Everyday you are faced with unknown opportunities. Some will be obvious and others will be hidden or disguised.  How do you react to the opportunities that are obvious? Do you jump on them and make them happen?  Do you procrastinate until it is too late? Do you ignore them? Life is full of opportunities for success, wealth, knowledge, happiness, and health. They look you in the face each day?  Sometimes the opportunities are obvious while other times you have to look for them or develop the opportunity.  Do you actively look for opportunity?  Are you willing to work for an opportunity?  Are you waiting for the perfect opportunity to land in your lap while great ones escape you each day?  The fact is, few people recognize an opportunity when they see it.  Even fewer actually look for an opportunity and only a very, minute few actually go out and creat an opportunity? 

To take advantage of an opportunity you not only have to be aware of one, but have your heart, soul and mind open to the possibilities.  Don't let your natural instincts take over and list all the reasons why you shouldn't take advantage of an opportunity.  Most, if not all, opportunities require some type of risk.  The risk may be your pride, money, time, reputation, etc.  There is always a price.  Are you willing to pay the cost of a great opportunity? 

When you go to bed tonight, think about the opportunities that are going to come your way tomorrow.  Think about the opportunities you can find or create.  Are you willing to pass on a once in a life time opportunity?  When you wake up, be prepared to seize the day!  There is never a better time, than the present!!

AS

I have many people ask me how do you know when it is time to start a team?  To be honest, if you haven't hired an adminstrative assistant yet, it's not time to start a time.  So the next question is naturally, When do I know it is time to hire an assistant?  That is an easy answer.  When do you know it is time to hire a house keeper, or obtain lawn care. . .when you realize that you can better spend your time doing other things.  If you are busy lead generating, servicing your clients, going on listing presentations, following through on your leads and referrals and find that there is little time to do paperwork, keep your books, return phone calls, keep marketing going and no time for family and relaxation, then it is definitely time to hire someone.  But of course hiring someone is a catch 22 b/c you are already busy; thus, the reason you need to hire someone in the first place. Now you will have to take the time to recruit, interview and train. 

You don't want to hire too fast and make a bad hire.  That will cost you more money and time in the long run. Take your time.  Your first hire is an important one.  You need to hire talent.  You need someone that is going to give you leverage.  When you finally find the person right for you, make sure you train them. Yes, this will take time, but if they have talent then they will be able to run with what you teach them.  Remember training is an ongoing event.  You must instill YOUR goals, mission, vision and values in them and that doesn't happen over night. Hiring an adminstrative assistant can be the best thing you ever do for your business. Think about it.

Lead Generating must be systematic.  You have to stay in front of your sphere on a regular basis.  If you don't your mother, best friend or next door neighbor will forget what you do.  You make think I am exagerating but would you want to bet your career on it?  In the Millionaire Real Estate Agent, a book by Gary Keller which is used in Keller Williams trainings, coaching and consulting, dicusses a lead generating model at length that ensures the growth of your business.  If you have an effective lead generating program in use then it doesn't matter what the market is doing because you will always have leads.  One part of the lead generation model that Gary explains is designed to stay in front of your sphere so they won't forget you (your sphere are family, friends, past clients, people who know you and love you).  He says to touch each of them 33 times a year.  His suggestion on how to do so is as follows:

16        Mail-outs every 21 days

8          Thank You or Thinking of You cards

4          Telephone calls

2          Birthday cards (one for each spouse)

1          Mother's Day Card

1          Father's Day Card

1          Holiday Card

33        Touches

Obviously you can customize what you send out for you but don't replace the phone calls with something else.  Calling your sphere of influence is a vital part in growing your business.  This is when you want to ask for either their business or a referral.  Don't be afraid to ask and don't be afraid to call.

I have issues with customer service that is given to customers these days.  Thanks to companies like Wal-Mart, Home Depot and Target, we live in the age of convenience where volume and discount pricing rule the retail world. Whatever happened to the customer is always right and going beyond expectations?  The sad thing is real estate isn't immune to this behavior either.

Why is customer service a lost art?  Are people really not willing to pay a little extra for special attention? Do shoppers like bagging their own groceries?  Am I really the only one that appreciates it when a store associate actually shows me where something is, instead of saying ‘isle 5'?"   Personally, I think the consumer has forgotten what customer service is, especially extreme customer service!

The keynote speaker at Family Reunion was Ken Blanchard.  He talked a lot about customer service.  Something he said really stood out to me, "customer service is the best advertisement you can have.  When your customer is "wowed" by your service they will tell everyone they know about you.  I know this is true.  When I am "wowed" I do that exact thing! 

I am convinced that customers don't like getting their own drinks, shoppers would prefer to have someone else bag their groceries (correctly), and most would rather talk to a live person when they call a "customer service" hot line!  My challenge to you is to provide extreme, over the top, customer service for everyone you meet. Show people what value really is. Let's reinvent the art of customer service and have the real estate community talking about the service we provide!

This is a good time to re-examine your production and goals for the year.  Take a step back to see where you are.  Ask yourself some of the following questions: Do you need to readjust what you set to achieve?  Are you hitting your target faster than you planned?  Did you encounter some unexpected hurdles?  Are you still planning on implementing a new system "next week?"  Are you where you thought you would be at this time? 

These are all great questions to ask yourself.  If you aren't exactly where you thought you would be by this time, whether you are ahead or behind, then this is the perfect opportunity to objectively look at your goals and readjust them.  If you are on track to accomplish them early, then set your standards higher so you won't quit when you hit your goal.  If your goals are harder to achieve than anticipated, then lower your standards for achievement so you won't give up. If you are still planning to implement a new system or strategy, don't wait until next week, start today!

Goals are important for all of us.  We need to know what we are working toward.  If you haven't set your goals for this year then it's not too late; know what you are working toward.  Share your goals and dreams with someone else. Ask someone to help you stay on target and then when you hit your goals you have someone to celebrate with you.  Be proud of your achievements!

If there is a secret to you success in real estate then it has to be consistent and persistent lead generating.  It is the one thing that will separate the agents from the mega agents.  There aren't many people that enjoy lead generating, it is just a necessary evil.  It is a sure fire way to guarantee future business from today.  The good lead generators will succeed no matter what the market is like.  They rely on their database for business not a good market.  The one tool that is a must for effective lead generation is a database management program of some type.  There are hundreds out there for you to choose from.  They all have various forms of capabilities with various prices.  There are many agents in our office that use ACT and find it very useful for managing their database.  Keller Williams has partnered up with Top Producer 7i.  It is an amazing program that will almost run your business for you. However, it definitely has a learning curve.  At Mega Camp I was introduced to The Wise Agent.  I have played with it for the last few nights and have found it very user friendly.  If you are just beginning your career and don't where to begin then just use Outlook.  Outlook can do a lot but eventually (hopefully) you will out grow its capabilities.  Basically, I don't care what kind of database management system you use as long as you have one.  You will find that having one and utilizing it will help you stay organized, start systems and lead generate effectively.  Ask some of the top producers in our market center or in the industry what type of program they are using and see if it is a match for you!

Keller Williams is known for outstanding education and training.  There are only a few times a year that other real estate professionals from other real estate brokerages are invited to participate. This October 4th Keller Williams University is once again coming to Houston to teach its eye opening and very applicable class ,on internet lead generation. Bryan Ellington, the author of this class, will be the instructor.  The class will be offered for only $129. I am the team leader in Sugar Land and I am extending the invitation to any local real estate agent from any company to participate.  This seminar is a must for today's market.  I promise you won't be disappointed and it won't be too techy.  Give me a call or shoot me an e-mail and I can arrange a ticket for you.  Or if you have more questions feel free to contact me, I will be happy to respond.

Andi St. Jean

281-265-0000

andistjean@kw.com

So yes, I am new to blogging. But once I understood what blooging is and how easy it is to do it and that it is FREE!,  I decided to get all over it.  I have met many agents that swear about the leads and referrals they get through blogging.  I think blogging is awesome and obviously a no brainer to help boost business.  I guess some people are resistant to change and others are just natural doubters and I suppose there are some that just don't need any more business. I guess their loss is our gain!  

 In the last few weeks I have encouraged many agents in my office to start blogging.  I believe that blogging is going to reshape marketing and networking in the real estate industry and I am sure other industries too. I want to be a part of something so huge and efective.  New technology is exciting and the smart ones will be the ones who use it and capitolize on it.  So way to go AR bloggers, and for those of you who want to blog but are afraid, I promise it won't hurt!

What has happened to customer service?  Does it exist any more?  When was the last time you went to the customer service desk at Wal-Mart and had to wait in line for 20 minutes just to be greeted by a very unthusiastic clerk, carrying on a conversation with another clerk about when their next break would be.  The last time I called my cell phone customer service number it took me several attempts to manuver correctly through the automated system just to be put on hold for 12 minutes waiting for the "next available customer service representative."  When I finally got to talk to a live a person they had no idea what I needed so I was put on hold again to be transferred again.  After the 3rd transfer I was finally told that I would need to call another number for assistance!  To say the least I was a little flabbergasted!  I didn't call the other number given to me, I finally figured out what I was inquiring about on my own (maybe that was their evil plan from the beginning).  Last Friday night I went to HEB, our local grocery store.  I had my 3 kids (all 5 and under) and I was worn out from a very long week.  I was at the last stretch of the exasperating shopping trip, watching my items being scanned, my youngest crying in the seat of the cart, my other 2 boys were trying to pilfer the too tempting candy stands when the sales clerk informs me that I had chosen the wrong size of ice cream for my free coupon.  She then proceeds to ask me if I still want to get the ice cream and if so I needed to go find the right size.  I know I looked at her like she was from Mars.  Because I was thinking that she couldn't be serious.  Would it really be too much trouble for her or another clerk go exchange the ones I got for the correct size?  I guess so, since I had to get my little one out of the cart, round my other two wild ones up and go scurrying across the store in search of quart sized ice cream containers.  Then to top it off when I got back to the cart they had filled it up with the bags and not left a spot for my baby to sit.  So I finally get a spot for him and I'm waiting for the clerk to get me rung up when i realized she is just now taking off the other ice cream from my bill.  What in the heck was she doing while I was running around like a crazed woman?

As much as I like to save a penny and bargain shop, I have come to realize that I don't want the price of savings to be the loss of customer service.  I know that I am not the only one who feels this way.  At this stage in my life I would much rather pay a little bit more and receive over the top service.  As I think about this thought I think I would have been willing to pay a little extra for good service even when we were barely getting by paying the bills.  Why isn't great service given in return for my business and loyalty? 

The longer I am in real estate, I realize that the lack of great service is not immune to my industry either.  I have co-oped  many transactions where the other agent is not taking care of his client.  I have received many phone calls late at night from the other party distraught, trying to get some of their basic questions answered.  Where was there agent?  This is part of their very basic job description and yet I am having to help them out without causing a conflict with my client. 

I want to challenge you as a professional, to create favorable and lasting memories in your clients' minds.  As Ken Blanchard says, create raving fans. Raving fans will be your most effective marketing you will have ever created.  You business will grow much faster through referrals.  I think you might be surprised.  Find a way to put your signature mark on everything you do.

I am constantly on the look out for over the top service.  I would love to hear about a memory you have or one that you created for a client.

I am a firm believer in the relationship between your mindset and your success in whatever you want to accomplish.  As the Team Leader for Keller Williams Realty in Sugar Land, Texas, many people ask me, "How can I be successful in real estate?"  I tell them that it is helpful to have a database, you should make phone calls, think outside of the box, know your numbers and follow the models of those who came before you.  But the fact is, if you have doubts about your career, then chances of your success go way down. 

To be successful at anything do you have to have the mindset that you will be successful. You have to remind yourself that you are the best at what you do.  You have to tell yourself that you are number one.  You may not be the top agent today but you have to believe that you will be tomorrow, in order to achieve it.  Your business plan means nothing if you don't have the right mindset.  So, I tell new agents that if you want to make it as a real estate agent, then you have to believe you will make it with all of your heart, mind and soul and if doubts creep in (and doubts will) you have to do whatever it takes to get them out of your head.

I recommend these books to help you with your mindset:

The Secret (I forget the author's name and I left the book at my office)

Think and Grow Rich by Napolean Hill

These are great books regarding your mindset and accomplishing your goals.