New Orleans Real Estate Podcast with Betsy Birdsong

I frequently research real estate trends that pertain to all kinds of topics, and I recently came across an article from realtor.com that details the six habits of successful agents that I want to share with you. To read the article in its entirety, check out this link. In the meantime, here are the six habits it lists: 1. They return calls and emails immediately. If someone calls, emails, or texts you, you need to respond quickly. However they reach out to you is probably their preferred means of communication.  2. They utilize the latest technology. You need to have a smartphone with a great data plan. Also, keep your voicemail clear and don’t let your battery run out. It also helps to have an electronic signature program. You don’t have to have every gadget, but utilizing the latest technology is important for your business.  3. They know the neighborhoods they work intimately. You don’t have to be an agent who only works one neighborhood, but some very successful agents in the New Orleans area do just that. Regardless of how many neighborhoods you work, you need to know what houses are priced at and selling for per square foot in those neighborhoods. If you’re not doing much business in a certain neighborhood, of course, you won’t have this information at the tip of your tongue. If you do a lot of business in a certain neighborhood, though, it’s your job to know it intimately.  4. They explain everything they do. This means you must explain your processes to your clients every step of the way. Some Realtors expect clients to follow them through every step, and the crazy thing is, those Realtors oftentimes don’t even know what they’re doing very well.   5. They creatively seek leads. This means when you get a listing, you can’t just put up a “For Sale” sign in its front yard, list it on the MLS, make a single Facebook post about it, and expect leads to fall out of the sky. Good agents get creative to find leads—they collaborate with others to see what works best.  “Every social media platform is different, so experiment and figure out what works best for you.” For example, try sending postcards, but be mindful of what’s said on the postcard and don’t just stop after sending just one—keep sending them. Some people say the magic number is between six and seven tries if you want to get the biggest bang for your buck. Of course, that’s expensive, but you have to test every avenue. There are also several other social media platforms you can use besides Facebook including Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, Pinterest, etc. Everything is different, so experiment and figure out what works best for you.  6. They maintain a helpful network. They have a list of the best agents, tradespeople, contractors, appraisers, lenders, and so on. Today, in fact, I got a call from a tree service professional who heard through the grapevine that one of my listings needed trees cut around the property, so I referred them to the seller and added them to my vendor list. Build a network of people who maintain their own networks, because they can be great referral partners.  If you’d like to talk more about this subject or you have any other real estate questions, don’t hesitate to pick up the phone and give me a call. I’d love to talk to you.    

When it comes to selecting homes to show your buyer clients, here are a few tips that will help the process go smoothly and quickly.   First, keep in mind that you only want to show them a maximum of 10 houses. I know what you might be thinking right about now: “How in the world am I going to be able to do that?”  Well, if you provide them a buyer’s consultation at the very beginning of the process, you shouldn’t have to show them a whole bunch of houses. Buyers are busy these days, just like you are, and they want things to move quickly.  I like to streamline the process by having a conversation with my clients about which features are non-negotiable to them for their new home. It’s essential that you find out what a client really wants. Also, there’s a difference between what they want and what they need, so you need to find out what they need too.  “The goal is to help your client find a house and do so in a timely manner.” Sometimes buyers walk into a house and get emotional about it, but you know that their needs don’t correspond to that house, so you have to remind them about your previous conversations. Our clients shouldn’t have to tour 50 homes to learn something we already know, so as you tour homes, be sure to ask them if they’re comfortable with the choices they’re making.  Next, make sure you listen. Sometimes clients will tell you to show them things, but it’s not what they need or want, so you need great listening skills. If you’ve toured dozens of homes and still haven’t found one, perhaps it’s time to have a reevaluation conversation and rediscover what they really want and need. You might have to start the process all over again.  Remember, the goal is to help your client find a house and do so in a timely manner.  If you have any questions about this topic or you’d like to talk more about how you can help your buyers, don’t hesitate to reach out to me. I’d love to help you.    

There are four things, in particular, that first-time homebuyers want you to know about them and what they’re going through: 1. They’re terrified that they don’t have enough money. It isn’t something they really want to talk about. Sometimes you have to ask the right questions and dive in a little bit deeper than they’re willing to tell you off the top. They might be worried that what they’ve saved up hasn’t been enough. One thing first-time buyers are really clueless about are closing costs. They’re pretty high here in Louisiana because of insurance costs, so realize that most of your first-time buyer clients don’t know whether they have enough money or not so it’s your job to spell out all costs for them. 2. They’re looking for a reliable lender. Most of them will not have a lender when they first come into your world, so it’s important to educate them about why having a reliable lender is so important. Most first-time buyers, unless they have a strong affiliation with a bank or credit union, will take your advice on lenders. It is important that you step up to the plate and help them out because you want them to have a good experience and a strong lender plays a key role in that. “Don’t assume they love all the technology you have.” 3. They want an agent who they can trust, and they want them to trust you too. You need to show them that you’re trusting them and that they can trust you. It’s a two-way street. 4. Don’t assume they love all the technology you have. Even with a younger demographic, you think all millennials want all the technology. Don’t make that assumption. There are plenty of millennials that don’t mind talking on the phone as their preferred method of communication. There are some that prefer email or text, but just go with whatever they want. Don’t assume, just ask. This is also important for contracts that are sent digitally. I like to go over contacts in person or on the phone with my clients to make sure they understand everything in it.  Those are just a few of the tips that you can use to attract more new homebuyers to your services. If you have any questions for me about working with first-time homebuyers or real estate in general, don’t hesitate to give me a call or send me an email. I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Agents always ask me all the time what tools I use to increase my productivity, so today I’ll reveal my most important resource.   The No. 1 tool in my productivity arsenal is my Google Calendar, which I use to time block my days. I put absolutely every activity into my Google Calendar, whether it’s prospecting, attending appointments, or even spending personal time. I record it all.  This method has been very helpful for me, so I strongly urge all of you to try it. To start, print out a blank monthly calendar and go to town using a pencil with an eraser. This will allow you to make changes as they arise.  Record prospecting time first, as this is something most agents aren’t thrilled about doing. Writing it down right away will help you stick to it. The best time to prospect is between 8 a.m. and 9 a.m., Monday through Friday. The second-best time to do so is between 4 p.m. and 7 p.m. on those same days.  “When you’re in control of your time, instead of letting your time be in control of you, your business and personal life will thrive.” Full-time agents should prospect for at least two hours a day, five days a week. Part-time agents, meanwhile, should spend at least five hours a week on prospecting.  Once you’re done blocking out time to prospect, it’s time to set aside time in your calendar for follow-up calls. Then, do the same for client appointments. It might not seem like you can be too specific about the times at which you’ll do these things, but it’s not as difficult as you think. The one area you might need to be flexible in is closings.  When you’re in control of your time, instead of letting your time be in control of you, your business and personal life will thrive. Contrary to what you might expect, time blocking helps you live life more freely. If you have any other questions or would like more information, feel free to give me a call or send me an email. I look forward to hearing from you soon.   

As an observer of other agents, I’m very interested in the way they talk to and work with their clients. From my experience, I’ve found that coming across as a consultant to clients creates a sense of trust and allays their concerns that you’re simply a salesperson desperately trying to close a sale.  When you first meet with them, you need to listen intently to what your clients have to say and respond with absolute honesty. If you’re not able to provide them the service they deserve, let them know straight away. Believe me, you’ll get much further in life and in sales when you build a reputation as an honest person. “The best way to build trust and rapport in this business is to find out what your clients want and advise them on whether their aims are realistic.” Part of being honest with clients is making sure they understand they won’t necessarily get everything they want. Don’t just tell them what they want to hear. Unfortunately, this can sometimes lead to confrontation. In my business, I ask clients to write out a list of their needs and wants before I take them house-hunting. That way, when we’re looking at homes, they can refer back to that list for comparison.  For example, say you have a client who wants to live in Lakeview, and they’re looking for a 3-bedroom, 2-bath house on a $300,000 budget. Being the honest agent you are, you need to tell them from the outset that they won’t have any luck finding that home for that price in that area. Think about it: Isn’t it better to be honest with your client up front than to show them 20 or 30 homes that they can’t afford? Not only will this be a big waste of everyone’s valuable time, but your client will just go find another agent who doesn’t shy away from being upfront and honest.  As the expert, it’s your job to demonstrate your expertise by guiding them with strong communication skills. The best way to build trust and rapport in this business is to find out what your clients want and advise them on whether their aims are realistic.  If you have any questions or would like to discuss this topic further, don’t hesitate to give me a call at 504-376-7650 or send me an email at Betsy@TheBirdsongGroup.com. I’d love to have a conversation with you!     

Where should you focus your lead generation?  To answer this question, we must first break down lead generation into two categories: prospecting and marketing. It’s important to understand that each will require you to expend something.  Prospecting will cost you time, whereas marketing will cost money. When you’re deciding which you should place an emphasis on, ask yourself whether you have more time or more money.  “My advice is to market where consumers are and it’s a well-known fact that today the overwhelming majority of consumers are found on the internet.” If money is scarce, then you’re better off focusing your efforts on prospecting. Some examples of this include For Sale By Owners, expired listings, working open houses, drumming up business from your sphere of influence, and basic networking. Immerse yourself in community activities that give you opportunities to meet new people and pass out business cards. If you have more money than time, on the other hand, aim to increase your marketing efforts. That means buying radio ads, TV ads, and internet ads, in addition to advertising via direct mail and billboards.    My advice is to market where consumers are, and it’s a well-known fact that most of today’s consumers are found on the internet, so this is where your marketing dollars should be spent first. You can work the other forms of marketing into your lead generation strategy once you build up your business and have the resources for it.       If you have any questions or would like more information regarding best practices for generating your leads, please reach out to me by phone at 504-376-7650 or by email at Betsy@TheBirdsongGroup.com. I look forward to hearing from you!    

Around the United States, most new agents and many experienced agents choose to join a real estate team.  In our area, however, this trend doesn’t appear to be quite as prevalent. Unfortunately, this is detrimental to our success as professionals within the real estate industry.  The simple truth is that we’re behind the times. But this can change.  How? It starts on an individual level. Therefore, today I’d like to share a few things you should think about if you’re considering joining a real estate team.  First, realize that a team environment isn’t for everyone, but it is a good fit for hard-working agents ready to sell houses and earn more money from doing so.  The only real drawback to working on a team is that you won’t receive as much personal credit within the industry for your success. This doesn’t mean you won’t get any recognition, simply that you probably won’t be seeing your name appear in lights as a result of your strong real estate track record. If notoriety isn’t as important to you as financial stability and a fulfilling career, though, then joining a team is likely right for you.  “If notoriety isn’t as important to you as financial stability and a fulfilling career, though, then joining a team is likely right for you.” So how are teams set up? Well, basically, different professionals take care of different aspects of the real estate process. There are listing agents, who deal with sellers; buyers agents, who work with buyers; and support staff, who offer back-end assistance to the team. On my team, specifically, my goal is to provide an excellent experience for everyone who works for me, and to every client we serve.  To do this, I provide leads, training opportunities, and other valuable resources that you would have to seek out on your own if you were to work as an independent agent. Still, a lot of agents get caught up on the idea of splits. My response to this is that 100% of zero is still zero. If working on a team brings you in more deals (which it almost certainly will), you can rest assured that you’ll still earn more in a collaborative environment with a split than you would by going it alone.  In short, joining a team is something I think agents in our area should seriously consider. If you have any other questions or would like more information about joining a team, feel free to give me a call or send me an email. I look forward to hearing from you soon.    

A 2014 NAR study found that 87% of Realtors exit the business within their first five years and another 75% fail in their very first year. What’s the reason for this alarmingly high failure rate? Well, there are actually five reasons and I’ll share them with you today:  1. Not being committed to success. Quite a few newly licensed agents enter the business with the faulty belief that they’ll be able to make a great deal of money and do what they want and when they want to do it. This type of agent hasn’t made a real commitment to success.  2. Not being strategic. Other new agents think there’s nothing left to learn once they’re out of schooling and now that they’re the licensed, people are going to be lining up at their door to do deals. In reality, you’ll never cease to learn in this business, so if you’re a new agent, learn your market and how you fit into its cycles.  3. Not having a role model. For a beginner, having an accomplished, seasoned agent who’s personally had to overcome the ups and downs is so important. That can be tough to find, but that’s why I constantly underscore the value of being on a team. A team leader is a great person to look to. Nevertheless, there are plenty of agents with experience and expertise in their repertoire, so find one and study how they operate.  4. Not having sales skills. The three skills that are instrumental to your success are selling, marketing, and negotiating. You need to be well trained and well developed in all three areas to be a successful Realtor.    5. Not having enough money saved to be a full-time agent. Unbeknownst to a lot of part-time agents, most buyers and sellers would much prefer to work with an agent who’s full-time. If you must work another full-time job while you’re getting your feet wet in the business, you’ll need to save every penny you can. This way, you can quit that job much faster and begin to dedicate your time, energy, and effort to your success as an agent. Your success depends on your ability to stay focused and committed and develop a strong work ethic.  “To ensure that you don’t suffer the same fate as so many others, do the opposite.”To ensure that you don’t suffer the same fate as so many others, do the opposite: become committed to your success; become strategic; find a role model; become trained in sales, marketing, and negotiating; and become a full-time agent as quickly as possible.  If there’s anything I can do to help you in your business or if there’s a topic you’d like me to cover, give me a call at 504-376-7650 or email me at Betsy@TheBirdsongGroup.com. Talk to you soon!  

People often ask me which books I recommend most for growing their real estate business. There are so many titles I could include on this list, but today I’ll share just three of the most impactful books in my library.  1. “Think and Grow Rich” by Napoleon Hill. This book, which was written in the late 1930s, is one I’ve read time and time again. It covers concepts like faith, thought, and the value of “feeding the subconscious.” One of the key takeaways of this book is the idea that most of our actions come from our subconscious thoughts, rather than our conscious ones. Another major idea covered in the book is the importance of masterminding—meeting with your peers to discuss ideas related to your business. Everyone accomplishes more when they’re working together. 2. “Eat That Frog” by Brian Tracy. The phrase “eat that frog” is a metaphor for doing the most difficult tasks first. It’s human nature to delay unpleasant jobs, but when you “eat the frog” first, you’ll find that your work goes by faster and more efficiently.  3. “The One Thing” by Gary Keller and Jay Papasan. Before I read this book, I was building a real estate team, had started a credit-repair business, and was beginning to flip houses. When I finished the book, however, I shut down my side businesses and focused solely on the “one thing” that mattered most: my real estate business. The main idea of this book is that you must think big by going small. In other words, you need to narrow your focus if you want to achieve great things.  “You must think big by going small.” As you can tell by looking at this list, none of these books are about the point-by-point steps it takes to be successful in real estate. This is because I believe you need to grow your mind in order to grow your business. These books offer valuable lessons into the fundamental principles of success—not just success in real estate. If you have any other questions or would like more information, feel free to give me a call or send me an email. I look forward to hearing from you soon. 

As an agent, there’s a certain way you need to interact when talking with sellers over the phone, but there’s one thing you need to remember above all else: You must ask the right questions.  There’s a lot of information you need to know about a home you’re possibly going to list, but two questions in particular take priority over that information: 1. Do you know what your home is worth?2. What are your expectations of me as an agent? You want to know the answers to these questions before you meet the seller. When it comes to price, you and the seller may have different opinions, so that’s definitely a discussion you need to have with them right away so you’ll know how to delve deeper during the listing appointment. “You want to know the answers to these questions before you meet the seller.”  Regarding their expectations of you, you need to know how often they like to be communicated with and what means of communication they prefer. If you don’t inquire about this type of thing, they’ll feel like you’re not doing a good job for them. Some people still like to talk on the phone, while others prefer to communicate via text. In any case, don’t make assumptions about how a person prefers to be communicated with based on their age. If you have any more questions about how to talk to a seller when preparing for a listing appointment or there’s anything else I can assist you with, don’t hesitate to reach out to me. I’d love to help you. 

I’ve been told that real estate coaching is a billion dollar business in this country. I don’t know if that figure is accurate, but I do know that there are plenty of coaches, coaching programs, and real estate agents in those coaching programs. There are all different kinds of coaches out there, so I wanted to give some advice for those of you who may be searching for some coaching in your real estate business. The first thing you need to do before hiring a coach is to figure out what your goals are and where you’re at right now in your business. Where do you want to be in the future? When you’re very clear about those goals, you can go out and find what you’re looking for. What you may find is that you aren’t in the right brokerage and you can get what you need from a different brokerage or team leader. If that’s the case, you may not even need to seek out coaching, which will cost you thousands. “With the right team leader, there’s no need to seek out additional coaching.” When I first started in the business, I did hire a coach and I wouldn’t have been able to accomplish everything I did as quickly as I did without one. At the same time, I made a lot of mistakes that I wouldn’t have if I was in a different environment. If you have any questions about real estate coaching and want an objective opinion about what you should do based on your goals, don’t hesitate to reach out and give me a call or send me an email. I would love to hear from you.   

How can you maximize open houses to generate more listings and find buyers? Here are a few tips and tricks that will help you.  First, know that it’s much better to do open houses here in New Orleans on a Sunday. There’s much more foot traffic, and the best time to capture this foot traffic is between 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. The second best time is between 1 p.m. and 3 p.m.  To produce a lot of foot traffic, there are several things you can do. On our team, we put up a lot of directional signs in the surrounding area. I usually hire someone to do this so that my agents and I don’t have to worry about taking all of them down after we’re done with the open house.  We also stick flags in the front yard, distribute flyers (if it’s our first open house of the neighborhood), and use targeted Facebook ads—these ads are very effective, and they’re something you need to learn how to utilize for your business. “It’s important to know which attendees are neighbors and which aren’t, so this is a good way to keep them separated.” Additionally, we call the neighbors before all of our open houses. This is something very few agents do, but we do it. We usually make about 250 calls around the neighborhood and tell people on the other end of the line that we’re having an open house and they’re invited to a private showing.  We then schedule this private showing an hour before the regularly scheduled showing so we know that the people who come early are the neighbors. It’s important to know which attendees are neighbors and which aren’t, so this is a good way to keep them separated. We also use this early showing as an opportunity to tell the neighbors that we’re the go-to real estate team in the area and we can take care of their open house if they’re thinking of selling. If you want to learn more about maximizing your open houses or you have any other questions, don’t hesitate to reach out to me. I’d love to help you.

It’s incredibly important for real estate agents to have a clear understanding of flood insurance and what it means for your clients. I get a lot of questions about it, so today I’d like to go over the basics of this type of insurance. First, you need to find out what the property’s flood zone is. You can find this out in Matrix, and if you don’t know how, reach out to me so I can walk you through it. If you can’t access Matrix, you can contact your insurance agent as well. Lenders don’t require flood insurance for X, B, or C zones; however, this doesn’t mean that the property doesn’t need it. Flood insurance for these zones is inexpensive, and its price will be based on the price of the house and the kind of coverage people want.  “By understanding flood insurance, you’ll be able to give your buyers and sellers better service.” Flood insurance for an A zone, though, could be a lot more expensive. Its coverage will be based on the house and how high off the ground it is compared to the base flood elevation of the area. To find this out, you’ll need to get a flood elevation survey done. If you’re working with a buyer, ask the seller to provide this or pay for one. Your buyer needs to know if they’ll be able to afford flood insurance in addition to the property itself. If you’re listing a property, it’s important to know the flood rate—it can affect the price of a property. If it’s in an A zone with expensive flood insurance, the house won’t be able to sell for as much. Ask your seller for a copy of the flood declaration page; it should be included with the seller disclosures in the MLS. Some agents don’t want to include this if the flood insurance is high, but there’s not much you can do about it. By not including it, you’re wasting people’s time. By understanding flood insurance, you’ll be able to give your buyers and sellers better service. If you have any questions or would like more information, feel free to reach out to me. I look forward to hearing from you soon.

To connect with your database in the New Orleans area, I’ve found that it’s important to make one call every quarter to each person in your database, and then do a direct mail piece once a month. By connecting with your database on a regular basis, you should be able to generate referrals, and that’s what you’re striving for.  Your database is full of people who make up your sphere of influence (SOI). If you don’t have an SOI, you need to start building one. The key to doing this is to write down the names of everyone you know and categorize them into a list of “A,” “B,” and “C,” clients.  The “A” clients are your best clients, or those who you believe have a good chance of sending you referrals.  The “B” clients are those who’ve already referred someone to you. “By connecting with your database on a regular basis, you should be able to generate referrals, and that’s what you’re striving for.” The “C” clients are new people you’ll add to your database on a regular basis. Additionally, you should make a subcategory of “C-A” clients who are most likely to refer someone to you because of who they know. All you have to do is educate them on how to send you a referral. You’re not “training” them by any means—you’re just coaching them a little on what you’re looking for and how they can help you. If they’re people you know and they like and trust you, then they’ll want to help you.  Picking up the phone and calling each of these people once a quarter can be difficult, but it’s even more difficult to sustain a real estate business if you’re not willing to do this. Also, remember that to send each of these people a direct mail piece once a month, you’ll need to get their addresses.  If you’d like to talk more about how to build your database or you have any other questions for me, don’t hesitate to give me a call or shoot me a text. I look forward to speaking with you soon.

Today I’m going to talk to you about the importance of tracking where your leads come from. Many of us salespeople don’t like to get bogged down in the details, but it’s very important to get into the habit of tracking your numbers so you know what you’re doing and where things are coming from. First, you’re going to want to have a system where you can enter and track your leads, commonly referred to as a CRM. There are a bunch of good ones out there. Once you pick one, you can put all of your lead’s information in and where they came from so you can track them in the future. Whether they came from Google, Facebook, or somewhere else, you’ll be able to track the source. Next, you should enter all of your sphere of influence leads into the database and categorize them. You’ll also want to keep track of all your past clients within the CRM as well. Once you’ve sold someone a house, enter them into that past client database so you can stay in touch with them. “Make sure to enter all of your SOI leads into the database and categorize them.” Finally, you’ll need to enter any and all referrals to the database and who or what referred them. It’s important to track conversions to sales as well. If you have thousands of leads but none of them convert to sales, then they’ve done nothing for you. The importance of tracking all of your leads, past clients, etc., is undeniable because you want to make sure that you’re putting your marketing dollars into the avenues that are generating the most leads and leading to conversions. I know many of you are awesome salespeople and might not be thrilled about the idea of tracking all these numbers. However, you still need to know where you’re spending your money and what the best way to spend money is so that you can grow your business and continue to have consistent income. If you have any questions for me in the meantime, don’t hesitate to give me a call or send me an email. I would love to hear from you soon. 

When you receive your real estate license, your education is only beginning. No matter how many closings you’ve produced, there’s always something new to learn. Think of it as needing the equivalent of a college degree in real estate. So, how are you going to get it? The 12 hours of continuing education each year won’t get you where you need to be—you need an ongoing learning resource. I believe team leaders should be involved in a national coaching program. Then, their agents will receive the benefits from their leader by extension. Agents should also be able to get the materials from the coaching program. In addition, the team leader should provide scripts, CRMs, database management services, and education on time blocking and goal setting. You should also have education on listing and buyer presentations, social media usage, and lead conversion. “When you receive your real estate license, your education is only beginning.” If you’re in a brokerage but not with a team, your company should provide ongoing training. Pick a place where they’re constantly helping you grow and thrive. We provide ongoing education to our team through a variety of ways, and as a part of eXp Realty, we can take advantage of their weekly live training and upcoming university program. And no matter how long you’ve been a Realtor, it’s always important to have an accountability partner—someone who will help you stay on track. A career in real estate requires constant, ongoing education. There’s always more to learn, so you should do everything you can, as an agent, to grow. If you have any other questions or need further information, feel free to reach out to me. I look forward to hearing from you soon.

The Birdsong Group operates under a set of core values that drive the way we do things as a team. I think it’s really important to know your core values. Whether in real estate or any other line of work, it’s important for you to have core values and write them down. Our core values support our vision, share our culture, and reflect what’s important to the people that work for us. The Birdsong Group’s core values are: 1. Treat everyone with respect. This seems like a given, but it’s not always true in this world. 2. Build a positive team. We want to feel like a family. 3. Have honest and open communication. This isn’t something you find everywhere either. 4. Build a positive attitude that produces positive results. 5. Serve the community and others. We support the Second Harvest Food Bank and many other local organizations. “We want to feel like a family.” 6. Never stop learning. This is especially important for in real estate, where every transaction is a learning experience. 7. Have fun. Laugh often. Sometimes this is a stressful job, but it’s important to always keep others in mind and help them with a smile. 8. Put clients first. We want to exceed our clients’ expectations. 9. Follow up, follow up, and follow up again. This is probably the most important one. If you take core values like this to heart and demonstrate them in your daily work, I guarantee you’ll be successful. If you want to learn more about our team or you have questions about the business, in general, don’t hesitate to give me a call or send me an email. I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Once you get so busy that you realize you can’t do everything and you’re kind of stymied in your growth because there aren’t enough hours in a day, it’s time to make that first hire—if you have an entrepreneurial spirit. The first hire I recommend is an administrative assistant. An administrative assistant will allow you to do and focus on the things that will make you more money by taking the administrative tasks off your plate. Let them help you build up systems and processes for your business, because that is what they’re going to be good at. Your second hire should be an inside salesperson. I’ll bet that you thought I was going to say ‘buyer’s agent,’ but that’s not at all my recommendation. Don’t rush hiring a buyer’s agent; you’re not ready for that at this stage. With all your administrative tasks off your shoulders, you should have the time to hire and train that inside salesperson, whose job it will be to set up appointments and nurture your prospects.   Now that all the paperwork and customer service has been taken off your shoulders, what can you do next? “Hire the right person for the right job; it will save you a whole lot of grief and help you and your team be successful.” At this stage, you’ll be handling all your listing appointments, and once you get your new hires under your belt and all your tasks settled, then it will be time to hire buyer’s agents. My recommendation is to hire two—it’s just as easy to hire two as it is to hire one, and both can be trained at the same time. Worst case scenario: If one of them doesn’t work out, you’re not left with no one, and then you have someone to allow you to focus on finding two more. Once you have the core group working together, then you can add more people to your team. You could hire a courier to work part-time delivering lockboxes, signs, open house advertisements, etc. You can also hire another administrative assistant, allowing one to focus on closing coordination and the other on being a listing manager. After that, you can work on a listing partner, allowing you to double your listing business. Finally, I’d recommend hiring an office manager to oversee running the day-to-day functions of the office. Ultimately, there is a right way and a right order for creating a successful team. Remember not to get ahead of yourself, and don’t compromise on your hiring. Hire the right person for the right job; it will save you a whole lot of grief and help you and your team be successful. If you have any questions about adding to a team, joining a team, or creating a team, please reach out to me. I’d love to hear from you.

So what are the differences between being a buyer’s agent and a listing agent? Here are just a few:       1. A buyer’s agent needs to be more empathetic. You need to have the ability to form a strong rapport with your clients and really care about those individuals you’re working with. Most of your clients will likely be first-time homebuyers who need to believe that you’re giving them truthful answers and that you’ll help them every step of the way. You need to have a personality that clicks with that mentality—some people just don’t.       2. Buyer’s agents do a lot more prospecting. You need to have a lead generation system that will give you lots of internet leads. But how do you reach those people? By picking up a phone. I know that making phone calls is really difficult for some people these days. However, to successfully prospect, you’ll need to be on the phone making calls to prospective clients. Understand that even if you don’t get a response, it might not be that they’re rejecting you; it could just be that they’re not ready at the moment. In addition, you’ll also be spending your time on buyer appointments, in which you’ll sit down with buyers and take them through the whole process via a buyer presentation. You’ll need to get them to want to work with you since they have a lot of choices as far as agents go; then you’ll need to help them figure out what they need to do to move forward, like getting pre-qualified, going to showings, and more. “Buyer’s agents need to have the ability to form a strong rapport with their clients and really care about those individuals they’re working with.”       3. Listing agents need to be more assertive. A great listing agent has their listing presentation down, they march into a house with assertiveness, and they have a track record to back up their confidence. They’ll be able to explain what they’re going to do for their sellers in strong terms, knowing that they usually only have one shot at getting a deal.       4. Listing agents need to have upfront money. As a listing agent, you’ll need to have the money to do the marketing—good marketing will include more than just putting up a sign and adding the listing to a couple of websites.       5. Listing agents need to have a good sense of communication. Sellers want to be in the know regarding the process of selling their home, so you’ll need to keep in regular and consistent contact with them. For many, it seems like we’re all the same—a Realtor is a Realtor. However, that’s absolutely not true. If you’re on the fence and don’t know which way to go, my business gives potential agents the DiSC profile, which helps them understand their personality and ultimately decide which path is better suited for them. If you have any questions or want to learn more about the differences between being a buyer’s agent and a listing agent, feel free to reach out to me. I look forward to hearing from you.