Evening – I write tonight with a short and obvious point. Google is smarter than anyone and armed with nothing less than the latest smart phone..how smart do I really need to be? How do I install this car seat….Google will tell me and typically do so in less than .3 seconds. I have an error on my computer! Simple, just copy and paste the error message in a Google search and your solution appears before your eyes truly faster than you can blink. So in a world where the answer to any question man could come up with is at your finger tips, why are there still so many questions?
Stephan Swanepoel provided my answer just two weeks ago in a story involving himself, his Father and his Son. Stephan’s point was that each generation has a different first thought on how to solve a problem. The oldest generation would be trial and error, next it would be ask a peer, then look for the reference book, followed by the Desktop PC, then the laptop, now the smart phone. It made sense to me for the first time that people are just trained though their lives to find an answer in a specific way even if they are aware of a more efficient way.
To close this point, I am going to leave you with this thought….before you ask the question, ASK GOOGLE and you will be amazed how quickly and accurately your problems are solved. Google truly is the smartest entity on the planet, has the longest memory, is not biased and is willing to talk…so again, ask Google first.
Many of you enrolled in the upcoming Floyd Wickman S.M.A.R.T. Program beginning on Nov. 4th … Floyd and I thank you for your trust, and we congratulate you for taking this important step in your career – we will grow together, have a BLAST and become lifelong friends! If you know someone else in your office that really needs this program, ask them to join you on your TEAM!
Some of you are considering it, and it’s important to know that the S.M.A..R.T. Program is not for everybody … we have room for JUST 3 MORE “special people” who : Want / need to improve production and build SALABLE Listings; Believe in living by Core Values; Want more Balance in their careers; And appreciate “teamwork”. Experience level should not matter, as we all do the same things at the same time.
Ask yourself this question; “What other opportunity is coming to my area, that has a proven track record of 200% productivity improvement, that is fully endorsed by my company, that costs less than 1/4 of one commission, and will get me doing at least 1 listing or sale per week without working harder?”
If the S.M.A.R.T. Program is the only opportunity with all these ingredients, then consider getting on board today. I understand that we may already be nearing capacity we have ROOM FOR JUST 3 MORE. Thank you, and I’ll see you on Nov. 4th at Session One! Be early … we begin promptly at 8:30 am Candlewood Suites, Fitchburg, WI. RSVP to TheNextLevel@kw.com
Warmly, Gary Carpenter – Master Trainer, Floyd Wickman Team
PS: Holler anytime if you need me or have questions about this opportunity. 402-680-7000 or email is gary@floydwickman.com
Do you think the coach would take Lebron James out of the game when he is on a HOT streak like this? So why do we as REALTORS(r) take ourselves out of the lead generation game when we get on a HOT streak? The difference between good & great!
Good vs. Great
It is said that success ruins many a great man… why do you think that is? Is it because their values change once success is achieved? I don’t think so. Is it because in order to achieve success in business, you have to sacrifice other things in life? I don’t agree with that either. Success ruins many a great man because complacency is the most underestimated piece of psychology in the universe. We grade life on a curve adjusting the bar for the masses. Even books published by best selling authors encourage mediocrity by saying things like, “If you aren’t number one, make your world smaller so you are.” Well somewhere there is a number one in the world, the actual world, not just the world as I define it….by making my world smaller am I simply creating a warm blanket for my lack of vision, skill and tenacity?
I hope I have you thinking now because as a real estate professional, June is that month. This is the month that we take ourselves out of the game when we are ON FIRE. The lullaby called “Seasonality” has gently lured you out of the driven self you were just two months ago….doing whatever it takes to sell a house and make a living. When the business isn’t happening, we work harder to create it, however we don’t see it’s results for 30, 60 or 90 days. Then when the business is happening we quit doing what created the business and simply service what we have. That is the ebb and flow of real estate, the lullaby of seasonality and the roller coaster of lead generation. This year if you fall into that pattern again it could be the biggest mistake of your career. Our real estate market is SO over inflated that this warm fuzzy feeling you have from a great “Spring” market is going to bankrupt you and your firm unless you do the RIGHT things EVERY day. What do you think happens when the government can’t keep our interest rates down any longer? Where do you think unemployment is going to go? What might happen when the banks actually release into the market all 700,000 properties they took back in foreclosure that they have been holding for months and months in an attempt not to flood the market further, devastating home values. What happens when the tax credit goes away? My point….don’t spend all of the money you make today because this just may be as good as it gets for a while.
So you see, success has ruined many a great man because once success is achieved, we stop doing the activities that landed us there. We treat success as a destination rather than a lifelong quest for excellence. Complacency is one of the biggest challenges we all will face in our lifetime… it is the tempest of mediocrity. The only way to break it’s hold on you is to stop thinking, create discipline and follow a proven process. You may be the best in your office, your town or #1 for selling 2flats on Willy Street with a solar panel and a carport, but remember if we stopped grading on a curve how well are you doing in the world?
If you are tired of being average in the world and I promise you, in our market, all of us are, call me and I will share with you my pledge to reject complacency. I will provide you the information you need to accurately forecast what is to come. I will also give you the tools, resources and training to thrive in our “new market”.
Sincerely,
Brett Boettge
CEO | TL
Keller Williams Realty – Madison Crossroads
608.661.7000
I often hear a great advertisement that states.. “America needs a comeback.” Well at KW Crossroads we don’t need a comeback, we need to come out. Come out from behind the shadows, share OUR story and tell it more often than our competitors. Do you love your company? If not then why are you here, you are an independent contractor and there are other companies out there. I often wonder why it is not everyone just oozes passion for KW. The answer is simple…you don’t know any better or you aren’t a fit. If you are not engaged in your success, taking advantage of what we offer and continually learning about our opportunity, than we might as well just hand you a gold coat, pack you up for a trip on a red & white hot air balloon and usher you out the door because to some…..we are simply holding your license. We have SO much to be proud of at Keller Williams Realty and in my opinion some of the GREATEST agents and success stories out of the “Shift”.
I need your help! Keller Williams across the country is in a rapid growth phase starting June 1st. How can you help as a partner in your firm….share your story with passion, fire honesty. Are you proud of your affiliation with Keller Williams? These are things that I am proud of…..
RISMedia’s Power Broker Report and REAL Trends’ REAL Trends 500 rank the largest residential real estate brokerages in the U.S. based on transaction sides and sales volume. This year (2009), Keller Williams Realty had more brokerages on both lists than any other real estate brand.
With many of our regions reporting 100 percent
Thanks to all who gave blood, donated time and money to support our community.
market center participation in RED Day, last week’s event proved that the compassion in our company is exceeded only by the imagination!
The first component of Keller Williams Realty’s Wellness Program – The Health Providers Program is now available to all associates. This new program offers unprecedented advantages to you in terms of health insurance options and is sure to crystallize the Keller Williams difference among competitors.
Industry leading coaching organization MAPS wins the coveted “Stevie” award for excellence in sale coaching programs. MAPS (Mega Agent Productivity Systems) was also a finalist for the 2008 Prism award. Take a look at their latest program. 20 agents. 3 weeks. 53 listings. 33 contracts “My business came to a complete stop in September. I was frozen and I think I was in denial. But in the four weeks of this class, I’ve taken three new listings.” – Lori Wakefield, associate, Lake Travis market center.
This on top of open books, a solid value system, a brilliant retirement plan, great people, industry leading technology and training PLUS the best compensation plan in the industry. Gary Keller might add… “well go read that best selling book your companies leadership wrote!” to the list in reference to The Millionaire Real Estate Agent.
I understand that in order to grow the market center, it is imperative that I know every aspect of our value proposition. Well you have an equal opportunity to grow our market center and be rewarded handsomely for it through our profit sharing system.
Shift Into Profit Share June 1st 2009!
How do you do it? One simple phrase… “I love my company.” If you can’t say that, why are you here? If you want to learn to love us then start taking advantage of the classes, the resources and be part of this wild real estate movement called Keller Williams Realty! Get involved, take responsibility for your career, your future, put modesty in your back pocket, then tell your story. Don’t you think some of our competitors deserve our help?
Good Saturday morning readers….today I write you with some heartbreaking news….I have writers block. I counted 16 unfinished blogs saved on my desktop that I have attempted to complete time and time again without success. I have a library of materials from a freshly created recruiting campaign, but you don’t come here to read that. You all know that I posted 2 to 4 blogs per day from August 2008 to December 2008 and although not every blog was stellar, they flowed from me with little effort and changed my life dramatically through the clarity my writing provided.
A professional writer once told me that my articles and essays had a sensibility about them that attracted her back time and time again to my blog. I now feel senseless and disengaged from what seemed like a never-ending stream of profound “aha’s”. I could sit with my laptop propped on my knees and pump out a seamless thousand words in less than 45 minutes. Today I find myself at a loss, staring blankly into my screen after forcing a lackluster paragraph or two and waiting hours for just a glimpse of inspiration. I am concerned about running out of “blogging gas” and as selfish as this sounds its not because of the lack of content I am providing my readers….I am concerned because I blogged for my own personal growth and clarity, I felt great and enlightened each time I clicked “publish”. That aha stream has dried up for now and I take that as a sign of a decline in my personal growth. I need your help.
Mike Rowe, host of “Dirty Jobs” on the Discovery Channel always closes his shows with a plea from his fans for new ideas. This is my plea today…..share your Aha’s with me about sales, the real estate industry, mindset, life in general. Challenge me….I’m looking for your inspiration. I have to thank Sherrie Puffer of Keller Williams Realty for a very deep Facebook exchange that led to my first real aha I have had in some time about Commitment vs. Compliance. This is the fuel I need from my readers today to kick start my writing again.
I say that I don’t have time to blog anymore….that is true because when you force it it takes to long but I miss writing daily. So this is what I am asking for in hopes of creating enough aha’s, written in just the right way, to inch me closer to my goal of being a published author.
Comment on this post simply with what is on your mind and allow me to create a blog based on your comment. I’m looking to take the ordinary in life and make it extraordinary. A single phrase can be the catalyst for a 2000 word essay that changes my life and hopefully intrigues you. I’m asking all of you to be my muse this Saturday morning.
Thank you in advance.
Brett Boettge
Team Leader | CEO
Keller Williams Realty – Madison Crossroads
608.661.7000
Tonight readers I’m coming off a great cup of coffee with some very brilliant minds. I enjoyed dinner at Middleton’s “Johnny’s Italian Steakhouse” and it was delicious but it paled in comparison to the conversation. John Alexandrov, Michael Friedman, Darren Kittleson, Jessica Fox and myself shared some thoughts after John & Michael’s training today on call reluctance. The day was filled with excitement, highlighted by a perfectly timed fire drill evacuating City Center West right at the peak of John’s personal story of the challenges he faced and overcame in his life. After the smoke cleared the story was finished and the message delivered without skipping a beat. I applaud John’s professionalism in that situation and trust that won’t ever happen again in his speaking career. So tonight reader I wanted to share with you my personal story of call reluctance and how I came to where I am today….still call reluctant, but not paralyzed by any one cause.
You heard me talk about “The Midnight Magic Plastic” before, you know those infomercials. What many of you don’t know is that the first business I ever started was created by one of those opportunities. Have you seen the infomercial for SMC? Yep I bought into it, and let me tell you if you can figure out a niche’ to profit selling gift items, it is a valid opportunity. So besides time, what was my biggest challenge? Fear of rejection! So picture this….2003 I’m sitting in my home office about ready to launch my company “Gifts for Good”. My goal was to wholesale some of my products to local retail shops. I put together my prospect list, collected their numbers, ensured they weren’t on the do not call list, created some scripts on wordpad and opened 6 windows on my computer each titles with a different perceived objection. My palms were sweating, my heart racing, I looked at the phone and it looked back at me showing it’s rabid teeth. All I could think of was how much of a fool I was, how I hated being sold to and despised salespeople in general and how I didn’t really have a clue what I was doing at 22 years old with the title “owner” on my business card. Then I did it, I picked up the phone and started dialing with less and less enthusiasm as I inched closer to the last digit of my first prospect….then it happened I froze and hung up just before I completed the dial. I opened a window and swore I was having a heart attack, this was THE WORST task I had ever faced, but why? I was scared to death of what someone might say, I could be yelled at, asked something I couldn’t answer or even worse, what if they said yes I would like your product? Understand that this routine went on for a week straight…prep, prep, prep, dial, freeze, pass out followed by confusion. Then it happened after watching some violent movie, I picked up the phone, looked at my scripts, dialed and there it was, my first ring…just as I entered the “freeze” portion of my routine I heard, “Hello, thank you for calling _________.” I looked at my script which even included my name if I forgot and simply read and read and read until guess what happened…yep they said come on out we would love to see your products. This was a defining moment for me and I went on to make 10 more calls making 1 more appointment by just reading my scripts. By no means was calling something I looked forward to, something that came easy, or something that I did as much as I should have, but I had moved forward leaps and bounds. Now fast forward to 2006…
I found myself closing my “Gifts For Good” and moving on to real estate sales. Same game, new skill, old reluctance crawled back into my life. I honestly spent my first 9 months purposefully throwing myself outside of my comfort zone and my routine involved at least 3 hours per day scripting with Mike Ferry scripts. I was knocking on doors, doing home buyer seminars, attending seminars, building campaigns, websites and marketing materials. I did essentially everything I could to keep me away from that phone. I had to have a great suit, great car and even prefaced my name with “Mr.” in my email which is still in effect today to combat my youth and insecurity. I still despised sales people, found myself cutting prospecting time short by not delivering all the door hangers or hand outs sometime tossing out hundreds of dollars of time sensitive marketing materials. I forced myself to stay outside of my comfort zone as much as I could handle and battled every single day to the point of mental exhaustion. So what changed?
I had spent my life savings and drilled myself into debt over my ears. So what changed? I was maxed out! The pride I had would not allow me to turn to anyone for help, or allow me to move towards another career. It was at this point I moved from being interested in real estate to be committed to real estate. Failure truly was not an option and my fear of rejection was dwarfed by my pride and fear of failure. I purchased top producer, implemented a high level of discipline and in the month of January I went from being ranked 400 at Century 21 to number 11. I had the momentum and when I left Century 21 I was on pace for 20-25 units which for my first full year would have been on goal and respectable…..then flash forward…May 2007 I was offered a position at Keller Williams Realty as a TL.
For me and my possible obsession with image I was on top of the world at 25 being named CEO of a million dollar corporation was a dream. The title alone was enough to get me over my initial call reluctance, however I soon found myself at the 30 day mark overwhelmed as the euphoria wore off. I realized that with just over a years worth of experience and a handful of sales that I was expected to be able to educate, consult and recruit top talent. Ha. I was again committed working 90+ hours per week trying every tactic, reading every book and applying as much as I possibly could so that I could play at the same level as top producing agents with upwards of 30 years in the business. I was on a strict regimen of scripts, role play, education and still attempting to impress with reasonable results. Then it happened…my defining moment as a team leader that leveled the playing field for me. One day I asked a top producing agent about their year and they shared openly how great it was. I then asked one of my favorite questions, the question that for me helped me know that I could help ANYONE, ANYTIME. “What would you have done differently last year?” Regardless of peoples success level, they don’t want to come off as arrogant so they will give you an answer….that simple question of self discovery made me look brilliant. SO what about call reluctance today?
I do not have a cure for call reluctance, I still have it today, but this is what helps me face the fear of rejection still lingering in my life.
I am dedicated to my personal development and mastery of my industry.
I know my scripts
I am passionate about what I sell
I have clearly defined goals
I know that I CAN help people and I owe it to them
My fear is not logical, most calls are pleasurable
If I screw up a call or an appointment, guess what there are 2899 more opportunities available in my market.
When someone says no, I know it is just “not right now”.
Lead generation is a process….I know that if I put 50 people through my process in a week, I will typically gain 4 agents in that month.
I am proud to speak the language of sales and understand that it is the most profitable language in print.
People say “Brett, you are a smooth talker.” or “Brett those “scripts” just come naturally.” or “You can handle every objection so well.” Well now you all know the rest of the story that started in 2003 and involved a massive personal committment to overcome. I have been so far from my comfort zone for so long, it is almost comforting to be uncomfortable. Don’t get me wrong, I still face the same challenges daily I just understand my history with those challenges and have become very efficient at “talking myself down”. Anyone can overcome call reluctance if I can, remember it has not even been 3 years since I left my previous employer. All it takes is confidence and that comes with committment, education and scripts.
Often you hear me say, “There are no silver bullets.” I found the closest thing to a silver bullet. Meet my daughter Brooklynne Elle Boettge born Tuesday, March 24th 2009 at 8:18 pm. 7lbs 10oz. This girl has defined my purpose, brought clarity to my life and when people say, “Kids will change your life” I had no idea, I never knew I could feel this passionate, this protective or this proud about anything and I love a lot of things.
Jody is the the other half of this story, my companion and the most significant other anyone can ask for. We already have our challenges and Jody shows strength and compassion that makes me so proud and humble. I love both of my girls with all of my heart, what they have done for me I hope to be able to repay over a lifetime.
This story wouldn’t be complete without sharing the support of our family, business family and friends from around the country. Thank you, thank you, thank you. A special thank you to Jeff Waldman, Judie Czys, Laura Hartman, Kip, Kip Jr. and Guy Lofts and all the others at KW Crossroads that sent well wishes, visited and provided us meals for the days and weeks ahead. Dave and Terry Butz for their support, a life size Giraffe and catering a great “in hospital” party. My Mother, Barbara Boettge, Sister Cindy Carlson, Nephews Zach and Kaden for making the big drive to Madison, WI and helping us catch some zzz’s. Thank you for all the emails, Facebook comments, txt messages and phone calls we received
My beautiful daughter at 4 days old.
This truly is a case of love at first sight. Thanks again for your support!
Sincerely,
Brett Boettge
Team Leader | CEO | Dad
KW Madison Crossroads
608.661.7000
Brook and I in the birth suite.. Yep the aviators are still on my head!
Contact to Learn When 36:12:3 is available in Madison, WI
Back to Basics…1920 X 33 = $1,000,000
“My listing presentation needs some work!” “I was planning on tweaking different area’s on my website today!” “There is this cool paperless office solution I have to look into!” “I have to master Neuro-Linguistic-Programming before I talk to anyone!” Does that sound like your days in real estate? Always preparing to make it BIG? Think of those press conferences after your favorite sports teams lose regardless of what they play…. What does the coach say? If the coach is a great coach, it is a simple statement, “We have some work to do and plan on going back to the basics!” Words of wisdom and overused only because human nature pulls us into creativity constantly re-inventing the wheel. So what are the basics in real estate?
Just like any other industry the strength of our business is directly proportionate to the people that choose the use our product/service. This comes down to your database and how often and effectively you communicate with those in it. In this real estate war, if we want to win we need to meet people, LOTS of people. How? I don’t care!! Do you understand that.. really let that sink in… it doesn’t matter how you meet people, the proven models of the Millionaire Real Estate Agent says you just need to meet 1920 of them, database them and communicate with them often and effectively. What does 1920 “met” people in your database mean to you when communicated with properly? What if I told you it meant $190,000…. $380,000….$720,000….. it honestly comes out to be $1,000,000. Is that enough to bring you back to the basics?
What would that do for you? Your family? Does it seem overwhelming…meeting 1920 people? That is 8 people every day you work…. If you worked 48 weeks per year and added 8 new people to your database and into the proper touch plan STARTING today you would have the Millionaires Database. The problem most of you will have is mindset.. you either aren’t willing to do the work, or you don’t believe the model……so you never start. Think of three years ago… it wasn’t that long ago was it? However three years into the future seems FAR to long to wait for massive success….you need to choose today in order to avoid an “I wish I had moment” three years from now. That is how simple this business is…..don’t make the mistake of overcomplicating it! So when does the rest of the real estate business come into play?
Once you focus on meeting people and creating an abundant database of “mets” it is important you track your effectiveness and employ a coach. The coach will direct you on where to best spend your time outside of meeting people and communicating with them. Your coach should know what target conversion rates are for your industry and have the knowledge to help you discover how to overcome any challenges that come up. Your coach cannot have any of these conversations with you if you don’t have any “at bats”, meaning – a listing appointment, buyer appointment etc.. So let’s recap what we need to do to start.
Meet people and obtain their contact information (8 per day = 1 yr – adjust for how hard you are willing to work and when you want your first $1,000,000)
Create a proper touch plan that is generic, yet effective and adhere to it. Execution of this plan consistently should become second nature similar to brushing your teeth.
Time Block your mornings for the execution of this plan… the touch plan and the meeting of people.
Remember – It doesn’t matter how you meet new people as long as you meet them.
Finally, understand this. I said it was simple, I never said it was easy. This is hard work as is the basis for any fantastic business. Of those trained even at the highest level in these tactics ONLY 3% actually apply them consistently. Those 3% are the highest performers not in our company, but in the Real Estate Industry. It is not the chosen few, but the few that choose!
You all have an equal opportunity in this market to be the very best. Take away ALL excuses and ask yourself “How can I?” and “Who can help me?” and all you will be left with are the results you seek. If you are a victim of our universe you probably decided a few sentences into this blog entry or email that this type of success isn’t possible for you. I can assure you if that is your mindset you are DEAD on. Make success a choice, it is just that simple.
Sincerely,
Brett Boettge
Team Leader | CEO
Keller Williams Realty – Madison Crossroads
608.661.7000
When did we stop caring about profit in the real estate industry? Did we ever start? A better question might be, “Do you look at real estate as a business?” What is the most important business principle that you can learn in an economic downturn? Lead with revenue, not with expense. It sounds like a simple enough concept doesn’t it? Don’t spend money that you don’t have! The “if you build it they will come” mentality is what we have all been programmed to think. I was a victim to that mentality when I entered the real estate business at the tail end of the sellers market, a mistake I’m still literally paying for today.
I had the honor of seeing John G. Miller speak down in Austin, Texas in May 2007. After an overly adventurous flight, I arrived at my destination just as John took the stage. Now for those of us that have never heard of John G. Miller, he is a best selling author of “Flipping the Switch” and “QBQ! The Question Behind the Question”. John is a role model for personal accountability and his message is one that has stuck with me ever since. In business, our profit margins shrink because of a lack of personal accountability. We say things like “In order to do this, I have to have that!” whether that is more marketing materials, better tools, a new suit, technology upgrades, new cars, plush offices or more staff…..they are all expenses, increased overhead and a disease that plagues your profits. So what is the alternative?
The question, behind the question becomes, “How can I grow with what I have today?” That’s right, a cold, hard look in the mirror that will stretch you a bit. This is where we look at things that truly make a difference for us, the foundation of our business. Things like…
Time Management – THINK “How good am I at that?” “What is Time Blocking?”
Sales Ability – THINK “Are my conversations purposeful, passionate and intense?”
Lead Generation – THINK “Am I trying to buy more business by marketing through an economic downturn or am I becoming purposeful in relationships?” “How many NEW people do you talk to every day about real estate?” “How is my follow up system?”
Leverage – THINK “Who can do this for me?” “How could it be done at ZERO cost to me?”
What is FREE – THINK “Have I mastered the phone?” “Do I maximize email?”
So how are you going to move closer to your potential in the above categories? Do you see how those categories are the key to unlocking your PROFIT? There is personal growth in asking the question behind the question, growth for the long term. The road I talk about is the road less traveled, the road without the promise of unicorns, fairies and silver bullets. Don’t spend money to make money, whoever said that is backwards and bankrupt. So can we ever add tools, technology, expense, etc…..?
Maximize your personal potential by taking the road less traveled and then set strategic targets out for improving your tools. If you are a $3,000,000 producer get to $5,000,000 this year with what you have today… once you get there award yourself with a technology upgrade. Now hold that expense accountable to take you to the next target you set. This is the “Red Light, Green Light” method of holding your expenses accountable to proportionate results. If you spend a $1.00 it should make you at least $2.00. Whether that $1.00 is spent on a person (staff), a tool(Top Producer8i), education (Camp 443), etc… it should always put $2.00 back in your pocket. You don’t add another expense until you figure out how to make that happen.
Leading with revenue is taking away excuses for mediocrity, causes us to stretch ourselves and in the end ensures our profit. Take a look at your expenses, have you held them accountable to results? Have you looked in the mirror lately and asked, “How can I improve myself?” Do you just tend to throw money at your business in hopes that there is an improvement? This all leads to the question of the day…..Regardless of what level you are producing at, how much profit do you have at the end of the year? Look in the mirror and watch your profits, they matter!
If you would like a no obligation consult on “Leading with Revenue” and “Personal Growth” simply give me a call or email me today.
What a strange and fantastic journey it has been! It was just eighteen months ago that I had left my former real estate company to take the role of Team Leader for Keller Williams Realty. I actually intended on coming to Keller Williams for sales and was attracted by the phenomenal 70/30 split which caps to a pure 100% after roughly $2.6 Million in closed volume. Very cool isn’t it! Well, expecting everyone to join Keller Williams based on that alone was a HUGE mistake on my part, let me share with you why.
Value, plain and simple, if I compete on price alone I have reduced myself and my company to a commodity, a “license holder” not a place of business development for high achievers. Running a single agents business is very similar to running a real estate firm. Have you ever been on a listing presentation where you lead with the commission you will be charging? Has there ever been a time when you were asked to reduce your commission? If you don’t have any extra value to provide than the norm, how do you get that listing? That’s right you end up making a concession! Is that a good business practice? Now apply that to a real estate company…. What would be better, me decreasing you commission cap to $13,000 or showing you how to close just 4 more transactions per year? My way, the leading with value way NETS you, with an avg. commission of $5,000 an astonishing $11,000 MORE than reducing your overhead. Do you see how you can only reduce expense so far? So doesn’t the REAL opportunity in this industry, the opportunity for limitless growth and income potential come in developing your business?
This is why I struggled my first year as a team leader, I reduced my company to a commodity by leading with expense reduction. Now don’t get me wrong, my business model can probably save you thousands of dollars, even hundreds of thousands over the next few years…..but we are far more than just a place to reduce expense, we can change your life.
Sona Olson – CRS & GRI knows something about value. Tuesday, January 20th Sona made the choice to partner with Keller Williams Realty, still practicing under the SonaVco name. Sona has many affiliations in and around our industry and most recently was recognized as the Ed Coburn Pride Award recipient for service to our association and serves as the chair of the education committee for WI CRS state chapter. Why would Sona after 12 years as an independent broker choose to partner with a company where she will have to share up to $22,000 of her commissions? Do you think she would make that choice if she didn’t see proportionate value in our company, our education, our systems tools and models? Sona is one of the most fantastic business minds in our market and made a great business decision. You see, it only takes 3-4 additional units at her average sales price to negate the commission paid to our company. Does your firm have a plan for you? If you wanted to triple your business this year would you broker be able to give you a specific plan to do so including the education, coaching and systems support? More importantly would they even ask what you want out of 2009? Vacations, boats, more time with family? If not, why do you think that is?
Don’t be fooled by “Cyber Plans” and companies that simply hold licenses to reach into your pocket. Join me in success. Find out why Sona Olson made the choice to join the fastest growing real estate company in North America and the soon to be THIRD LARGEST! You deserve to know why 80,000 other agents have made the choice to partner with us and stay with us!
Enjoy a sample of what makes us different! CLICK HERE
I have to thank Sherrie Puffer of Keller Williams Realty for a very deep Facebook exchange that led to my first real aha I have had in some time about Commitment vs. Compliance. This is the fuel I need from my readers today to kick start my writing again.
In My Head 