5 Things you can do today to Jump Start your Real Estate Career

5 things you can do TODAY to jump start your Real Estate Career.

Being a small broker (7 agents in our office) I see how easy it is for new, and sometimes experienced, agents to get in a rut.  Things go on in our personal lives, deals fall apart and add frustration, buyers are on the fence, sellers need to realize the market is still in a funk, etc. Sometimes it is just a matter of a new agent not knowing where they should begin.  There are some easy things to do TODAY to help jump start your business and get you on the right track.

1)      Get your contact list in order.  The agents in my office hear me preach this probably a little too much.  There is a reason why however.  In this past year 85% of my sales where generated from my SOI (Sphere of Influence).  This is the single most important think for a new agent to do.  It is hard for all your friends and family to use you as “their” REALTOR if they don’t know you ARE a REALTOR!  Get out letters to all of them and let them know where to find you and how to contact you.  If you are not a new agent then remind people.  It is amazing how easy it could be to forget.

2)      Get out and have coffee!  Stop in your local coffee shop or restaurant.  Find a table, bring a book (or your tablet) and make eye contact.  In the community I am in I literally cannot sit for 10 minutes without someone coming in that I know.  If you did item #1 right, then they will already know you are in Real Estate and ask “How’s the market?” Know some facts.  How many homes are on the market? What price range is selling? See if they know of anyone buying or selling. Make sure you have your cards on you.

3)      Make your “Core 100” list. This is a list of business professionals you regularly use.  Being in the business we are in people are always going to ask if you know a plumber, contractor, landscaper, mortgage guy, home inspector, etc..    Reach out to the people you utilize now and let them know you are going to be sharing their names.  Ask them to meet you at idea #2 and bring you their business cards.  Explain that you would love it if they keep you in mind if they hear of anyone looking to buy or sell a home.  You would be amazed at what a valuable asset they can be to your business.

4)      Host an Open House.  The first listing I ever had and the first home I ever sold where from an Open House I volunteered to do for my old broker.  As we all know, open houses don’t sell homes.  They do help you the agent find buyers however.  Have a good sign in sheet that captures the right information.  Be cordial, and not pushy.  Find out where they are from, and what their situation is.  The day after the open house send them a “Thank You” card.  They will be amazed at the time you took and it will help them to remember you.  One new obsession I have is SendOutCards.  It is a godsend for Real Estate professionals.  (try sending a card free here and see for yourself) I am going to a separate blog on SendoutCards this week.  It has changed my business in the past month.  I am someone who tries EVERYTHING.  I have used lead services like Market Leader (The BIGGEST waste of money), TopProducer’s Postcard campaign market Builder (UGH),  Realtor.com’s Buyer Assist (Ouch) and even now my current program House Hunt which isn’t living up to the hype AT ALL.. 

It is also important to enter all these people into whatever contact manager you are using.  This will allow you to follow up with them in the future.   I use TopProducer 8i and love it. 

5)      Write a blog post.  It is easy to do, if you can compose an email, you can Blog.  Pick a topic you are passionate about or a community you know.  Activerain blogs get the highest search results.  Utilize this to your advantage and become a Rainmaker (this is one of the good investments, not like the others I listed in #4) “If you build it, they will come.”  Be sure to interact. Be Active! Read the wealth of blog posts from the insanely knowledgeable.  It will also help you get referrals from out of state.  I sent a listing to Paul Silver in Rhode Island and he did a great job getting it sold and getting us paid.  I thought I had a buyer lead for him too but they have decided to stay put.   

This is a start.  I have several more that I will follow up with shortly.  Any questions about any of the items I listed above, contact me.  The main thing to do is get out, and get noticed.  Make sure everyone that you come in contact with knows what you do for a living. The worst thing to do is wait for the business to come to you.