Real estate is a difficult market to master and there’s more competition than ever. The key to outlasting your competition and becoming one of the top of your field is to not only master the industry and the fine details of selling real estate to prospective clients, but to masters the more minute components of any small or large business.
There are multiple things each successful entrepreneur does every day which puts them at an advantage of helps them overcome many of their more tiring and time-consuming obstacles. You must treat your real estate practice as a time-intensive and delicate business, taking each day at a time and facing the challenges presented head-on.
There are steps you can take such as hiring an assistant for yourself and living each day without fear of failure. If you want to learn other keys to success and how to be a successful real estate agent, read this comprehensive guide to succeeding in business and other areas of your life.
The real estate market has grown substantially in the last several years. There are now more than two million real estate licensees in the United States alone, meaning anybody currently in the industry or just entering needs a way to stand out in the crowd.
With this level of competition, it can feel impossible to stand out and separate yourself from the crowd, but it’s more than possible, though it will take an understanding of the market and the different methods for garnering attention and growing any business. Read ahead to learn how you can stand out in the crowd and grow your real estate business in 2021 and beyond.
Focus Your Time Wisely
Focusing and organizing are two of the greatest assets you can have for yourself in any type of business. The key to organizing is to prioritize, rearranging your tasks in such a way that you can accomplish what most matters first and leave other tasks for the end of the day.
Real estate agents are usually swamped with work and spend much of their time away from their desk, meaning prioritizing their time is one of the strongest advantages they can have. There are multiple tools online to help you prioritize and use your time more wisely, including cutting out distractions. Tools like these, such as Trello, are easy to access and usually completely affordable, if not simply free.
Utilize E-Mail
E-mail is one of the most undervalued but important components to any great business. E-mail is so important because it’s often the form of communication which attracts the most eyes and responses. Businesses which use e-mail are far more likely to receive a response from their clients than those who don’t.
It’s most important to e-mail prospective clients who aren’t sure about working with you and need to be nudged in one direction quickly or directly. Don’t ignore your leads or assume they’ll work with you because they’re on the fence; take some time to push them over the edge and guarantee their business.
Invest in an Assistant
The real estate business is a busy and cluttered profession, so it’s only natural that you don’t have the time or energy to do everything for yourself. If you find yourself in this position, it’s never too late to hire an assistant. Having an assistant will greatly reduce the burden of day to day minutia and help you organize your time and clients in a more efficient way.
Assistants will let you breathe and relax so the stress doesn’t pile up in your mind as well, giving you some critical peace of mind. In today’s climate, there’s more than one type of assistant as well. If you don’t have the funds or requirements for a full-time assistant, you can hire a part-time or virtual assistant to plug the holes where necessary.
Stop Doubting Yourself
Unbelievably, fear of failure is actually the number one fear of Americans at the moment. More poignant than the fear of death or, in the past, the fear of public speaking, most Americans are simply afraid that they might not live up to their own or others’ expectations. In short, this is a perfectly natural fear to have, but it’s also extremely counterproductive and toxic to your success as an independent entrepreneur.
The key for any businessman or businesswoman is to look fear and doubt straight in the eye and wipe them aside. If need be, you can also find yourself a great mentor who can encourage you and give you pointers you need when trying to make critical decisions for yourself and your practice.
Ask for Referrals
Real estate is all about referrals. It’s been estimated that nearly eighty percent of a real estate agent’s business comes from referrals, which means they’re absolutely critical to your practice and your current and continuous success. If you want to advance to the next level of your career and capture more of the market, you need to work on asking and gaining referrals with current and past clients.
There are a variety of ways to rack up a great number of referrals: you can offer gifts, add a section for referrals on your website, and use specially branded materials to make it easy for others to refer to you. You can always test these and more ideas to garner the referrals you need to stay one step ahead of the competition in your industry.
Social Media is Your Friend
Any small business today needs social to live and thrive. Social media is the lifeblood of businesses both large and small because it allows them to reach an expanded audience and engage with that audience in ways which were not possible just ten to twelve years ago. Real estate agents are no exception to this drawing power of platforms such as Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. Take full advantage of your social media platforms by giving live video tours of some of the houses you’re trying to sell and staying in touch with current and past clients.
The more successful you are in getting your name and brand out to the public, the more successful your practice will be. You can also run incredibly cheap ads on social media platforms and attract eyes using any number of social platforms. Social media isn’t going away any time soon and it’s never too late to get into the social media game.
Always Be Scouting
Successful small business owners are not so different from successful real estate agents. Each must be constantly on the lookout for the next big trend and hop aboard people’s thoughts and feelings at every available opportunity. In your downtime, you could always be analyzing trends that are already taking place in your area or just starting to form.
Keep tabs on what’s happening within your local community and gauge for yourself where people want to live and what they’re looking for in a home. In the tastes and interests of homeowners are in constant flux and keeping up with this information is a great way to get a fresh start on your selling efforts. You can also pay attention to your own long-term goals and develop a plan based around your current and future success.
Start a Blog
Much like social media, blogging is incredibly important to the health and longevity of many businesses, both large and small. Blogs are so important because they allow you to form connections with consumers and the greater community around you. A great blog is a spectacular way to illustrate your knowledge of the industry and show people you’re a trustworthy and primary source of information.
If you don’t have the time to write every day, you can always hire outside help. No matter who’s writing, blogs are incredibly important for building relationships and fostering a sense of trust between you and the people of your community. Many businesses nowadays rely on blogs and you can always make yours one of the best in the industry.
Work on Your Branding
In today’s age, there’s no substitute for great marketing and visual branding. You may be one of the best in your industry, but customers will truly start taking notice if you wow them with flashy visuals and a great logo and name. Branding and marketing is a bit more complicated and involved in the real estate sphere than most industries, but there’s plenty of room and methods to gain attention, both online and with those who are talking to you at your physical office location.
You can start by upgrading the visuals of the houses you’re trying to sell and listing as much information as possible about yourself and your experience in social media spheres. There should be no cap you impose on yourself in terms of how much information you share with past and current clients.
