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You mean I have to WORK again?

By
Services for Real Estate Pros with RealEstate Planet powered by TourFactory

Anyone that's old enough ( I just know history well...chuckle) knows of Maynard G. Krebs from Dobie Gillis.  He had a knack of running around being cool and all until he needed money.  He then would go into convulsions and cry out .WWWWWWWWWWWWWORK!?!?!  Then Zelda or Dobie would feel sorry for him and somehow he would get the money and be cool again.

  

Real Estate does NOT work that way.

I heard a broker a few weeks ago say.... NOW people --we need to actually work for a living.  How condescending was THAT? Well it was and wasn't.

Nothing and I mean NOTHING replaces a good work ethic in this business.  If you knock on a ton of doors every week you will be playing the numbers game which works in RE.  However, If you have no message it will fall on deaf ears.

A consistent message of how you do your job is terribly important in this day and age.  In California 1 out of every 54 adults has a RE license.  Makes me think we need a Multiple Listing Agent Service too.  OH WAIT we DO have one!  The problem there is that most agents that are getting onto the NET think " I want my site to be at the top of the search engines".  THAT is kinda hard since there are only 20 --Top 20 slots available and when there are 2500 agents in a particular area......well....you do the math.  Even if you are prone to using phrases like, "I give 120% for you" which by the way 120% does not EXIST....you are putting yourself in a precarious position of not having a message that flies to a prospect.

 

Agents need to be entrepreneurs in a different way and the traditional way at the same time today.  So with that in mind as well as the other ramblings I have posited here let's take a look at a few absolutes to success:

 1 - Make sure you have an undaunted attitude towards hard work

 2 - Make sure that attitude translates to actual work!

 3 - Have a cohesive message about who you are and why your work ethic coupled with your technical Internet

      savviness sells homes. 

 4 - If you don't have that savviness......get it from someone else

 5 - Make your personal advertising strong and succinct.

 6 - Make your listing presentation TOTALLY focused on your prospects house not you.

 7 - Prove that you show their house off and get exposure beyond the other agents vying for their business

 8 - And follow up follow up follow up on a myriad of ideas related to the sale of the prospects home and never 

      ever let more than a week go by without speaking to the seller about SOMETHING.

Now that's all fine and dandy in print....BUT...an agent today needs to have an arsenal of techniques primarily related to killer representation of the house ( not a snapshot and only one), killer Internet exposure  backed up by a cohesive print ad strategy. And if that aresenal isn't in place before you go to a listing presentation you have nothing to separate you from the guy or gal that has a killer smile and makes the seller choose them for ALL of the wrong reasons.

 

You can do this right if you take the time and energy to create an environment that makes it hard for the prospect to say no.  An agent that is prepared and confident in their services will win every time!

Comments (20)

Scott Gormley
Oak Valley Mortgage-California Home Loans and Refinancing - Chico, CA

Hey David,

Great post!  I was talking about this last night with my wife and it blows my mind how many agents do it part time and don't have much of a presence in the market. Even on their own Association website, they can't get a picture, website and email link of themselves up! Ouch!

Scott

Jan 25, 2007 04:10 AM
Steven Holcomb
Keller Williams Realty - Plano, TX
Esq. - BBA, JD, GRI

Excellent post, David.  One could thing about a slower market is that the better, hard working agents tend to rise to the top.  Keep up the good work.

Steve

Jan 25, 2007 04:15 AM
David Brayton
RealEstate Planet powered by TourFactory - Valencia, CA

That's right!!!!

Cream ALWAYS rises to the top!

Jan 25, 2007 04:22 AM
Ann Cummings
RE/MAX Shoreline - NH and Maine - Portsmouth, NH
Portsmouth NH Real Estate Preferrable Agent

David - great post full of important points.  And you're right - cream does rise to the top.

Ann

Jan 25, 2007 06:14 AM
Kaushik Sirkar
Call Realty, Inc. - Chandler, AZ
Lots of agents in AZ also.  We definitely need to do SOMETHING to stand out!
Jan 25, 2007 06:56 AM
Joe Gomez
Realty Executives of Treasure Valley - Eagle, ID
Liked your post david  here in the Boise area there is a glut of Real Estate Agents who were in it only for the "good times " they are being weeded out as we speak , time to get to work !
Jan 25, 2007 07:30 AM
Roberta Lee
Century 21 Olde Tyme - Norco, CA
Norco Corona Riversid Homes For Sale

David,
Thank you for an excellent post.  You are sooo right!  I have made a presentation book. It is done with high grad glossy paper. I can't go into all of the things in it here, but it is very professional looking and have been told by more than several clients that it was this presentation that sold them on me.  Remember too, smile, smile, smile.  No one what to hear or see gloom and doom.  You can give them the truth in a kind and inviting way.  Truth is a must! Some of what I have heard in my area makes the hair on the back of my neck stand up.

Thanks again.

Roberta "Dove" Lee

Century 21 Olde Tyme, Norco, CA

Jan 25, 2007 07:44 AM
Debi Braulik
www.roundrealestate.com - Maple Valley, WA
Selling Maple Valley to Fife WA Homes For Sale

Wow. Your stat of 1 in 54 is staggering!  Being analytical, I wonder what the stat is for WA?  Hmm. I will have to look into it.  I know there are nearly 19,000 licensees in the NWMLS alone (western WA).  Anyways, I liked your post.  I think the days of "easy money" are long over and the agents that are in this for a career focus on the topics in your post.

Jan 25, 2007 11:17 AM
Marguerite Crespillo
Marguerite Crespillo - Roseville, CA
True Professionals shine in any market!!!! Consistency is the key!  Great stuff!
Jan 25, 2007 11:34 AM
James Frazier
James Frazier Personal Development Coach - Rockford, IL
This was a synchronicity for me. I have not heard or thought of the name Maynard G. Krebs since I was a child (OK teenager) but just this week at a networking meeting one of the speakers brought up this character and now your post within two days of that meeting. I must need to pay attention to this so thanks.
Jan 25, 2007 11:39 AM
Doug Beaver
Century 21 Olde Tyme - Corona, CA
Corona Norco Eastvale Riverside Homes
I rmember Dobie Gillis does that make me old. As to work again, if we never stopped we will be better off in 2007. Good luck everyone and yes hard work and diligence does pay off.
Jan 25, 2007 11:40 AM
David Brayton
RealEstate Planet powered by TourFactory - Valencia, CA
I am sorry to inform you it DOES make you very very old, Doug!  But then I just looked in the mirror too.  LOL
Jan 25, 2007 12:08 PM
Teresa Berger
Innovate Services - Abington, PA
Good stuff here!  We all have to "work for a living".  But what sets us apart from the rest is showing that we're always on top of things and we're willing to change with the times.  I think that is vital in any industry, but especially real estate...and especially in the slow times of year.  One of your points that really hits home and is key in any line of work is FOLLOW UP.  We have to consistently follow-up with prospects and clients if we want to build lasting relationships.  The most business typically comes from word of mouth, and you can help that happen by following up and bringing new ideas to the table.
Jan 25, 2007 12:15 PM
Kaye Thomas
Real Estate West - Manhattan Beach, CA
e-PRO, Manhattan Beach CA

David... great post... My Dad always thought Maynard's  WORK? was so funny.. Yes we do have a huge number of agents in CA.. but  sad to say many are not as good as they should be or as I'm sure many would like to be..  This is a tough market where every other person has a license..  Many of my clients have gotten licenses so they could make the BIG BUCKS..it's amazing how many of them haven't made any $$ and are contacing me asking advice about what to do.. as I made it look so easy..

 

Jan 25, 2007 01:54 PM
Christy Powers
Keller Williams Coastal Area Partners - Pooler, GA
Pooler, Savannah Real Estate Agent

I just watched bring me the head of dobie gillis....how ironic....

I agree.....but wouldn't you like to be like maynard? 

Jan 25, 2007 03:18 PM
David Brayton
RealEstate Planet powered by TourFactory - Valencia, CA
Maynard was THEEEEEEEE coolest no doubt.......then again Zelda was bad then as she is now.  LOL
Jan 25, 2007 03:31 PM
David Brayton
RealEstate Planet powered by TourFactory - Valencia, CA
Well Kaye......I am lucky to have the dubious distinction of having ALOT of agents asking me the same thing.  I tell them what to do and still truly 65-70% never step up to the plate to do it right.  They want marketing coaching as long as it fits their ideas.  Truly astounding but again...as long as 30-35% of them do it right I am a happy man!
Jan 25, 2007 03:37 PM
Mark Kuhl
Kuhl Brand - Saint Cloud, MN

Exceptional  David... Bravo!

Your post was exactly what I heard this week at  the EdinaExpo in St. Paul.  Stefan Swanepoel gave a great presentation on the  “Trends Impacting the Future of Real Estate”.  If you've heard him speak, you know what I mean. If you have that chance to hear him speak,  you should!

Every day I talk with agents that want to "spruce" up their marketing so it looks more consistent & professional, but feel they can do it themselves (FSBO marketing). But most of it falls short. 95% of it lacks originality, creativity and a clear, strategic and single brand voice. It's "me-too" marketing, and at the risk of offending some... it's quite "forgetable". 

Those agents that have the vision  and courage to break away from the herd mentality to craft their own distinctive brand message will truely differentiate themselves.

As specilization continues to become more important in this industry, agents need to  realize that they should "do what they do best, and hire the rest."

David, keep up the good work.  

 

Your post also reminded me of story I read on Inman News last fall... 

"Seventy-seven percent of Realtors in this country have never been in a down market. They don't remember what tools they used ... if they hadn't seen it before then they need to find someone to show them what to do now. Agents need to learn how to work their risks and their databases and also how to market again because they've not had to do much beyond taking orders in previously hot markets."

John Tuccillo,founder of John Tuccillo & Associates
and former chief economist for the National Association of Realtors

as quoted in Inman News, October 18, 2006

 

 

Jan 26, 2007 01:31 AM
Joe Cifarelli
Weichert, Realtors - Suburban Properties - Guilford, CT
ABR, e-Pro
Well said, and I think that you can be successful in any market provided that your out there hustling.
Jan 30, 2007 07:55 AM
Lauren Corna
Archway Realty, LLC - Southlake, TX
Broker
David- Great Post !!  Thank you for the tips.
Jan 30, 2007 01:20 PM