Articles

3 Ways to Be More Consistent with Your Marketing Efforts
Everybody wants to be successful. Many agents have all the knowledge, skill and expertise to become the best Realtor in their market. Yet so few Realtors ever realize the position of "top producer" in their area. Why is this? If "Agent X" is just as smart, talented and proficient at practicing real estate as "Agent Y", why is it that Agent X is a top producer, and Agent Y is considering choosing another profession? It's very simple. Top producing agents are consistent in everything they do. They market themselves and their listings in consistent, measured ways every day, ensuring their pipelines are never empty. "Feast or famine" is not in the vocabulary of a top producer. Instead, they have a clear defined path to success, and they religiously follow that path, constantly evaluating and tweaking it. They do this until they've realized maximum results and solidified themselves as the thought leader that every homeowner should call to list their home. Some of you may feel overwhelmed at the notion of trying to organize your real estate practice to achieve this. Odds are, you've even tried in the past. It may have worked tremendously well. So well, in fact, that you were at maximum capacity and had to stop marketing yourself to take care of the clients you had at that moment—only to later realize your pipeline is dry after you wrap that business up. That's the 'feast or famine' scenario I mentioned above. The key is to really hone in on the definition of consistency. Remember: it's not a sprint, it's a marathon. The key to consistency is: Small efforts, repeated day in and day out, that lead to your success A key take-home is that this will not happen over night. If you rush it and try to do everything at once, you will inevitably get overwhelmed and fall back into that feast or famine scenario. If you focus on processes that allow you to incrementally let you do this, day in and day out, even though it may frustrate you at first, you will soon see the rewards as you become more efficient and close more business than you ever imagined possible.

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Auto Focus
The phone has stopped ringing… It’s been a week… 2 weeks… business is unusually slow. Do you over react? I’ve discovered a growing phenomenon of sales professionals who seem to have “lost their way” as a result of a changing economy. At one point, vision is clear and the path to success stretches on to a predictable future. Then, for no apparent reason, when the phone stops ringing… nothing feels or appears normal. The unexpected down time disrupts the energy and brows crease in concern. Surely, there is something to blame - a cause that created this unnatural effect. A typical response to the stress may be the impulse to “change” everything… update the web site, revise the logo, streamline services, add benefits, expand ad copy, buy better equipment, hire or fire staff… the list goes on. The sense of “losing the market” grips firmly onto the salesperson’s perspective creating an unfocused, sporadic knee jerk reaction to what might be a simple issue. The level of self imposed panic increases in direct relationship to the percentage of income earned from commission sales. The number of phone calls symbolizes the business barometer. When it flat lines – there’s trouble on the horizon. Well…not necessarily. Consider how a complex camera assembly works. Professional photographers understand the image needs to be isolated and brought efficiently into focus by the maneuvering of levers and dials. A non-professional usually purchases a camera that has “auto focus” where the camera is programmed to zero in on the image and like magic; the camera adjusts and clarifies the field. Simplicity at it’s best. That’s because a set of instructions and logical processes are already programmed in the camera. Auto focus is a concept you can apply to your business process by understanding that shifts in the market are bound to occur. Learn to adjust smoothly and effectively.

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