Have you ever fired a client? Why or why not? Something I learned after 19 years in real estate and another dozen plus years in copywriting is that sometimes the best thing you can do for yourself is to fire a client – or not “hire” them in the first place. Which clients should you […]
What does professionalism mean in real estate?
As you know, there are real estate agents and real estate agents. Some of the people you deal with are professionals, and some… are not. To put it bluntly, some should be in some other line of work. So what does it mean to be a real estate professional? There are two sides to professionalism: […]
What can you do with fifteen minutes?
What can you do with fifteen minutes? Because a day in the life of a real estate agent is often dotted with appointments, you sometimes find yourself between things, with ten, fifteen, or twenty minutes before the next commitment. When I was an agent, I found it frustrating to have those “wasted” chunks of time. […]
Get more Repeat Clients, Referrals, and Reviews
Many agents feel that they’ve really “made it” when they can look at the past year’s transactions and see that the majority of them came from past clients and referrals. It’s a sign that your past clients have confidence in you – you’re doing a job you can be proud of. So how do you […]
Real Estate Opportunities – embraced or overlooked?
When you’re in a café or a store and overhear a conversation about real estate, do you introduce yourself and join in, or do you walk away? Any time you introduce yourself to strangers you might be taking a step to success. At the same time, you’re taking a chance on being rejected. Those folks […]
Do you have an effective elevator speech?
You know what an elevator speech is, don’t you? If not, it’s a “speech” you can give in the time it takes an elevator to go from one floor to another. That’s about one minute, more or less. You give it in answer to the question “What do you do?” It’s not that most such […]
Choose your real estate clients wisely
If you’re a seasoned real estate agent, you probably know what I’m going to suggest – which is that you don’t have to and should not work with every possible client who comes along. If you’re just beginning your career in real estate you may be thinking “What do you mean, choose my clients! I […]
How to choose your real estate niche
First – Why should you choose a niche? Why not serve everyone? Because having a niche is a smart business move. Unless you’re working in such a small community that one niche, or even two, would not support you, having a niche and becoming known for your expertise is a sure path to success. You […]
Prospecting & self-promotion. How much is enough?
By now you’ve heard repeatedly – you can’t stop marketing your services if you want a steady income flow. But how much prospecting/marketing/self-promotion is enough? To answer that question, you first need to determine the income that you want. Just for the sake of picking a number, let’s say it’s $100,000 per year. Next, go […]
Smile! You (and your buyers) are on Candid Camera
You may be too young to remember that old show, but it was entertaining. The producers staged all sorts of strange situations and then filmed how people reacted. I often wondered if some people said no when asked for permission to air the film. Today, stores and cities have cameras all over the place as […]