSUE OF THE YEAR FINALIST 2019
BASS Publications Pty Ltd
(a subsidiary of A Bit of This Publishing Pty Ltd) ACN 169 805 921 Postal Address: Suite 904, 121 Walker Street North Sydney NSW 2060 Telephone +61 2 8854 6123 Registered by Australia Post/Print Post 100020180 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 Agent are not necessarily those of its staff or contributors. Those opinions are reproduced with no guarantee of accuracy although Elite Agent 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/privacy for details on how we collect and use your personal information. Please email subscriptions@eliteagent.com if you would rather not receive these communications. © Elite Agent 2019. All rights reserved.
ON THE COVER 036 BUSINESS WITHOUT BORDERS The eXp cloud expands to Australia
ELITE AGENT 006 EDITOR’S LETTER Samantha McLean 008 READER PROFILE Grant Matterson 012 STREET MBA SYDNEY AND MELBOURNE It’s a wrap 014 THE WATER COOLER Catch up on what you may have missed 080 URBAN OBSESSIONS The smart home
36
30 MINUTES WITH 010 DAVID HOLMAN CEO Direct Connect
016 TECH-DRIVEN PROBLEM SOLVING Josh Phegan 018 TOGETHER WITH TECHNOLOGY Tomas Varsavsky 020 LEVERAGING YOUR ASSETS Caroline Bolderston 024 CONVEYOR BELT TO SUCCESS Alex Ouwens 026 WHOSE GOAL IS IT ANYWAY? Fiona Blayney
REGULARS 028 DATA INSIGHTS Eddie Cetin 030 BUSINESS MATTERS John Knight 032 PEOPLE PARTNER Sarah Dawson 033 REALTY BYTES Alister Maple-Brown 034 WORD ON THE STREET Hannah Gill
54
040 TECH STARTUPS MAKING WAVES Kylie Dulhunty 044 BYTE SIZE PROPTECH Samantha McLean 046 THE NEW FRONTIER SoldOnline 050 BEATING REAL ESTATE FATIGUE Joel Davoren
NOVEMBER 2019
022 ACCEPTING RESPONSIBILITY Mark McLeod
TECHNOLOGY, SALES AND BEST PRACTICE
CONTENTS
FIRST PERSON
052 LET IT GO Pancho Mehrotra 054 CAN’T SLOW DOWN Kylie Dulhunty 058 ASK THE SALES COACH Claudio Encina
PROPERTY MANAGEMENT 060 USE IT OR LOSE IT Tara Bradbury 061 HOW TO SURVIVE IN THE CX ECONOMY Helen Morris 062 WIN THE COST WAR Jo-Anne Oliveri 064 THE DOS AND DON’TS OF LANDLORD INSURANCE Sharon Fox-Slater 066 VISION REIMAGINED Alistair and Tony Maple-Brown 068 HOW TO RESOLVE A TENANCY DISPUTE Nick Brown 070 ASK THE PM COACH Heidi Walkinshaw, Lauren Kirk and Kate Benjamin
LEADERSHIP 072 10 WAYS TO FUTURE PROOF YOUR BUSINESS Gihan Perera 074 LEAH JAY: THE QUIET ACHIEVER Cassandra Charlesworth 076 BLOOD, SWEAT AND NO TEARS Simone Firns, Network Pacific 078 LEADERSHIP IN A DIGITAL AGE Steve Carroll
EDITOR’S LETTER
I
I’ll never forget the moment the managing partner of the mid-tier accounting firm I was working for looked up at me standing in his doorway for our scheduled 4pm meeting. He peered over the top of his reading glasses and beckoned me forward. I felt like Melanie Griffith’s character in Working Girl, suffering a major case of imposter syndrome while still attempting to appear grown-up, calm and professional. The year was 1993, and I was 22. On this day, as with most other days, there was this air of important stuff going on around the big boss.
plus the implementation of this even newer cutting-edge technology called electronic mail. I had also worked out what I thought might be the return on investment. To me, it was a cool idea I thought would make everything more efficient. But what I held in my hands would rock the firm, a workplace steeped in decades of tradition, to its core. For decades, things had worked just fine. The partners each had secretaries who had computers and shared printers. When important matters needed to be communicated to staff, those
But what I held in my hands would rock the firm, a workplace steeped in decades of tradition, to its core. As I moved forward, the other male suits in the room were dismissed and I was asked to sit down. Most people ‘at my level’ didn’t even get near this door, let alone inside it. At the time, I couldn’t even say I was fresh out of uni because I was still trying to finish parttime what was supposed to be a three-year, full-time degree. I was just a young woman with ambition and an interest in technology. In my hands was a 16page business case for the technological future of the firm. It was created using a spreadsheet program called Lotus 123, the gold standard in tech at the time. If you could use it you were guaranteed popularity within the four walls of the firm. But on this day I wasn’t so sure, because with this tool I had calculated the cost of putting personal computers on the desks of all professional staff (including the partners)
6 ELITE AGENT • NOV 2019
secretaries would type a memo in Wordperfect 5.1 (anyone remember those blue screens?). Mailroom staff would distribute the memos into employee pigeon holes. Similar to the secretaries, my team of computer operators were of assistance to the lower-ranked professional staff, entering coded bank statements
into the computers and returning printed trial balances and profit and loss statements. The pages I was holding that day, were they were accepted, would mean the people I had just talked about would have significant job changes before 12 months were out. The professional staff would be able to do their own stuff. The secretaries would no longer type out memos. So, back to my sit down with the managing partner. After intensely questioning me for an hour, the meeting ended with him laughing kind of nervously and saying, “I’m assuming you’re including me in this, you’re going to have to teach me too!” I was elated he had verbally accepted my proposal. Looking back now, and jokes aside, this was a man who showed incredible courage in even letting me in his door, let alone listening to my proposal. Was I an innovator… or a disrupter? Likely the answer is both. The good people thrived, and things happened differently to what they did before everyone up-skilled and got faster at producing accounts, which improved the client experience.
If any of you happen to have kids or teenagers at home or young people in the office, start looking at them with the job title of ‘futurist’. And seriously, could anyone imagine a world now without email – especially when things have moved forward so far you can communicate by voice through a virtual reality platform such as eXp’s. Are holograms next? As I introduce this year’s Annual Technology Issue, I can tell you that what was happening in 1993 is not too different to what is happening now. It’s just happening a lot faster,
as consumers and staff demand more and more. So I’d like to leave you with a few thoughts on some of the things you will read in this magazine. With the speed of change comes great opportunity. Don’t feel that you have to continue doing things the way you’ve always done them just because you’ve spent a lot of time and money implementing them. Don’t look back; you’re not going that way.
What will work for you in the future and where are the quick wins? If you were starting your business today, what would you do differently? And why aren’t you doing that now? What is the experience you want to provide your customer? Where are the complaints and the points of friction coming from and how can you innovate to improve on them? Lastly, it is likely the tools are there for you, maybe already under your nose, in your office right now. It’s up to you to use them and use them well. A final thought: If any of you happen to have kids or teenagers at home or young people in the office, start
looking at them with the job title of ‘futurist’. You might be scared of what they may say or what ideas they may have, but in all likelihood they are probably a bit scared of you too. Have the conversation with them about how they see themselves finding a place to live when the time comes. You never know how one conversation with a young person without boundaries can turn you into the innovator... or the disrupter.
SAMANTHA MCLEAN MANAGING EDITOR samantha@eliteagent.com
eliteagent.com 7
READER PROFILE
BREAD AND BUTTER LJ Hooker Narrabeen’s Grant Matterson started out as a baker, but when the time came to change roles, fate ensured he got his start in real estate. Tell us a bit about yourself and your role. Growing up, I was always very competitive in everything I put my mind to, so this built the habit of practise, practise, practise in me. I love to train and study areas of interest, and real estate is the perfect vehicle for the need to train and practise constantly. I find the training and the courses keep me enthusiastic so I am always looking for the next
course to do or a new audiobook to listen to. In another life, I owned a bakery for 15 years, which taught me a lot of lessons in work ethic and people skills. Every day I had regular customers who shared their lives with me because it was a small, open-plan bakery. I depended on these clients to come back every day. When I went into real estate I’d prospect, sometimes for
years, to earn the trust of clients. And the opportunity to sell their biggest asset, their home, was a real honour.
Funnily enough, as much as I like PC software, I much prefer iPhone apps and what they can do compared to Android.
What motivated you to move into real estate? It was time to change careers after 25 years as a baker/pastry cook. It was time to get on the right side of the clock and life. One of my customers suggested I should look into real estate because I was easy to trust and personable. I looked into it and made the decision that if I was going to do this, I was burning the boat and not looking back. I decided to get my Diploma in Real Estate and go from there. It is funny how life sometimes works because I was also training as a Scuba Dive Master and one of the guys I was there with worked in real estate and said his boss needed someone in the New Year. At the same time, my Dad told me a mate in his motorcycle club owned an agency and was looking for someone. It was the same guy, so that was my start. I have now been in the industry going on 20 years.
What are the three apps you can’t live without? I use the photo and video app the most. I have been sending personal videos for years now, and that is becoming my preferred way to leave a message or contact someone who isn’t picking up the phone. I feel SMS can be misinterpreted depending on the mood you are in when you are reading them.
How would you describe your relationship with technology? When I owned the bakery, the GST came in, and it was a nightmare. Some products had GST and others did not. Milk, bread and even fruit buns without glaze did not have it, but if you glazed the fruit bun, it did have GST. I had to get a computerised till that could calculate GST. This was the start of my love affair with technology. PC or Mac? I have had both. I prefer the software of a PC, yet a Mac feels better if you are playing around or listening to music. iPhone or Android? I love my iPhone and iPad for so many reasons.
8 ELITE AGENT • NOV 2019
I love to train and study areas of interest, and real estate is the perfect vehicle for the need to train and practise constantly. Sometimes you wonder what you said to upset someone when it was only the way they viewed the message and the mood they were in. You can get so much more across in your message through video. I also like to do interviews and local area stories about different locations, history or clubs. What piece of future tech are you most looking forward to? Automation. It is difficult to keep up with so many clients, and you need to be able to service them on different levels, depending on their situation and where they are in the real estate cycle. There is a lot of great tech out there already, and I try most of it as it becomes available, and some works for me and others don’t. Sometimes the basics make the most difference when it comes to people. Tech can only go so far when people usually weigh up how you made them feel. n
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30 MINUTES WITH…
EMPATHY AND I UNDERSTANDING 30 MINUTES WITH DAVID HOLMAN CEO OF DIRECT CONNECT David Holman is at the leading
edge of the Australian energy and sustainability industry. We caught up with him to find out how the company is combining big data and the human connection to better meet the needs of consumers.
n an increasingly technological world, David Holman knows people are more important than ever. The Direct Connect Chief Executive Officer says the moving services company’s employees and the vibrant culture within the organisation are what makes things tick. Of course, technology aids their workflow and makes things easier for customers, primarily renters who are moving house, to connect services such as gas, water and electricity. There are also plans to improve the technology they use, heading towards apps and “one-click” moves as well as boost data analytics. But David is steadfast in his belief that tech will not take over. “A very large part of our business is about people talking to people,” David says. “We live in a world of artificial intelligence and one where computers do the heavy lifting, but in my view, they can never replace the empathy of a human being. “And that’s at the core of who we are and what we do.” Over the past 15 years, Direct Connect, which is owned by Snowy Hydro, has helped move more than 1 million households nationwide, connecting electricity, gas, water, phone, internet and pay TV. Direct Connect works with referral partners around Australia, including 1500 real estate offices who send tenants and, increasingly, buyers and sellers to the company to get connected.
“We live in a world of artificial intelligence and one where computers do the heavy lifting, but in my view, they can never replace the empathy of a human being.” “We help up to 100,000 people a year to move home and get connected,” David says. “Direct Connect was born out of a desire to create opportunities to help customers. “One of the most stressful times in a person’s life can be moving home, and our ethos is to help make that experience more convenient and easier.” Direct Connect works with more than 20 providers to get customers’ services connected and when clients call, the phone is answered within 10 seconds 90 per cent of the time.
10 ELITE AGENT • NOV 2019
And you get to speak to a real person. You’ll find those people in the 1909 heritagelisted Bryant and May building in Melbourne. Spread over three levels, the workplace is anything but old-fashioned. David describes the setup as like “viewing the inner workings of a finely-tuned watch”. There are no offices and the customer service consultants form the heart of the workspace – literally and figuratively. “I don’t even have an office,” David says. “The building was designed to be a flexible working space, so there are no offices. “Every part of it has been designed to collaborate, leaders are highly visible, and no one is tucked away in an office in the corner of the building. “There is a buzz from the moment you walk into the building. “Most of our people are on the phones talking to customers every day. “Desks allow people to sit or stand, every headset is wireless and our people have the freedom to express themselves. “They are the depth and breadth of our business.” David says the company fosters career pathways and many customer service consultants have moved into marketing, finance and varying leadership roles. He says the consultants have a taxing job at times as they are often dealing with customers who are moving home due to stressful situations. “I often hear one end of the calls and our consultants are, at times, like a counsellor, and they do a superb job of listening to the stories of our clients,” David says. “That’s important because, as we know, moving can be full of joy, but it can also be full of sorrow depending on why that move is being made. “It might be due to a new job or a new start, but it could also be related to a break-up or a death. “We never want to lose sight of that empathy. “When we use technology, we want to make sure we advance in the right way and that we’re not losing human connection.” One of the ways Direct Connect uses technology to foster its relationships with its customers is via data analysis. It uses various data streams to gain a better understanding of its customers and what services they may desire. But David says data is not used just for the sake of it. “You can be data-rich but insight-poor,” he says. “It’s what you do with that data that matters.
“One of the most stressful times in a person’s life can be moving home, and our ethos is to help make that experience more convenient and easier.” “Innovation around data is something we live and breathe, and we use it to better understand our customers. “That’s the most important thing we can do. “When someone is moving home, if you think about a 20-year-old moving out of home for the first time to an apartment, they have very different needs to a family moving interstate for work.” David says in the past year the company has used Roy Morgan data to understand customers’ needs better. “It helps us better predict what different customers want and how they consume media. For example, whether they are home renovators, regional homeowners or inner-city renters,” he says. “It’s mosaic data, but we use that data to say ‘do they have a greater propensity to want pay TV services?’ “Then we can tailor the conversation around their needs.” Going forward, Direct Connect wants to make its technology more intuitive, with rich functionality, to create a “one-click move”. “We want a seamless, integrated process,” David says. “We have an element of that now, but we are continuously improving on that. “The information you provide for a home or a move, once we know that information we don’t want you to have to repeat it time and time again. “When you take up internet, electricity, gas and so on, you don’t want to have to
say the same things multiple times to multiple people. “We’re investing in technology that integrates into the existing processes to ensure seamless data flow that works effectively.” When asked about his leadership style, David emphasises he doesn’t like talking about himself, but that humbleness is a good attribute for a leader. “I think good leadership is about supporting people not telling people what to do,” he says. “You should also want to inspire other leaders in the business.” David says the Direct Connect values, of decency, ownership, agility, courage, teamwork and safety, help foster a positive culture that cares for its people and cares for others. That includes the support the company lends to charities, which includes The Pyjama Foundation. The Pyjama Foundation trains Pyjama Angels who give numeracy, literacy, life-skills and mentoring support to children in foster care. “We believe that everyone deserves a home,” David says. “Not just a house but a home.” The company supports the foundation financially, donates presents at Christmas, and once a year raises funds through wearing their pyjamas to work. “We take what we do very seriously, but we don’t take ourselves too seriously,” David says. n KYLIE DULHUNTY
eliteagent.com 11
Street MBA
Seen & Heard
“I found the study tours to be invaluable. Normally with training experiences it’s a big group and you don’t get to the nitty gritty of businesses. With these study tours you get to talk one-on-one with other like-minded business owners...” – Renee Bink 12 ELITE AGENT • NOV 2019
IN AUGUST AND SEPTEMBER, our Street MBA tour, in partnership with Gill & Hooper,
rolled through Melbourne and Sydney. In Melbourne our participants visited Woodards, Jellis Craig and Longview Real Estate, and in Sydney our teams went behind the scenes at DiJONES, Novak Properties and The Agency. The attendees took away practical examples of best practice, plus powerful insights on recruitment, retention, building a systems-based business, artificial intelligence, trends and much more. So far the feedback has been amazing, with many of the attendees saying they have had more value in two days talking to industry leaders and building relationships than in any other event they have been to. To book tickets for upcoming Street MBA Events visit eliteagent.com/streetmba.
Melbourne
Sydney
“It’s a good opportunity to connect with the like-minded people and develop these relationships to keep innovating and moving forward...” – Jarryd Kirchner
eliteagent.com 13
THE WATER COOLER D
Our daily newsletter #THEBRIEF brings the latest real estate news, tech and marketing tips straight to your inbox. Here are some things you should know. Subscribe to #THEBRIEF eliteagent.com/subscribe.
Acquisition to expand service offerings for Rockend
PropertyMe delivers mobile email update PropertyMe has delivered its biggest update yet to the PropertyMe Manager app for iPhone and iPad with more than 100 changes. The update includes the number one requested feature for mobile – email messages. You
no longer need to wait until you’re back at your desk to check your email messages. You can now take your inbox with you! Some of the other updates include the ability to edit inspection items, copy inspection reports, Jobs enhancements, Find My Team, Duress Alert, and intelligent location suggestions. To learn more visit propertyme.com.au/mobile.
OPENN NEGOTIATION HITS $500M IN PROPERTY SALES Launched over two years ago, online auction platform and app Openn Negotiation has wasted no time making its mark on the property sector. Responsible for $551 million of property sold in Australia, 1941 properties listed, 17,000 registered users, 1500 trained agents and $7.2 billion in total bidding value since its launch, the app facilitates a unique bidding process. Agents across Australia are using Openn Negotiation to achieve extraordinary sale prices in less time (often in under 30 days) by creating a competitive environment for buyers — even those with special conditions. To add Openn Negotiation to your sales kit, all you need to do is attend a training session. Head to openn.com.au to get started. 14 ELITE AGENT • NOV 2019
MRI Software, a global provider of real estate software solutions, last month acquired Australian residential software provider Rockend. For MRI, the acquisition expands their offering in the Australian and New Zealand markets, bringing with it more than 6,000 clients and 750,000 strata lots in the residential property management rental and strata sector. “Acquiring Rockend represents a milestone in our global growth strategy, and it substantially extends MRI’s footprint in ANZ while paving the way for enhanced innovation and future expansion,” says Patrick Ghilani, Chief Executive Officer of MRI Software. Mr Ghilani also says Rockend clients will benefit from being part of a global provider with a broader set of offerings. “The acquisition fits perfectly within our area of expertise and gives clients in the region access to even more local resources across our comprehensive range of solutions. For more information on the acquisition see Page 66.
Ray White plays ‘Hide & Seek’ Ray White has just launched its latest brand campaign called Hide & Seek, a playful take on the childhood game in a bid to entice both buyers and sellers into the market. The latest TV commercial was filmed over two days in Sydney’s Sutherland Shire and extends on the Great Australian Dream theme launched last year. This time many of the group’s own agents and corporate staff from all over Australia act in the advertisement. Ray White Head of Marketing Lisa Pennell said the Hide & Seek campaign was timed perfectly to woo
reticent buyers and sellers to act now, to take advantage of the increasingly positive market sentiment. “We are a great Australiabased real estate company and we want to continue to push the boundaries of what is expected from the real estate industry,” Ms Pennell said. “Last year we created a buzz in the industry with our Great campaign, so this new driver was the natural extension for the current market. To read the full story visit elite.ag/091719.
Console to offer fullyautomated workflows A workflow is a feature in Console Cloud that is designed to simplify a complex and nonlinear property management process like lease renewals or tenant onboarding into a series of triggered events, clicks, and tracking. Until now, most systems have simply sent triggered one-off emails to start a
process and then relied on the user to perform the rest of the activities manually. The company says its Cloud compliance workflow is about to change all that. The new fully-automated workflow means more automation and management only by exception. The software will alert your attention to a compliance certificate expiring, confirms which actions you’d like to take to renew, and then sorts the rest out in the background for you. For more information visit console.com.au.
AUSTRALIA’S FIRST DIGITAL REAL ESTATE AUCTION PLATFORM RELAUNCHED AS ‘SOLDONLINE’ David Scholes and his team have proudly announced the relaunch of SoldOnline, Australia’s first online property auction platform. Originally branded as AuctionworksOnline, SoldOnline was a pioneer of the online auction. “We are very pleased to announce that our platform has relaunched its operations, and we will continue to make our contribution in the expanding real estate landscape of Australia,” said Mr Scholes, founder of SoldOnline. “We take great pride in combining the best of private treaty, expression of interest and traditional auctions, and we are very grateful to our valued users for their overwhelming support over the years.” During his 35 years in this industry, David has personally called nearly 40,000 auctions. He notes that SoldOnline is all about blending innovative ideas with the right technological tools, while combining the best of private treaty and physical auctions. Since its initial launch in 2010 the platform has successfully run more than 750 online property auctions in Australia for a wide range of property types including residential, commercial and rural properties. For more information, visit soldonline.com.au, and for a relaunch special, see page 21.
REIQ partners with Igloo to deliver blockchain-based tenancy agreements The Real Estate Institute of Queensland (REIQ) is set to deliver fully-digitised residential tenancy agreements using blockchainbased technology. The PropTech innovation will see residential tenancy agreements able to be executed as a digital smart contract in Queensland by the end of this year. The groundbreaking system has the potential to transform the way tenancy agreements are transacted across the nation and around the globe, and create an unparalleled, realtime database of rental prices and trends. REIQ General Manager
Josh Callaghan said the revolutionary product benefited all parties to the agreement by providing more transparency and enabling new functions that can benefit everyone. “All parties will have visibility over the contract at any time from the palm of their hand. By executing as a smart contract, we’re also able to build out the functionality to handle payments of bond and rent, plus facilitate other activities related to the property such as routine inspections and maintenance,” Mr Callaghan said. To read the full story visit elite.ag/161719.
Downsizing.com.au links developers and agents to the over-50s market Property developers and agents have a new way to reach the real estate market’s most active and motivated buyers with the launch of Downsizing.com.au, which is Australia’s leading over50s property portal. Downsizing.com.au was founded as Seniors Housing Online by NSW-based sisters-in-law Catherine and Amanda Graham in 2003. It has built a loyal following among clients and consumers and served millions of Australians looking for retirement property. Co-CEO of Downsizing.com. au Amanda Graham said the new website has been built to generate leads for advertisers, including retirement community operators, property developers and real estate agents.
“We are making this change because baby boomers are doing things differently and want to look for a wide range of accommodation options,” said Ms Graham. The company has also launched five weekly newsletters for New South Wales and the ACT, Queensland, Western Australia, Victoria and Tasmania, and South Australia and the Northern Territory. Sponsored content and featured listing opportunities are available across each one of these newsletters. For more information visit downsizing.com.au. eliteagent.com 15
FIRST PERSON
JOSH PHEGAN
Tech-driven problem solving In a world that moves at an ever increasing pace, it can be hard to know how to keep up. Josh Phegan takes a look at how using technology can solve your problems and which apps he thinks are game-changers.
T
he problem is not the problem. The way you think about the problem is the problem. In a world that’s speeding up, where the relentless pace is taking its toll, and people are struggling to align today’s urgent actions with a bigger future, there has to be a guiding light. That guiding light is having a larger view for the future. When you’re clear about what you want 25 years from now, one question sets you free. Will this or won’t this get me to where I want to go? The secret to sustained performance is to amplify what works. To do that you have to build an environment where better thinking survives and thrives. The challenge for many is they are flying too close to the financial borderline between scarcity and abundance. From our work with the most progressive agents, we notice they have one trait in common: They pay themselves and their plans first. They take their monthly costs to operate as a successful human, triple it and have that on hand for the rest of their career. Let’s say your monthly costs are $10,000. That means $30,000 in your savings account and you feel good and out in front. At $29,999, the panic sets in. If you multiply it by 10, you have $100,000 in your savings account. All of a sudden, you become bulletproof because each decision is easy to make when
16 ELITE AGENT • NOV 2019
you have cash. Cash gives you choices. I take people from below the safety line to the entrepreneurial line as quickly as possible with basic financial prudence. Simple things like taking 10 per cent of every $1 you earn and placing it in a lifetime savings account – it’s peace of mind money. I then get them to set up: • A tax savings account and ensure there is a weekly deduction into that account, so there are no surprises when tax falls due. • A holiday savings account with weekly deductions so you can get enough time out and away from the game. Moving from you to a team is a scary jump, but it doesn’t have to be. If you want to serve more customers, it’s either a system or a person, and the easiest way to get systems is to put that person on. Quickly you refine what you do, and you gain instant leverage. You start moving everything
The secret to sustained performance is to amplify what works. that’s on a computer to your assistant and focus on clientfacing tasks and prospecting yourself. The best way to start is to retain $15,000 in an assistant savings account. That way, you’ve got the first 12 weeks of income set aside, allowing you to focus on building a formidable team. When you scale, you’re
forced to look at technology to build the effort to serve more customers. For us, six essential apps change the game in building a winning team.
SLACK Slack gives you the ability to reduce internal email by 90 per cent. It allows you to communicate across your team, on mobile or desktop, based on context. It makes searching easy, allows automation from your existing systems and provides an executive overview on everything that’s happened in your business during the day. My team places direct messages to me in Slack; anything life-threatening is a text message. We have a channel set up called JP Decisions and anything they need me to make a decision on goes in that channel. This prevents wastage, speeds up decision making and empowers your team members.
ASANA There are many digital workplace organisers and trackers available, including Trello and monday.com. Asana allows us to list the tasks in key projects we need to get done. It keeps everyone aligned and allows us to repeat projects and activities with consistent results.
EVERNOTE This is a simple note-taking tool. The one feature we love is being able to start a stack of notebooks. You create a stack of journals and set them aside for specific people or client work. It allows you to find your notes as you go about your work quickly.
MIRO
AMAZON NOTES
This is my favourite brainstorming and ideas platform. It’s an electronic whiteboard and is awesome to draw relationships between ideas before they get to the project stage. It’s excellent for working through workflow improvement.
I read a lot and love Amazon Notes. It allows you to export your highlights from your Kindle so you can use those notes. It’s fantastic for providing summaries of what you’ve taken from each book you read.
We live in an era where everything is a subscription, so before you know it, you can have app bloat, with little usage.
TYPEFORM This has been a game-changer for us as we take our manual forms and make them electronic. We then take that data and push it into the various systems we use, so there’s no double handling. It allows us to collect information from customers at scale.
The best way to build a better system is to do it manually first before you add the technology. For me, manual forms allow you to work out what works before you produce the electronic ones on apps like Typeform. We live in an era where everything is a subscription, so before you know it, you can have app bloat, with little usage. Check for engagement and that each app is serving its purpose to allow your team to serve more customers, more often, successfully. We hold a broken systems session each week for 10 minutes where the team puts forward systems that are
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Josh Phegan is a highperformance real estate speaker, trainer and coach to some of the best agents and agencies around the world. For more information visit joshphegan.com.au.
broken, need work or have low usage. Then we go about putting in solutions once we’ve identified the problem we’re solving. And that’s the problem. What problem are you solving? Make it a good one. n
one place for raising the bar in your business We’ve got a unique insight into what fuels the fire in your real estate business. It’s this insight that allows us to deliver accounting, advisory, agency and rent roll broking, benchmarking, bookkeeping, business advice and marketing all in the one place that will raise the bar of your real estate business. business depot real estate
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eliteagent.com 17
FIRST PERSON
TOMAS VARSAVSKY
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Together with technology In 2018, REA Group CIO Tomas Varsavsky was listed as one of the top 20 CIOs in Australia. While he deeply understands the trends impacting consumers, businesses and the real estate industry, he says it’s how these trends come together in real estate that gets really exciting.
O
ne day, in the not too distant future, instead of booking a photographer you might find yourself launching a flying drone into a property. It will scan the house in a few minutes and allow you to upload three 3D portal images directly to realestate.com.au. Maybe it won’t be you who does the launching. Maybe you’ll post the drone to the property owner and let them deploy it themselves to save on content creation and travel costs. You might also be able to pull a really small, smart 3D camera out of your pocket that will make virtual reality doable anytime and anywhere. Samsung is already generating phones with such capability. Artificial intelligence (AI) is no longer science fiction or a purely academic pursuit – it is impacting our lives and businesses worldwide are adopting it. Consumers are becoming used to having AI available in the home and on their smartphones courtesy of Siri, Google Home and Alexa providing convenience, speed and immediate answers to pressing questions. The new mobile standard – 5G – will massively improve throughout and latency to mobile devices and the major networks are starting to roll out the technology.
18 ELITE AGENT • NOV 2019
If you’re in a lucky neighbourhood, the early arrival of 5G phones and networks will make rich content king again. Video will flow easily, at higher resolutions, and make augmented and virtual reality possible with a sizeable house tour file taking less than a second to load. This will also expedite the take-up of smart home devices (or the Internet of Things) with increasingly more deployed everywhere. This might lead to an OFI with devices around the home
Tomas Varsavsky is the Chief Engineer at REA Group.
collecting crunchable data – for example, popular points of interest. Like many other businesses, REA is substantially investing in AI to look for ways to better service buyers and sellers, understand the property market (automated valuation models) and provide higher quality leads to agents through lead scoring and Agent Match. In your own business you can improve consumer service levels when informing them of appointments and responding to emails with ease. But more than anything, consumers crave an experience that is personal to them. And smart brands are designing experiences that allow the consumer to feel a deeper connection and that the agency understands their needs and wants. Agents have an opportunity to create one-to-one experiences for their customers that will build better relationships and help them win business.
Maybe you’ll post the drone to the property owner and let them deploy it themselves to save on content creation and travel costs.
One of our top goals at REA is to better connect you with consumers through personalised communications and putting properties they are interested in in front of them. This in turn this puts you in front of more consumers. The most exciting thing is not each of these trends, but how they all come together to create new opportunities and experiences in the real estate market. 5G makes mobiles better; this generates more engagement and data, which we can use to understand our consumers. Then we can use AI to match them to the perfect agent and connect the two parties instantly via mobile, which will allow live chat. But it’s still up to you to take this connection offline and build a trusted relationship in the physical world, leveraging technology at the points you need it to achieve a frictionless transaction and stay in touch in a personalised and relevant way. Tech will change the landscape but where it gets exciting is how you can bring all the pieces together to deliver a differentiated, efficient and personal experience. n
MARKETS PAGE 16
PAGE 36
PREMIERE ISSUE
SMSF INVESTORS PAGE 42
TRUTH PAGE 26
A DOT COM? PAGE 24
PLAN PAGE 18
KEYBOARD WARRIOR
THE WAY OF THE FUTURE?
BUSINESS ON TRACK
READER SURVEY:
FIND OUT MORE ON PAGE 31
LEARN FROM THE BEST #01 JUL/AUG 2015 AU$9.95 + POSTAGE
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4 RULES FOR BUILDING A WORLD CLASS REFERRAL NETWORK
THE GIFT OF LISTENING and the power of presence
PREPARING FOR SPRING SELLING SEASON
IT TAKES TWO
Michael Clarke & Cherie Humel
with Stuart Benson
INSTAGRAM Every picture tells a story
TACTICAL LISTING WITH JOSH PHEGAN PAGE 26
FIVE TACTICS TO ACHIEVE AND MAINTAIN ZERO ARREARS
LEARN FROM THE BEST
ANTICIPATE IS THE NEW EXCEED PAGE 28
5 TRENDS THAT MAY INFLUENCE PROPERTY IN AUSTRALIA COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
5 ways to build your profile
IS YOUR DATABASE FIT OR FAT? THE AWESOME HUMAN MANIFESTO
THE TRUSTED ADVISOR
Stefanie Dobro
BEYOND BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT
THRIVING IN A TOUGH LEASING MARKET
HANNAH GILL
EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH RENT.COM.AU CEO MARK WOSCHNAK
A GUIDE TO THE ULTIMATE BRAINSTORM
How to get what you’re worth
THE GREAT INSPECTION ROUNDUP PAGE 62
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2015 ARE YOU
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The resolutions you need to make this year
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THREE QUESTIONS TO IMPROVE PERFORMANCE
How to get more productive… Fast!
SERVING A NICHE MARKET PAGE 50
#05 MAY/JUN 2015 AU$9.95 + POSTAGE
INDUSTRY REPORT PERCEPTIONS OF REAL ESTATE
LEARN FROM THE BEST
INSIDE: INDUSTRY LEADERS
What your customers really think
TAKE YOUR EMAIL OPEN RATE THROUGH THE ROOF MAKE EACH DAY COUNT
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5 WAYS TO IMPROVE YOUR CONVERSION RATE PAGE 20
LEARN FROM THE BEST
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#04 MAR/APR 2015 AU$9.95 + POSTAGE
PASSION FOR PEOPLE
Emmy Thies
John McGrath • Josh Pheg Michael Sheargold • Tom Pan Caroline Bolderst
PL An exclusive w Glenn McGr
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GET READY FOR
2020
The agency that puts client satisfaction first
STRONGER THAN STEEL
CONNECTING EMPLOYEES IN THE CLOUD
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Virtual reality agents
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FEATURE INTERVIEW NAOMI SIMSON SPEAKS ON PRODUCTIVITY AND LEADERSHIP LEARN FROM THE BEST
LAURA LEVISOHN
5 STEPS TO DESIGNING THE IDEAL WEEK
Get noticed for the right reasons
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FRONT DESK TO BUSINESS OWNER
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THE SCIENCE BEHIND FIRST IMPRESSIONS
FEE NEGOTIATION
THE MATHEMATICS OF PROPERTY MANAGEMENT WITH BOB WALTERS
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ANTHONY CARDINALE
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HOW THE APRA CHANGES MAY BE AFFECTING YOUR LANDLORDS
OVERCOMING OWNER OBJECTIONS
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From Bell Ringer to Master Auctioneer
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MAK YOUR SM BUSIN APPE LARG
HOW TO PULL OFF THE PERFECT LISTING PRESENTATION
MAKING THE MOVE
PAYIN REVENUE SP – THE PR AND CO
SUZIE Kate HAMILTONFLANAGAN PLAYING T0 WIN
Strickland
TO CONTINUE READING THIS PUBLICATION AND OTHER BACK ISSUES VISIT ELITEAGENT.COM EXPANDING TO NEW MARKETS PAGE 16
A GAME OF DRONES PAGE 36
SELLING PROPERTY TO SMSF INVESTORS PAGE 42
PREMIERE ISSUE
• HOW ARE THE TRANSFORM SUPER SIX GOING? FOR UPDATES AND COACHING TIPS SEE PAGE 16
MOMENTS OF TRUTH PAGE 26
WHEN SHOULD YOU BECOME A DOT COM? PAGE 24
MARKETING BATTLE PLAN PAGE 18
WHY NO ONE LIKES A KEYBOARD WARRIOR
ARE DIGITAL PRE-LISTING KITS THE WAY OF THE FUTURE?
5 KPIS TO KEEP YOUR BUSINESS ON TRACK
READER SURVEY:
FIND OUT MORE ON PAGE 31
LEARN FROM THE BEST #01 JUL/AUG 2015 AU$9.95 + POSTAGE
LEARN FROM THE BEST
#10 APR/MAY 2016 AU$13.50
4 RULES FOR BUILDING A WORLD CLASS REFERRAL NETWORK
THE GIFT OF LISTENING and the power of presence
PREPARING FOR SPRING SELLING SEASON
IT TAKES TWO
Michael Clarke & Cherie Humel
with Stuart Benson
INSTAGRAM Every picture tells a story
TACTICAL LISTING WITH JOSH PHEGAN PAGE 26
FIVE TACTICS TO ACHIEVE AND MAINTAIN ZERO ARREARS
LEARN FROM THE BEST
#06 JUL/AUG 2015 AU$9.95 + POSTAGE
ANTICIPATE IS THE NEW EXCEED PAGE 28
5 TRENDS THAT MAY INFLUENCE PROPERTY IN AUSTRALIA COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
5 ways to build your profile
IS YOUR DATABASE FIT OR FAT? THE AWESOME HUMAN MANIFESTO
THE TRUSTED ADVISOR
Stefanie Dobro
THRIVING IN A TOUGH LEASING MARKET
BEYOND BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT
HANNAH GILL
EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH RENT.COM.AU CEO MARK WOSCHNAK
A GUIDE TO THE ULTIMATE BRAINSTORM
How to get what you’re worth
THE GREAT INSPECTION ROUNDUP PAGE 62
#03 JAN/FEB 2015 AU$9.95 + POSTAGE
2015 ARE YOU
HOW TO STAND OUT ON THE GLOBAL STAGE PAGE 20
Mark Di Giulio
LEARN FROM THE BEST #05 MAY/JUN 2015 AU$9.95 + POSTAGE
What your customers really think
TAKE YOUR EMAIL OPEN RATE THROUGH THE ROOF MAKE EACH DAY COUNT
Measuring property manager performance
31 May – 1 June, 2015 Gold Coast Convention & Exhibition Centre
LEARN FROM THE BEST
INSIDE: INDUSTRY LEADERS
Charles Tarbey Antony Catalano John McGrath Maria and Manos Findikakis
BEST NEW TALENT
Roxanne Paterson
#05 APR/MAY 2016 AU$13.50
3 TECH TRENDS THAT WILL IMPROVE YOUR BUSINESS
ACCOUNTING FOR SUCCESS
CAMERON GARRY
BEST OF BOTH WORLDS An exclusive outsourcing case study with Miles Real Estate
7 FUNDAMENTAL REALITIES OF CUSTOMER SERVICE THE ART OF PERSONAL COMMUNICATION
FRONT DESK TO BUSINESS OWNER
LESSONS LEARNT IN REALLY BIG BUSINESS
VICTORIA’S TOP GUN
LAURA LEVISOHN
5 STEPS TO DESIGNING THE IDEAL WEEK THREE QUESTIONS TO IMPROVE PERFORMANCE
How to get more productive… Fast!
SERVING A NICHE MARKET PAGE 50
IMPLEMENTING NEW TECHNOLOGY AS A TEAM
WHO’S BEHIND THAT DOOR?
MAKING INSPECTIONS EASY
SAFETY TIPS FOR PMs
HITTING A HOMERUN PAGE 16
FEATURE INTERVIEW NAOMI SIMSON SPEAKS ON PRODUCTIVITY AND LEADERSHIP
INDUSTRY REPORT PERCEPTIONS OF REAL ESTATE
#02 OCT/NOV 2015 AU$9.95 + POSTAGE
The resolutions you need to make this year
Get noticed for the right reasons
SOCIAL MEDIA REPORT CARD PAGE 14
LEARN FROM THE BEST
READY?
THE SCIENCE BEHIND FIRST IMPRESSIONS
FEE NEGOTIATION
THE MATHEMATICS OF PROPERTY MANAGEMENT WITH BOB WALTERS
LEARN FROM THE BEST
5 WAYS TO IMPROVE YOUR CONVERSION RATE PAGE 20
THE ART OF STORYTELLING PAGE 54
LEARN FROM THE BEST #04 MAR/APR 2015 AU$9.95 + POSTAGE
PASSION FOR PEOPLE
Emmy Thies
INSID THE TOP COACHE
John McGrath • Josh Pheg Michael Sheargold • Tom Pan Caroline Bolderst
PL An exclusive w Glenn McGr
CLOSE COLLABORATION Successfully linking PM and Sales
SKIMMERS, SCEPTICS AND SOAKERS Are you covering them all?
31 May – 1 June, 2015 Gold Coast Convention & Exhibition Centre
AREC15
• WIN ONE OF SIX PLATINUM AREC16 TICKETS SEE PAGE 2 FOR DETAIL
MARKETING SPECIAL
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#03 DEC/JAN 2016 AU$13.50
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GET READY FOR
2020 CONNECTING EMPLOYEES IN THE CLOUD Virtual reality agents
EQUITY: TO SHARE OR NOT TO SHARE
NO SALES AWARDS
The agency that puts client satisfaction first
STRONGER THAN STEEL
Clinton Knop
HAVE YOUR SAY IN OUR
READER SURVEY:
THE FOUR PILLARS OF PERSONAL BRANDING EXTREME PROPERTY MANAGEMENT OVERCOMING OWNER OBJECTIONS
LEARN FROM THE BEST
THE EXTRA 1%
ANTHONY CARDINALE
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#08 DEC/JAN 2016 AU$13.50
2016: READY, SET, GOAL! WHY 3D REAL ESTATE LISTINGS WILL BE THE NEW NORM 30 BUSINESS BOOSTING IDEAS FOR
2016 12 WAYS TO IMPROVE YOUR MARKETING
#09 FEB/MAR 2016 AU$13.50
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EFFECTIVE SALES MANAGEMENT How to get the most from your team
What’s working?
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THE REFERRA SYSTEM THA REALL WORK
YOU SA
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The ro