Like many of you, I saw Sunday night's "60 Minutes" segment.  I have also read the comments on AR regarding the segment.  Like many of you, I see a disparity between the portrait of the "typical agent" shown on the segment and what top tier REALTORS do to earn our fee.  I have one observation, however, that many of those commenting seem to have missed: perception is reality.   If the consumer perceives you as a "typical agent" who does little to earn your fee, that is their reality.  Deal with it. Learn from it.  Most importantly, adjust your business accordingly.

Realize one thing: you cannot change the world...you can only change your world. Time spent bemoaning the perception of the REALTOR portrayed by "60 Minutes" is time wasted.  What matters is what you do in order to make sure you convey your message in such a way that their perception lines up with your reality.  This cannot be done by mere words.

In other words, it does not matter much what we think and know about the way we work.  What matters is the way the consumer thinks about the way we work.  What matters most is what we do in order to bring that perception in line with reality in so far as it pertains to us as individual agents.

I, better than most, know what top agents do in order to earn their fees: how they market, how they follow up with prospects, the myriad of services they offer to buyers and sellers, the knowledge/skill/effort they employ to get from contract to closing, the care they take to let previous buyers and sellers know that they were "more than a commission" to them, the money they spend on a well-run, service-oriented business.  I am fortunate in that I work with a group of 200+ top agents in the US, Canada, Mexico, the Bahamas and Australia, my CyberStars(r), who dedicate their careers towards letting buyers and sellers know what they will do for them...and then doing it.  They do not sit back and bemoan the public's perception of the "typical agent."  Instead, they direct their efforts towards making sure that they are not the "typical agent." Further, they know that they must demonstrate to the consumer why they are not.

Be that as it may, you are faced with the perception on the part of many (most?) consumers that you do not do very much to earn your commission, as demonstrated on the "60 Minutes" segment,    Remember: it does not matter if their perception contrasts with the reality of what you do.   What matters is whether you have techniques, tools and strategies to bring the consumer's perception in line with your reality.

Those who wish to succeed in this business, then, must ask themselves: what am I doing to bring the consumer's perception in line with the reality of the way I do business?

I contend that too many agents do indeed fall into the "typical agent" category.  You know who they are, as I do.  They are, in effect, order takers.  They are "creamers," which is why our numbers fall dramatically when markets slow down.  They will not spend the money on the tools and marketing strategies that will best meet the needs of the consumer. They are not business people, as I hope you are.

If you want to avoid being taken as a "typical agent," then, it would pay to do a quick review of the following techniques and strategies undertaken by top tier agents like my CyberStars(r):

• Do you have statistics, done in easy-to-understand, professional looking graphs that show sellers your ratios of listings to listings sold, your ratio of listing price to selling price, your sold statistics in comparison with other companies in your market?  Are these statistics on your Web site?  Do you show them to sellers during your marketing presentations?
• Do you have a flow chart showing all the steps you take from listing to sale to on-going followup?
• Do you focus on the importance of staging in order to sell a property?
• Do you focus on what can happen when a buyer is in loan application and what you do to make sure that bad things do not happen?
  
• Do you have a personalized marketing plan for the seller's property, complete with demonstratable timelines?
• Do you show examples of both your print and multimedia marketing pieces to the sellers during your presentation?
  
• Do you have a deep, consumer-oriented Web site?
• Are listings on your site accompanied by multiple photos, virtual tours, downloadable flyers, downloadable property documents, complete area information for each listing...and more?
• Are your listing presentations (your marketing plans for various types of properties) on your site for the consumer to view? (You do know that they are "interviewing" agents by going to numerous Web sites 6-9 months ahead of their move, right?)
  
• Do you show your Web site and, in particular, the way you portray the listings on your site, to the sellers on your laptop or tablet pc during your listing presentation?
• Do you have a system for on-going followup with everyone who lists with you, one that you can demonstrate during your listing presentation?
• Do you highlight the tools that allow the sellers to keep in touch with you or with a member of your team?
  
• Do you have a "satisfaction guarantee" for those sellers who list with you?
• Do your buyer and seller presentations look professional?
• Do you spend time with buying prospects showing them what you will do in order to meet their needs, complete with a flow chart of the buying process?
• Do you show how you will spend your time, thus not wasting their time, when it comes to finding properties for the buyer?
• Do you have professional-looking testimonials from both buyers and sellers on your Web site for all to see?

There is more that top tier agents do, of course, but this list is a start.

The reaction of the "typical agent" portrayed on "60 Minutes" is, of course, something along the lines of, "Too expensive, too much time to invest."  Point proved? 

If you are a top tier agent (or if you want to be one), remember: it is up to you to buy the tools that enable you to give superior customer service; it is up to you to use the tools to provide superior customer servie; it is up to you to invest the time and energy it takes to deliver superior customer service.  Unless you do so, you are a "typical agent" as portrayed on "60 Minutes" and the consumer's perception is the reality!

It is not up to NAR's p.r. campaign to change the consumer's perception of what you do to earn your fee.  It is up to you, and you can do it if you go beyond what the "typical agent" is willing to do!

It's a beautiful, sunny day here on the lake in Reston...hope it's a beautiful day wherever you are, too!