MICHIGAN 12-5-12

MICHIGAN EDITION

EMOTIONAL FLUENCY:

HOW TO COMMUNICATE WITH CLIENTS WHEN TENSIONS ARE HIGH

5 THINGS YOU CAN DO TO ACHIEVE YOUR BIGGEST GOALS

COVER STORY

AMY JO WELLER

BE THEIR REALTOR® FOR LIFE:

How to Build a Relationship with Your Clients that Will Last a Lifetime 5 WAYS TO TRANSFORM

RENTERS INTO OWNERS FEATURED AGENTS

DARBY SCHAUB SHERRI GRAMLICH

mailto:mag@topagentmagazine.com http://www.topagentmagazine.com

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5 Things You Can Do To Achieve Your Biggest Goals If there’s one thing successful people can agree on, it’s that setting goals has been key to their success. Whether you’re creating a five year plan or just settling on what you want to achieve by the end of the day, setting goals gives you the focus and direction you need to complete even the biggest tasks.

But there is a method to setting them. It’s a process that takes careful thought and con4

sideration up front, which is then combined with the hard work necessary to implement your plan. Luckily there are proven methods to goal setting that you can start using immediately.

1. MAKE YOUR GOALS SPECIFIC

Yes, it’s fun to think in grand terms of where you want to end up in life and in your career, but it’s better to have a specific

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Your plan of action should include daily, weekly, monthly and yearly goals. goal like “Increase my sales by 25%”, than “Get rich.” When a goal is clear and specific, it allows you to figure out the exact steps you need to take to accomplish it. The more general it is, the more paralyzed you might be when it comes to figuring out what to do since, the choices may be overwhelming.

2. MAKE IT ATTAINABLE

Making attainable goals might seem boring, I mean afterall, you want to dream big! But you don’t want to suffer through the disappointment of not reaching your goal, something that may not even be possible at this stage in your life to begin with. One solution to that is creating goal levels. You can have the dream goal, but underneath that you have the realistic goals that are setting up a foundation for achieving the big one.

Things that are attainable still take work and effort to achieve. Those small victories will keep you motivated and encouraged to go for the bigger dreams. And don’t forget, those little goals may have been things you wouldn’t have gotten done if you didn’t set out to achieve them, so be proud!

3. PUT A PLAN OF ACTION IN WRITING

Your plan of action should include daily, weekly, monthly and yearly goals. There is something about seeing things in writing and crossing them off the list that is oddly satisfying.The daily goals are especially Top Agent Magazine

important in regards to building up those good habits. The first few weeks of your plan of action are critical when it comes to your long term success. Reaching a goal is something you are doing every day, all throughout the day, in numerous ways.

Achieving goals is all about creating good new habits.

4. MAKE IT MEASURABLE

This is key, since you definitely want to reward yourself for a job well done, and having a goal that is measurable in some way is a sure way to know. Maybe it’s to increase your lead generation or to cut expenses, whatever the case, have a measurable test you need to meet, as well as a time frame. Then calculate what you have to do to reach that goal. Not only should your goal be specific, but the plan and the measure of success should also be set in stone.

5. ADJUST AS YOU GO

You can have all the best laid plans, and you still might quickly realize that what you thought would help you reach your goal, might not be cutting it. Commitment to reaching your goals is good, but commitment to a plan you know isn’t going to work is not only a waste of time, but will be a devastating blow to your motivation.

Sticking to a plan everyday means adjusting it accordingly.

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Be Their REALTOR® for Life: How to Build a Relationship with Your Clients That Will Last a Lifetime In the world of real estate, an agent’s relationship with their clients can make or break their career. This industry revolves around working well with people, and being able to develop a strong relationship with your clients is the foundation that you business is based upon.

Just like with a house, if that foundation is weak, the rest of the structure is also going to be unsteady and fragile. The mark of a good REALTOR® is their ability to build up a good referral network and following of loyal clients. This isn’t something that just happens by accident. Building healthy, strong relationships with your clients takes work and knowing how to gain another person’s trust, respect, and friendship. Here are some ways to make sure you are building the right kind of relationship with your clients.

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1. Use Your Friendliness and Optimism to Win Them Over: No one wants a pushy, overly confident salesperson for a REALTOR®. Clients are much more inclined to put their trust in the hands of someone who is friendly when it comes to one of the biggest financial transactions of their lives. A pleasant, outgoing disposition will win you more clients as well as friends. You want to establish rapport in the first few minutes of first meeting prospective clients. Rather than starting with business right off the bat, begin your meeting with some small talk such as similar interests, hobbies, and family life. This will immediately help to put your clients at ease, and show that you are not simply trying to “sell” them something.

People also respond well to optimism. During what can be a very stressful time, clients need someone to help them stay positive when a situation looks difficult and challenging. Optimism also tends to radiate charisma, and people want to be around and do business with charismatic people. You want to learn how to understand, motivate, and inspire people.

2. Be an Inquisitive Learner and an Empathetic Listener:

On the other side of this coin is knowing how to listen empathetically. Empathy involves actually putting yourself or your mind in their shoes so you can genuinely understand their concerns, needs, and opinions. That understanding and empathy is then reflected in your conversation with that client. Your clients want to know that you care about their situation, and that they’re not just another sale for you to make. People are much more willing to put their trust in you when they can sense that you are actually making an effort to feel what they feel in order to understand their situation.

Showing your interest through questions, and then thoughtfully listening goes a long way towards gaining trust. Showing empathy and acknowledging the feelings and emotions involved in your clients situation helps build a relationship founded on genuine care and trust.

3. Watch for Nonverbal Clues:

Don’t be afraid to show your curiosity and ask your clients a lot of questions. Some of these questions may even be difficult and uncomfortable. You want to discover and learn as much as you can about your client. Don’t make the mistake of jumping straight into the role of the know-it-all. Every different client has unique needs, so you want to learn as much as you can about their specific situation before trying to propose a solution. You want to uncover their primary motive for buying or selling, and flush Top Agent Magazine

out any potential concerns they might have.

After you’ve gained as much information as possible, you can then gauge their interest in your possible solutions by asking “what if” questions. Being inquisitive also demonstrates to your clients that you are genuinely interested and invested in their situation.

Most communication happens nonverbally, so knowing how to interpret your client’s body language can be incredibly helpful. Here are a few things to pay special attention to: Eye contact: Be careful with the level of eye contact you use with clients when first meeting.

Too much and too little eye contact can send the wrong impression. You want to try and maintain eye contact around 70 percent of the time. That is the amount that most people are comfortable with. Pay attention to your client’s level of eye

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contact to determine how comfortable they are.

When someone avoids eye contact that could mean they are not engaged in the conversation.

A good way to quickly build a feeling of rapport when first meeting clients is to make eye contact when you first meet them and then start nodding yes to what they’re saying. If the client reciprocates the eye contact and nodding, you’ve established a connection.

4. Prove your honesty and credibility:

Choose the right handshake for each client: One handshake does not fit all people, and that first handshake can be crucial to making a good first impression. The way to do a good handshake for each client is to try and mirror the other person’s handshake in strength, keep your shoulders aligned as you are preferably standing when you shake hands. While you shake your client’s hand make sure you make eye contact and give them a sincere smile.

Showing a little weakness can actually be to your advantage in this situation, and will actually make others more inclined view you as honest. You don’t want to come across as too good to be true. When revealing this weakness, however, the key to coming out on top is turning what sounds like a weakness into a strength. For example, your service may be more expensive, but that’s because you offer more personalized and extra services than your competitors.

Honesty and integrity are the two traits that 98 percent of buyers and sellers report are qualities they consider “very important”. The thing is you can say you have these traits all you want on your website, bio, etc., but trust has to be earned, and the only way to do this is to prove your credibility.

Here are a few tips for how to sound more credible:

When you talk to your clients avoid using filler words such as “um” and “uh”, which can decrease your credibility. You also want to watch the tone of your voice. People tend to translate a deeper tone as sounding more credible.

You want to develop a relationship to last a lifetime when interacting with your clients. There are many things you can do to accomplish this, and using these tips can take you from getting just a few referrals and repeat customers to gaining a loyal client following. Taking the little extra time to make sure you are projecting the right attitude and making sure that you are doing things to gain your client’s trust can make a world of difference for your business.

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AMY JO WELLER Top Agent Magazine

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Top Agent Amy Jo Weller works with her son serving the greater Grand Rapids area. Almost all of her business comes from repeat and referral clients, a feat that speaks to Amy Jo’s strengths as an agent.

With her unparalleled work ethic and steadfast dedication to serving her clients, Amy Jo Weller sets herself apart as a trusted guide to real estate in her local market. Long interested in real estate, Amy Jo worked in operations management before finally taking the leap in 2016. “Throughout that time, Copyright Top Agent Magazine 10

I had always wanted to do real estate,” Amy Jo recalls. “I came to a point in my career when I thought, there’s something more out there for me. I talked to a friend who had been in real estate for a long time, and it seemed like a great fit!” Amy Jo got her license, and the rest is history. Since then, Top Agent Magazine

she has been helping her clients achieve real estate success.

Working on a small team with her son and an admin, Amy Jo serves the greater Grand Rapids area. Almost all of her business—an amazing 99.9%—comes from repeat and

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referral clients, a feat that speaks to Amy Jo’s strengths as an agent. “Clients appreciate my attention to detail and my communication throughout the entire process, whether it’s buying or selling,” she explains. “Being top of mind for my clients is 100% where I am in my business.”

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“Being involved in the biggest purchase or sale of a client’s lifetime is the best thing for me,” Amy Jo says. “I love listings, and I love working with first-time homebuyers too. It is such a great joy to be a part of that first purchase and go on that journey with them.”

That extends as well to being on top of market developments and making that expertise available to clients. “Right now in this business, we have to keep up on being a market expert,” Amy Jo says.

“That’s what we try to do every single day.

When we are able to give clients the facts and show them what’s happening, it makes all the difference.”

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When it comes to marketing her listings, Amy Jo takes full advantage of the great technological resources available to her through Keller Williams. “We primarily market our listings through social media, and the software system we use at Keller Williams does a really great job with smart targeting,” Amy Jo says. This allows her to adjust for target audiences and geographic Top Agent Magazine

locations in order to achieve optimum exposure for her listings.

Amy Jo is likewise enthusiastic about helping buyers. “Being involved in the biggest purchase or sale of a client’s lifetime is the best thing for me,” she says. “I love listings,

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and I love working with first-time homebuyers too. It is such a great joy to be a part of that first purchase and go on that journey with them.” Aside from Amy Jo’s steadfast work ethic, she is often associated with the color green, including her logo and the cars she drives.

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Looking toward the future, Amy Jo plans to continue growing her business and expand her team. She is proud of the accolades she has earned that show her dedication to her clients. Amy Jo has been a top 5% producer for the last two years, and she was a top 10% producer for the three years prior to that. “Those were huge accomplishments

for me, and something I’m very proud of,” she says. Amy Jo was also one of only 20 agents selected for the Greater Regional Alliance of REALTORS® leadership academy, in a board of over 3,000. “In the long term, I want to be a voice and be a part of this community of REALTORS®,” she says.

“I just love it!”

For more about Amy Jo Weller, call 616-706-0706, email amyjoweller@wellercollective.com, or visit her online at amyjoweller.kw.com Copyright Top Agent Magazine 14

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Emotional Fluency:

How to Communicate with Clients When Tensions are High Managing emotions, expectations, and personalities are central to a successful real estate career. After all, this is a business based on relationships and interpersonal communication. Likewise, real estate is built on one of life’s central milestones—homeownership. This means that stress, disappointment, excitement, and competition are inherently Top Agent Magazine

involved in the process. As an agent, you take on the real estate world every day, but most of your clients aren’t well-versed in the norms of the industry and are likely riding an emotional roller coaster throughout.

Acknowledging this, how do you steer the ship when emotions and tensions are running high?

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For starters, it’s not always intuitive. Just like you add tools to your arsenal when it comes to marketing, social media, or lead generation, you also have to add emotional tools to your repertoire. Here are a few ways to diffuse tense situations and keep clients on an even keel—even during the ups and downs of the transactional process.

Create realistic expectations from the outset and reinforce them as you go As a seasoned agent, some aspects of the industry may seem run of the mill to you, but may come as a shock to your clients. That’s

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why communicating expectations from the beginning can help create reasonable touchpoints in the minds of your clients. In addition to talking through the steps of the transactional process with your clients, consider writing out a checklist or compiling a buyer’s guide that can serve as a resource for them throughout. Think of it like a security blanket, but one that’s built by facts, figures, and anecdotal experience. If you paint a clear picture of what to expect, clients are less likely to be taken by the surprise and react impulsively as a result. What’s more, reinforce next steps, expectations, and possible outcomes as you go. If your client is left to wonder or guess at what’s ahead or

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what will happen, they will either envision the worst-case scenario and panic, or they’ll misjudge the next step and be disappointed or left anxious as a result. Minimize surprises by communicating regularly, clearly, and with all options on the table.

When unveiling a problem, come to clients with potential solutions in hand Any agent worth his or her salt knows that bumps in the road are likely to occur along the way. You can’t promise a transaction free of stress or unforeseen issues, but you can minimize the ensuing stress by preparing you client in advance for any potential problems, and by addressing any problems

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clearly and with solutions already in hand.

Clients are likely to become agitated if a problem arises and they can’t understand why or what it means. That’s why slowing it down, talking it through, and offering potential avenues for recourse can quell fears and remind clients why they chose you to facilitate the transactional process. This means you’ll have to vigilant, proactive, and on the ball. Of course, it’s much easier to be an agent when everything is going great and flowing naturally. It’s when things take an unexpected or negative turn that true talent is really tested. Accordingly, show your clients that you are confident and in control by remaining adaptable, communicative, and clear in your problem-solving approach.

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Never underestimate the power of listening As an agent, you are probably well-versed in putting out fires and sourcing solutions. Sometimes, however, clients are really looking to you as a confidante and a listening ear. You’d be surprised how much nervousness you can resolve by simply offering a listening ear and offering reassurance. Sometimes it’s not about providing a band-aid or a practical solution; oftentimes, it’s all about listening. Clients need to feel like they’re being heard, even if you’ve heard it all before. By listening to their fears, acknowledging their perspective, and reiterating their goals—you display your empathy and understanding, which is often just what a client 18

needs to feel better. In other words, you don’t have to break out the graphs and data each time a client airs his or her insecurity. First, slow down, listen, and interact on a personal level. You may stop an emotional upheaval in its tracks simply by putting your listening cap on.

Not all clients are alike. Some will require a little more hand-holding than others, but it’s your job to put yourself in their perspective, recognize the milestone at hand, and managing the personalities you’re working with. The next time you feel frustrated by a client’s unpredictable emotional energy, keep these insights in mind as you diffuse the situation, steer them to a place of comfort, and fortify your interpersonal skillset in the process.

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DARBY SCHAUB Darby Schaub covers the region along U.S. Highway 10 in Michigan “all the way to the tip of the mitt,” but the distance pales in comparison to the distance she goes for her customers. “They like my tenacity,” she says. “They like my professionalism. They like the fact that when we're under contract, I work for them. And I will work around the clock.

Something comes in at 10 o'clock at night that needs to be handled, I will get it handled.” Driven by her genuine compassion, Darby thrives on closing seemingly hopeless deals. In one case, she recalls arranging for a homeless family to make repairs to a house while they awaited closing. The unconventional arrangement with the seller allowed the family to settle into their new home ahead of closing and in time to celebrate Thanksgiving in it.

Darby has made a lifetime career of sales, starting when she was 5 years old. She has sold everything from Avon to pagers and legal services. When her children were younger, she managed car dealerships. “But my eye has always been on real estate,” she says. “I had five kids, a single mom. So I couldn't just drop what I was doing to throw myself into real estate. I didn't have that confidence back then. After all the kids moved out and went to college, I decided I just want to do real estate.: That was a decade ago. “And I have loved it ever since. It's just been a great fit for me.”

Armed with novel apps and a strong social media presence, Darby markets her listings to the widest target audience. Ripl, a social content app, provides her a platform to create branded posts and run targeted video ads. “I like to use it to let people know that ‘hey, this is on the market’ if we've had a price reduction or if it's

back on the market.” Darby also offers interactive views of her properties on the Studeo platform. The automated videos have been getting a lot of attention for Darby’s listings. “When you're looking at it online, it looks like you're reading a book,” she says. “When I put this out on social media, it drags people right to it. You can get maybe 10,000 hits, if it's the right property, in one day. And out of that you will get a sale.”

Darby shows she cares for her community through her work, in one case helping a mother and her disabled son get into a home when all others had given up on them. In other cases, she will forego her commission for a family in need. Beyond work, she volunteers to teach homebuyer classes for the Northwest Michigan Community Action Agency, educating people on FHA and niche mortgage programs. She also sits on the board of review for her township and the election board.

Darby’s brokerage City2Shore builds beds for children without one. When she is not selling or volunteering, you can find Darby on horseback or hunting and fishing with her husband. “I live very remote in northern Michigan,” she says, “and I love selling vacant land.

It’s one of my specialties. I am an outdoors person.”

The past 10 years in real estate have been good to Darby, and she will be in the profession as long as she is on the planet. Taking a lesson from her grandfather who lived to be nearly 100, she aims to work the rest of her life. “He says, ‘the day you quit, you will die; all my friends have.’ So that is my goal, I would like to have longevity. And I want to have all my forces about me. So I want to stay active and want to keep my mind active and I think real estate is going to do that for me.”

For more about Darby Schaub, email darby@city2shore.com, call 231.944.4587 or visit her online at zillow.com/profile/darby-schaub www.

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5 Ways to Transform

Renters into Owners Perhaps the largest demographic of untapped business lies in the rental market. From major cities and suburbs to rural communities—renters across generations are opting to rent rather than own. The question is: why? For starters, many Americans are undereducated about the inventory and financing options available that might suit their budget and lifestyle. Secondly, many would-be homeowners have difficulty 20

visualizing the potential investment of purchasing property, and how homeownership can build wealth and security in the long-term.

As an agent, you’re always on the lookout for potential clientele. Now, to guide renters toward the real estate market, keep a few of these strategies in mind as you meet and greet this untapped demographic.

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Show renters that purchasing a home isn’t impossible

Possibly the biggest hurdle for renters is believing homeownership is possible. Beyond saving for a down payment and boosting credit scores, there are dozen more factors to consider: affording utilities, homeowner’s insurance, renovations, property taxes, and more. Besides that, assembling pay stubs, finding an agent, arranging house tours, negotiating a price, and timing the transition are all major considerations to surmount.

One way to combat this thinking is to make the process transparent and demystified. Find examples of past clients who made the leap successfully, or profile the average buyer in your marketplace and see how that renter compares. Provide evidence that it’s been done before and can be done again, then build a game plan from there.

into play. Consider making a checklist, or step-by-step road-map, that guides clients through the process from start to finish. This way, you’ll manage expectations and create a path to ownership that’s specific, instead of abstract. They won’t have to wonder what goes into buying a home when they can look at an interactive site or read a document and see the steps outlined before them, with you there to guide the way.

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Collaborate with mortgage professionals to find the right financing opportunities

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Help would-be homebuyers create a road-map to ownership

It’s no secret that buying a home can feel overwhelming. Compared to signing a yearlong lease on an apartment, taking on the house-hunting process is a daunting affair.

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Many renters aren’t aware of the variety of mortgage financing options out there that cater to first-timers, offer low down payments, or down payment assistance. Most buyers believe that the standard 20% down is a hard and fast rule, when in reality, there’s far more flexibility out there to cater to renters where they are. There are even loan options catering to freelance workers, renovation options, and other unconventional routes to ownership.

Work with a mortgage pro and find the route that suits your renter best.

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pay monthly in a mortgage—while building a lasting asset.

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Compare and contrast rental rates with monthly mortgage payments One way to convince renters to make the shift is to demonstrate the savings potential of paying into a monthly mortgage, rather than throwing away rent on a property they don’t own. To do this, draw up the average rental rates in your area, then find some potential listings that would demand a similar amount in monthly mortgage payments. Sometimes placing these numbers and images sideby-side can prove to renters that what they manage to pay monthly in rent, they can

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Paint the big picture

For most, renting isn’t the most sustainable financial option when it comes to housing.

Rents rise, families grow, and retirement looms.

Building a financial future and homeownership go hand-in-hand. When planned appropriately, buying a home can create a path toward retirement and position homeowners in a better place for further investment in the future. A rental has little security or investment returns to offer, while owning a home makes a renter king or queen of the castle.

Prospecting renters as potential homebuyers may seem like a time-intensive way to cultivate new clients, but logic is on your side.

Keep these tips in mind as you broach the conversation with renters in your hometown.

All it takes is clear-cut value proposition and a listening ear.

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SHERRI GRAMLICH Sherri Gramlich of Trenton, Michigan, fuels a successful real estate business by leading with her heart, honoring the stories and legacies of her clients, and giving back to her community. “I love being a part of someone else’s story. Being able to guide people and teach them the ins and outs of the process is a real blessing, and some days my heart just can’t believe this is my full time job. My heart is probably what helps me the most, because I give and it’s genuine. I’m not phony – I walk it, talk it, breathe it.”

Before becoming a REALTOR®, Sherri was enlisted in the U.S. Army, and eventually went on to work in sales in the corporate world. “I did business-to-business sales for years, and eventually got tired of making money for other people. One of the jobs I had was selling marketing tools to REALTORS®, and that’s when I first fell in love with the industry. So in 2017 I became fully licensed and took that leap of faith.” In the five years since obtaining her license, Sherri has grown her enterprise to service all of Wayne County, specializing in the Downriver area. She boasts a book of business that is nearly one hundred percent repeat and referral clients, and in 2022 she has already cleared $6 million in total volume by the end of October.

Despite her tremendous success, Sherri goes to great lengths to share her prosperity with the people who have supported her through every step of her life. “I’m an Army veteran, so I like to stay involved in that community. I’m a chaplain for the American Legion, and I do a lot of veteran advocacy. I recently finished a fundraiser for a client I was working for who had stage four cancer, and we managed to raise $13,000 for her with the help of the Downriver for Veterans nonprofit organization.” Her unwavering efforts have been recognized by eXp Realty: Sherri is a state Squad Leader for eXp’s military network, EXP MILNET, and she has recently been approved to head up her own team in Wayne County. “I started this process about four weeks ago, so Top Agent Magazine

I’m working on contracts and getting ready to help my team launch. I want to see other people further their own careers, learn from the experience, and grow! The people I’ve surrounded myself with at eXp are so helpful and inspiring, and the eXp business model has had a huge impact on me – I just want to return the favor.”

Sherri’s caring disposition has been shaped by her children as well as her colleagues, and she is always seeking the next opportunity to lend a helping hand. “I raised four kids, and as they grew up and got older, I wasn’t that mom that was fixing everything all the time any more.

Doing this, being able to help people, that’s my primary motivation. I’m a rare breed I guess.” Sherri is fortunate to be married to her husband Joe who supports her business in every way. When she’s not spending time with her family, or supporting her colleagues and fellow veterans, Sherri seizes every opportunity to spend time outdoors. “I love to run, I love adventures, hiking, seeing different places, stuff like that. I’m always throwing irons in the fire – I just can’t sit still!”

Contact Sherri at 734-516-0371, email sherri226@gmail.com, or visit sherrigramlich.com www.

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