The evolution of a salesperson

There is a definite progression of growth for everyone in the sales business. Let’s take a quick look at the evolution of a salesperson in real estate. Here’s the growth pattern:

Stage 1: Buyer activity

Almost everyone starts working with buyers. It’s an easy place to get your feet wet.

Stage 2: Prospecting

You realize “I can do more” so you start talking to people about doing business with you. People you know and then people you don’t know. You even get comfortable asking for referrals.

Stage 3: You catch the seller bug

It becomes apparent that a motivated seller can produce more predictable results than the typical buyer. You leverage yourself by attracting other agents’ buyers.

Stage 4: Taking listings

Going after listings becomes a major part of your daily activity.

Stage 5: Overpriced listings

Many of your listings are overpriced. That usually occurs with the few first properties you sign up.

Stage 6: Properly priced listings

Properly priced listings are the only ones you take. You don’t have time for anything else. If they’re not saleable, you don’t take them.

Stage 7: To team or not to team?

You make a decision to expand the size of your workforce (or not). This is a personal choice and both decisions are right – depending on what you are comfortable with.

Almost everyone who is successful in selling real estate goes through these evolutionary stages. The people that are the most successful usually end up generating 70 per cent of their income from listings sold and 30 per cent of their income from buyer sales. They don’t need to chase after buyers – that part of their business comes naturally as a result of taking listings.

What stage are you at? What do you have to do to get to the next stage? What challenges do you have to overcome next? Figure out where you are in the Evolution of a Salesperson and commit to going to the next stage.

Bonus point: A lot of salespeople get stuck between Stages 5 and 6. They take a lot of overpriced listings. How do you avoid that? There are two answers: a) build up your confidence by practicing your scripts and dialogues so you can “tell them the truth” in a much more convincing fashion, and b) do enough lead generation so you don’t have to be held captive by unmotivated buyers or sellers who won’t face the truth. You need to do both to get to Stage 6. No excuses.

As you climb the ladder of success, two predictable things will happen. First of all you will feel better about yourself and you will make more money. Second, there will be people criticizing you and passing an opinion on you in every way imaginable. They have trouble accepting that you actually earned your good fortune. It reminds me of a great line: “When someone tells you what you can’t do, they’re merely telling you what they can’t do… not what you can’t do!”

As you continue on your journey to inevitably better results, a better way to look at things would be to:

Size up the next task in front of you.
Ask yourself, “Has anyone else done this before me?”
If the answer is yes, then it’s clear that nothing is stopping you from doing it too.

Now that you’re ready to move forward, it’s logical to ask the next question. “What’s the next thing that others are telling me that I can’t do?” (Or for that matter, that you are telling yourself you can’t do.) Don’t worry about making a list, just pick one item that is holding you back and get on with it (call that FSBO, redo your listing presentation, ask everyone for referrals).

Set a time limit that says, “Within the next week I’m going to…” Why not? It’s better than standing still. No time for that! That’s what the others who are constantly passing judgment on you are doing as you move past them. Just say “hasta la vista” and move on. No excuses.