When a real estate professional gets licensed and starts their own company, there are many mistakes they can make. I don’t want you to learn the hard way.
Here are the top 5 mistakes I have seen over nearly 20 years of coaching in this industry.
1. They rest on their laurels
Once you get a few deals and see some success, you can’t get lazy. I know no business model that includes putting your feet up on the desk once a certain level of success is reached. With an 87% failure rate in this industry (N.A.R. source), one cannot afford to take it lightly.
DO be strategic when it comes to time blocking your schedule. Include lead generation, viewing homes and becoming a well-known presence in your chosen neighbourhoods.
2. They don’t know how to expose themselves online – appropriately
Agents with many social media followers/connections might fall prey to high numbers over quality connections. Agents with other agents for connections or people who are not their potential customers (out of their home city) could be wasting their effort. Five hundred good connections who are potential clients beat 5,000 random followers. Another problem is that they use social media as a listing service, which irritates people. They don’t want just to see your listings – they want to learn about you.
DO become personal, share your brand’s stories and become strategic with posts.
3. Relying on their brain to keep them organized
Your brain is not your friend. Anyone who has ever lost their car keys, misplaced their cellphone or forgotten a partner’s birthday has to admit that if these highly-important things get forgotten, it is possible to forget your daily to-do’s. Realtors who keep everything in their heads are heading for disaster.
DO implement processes and well-thought-out systems, and use precise checklists to keep your business on track. Every client relationship management system (CRM) allows you to schedule reminders for each client. This software should be learned and utilized.
4. Not knowing how to scale their business
It is one thing to start your business and become an entrepreneur, but what happens next? It takes so much energy and effort to build and maintain a business that often, agents get to a level they can’t get past. At around 30-40 deals per year, an agent needs to expand their vision and prepare for growth.
DO expand your vision and prepare to hire an assistant. A good assistant can pave the way to double your numbers and easily take your business up to 100 deals per year. But, if you have never hired or trained support staff, then this must be researched and learned to build a good foundation. Many agents are fearful about this part of the process and should reach out for expert help at this stage.
5. They drop the ball!
The number one challenge that my clients confess to me is that, after deals are done, they drop the ball with their clients. They only have eyes for the next transaction and lose contact with their past clients. They lack a user-friendly CRM and have no process to continue developing these relationships. We all know the stats about how much cheaper it is to keep current clients rather than always having to find new ones, yet this is a big problem for many small business owners.
DO create an annual marketing plan to build relationships with past clients and stay connected! Recognize home anniversaries, call your clients once a year and try to get in front of people face to face – catch up and catch any referrals!
Sue Styles is the VP of Real Estate and Mortgages at Relo.ca. She has nearly two decades of experience coaching real estate agents and is the CEO of Maximized Results Consulting. She guides real estate agents to maximize their potential and reach unwavering results by revealing their possibilities, challenging the status quo, and setting up their systems for success. She is the author of three books and a professional speaker; reach out for business coaching and resources!
