A success strategy that makes a lot of sense to me is Jim Rohn’s philosophy on wealth. He believes if you make a sale you make a living. If you make an investment of time and good service in a client, you can make a fortune.

It is one thing to understand this concept and quite another to actually implement it. Are you still struggling with how to implement proven referral strategies in your business? If so, it’s not your fault and it’s more common than you might
think! Frankly, once we push through the necessary licensing and paperwork process, most of us are left all by ourselves to muddle along trying to build a successful real estate business. Real estate is a challenging career and I offer tools that can help you maximize your efficiency and profits. Read on to see how my coaching strategies will help you increase your success.

As my gift to your referral generating success, I share five sample success strategies that are key elements of the real estate business and will help you advance in your career. By training hundreds of real estate professionals, providing one on one coaching and giving valuable strategies to create lead generating processes, I realize this information is needed in order to grow your real estate business. Because the demands of Realtors® are so great, you can

probably relate to being so busy that it becomes hard to find time to focus on referral generation.

The good news is, now you can systemize how you effectively reach your target audience and easily incorporate specific strategies that will make all the difference in the world. And don’t worry… you don’t need a business degree or ten years of sweating in the trenches to get there.

You can grab my free ebook, The 5 Key Principles of Inner Circle Lead Generation, along with the other ebooks in my Resource Library, at www.consistentclients.com/resources

Could you define each term below?

You might be able to rattle off a explanation worthy of the best real estate textbook out there, but can you actually communicate in a way that your client understands? An easy way to lose rapport and trust with a client is talk over their head. They’ll usually feel like either a) you think you’re much smarter than them, or b) you’re using big words because you’re trying to pull the wool over their eyes on something. A great way to establish trust and rapport is to be able to explain all the paperwork, laws and new concepts that come along with our profession in a way that makes sense to them. They’ll feel much more comfortable with the transaction because they’ll be making educated choices, and will associate that comfortable feeling with you, their agent.

So here’s your challenge – take the definitions below and see if you can’t find a way to explain them in layman’s terms that works with your personality. Why not have a little fun with it? Personality just deepens your connections with clients!

Appraisal: a written report by a state-licensed professional that includes an unbiased analysis of the property’s value and the reasoning that led to that opinion. An appraisal report is required for any property sale.

Broker: an agent who brings together a buyer and a seller, or a landlord and a tenant, in a real estate transaction. All brokers must be licensed by the state in which they work. Most work on commission, and the landlord or seller usually pays the fee.

Build-to-suit: a method of leasing property in which the landlord makes improvements to a space based on the tenant’s specifications. The cost of construction is generally factored into the lease terms. Most build-to-suit provisions apply to long-term (10-year) leases.

Concessions: benefits or discounts given by the seller or landlord of a property to help close a sale or lease. Common concessions include absorption of moving expenses, space remodeling, or upgrades (also called “build-outs”), and reduced rent for the initial term of the lease.

Escalation clause: a clause in a lease that allows the landlord to increase rent in the future. Rent increases dictated under an escalation clause may be charged in various ways, including:

• A fixed increase over a definite period
• A cost-of-living increase tied to a government index, such as the tax rate
• An increase directly related to increases in operating the property

HVAC: an acronym for “heating-ventilation-air-conditioning” system. In a commercial building, the landlord generally is responsible for maintaining the HVAC.

Lease: an agreement by which the owner of a property (the “lessor”) grants the right of possession to a tenant (the “lessee”) for a specific period of time (the “term”) for a predetermined amount of money (the “rent”). A “leasehold estate” is the space occupied by the tenant. Common types of leases include:

• A straight, or flat, lease, which stipulates that the same periodic payment (usually monthly) be made for the entire term of the lease.
• A percentage lease, which uses a percentage of the net or gross sales to determine the monthly rent. This is most often used in retail properties and with a minimum base rent.
• A net lease, which requires the tenant to pay maintenance, taxes, insurance and so on, along with a fixed rent. This is also called “net-net-net” or “triple net.”

Lien: a legal claim filed against a property for payment of a debt or obligation. If a property owner fails to pay a creditor, for example, the creditor can place a lien on the property. A lien can halt the sale of a property.

Sale-leaseback: a transaction in which an owner sells a property to an investor, who then leases the property back to the original owner under prearranged terms. Sale-leaseback deals offer the original owner freed-up capital and tax breaks and the investor a guaranteed return and appreciation.

Sublease: a lease given by a tenant for some or all of a rented property. For example, if a tenant rents 20,000 square feet but only ends up needing 10,000 square feet, they may want to sublet the extra space for some or all of the remaining term of the lease, providing they continue to occupy and pay rent for the property.

Technorati Tags: Marketing, Real Estate, Real Estate Marketing

Here are a few ideas:

• Put together a list of local contractors (carpenters, plumbers, landscapers, interior decorators, etc.) you know and trust, and who are fairly priced. Send to your list (works even better if you can get coupons from your contractors, who will appreciate the business) with a note about wanting to help keep a few extra dollars in their budget.

• Collect a yearly calendar of fun, free events in your community. Your note can mention that having fun and making memories does not always require money to be spent.

• Create a page on your website with a bunch of YouTube videos showing easy, DIY projects they can do around their home to improve home value, and send the link out via email.

• On the business end of things, think about professional contacts you know that would benefit by being introduced. Then pick up the phone or jump on your email and introduce them. They’ll appreciate it, and remember you for it.

A lot of these might be things they could do on their own, but they’ll appreciate that you took the time to put them all together in one easy place. It shows that you’re thinking of them, and care about them beyond just “making the commission”.

One tool that I used, and recommend a lot here on my blog, is sending unexpected gifts to your clients. Rather than spend my marketing budget on newspaper ads and other things that were industry standard, but didn’t seem to consistently generate business, I spent those dollars on treating past, current and potential clients like gold.

Here is another gift idea that can be used  as a gift for clients that have just closed with you, and is really appreciated: People who buy a home (or sold with you and will most likely be moving into a new home) almost always have the desire to turn this house into a home. Whether they ever decorated or remodeled in a previous house, most unconsciously have big plans for their new home. So a 1 or 2 year subscription gift to a high-quality magazine like Architectural Digest gets them excited.

This does several things:

• You’re surprising them with a gift, so you’re front of mind again
• The gift is related to their home, and offers value by giving them ideas, tips and information they can use for their home
• Most people will put this magazine on their coffee table, where they’ll see and be reminded of you. In fact, if you’re able to get the publisher to put a gift label on the magazines – something like “Compliments of Rich Rogala, Realtor®”, they’re likely to tell their friends and family about you as well.
• Finally, this gift will land in their mailbox every month, and they’ll continuously be reminded of you. If you’re keeping in touch in other ways too, you’re very likely to generate a lot of referrals from this one client, and will be the Realtor® they think of the next time they’re ready to move.

If so, this means that there’s a large group that would probably like to change homes, but have held back because they’re concerned about not getting a price for their home that is high enough to pay off their mortgage, or because they dread the idea of their home languishing on the market for months and months.

But with the new $6500 repeat buyers credit, you have a great reason to contact past clients and see how things have been for them. Since the law requires that they’ve been in their home for at least 5 years, this will be a group that you might not have spoken with much. (Hopefully you have been keeping in touch with them – you’re trying to build a referral based business!) But even if you haven’t, but have been wanting to catch back up with past clients, this is a great “in”.

Be creative, and come up with a catchy brochure or simple letter asking if they’ve been waiting for good news before they start their next home search, then give info on the new tax credit, and have them contact you to receive a Current market analysis of their home, and to learn more about the very affordable homes in their area.

If you don’t have past clients that fit the criteria of 5 years in their home, then talk to current and recent past clients. They can tell their friends about the new tax credit, and mention that you as their Realtor are keeping up to date, and can tell them all about it. Great way to generate referrals!

Technorati Tags: Rich Rogala, real estate marketing coach, 00 repeat buyer credit, real estate referral marketing tips

My challenge to you is to find a way to use these stories in your marketing that fits your personality.

**********************************

This is our house. 24 Maple Drive…I love this house. I love that I taught my kids to ride their bikes in the driveway. I love that I slept with them in tents in the backyard. I love that we carved our initials in the tree out front. This house is warm in the winter, cool in the summer, and looks spectacular with Christmas lights. It’s a great house. I never want to move. But the thing I think I like best about this house are the voices I hear when I walk through the door.

This is my favorite quote from the classic movie, Father of the Bride.  This is the kind of thing that new homeowners imagine when they buy any home.  They may not say it out loud, for fear of sounding corny or unrealistic.  But don’t most of us want the fantasy life that George Banks so lovingly describes in this monologue? 

A home is more than just bricks, hardwood flooring and wall to wall carpeting, a patio and a backyard.  It’s the building blocks of people beginning their lives together and making memories.

The home plays a large part of this movie.  It’s where George Banks played basketball with his daughter in the driveway every night, where his little girl stood in her nightgown and socks at the top of the banister right before she slid down it to fall into her father’s arms, and, eventually, it ends up serving as the setting of his no-longer-little-girl’s wedding reception.

People love to hear about sentimental memories being made in the home.  It makes them believe that good old family values are still alive and well.

With that said, are you staying in contact with your home buyers after that monumental closing?  Do you know about the memories that they are making in their new homes?  Are they hosting family game nights, book club meetings, garage band practices, block parties and/or weddings?

Make it a point to stay in contact with them and find out. It would be the perfect feature to post on your website.  You could call it Home-Made Memories.  Have them send you a picture and tell a story. Or if you want to go all out, you can dedicate a whole blog to your happy clients.

To get an idea, take a look at this blog.  It’s about a young couple starting their life in their new home.  You can follow them as they go through the trials and tribulations of fixing up their 53 year-old home and throwing the cutest DIY backyard wedding you’ve ever seen.  There are a ton of other blogs out there like this one.  New homeowners love to talk about their home.  Why not let them use you as their outlet to do it?

People will love to see concrete evidence of happy homeowners that were made possible by you, their trusted advisor, friend and real estate agent.

After all, who doesn’t like to see that sappy home memories can happen in real life too?  Have your Real Estate Virtual Assistant setup a page on your website to dedicate to your Home-Made Memories or have them put together a special blog post for each client’s special memory. 

Your clients will appreciate your extra efforts and they’ll be sure to give out your name and give you their repeat business!

Best wishes!

Technorati Tags: Rich Rogala, real estate marketing coach, Real Support, real estate marketing tips

Why not put together a Community Holiday Events calendar to send to your email list, host on your website, and mail out?

As a Realtor, you’re in the unique position to know about a lot more of the local community events than the average resident. So share that knowledge! Your readers will appreciate it. At the holidays, many people would like to do more activities with friends and family, but are so busy that they simply don’t have the time to go looking for events to attend.

This also gives you a great source of ideas for blog posts through December. As I mentioned in a recent post, blogging about local events is a good way to get found in the search engines, as often, the event host or organizer doesn’t do a very good job of optimizing their webpage for search engines.

In your calendar, you could even let your readers know that they can check your blog regularly for full details on lots of the events from the calendar. Now you’ve created a targeted item for your newsletter, generated a whole bunch of blog post ideas, and increased traffic to your website. Happy Holidays to you!

I can understand the pressure of a softer market, and the need to accept listings you may not have previously (hey, we all have bills to pay!), but you have a responsibility to your client to provide knowledgeable and comprehensive service. This includes taking the time to know the local real estate market, and research comps as well as other properties that are for sale that may not be comps, in order to get a bigger picture of what’s happening around your seller’s home.

Be prepared to do more work than usual to become familiar with the area and stay on top of changes and new listings/sold properties that come in. That’s the price you’ll have to pay in order to earn the commission you’ll be getting for taking this listing from out of your area. I like Loreena’s last line -

Until then, you haven’t deserved to earn your paycheck from your sellers. Be either very good or don’t play. Don’t ever let your Sellers know more or sooner than you do in his/ her neighborhood.

Technorati Tags: Rich Rogala, real estate marketing coach, how to take a real estate listing in an unfamiliar area, marketing and business tips for sellers agents

Think about partnering with a local Home Stager (who also specializes in Home “Redesign” or Redecorating), and offering coupons for a Holiday Home Redesign. This is a great gift, as people get so busy at the holidays, it can be difficult to find the time to decorate their own home, or just want a new look without too much effort on their own part.

By partnering with one particular Stager, you will often be able to get a nice discount for your client base, as the Stager gets exposure to your entire list. And you might be able to work out an even better deal if you purchase a few packages at full price – maybe as a gift for the Buyers or Sellers you’re working with currently. Imagine getting a Holiday Home Redesign right as you were dealing with the stress of buying or selling your home – that would certainly brighten your holidays, wouldn’t it?

Technorati Tags: Rich Rogala, real estate marketing coach, holiday real estate gift ideas

If you want to continue generating referrals and building a business that isn’t based on a lot of cold-calling, here’s a great idea to try – generate referrals through speaking engagements!

Here’s a great post from the Duct Tape Marketing blog on 5 Tips to Getting More Leads from Speaking. While you may never have dreamed of becoming a high-paid speaker, or don’t even like the thought of speaking in front of a large group of people, there are lots of different ways you can use public speaking to generate leads.

John has some great tips on ways to get speaking engagements, but in real estate I’m sure there are many others. You could contact your Chamber of Commerce, your local library, a community college, etc. and offer to hold a 1 hour seminar on “Buying and Selling in Our Marketing”. Or, spend an hour or two sharing information on the $8000 tax credit, what a buyer must know, and tips or things to avoid. Partner with a Home Stager, and present info on “Getting the Best Price for Your Home”. Any topic that you frequently get questions on from clients is a great place to start.

If you have a particular area of expertise, you may be able to speak to specialty groups, vendors or other real estate professionals. This is a great way to get known for being the “Go-to Guy (or gal)” for that particular subject.

And the beauty of speaking is that as you’re providing quality information, local people in your community get exposed to your name, your level of expertise, and make that personal connection to you. So even if they aren’t quite ready to buy, or are already working with an agent, they can tell their friends and family about the great seminar you lead, and provide referrals as well.

This works best without any kind of hard sales pitch at the end. Simply showcase your knowledge, and the people that need your expertise will seek you out.

So check out John’s post, and see if you can put together a speaking opportunity for yourself.

Technorati Tags: Rich Rogala, online real estate marketing coach, speaking opportunities to build real estate referrals, how to generate real estate leads