The field of real estate transactions is wide, varied and evolving daily. New ambitious realtors regularly enter the market, seeking to receive fabulous percentages from sales/renting out space. The degree of competitiveness of this business is difficult to measure, so anyone who wants to achieve success needs to know how a realtor can find clients. All the details are available right now.
- How and where can a photographer find clients?
Effective ways
Let's start with ineffective but necessary technologies, then move on to the most effective ones.
"Cold calls
Let us remember that “cold” calling is a method of expanding the base of potential buyers by calling people who have not contacted the company before. Many experienced specialists say that beginners are always assigned similar tasks. Different agencies, of course, use different technologies, but the essence is the same. Owner announcements from the press (print, electronic) are “run” through the company’s number database; previously unused positions are found that do not belong to agents of competing companies. Next, these numbers are distributed among employees and those same “cold” calls begin, the purpose of which is to expand the existing base, find out the current situation, and arrange a viewing. You need to understand that more often than not this tool is not effective enough. The problem lies in the inability to convince a potential customer, ignorance of self-presentation techniques, and the following fact is also of great importance - the owner/buyer has probably already been visited by dozens of colleagues. However, despite the obvious problems, the described method continues to be used, especially when solving the problem of how to find clients for a novice realtor.
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Mailing list
The next tool is much more enjoyable, even creative. Distribution is carried out primarily online, but many real estate professionals also take the offline environment into account. The essence of the technology is this: a commercial text is compiled about the services, the realtor himself, an email newsletter is sent, and the letter is delivered to mailboxes (if this method is chosen). The experience of many real estate workers demonstrates that the described method is much more effective than the previous one. Let's talk about several nuances separately. 1. Sales Letter We present to your attention the recommendations of Dan S. Kennedy, author of the book “The Sales Letter”:
- create the feeling that ordering a service will change the consumer’s life, solve his problems, improve it;
- orient the text style to the needs of the target audience (be sure to create an average portrait of the target buyer);
- encourage immediate ordering, offer promotions, use the “urgency effect”, creating in the reader a feeling of scarcity of options;
- stimulate the buyer's interest (using humor, humor);
- use appropriate graphics, photographs.
Separate advice - give up active self-promotion, slogans, and never mention other people’s services. If there are no guarantees, it’s better not to write; buyers quickly remember promises. They will definitely remember this later, risking ruining your reputation. Another recommendation is to write about yourself in the present tense. “I sell, help, solve problems” - such words make the text easier to understand. 2. Photo Use a personal photo. Let the potential customer see who he will be communicating with. The image must be of excellent quality, where you look advantageous, presentable, and beautiful. The person in the photo should inspire trust and respect. If there is no photo, take one. This will definitely come in handy when promoting online.
- Cold call or email (mailing): what is more effective in sales?
Internet promotion
Of course, the numerous online marketing tools cannot be neglected. There are many ways offered here, but the most profitable are two: social networks, your own web resource. Social networks are primarily a platform for two-way communication. Create a page (group), expand it, inviting target users there, publish relevant content. Use topic-related groups (for example, communities in your city), launch targeted advertising (this is more difficult, it’s unlikely to be done without the help of specialists, otherwise there is a risk of spending the entire budget). Your own landing page is a must-have tool when solving the problem of where a realtor can find clients. With its help, you can present yourself from a favorable perspective, expand your target audience, and also increase your base of potential customers. In short, there are many advantages. There are also auxiliary tools, one of them is the LPgenerator service.
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Old and new ways for a realtor to find clients
Cold calling ads
One of the most common methods by which realtors find owners is the so-called “cold calling”, that is, calling people who have put their home up for sale through advertisements on the Internet or in newspapers.
In a conversation, say that you have a buyer, ask permission to offer this object to him. Under this pretext, you can meet with the owner, find out all the nuances of a specific situation, and understand which specific problems will be the main arguments for you in persuading the owner to become your client.
The key is to build initial trust. How you introduce yourself plays an important role here. It will be much easier for you if you can add the name of a well-known agency with a good reputation to your name. For employees of the Transfer agency, the question of where realtors can get clients is solved much easier than for our colleagues from other companies.
Posting advertisements
How can a realtor find clients? Posting advertisements is a method that may seem ineffective and outdated. But they should not be neglected because:
When a person is concerned about buying or selling a home, he looks for options everywhere. So a modest announcement at the entrance may well work.
Advertisements seem to many not to be the best answer to the question of where a realtor can get clients, because few people know how to properly advertise. Important:
- accuracy of advertisements;
- originality of the text;
- the ability to indicate different phone numbers in different advertisements;
- the need to make an appointment for every call: personal contact is of particular importance.
Working with social networks
Word of mouth has always been and remains one of the most effective ways to find an owner. The popularity of social networks today allows us to talk about “word of mouth networks,” because it is on the Internet that people (often even complete strangers) give each other advice, share reposts, and talk about problems.
A personal page on the Internet is exactly the place where realtors find clients. Tell us about your capabilities and include your current phone number. Be sure to share all interesting offers with your friends and subscribers.
Calls using business cards
In general, wherever do realtors find clients? In a club, in an elevator, in line to see a doctor. Be friendly, polite, competent and, most importantly, learn to listen. Don't jump into offering your services right away. In our country, there is often a problem behind the need to buy or sell a home:
- Lack of money;
- the need to leave the children;
- divorce.
Be prepared to sincerely sympathize with her. Only after this the business card you offer will be accepted favorably. Make carrying and handing out business cards a habit. Also, do not forget to mention your profession appropriately, especially among friends and acquaintances.
Attend events where you can meet potential clients and offer your services there. Of course, the process will be easier if you ask your customers to tell their friends about you. Yes, they will tell you if they are satisfied with your work!
Employer base
Where else do realtors get their base? Paradoxically, but with the employer. Yes, indeed, it can be easier for agents cooperating with companies to find an option for buying or selling than for independent agents.
The real estate industry is one of those in which there is more trust in a company than in independent players, so there is always a flow of clients. The Transfer agency is one of the oldest in the city and therefore enjoys well-deserved respect and trust.
Our employees, especially early in their careers, find it easier to build relationships with clients than their colleagues who work independently.
LPg Templates
If you want to achieve success, you are unlikely to succeed without your own web resource - we formulated this postulate earlier. The best idea, of course, is a landing page, with which you can briefly, succinctly and effectively present yourself. LPgenerator offers customized and universal business solutions. There are several suitable examples in the Landing Page Store.
For example, the option below, which you can read more about here.
Or this layout.
Another option is to create a custom page like this one to promote yourself as a standalone entity.
The selling structure is already done, all you have to do is create the corresponding text and visual content.
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How to attract the best realtors to a real estate agency
Everyone must do their job. A realtor is to help carry out real estate transactions, and a professional in the field of recruitment and personnel management is to find and train the best specialists.
The task of HR and T&D managers is to attract the best employees for a real estate agency. Professionals in the field of recruitment and personnel management for the service and sales sectors are very well versed in human psychology. They see a person almost right through and know more about what he is capable of.
Three big problems with personnel in a real estate agency. And how to deal with them?
Problem number 1. The profession attracts lazy people who dream of a “freebie” based on rumors.
Who often goes to realtors? Unfortunately, there is a well-established myth among people that a realtor is such a dust-free and very profitable profession. There is practically nothing to do. It is enough to sell a couple of apartments and you can live on the interest from sales for a whole year. Even somewhere on the warm seas, drinking exotic cocktails. But a person with a similar mindset is not the best candidate for the position of realtor. When he encounters difficulties, and he will definitely encounter them, because they exist in any job, he will begin to show himself not at his best. And at the same time, the reputation of an entire real estate agency, which took so long to develop and on which so much money and time was spent, suffers.
How to recognize such an unscrupulous employee? It is quite difficult for a non-professional to do this. After all, a candidate for a position will certainly have “sparkling eyes.” Yes, because he is going to make a lot of money. This is very inspiring. Therefore, from the outside it may seem that such a person is very motivated for results, that he will work hard and excellently. But that's not true. Professionals will immediately recognize the catch and weed out such candidates. It's just a matter of experience with people.
Problem number 2. Lack of qualified personnel.
They don’t teach how to become a realtor in Russian universities. Yes, there are courses and trainings. But among the hosts of such programs there are a lot of charlatans who are not even embarrassed to admit that they have never trained in conducting business training, and are even proud of it. And it’s very difficult to choose those programs that really provide the necessary knowledge and skills. This is why there are so many self-taught and unqualified personnel in this profession. But a realtor needs enormous knowledge. The required amount of legal knowledge is required to always be able to quickly advise the client on issues that are directly related to the execution of transactions with real estate.
The solution to this problem lies in the selection of special courses, master classes and training programs that are best suited specifically for the employees of your real estate agency. And this is also what T&D professionals do.
Problem number 3. Too much staff turnover.
It is in the real estate business that there is one of the highest staff turnover. Why is this happening? Well, firstly, as we have already said, non-professionals who simply cannot cope often leave. But they can be weeded out during the interview. But even professional realtors quickly burn out (5-6 years on average) and leave. Why? The thing is that the work of a realtor is associated with a high psychological load. How to prevent professionals from burning out? This task is also handled by professionals in the field of motivation and development. They select special courses for employees and organize “rehabilitation” programs. After this, performance increases and work results improve.
In Russia, unfortunately, the work described above is frankly poorly carried out. And I can give examples of contacts where the company’s top person is truly concerned about these issues and takes an active part in the development of employees! And one of them is a Russian company, and not in Moscow.
How to find a realtor and not make a mistake in choosing a good one?
Try to find time and invite a realtor to a personal meeting or conduct an interview remotely via telecommunications. First of all, you need to pay attention to the following details:
Phone conversation
Start your correspondence acquaintance and communication with a realtor through a telephone conversation, which can provide useful preliminary information about the specialist and his assessment: whether you need him or not...
Work experience
Every good realtor in Moscow started somewhere somewhere, some specialists began their professional career as trainees in large real estate agencies, others as agents in smaller real estate offices. Ask an intermediary in the secondary market to share where the main work experience was accumulated, how long and thorny his professional path was...
Education
Ask what kind of education the broker received: secondary specialized or higher education. What advanced training courses, seminars, business trainings did he attend? The ideal option for a realtor is to have a degree in law or psychology, but it is worth noting that among graduates of technical universities there are quite a lot of worthy real estate specialists...
Specialization and qualifications
Ask a real estate agent about his specialization, rarely is anyone a generalist, each usually has his own narrow one: secondary urban, commercial, country real estate, new buildings on the primary market. Ask your realtor what trends have been observed recently in the market segment you are interested in, does he know the business he is involved in very well?
Real estate agent sales experience
The theory is, of course, all good, but real successful purchase and sale transactions are much more important for a good realtor. Find out from a specialist what specific objects he has sold and in what quantities, and if he has only a few closed transactions under his belt, then you should seriously think about it.
Practice
Ask the realtor about his practice: does he attend real estate exhibitions, does he write analytical articles, does he engage in educational activities among the population, which agencies does he work closely with as a broker. A long-range specialist must have a wide and varied practice, and not just a fat wallet...
Business reputation, recommendations, reviews
The best thing about a person is his deeds and actions, and about a realtor his business reputation or the trail that follows him. A good realtor values his reputation and name, because in fact, this is the only thing he has, and tries to avoid participating in dubious transactions, while those who are thirsty only for easy money do not shy away from anything...
Psychological picture
In order to understand what the person standing in front of you is like as a person, try to create a psychological portrait of a realtor for yourself. When communicating directly with a professional mediator, notice for yourself details of behavior, character traits and personal qualities that are not visible at first glance...
Comfort in communication
For me personally, this is the most important criterion in working with clients, which can often outweigh all the others. Here you liked a person at first sight and inspires trust - even if you crack. Comfortable communication with a realtor on the same wavelength, an interesting interlocutor, common ground, many common topics for discussion - all this can be of paramount importance when choosing a good realtor. By the way, by the way, among my clients there are many women with such a “rare” name as mine - Tatyana...
Realtor's appearance
Take a closer look at how a real estate specialist dresses, and it does not have to be an expensive business suit; it is enough that a realtor should not allow himself to appear in public in an unkempt manner. Let it look simple but neat. A realtor's neat appearance, ability to present himself and behave in public can often tell us a lot. It’s unlikely that anyone would want to deal with a ragamuffin with the face of an alcoholic, right?!
Age
It is not necessary for a professional realtor to be an old person, but he must be a mature person with rich life experience. It is unlikely that an 18-year-old “green” youth will be able to competently represent and reliably protect the interests of a client in a transaction, and it is really hard to argue with this. To each his own time...
Self-sufficiency
A good realtor must be an integral and self-sufficient person, fully accountable for his actions and actions, be able to make complex decisions on his own, and, if necessary, bear responsibility for them.
License and documents confirming authority
Ask the realtor to present official documents confirming his authority, for example, a power of attorney from the head of the department, if the intermediary is a representative of a real estate agency, or a license - a certificate of registration as an individual entrepreneur and an extract from Egrip with a note on the permitted type of activity, and, in In all cases, of course, a civil passport.
Service contract
Find out what type of cooperation agreement the intermediary offers you to enter into. An agreement for the provision of real estate services, in some cases an agency agreement or a commission agreement, may be offered for signature. I recommend that you carefully read the document in advance and clarify the following points for yourself: validity period, termination procedure, penalties, commission amount and payment procedure
Cost of services and payment procedure
For many clients on the market, a good realtor is only the one who can name the smallest commission. But, well, it doesn’t come cheap, because that’s exactly what folk wisdom says. The best realtor in Moscow cannot work for pennies. However, expensive is not always great. Someone chooses a golden mean for themselves. But often, it is the question of the cost of a realtor’s services that is paramount for many owners, and it happens that after it is clarified, the need for all other subjects of discussion disappears. Ask a specialist about the cost of real estate services, whether the size of the commission varies depending on the amount of work, and whether it is necessary to make some kind of advance payment when signing a cooperation agreement. Please note that the commission rate must be agreed upon in advance and fixed in the contract; standard conditions on the market are payment for results, only after the purchase and sale transaction is fully completed.
