By Kyle Rank
“I’ve been selling real estate for longer than you’ve been alive!”
This was the common mantra I used to hear (often accompanied by eye rolling) when I spoke about changing the industry with new concepts as a fresh-faced 21-year-old agent. I may have been the youngest agent in my office by more than 10 years, but I was still keenly aware that many saw my inexperience as a serious liability, even if I knew I had something to offer.
By Carrie Foley
With summer in full swing, I like to spend my time off at the pool.
Recently, I was watching a timid child try to swim. I could only imagine how the depth and the vastness of the pool probably seemed frightening and overwhelming to a beginner. The child clung to the edge of the pool watching the others swim about. She spent more time sitting on the side than in the water.
She eventually got up the courage to jump in.
By Carl Guild
Want to succeed in real estate?
I’ve got two words for you: client retention.
Some of you may say that we don’t want to retain our clients. We want them in and out. Well, the truth is you want to retain your clients FOREVER. You want their inventory in and out, but the relationship must remain so you can represent them for every deal, every real estate milestone, and receive those all-important referrals. Don’t believe me? All right, have it your way.
Here are five surefire ways to make sure your client relationship doesn’t last:
By Chuck MacPhee
In my last post, I detailed all the ways to help secure your dream home as a first-time buyer.
But what happens when you do everything right—work with a competent agent, get your preapproval and go through the full mortgage underwriting process—and still don’t get your dream house?
I’d like to say this scenario will never happen but the reality is that it’s actually very common and often no one’s fault beyond the market. A lot of places across the country are experiencing strong seller markets, with homes often receiving multiple offers within the first few days (or hours) they are listed.
By Lynn Minnick
If there’s one thing you take away from my post today, let it be this: Change is good. No, change is great. How do I know? Well, I recently made some changes to my business practices and I can already see the positive results. Let me explain …
I write a marketing plan each year as part of my strategic business planning but it’s a good idea every once in a while to revisit it and see what improvements I can make. I recently took a hard look at my goals and decided to make some much-needed changes. Here they are:
By Jessica Botkin
There’s no right or wrong answer when it comes to the question of old vs. new in real estate.
Ask yourself, do you enjoy a home with character and timeless style? Or, are you a fan of the starting-from-scratch approach, which begins from the ground up—literally—and creates something new, modern, sleek and, energy efficient?
By Sean Cawley
I may be a West Coast resident now, but I was born and raised in Omaha, NE.
Home to Berkshire Hathaway Inc. headquarters, Omaha is also home to me and I make it a point to return each year to attend the Berkshire Hathaway Annual Shareholders Meeting with my brother, Brian Cawley.
By Adam Briley
To maintain a successful real estate business, it’s critically important to look back in order to move forward; a majority of my business over the last few years has come from past client referrals.
So, how do you connect with clients long after a transaction is through?
By Todd Waller
[phone rings]
Me: Hey, Kristin! What’s happening today? Do you and Brian have any questions about the listing docs I sent you for review?
Kristin: (laughing) Geez, Todd! That’s impressive, answering the phone by addressing me by name.
Me: Really? It’s an old habit of mine.
Kristin: Habit?
Me: Yeah! Any time I talk with a client or customer on the phone, I capture their number and add their name to my contact list. That way, when my peeps call, I know who I’m talking with and likely what they want to talk about.
Kristin: That is really impressive! That makes me feel even more important and comfortable working with you. Nice touch.
Me: Thanks! Now, how’s the house coming along?
By Carrie Foley
The other day, I received a call from clients looking for a new home.
Like so many conversations I have these days with my buyers, they had a list of homes they had sought out on the Internet that they wanted to see. Each home had been found, researched and carefully selected based on information gleaned from Google Maps, peer reviews of the neighborhoods or schools, and other detailed listing information found online. Much of their research was conducted either through my website, which links with the MLS or on popular real estate listing sites.
Today, there’s a limitless amount of information instantly accessible to the technology-savvy home shopper. It appears—on the surface, at least—that the role of the real estate agent is diminishing, especially for the younger generations of buyers. In fact, as millennials embrace every emerging social platform and application from Vine to SnapChat, expanding their ability to access an incredible wealth of real estate information and opinions generated by their peers and friends, what will become of agents?
We’ll stay right here. Why?
Because we bring to the table these three invaluable assets:
Thoughts on Leadership 