5 Things You Should Continue Doing As The Market Revs Up

Every brokerage goes through cycles where clients are beating down the door, and then suddenly, they aren’t. Some of this can be seasonal, or as in the most recent climate, some of it can be driven by forces beyond our control. Slow cycles are great for shoring up your foundation and mastering new skills. As business starts to heat up again, it doesn’t mean you should stop taking those productive steps to continue evolving yourself and your business. Making time for these steps will position you better for future sales opportunities, address long standing operational needs, and improve your knowledge and abilities related to your business.

1. Work on Your Network – Every Agent and Broker is trying to cultivate a network that will grow each year that you are in business. The more attention you pay to your network, the more seeds you will plant out in the neighborhood. An effective network needs nurturing, however. This is what many real estate professionals let fall by the wayside during busy periods, because the daily work of helping clients through the buying and selling process leaves little time for much else. When times are uncertain, it’s the perfect time to reach out to all your connections, with information, anecdotes, and other non-sales related queries. A simple “How are you and is everyone OK?” during this time can be a conversation starter. Your only goal should be to deepen your relationship and understanding of your client. Another way to stay in front is by sending direct mail each month. With people spending more time at home, they look forward to things like mail delivery and actually have time to peruse its contents. Between calling, direct mail and email, it will help you stay top of mind and customers will be more apt to remember you when they are ready to take action.
2. Review Your Business Plan – Weichert Coaches are die-hards for business plans, constantly guiding our affiliates to review and adjust their plans based on the market. There’s a simple reason for this. It works. Knowing your goals, knowing your numbers, reacting and adjusting to new realities, and having a clear understanding of how to move forward has a profound effect on the success of your business. Keep your goals measurable and realistic, but definitely keep them updated to avoid surprises at the end of the year.
3. Learn How To Leverage Real Estate Technology – If you’re still figuring out Instagram, or keeping your contacts in a rolodex, find time to bite the bullet and get over the learning curves that you previously didn’t have time to master. As a Broker, the more you can lead by example, the more you can help create the best practices inside your team that will help everyone succeed. Embrace and learn that new real estate CRM that your agents aren’t using, and show them how easy and helpful it is. Become an expert in using Zoom or GoToMeeting and begin to hold virtual open house events or recruiting events. Whatever your technology blind spot is, take time to make inroads that will make you a better strategic decision maker and coach around everything related to the use of your tech.
4. Get Comfortable on Camera – The incredible ease of creating video today means that every agent and broker should have a go-to strategy for creating and distributing video. Some agents are naturals, but others are reluctant to see themselves in a video, much less let anyone else see them. As a broker, you certainly need to be comfortable on video and bring encouragement and content ideas to your team. Videos don’t always need to be showing a house. Agents also need to put out regular human interest and educational videos that put their knowledge and humanity out into the world. As Jim Weichert said many years ago “People buy people before they buy a product or service”. That’s what video for real estate in 2020, is all about.
5. Check Out the Benefits of Affiliation – Many independent Brokers have felt the full weight of going it alone in an uncertain market. You might have felt powerless, not knowing what to do next. But you don’t have to go it alone. Use this time as an opportunity to see what national real estate brands like Weichert are offering and whether it is right for you. Engaging in a preliminary conversation costs nothing but a little of your time. Conversations like these can really help an independent, such as yourself, understand what makes brands so powerful, and how you can retain your independence through an affiliation with a brand like Weichert. See what it’s like to be part of a network that supports each other, through sharing and collaboration, every day, but especially in the most challenging times.

Even if you ultimately decide not to affiliate, you will have gained valuable insight into how brands help brokerage owners stay connected and build the businesses of their dreams. And if you do decide to affiliate with a brand like Weichert, you will find a level of proactive coaching, resources and support that you never thought possible. From helping you bring structure to your recruiting process, to establishing successful systems for selling and prospecting, to arming your agents with the technology of myWeichert® powered by kvCORE to automate follow up and turn leads into closed transactions, Weichert gives you all this and more.

And every day, Weichert trainers, coaches, service team members and fellow owners are there as a resource for you as you execute the proven Weichert process for success, step by step. They’ve all been through what you’re going through. They will help show you the way.

Take a minute today to give Weichert Franchising a call and get on a new path to success.