So I'm sitting here watching tv and thinking of how I teach things at The eHomes Realty Network. It's very interesting reading this blog as opposed to so many others that are out there. Firstly, most of you are at a higher level with technology than most Agents I meet. Of course many of you have been joining the Network and together we are going to do great things. I'm very excited about that and appreciate helping all of you. It's truly an honor.
So, like I started, I was thinking about all of you out there in Active Rain land and how driven you are with your websites, lead generation, SEO and so on. However, I very seldom see many of you talk about what is really more important than all of this. The reality, all the SEO and lead generation in the world will not replace what it really takes to succeed in Real Estate. That is, being a great Realtor. Our business is made up of so many mediocre Realtors and I believe that is because of the lack of training from Brokers and the lack of desire of most Agents to be the best, not only at sales, but in all aspects of the business.
One of the things that most of you don't know about me, is that before I built a very successful Internet program, I made a decision to become a great Realtor first. That doesn't mean that I know everything there is to know about being a Realtor, but it does mean that I became a professional Realtor before I spent a ton of money and effort on marketing. To me, a great Realtor starts with excellent, actually outstanding, customer service. I read so many blogs on so many sites and it's almost always about how many sales we get. Heck, I get caught up in it too. However, the most important comment I believe there is in this business I very seldom hear is, how many referrals Agents receive from their past customers.
To me, Referrals are the lifeblood and the true value of success. They are the real measuring stick of how you are doing in business. Referrals only come when Agents do an oustanding job and their past customers believe there is nobody better to handle their friends, or family's transactions in Real Estate. Because of my becoming an outstanding Realtor before I threw myself into my success, I have been able to build a very strong referral base of business.
I took my last lead on Jan. 5th, 2005. I also sold over 75 homes that year without taking a lead. (I started my real estate business on Sept. 10, 2001)Btw, I'm not telling you this to brag about anything, there is a point to this post. In 2005, I stopped selling homes because I opened my brokerage. I still sold around 15 homes and gave away over $5 million in sales. The following year, in 2006, I sold 8 homes and gave away around $3 million in sales. In 2007 and 2008 I didn't really keep track of this because it just wasn't important to me anymore since I had more important stats to keep. The point of this is that if you plan your business properly and strive to be the best Realtor you can be, without cutting corners, you would not need to be generating 5 -10 leads per day for yourself. The business would be coming to you from all your referrals.
I'm not saying that you are or are not an outstanding Agent. What I am wanting Agents to realize out there is that nothing replaces hard work and outstanding customer service, to build your business to the Next Level. You can learn my lead conversion system or someone elses. You can develop your own lead conversion system. However, if you don't put your best effort into being an oustanding Agent you will become one of the many "one sale" wonders of our business. There are so many Agents that work for the transaction and not their customer. These Agents might be around for a while, but they will always be wondering if they will have enough transactions next month to pay their bills. In the end they will burn out and quit the business.
Hopefully nobody took this the wrong way. By providing outstanding customer service and putting your customer first, you are building sustainable business. You have a great opportunity through all the leads you receive to build your business quickly and successfully. However, don't get ahead of the customer you are working with today. Build customers for life, not a customer for the day. If your business isn't what you want it to be or you are losing customers and not getting referrals, take a long look in the mirror and go back to the basics. Great Realtors will last forever and have a very fullfilling life!
Good luck!
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