The new year offers a great opportunity to rid yourself of bad habits, especially those bad habits that may be putting the kibosh on your sales! A great way to overcome these bad habits, whatever they may be, is to focus on a foundation of success in sales. Build strong relationships, real relationships and serve your customers in a way that no one else can or will. Keep those who support your business coming back and almost more importantly, keep them slinging your name to potential referrals like hotcakes!
Here are a few habits to think about dialing in on in 2019 (Holy shnikies, I can’t believe it’s 2019!)
Speak Less, Listen MORE
As Aaron Burr told Hamilton in Hamilton: The Musical, “talk less….smile more!”
If you want to be more calculated and deliberate about compelling someone to do business with you instead of the other 2300 Realtors in EP, remember that God gave you only one mouth, but TWO ears! There is a reason for this! The art of helping another person starts by making the conversation about the OTHER PERSON, not ourselves. The amount of time talking vs. listening should be proportionate to our ear to mouth ratio! Listen 2X as much as you talk, it will pay dividends. Trust me, I’m a professional…
Add Value, then add more…
When you have an appointment scheduled, do your research. Google or search the person on Facebook. What are their hobbies, what are their interests? Knowing a little about someone will go a long way in growing that relationship genuinely and quickly, leading to sales more often than not. When you can find the need and fill it, you are instantly adding value. This could be as simple as introducing someone to a new restaurant that fits their tastes or as complicated as helping them strategize for long term financial goals using real estate. Either
way, if you aren’t adding value, you’re just sucking the life out of your “relationship”.
Follow up, follow up, FOLLOW UP!!
As a recovering Realtor, I can tell you that we all fail miserably when it comes to follow up. 90% of all hombuyers/sellers would use the same Realtor again if they could. Less than 20% do. Why? Because following up is hard and Realtors are busy trying to chase the next deal and less concerned about the one they just closed and understandably so. Bills don’t pay themselves! The agents that master the art of f/u KILL IT. The ones that don’t will soon be going back to work at the outlet mall. Selling real estate isn’t easy money, so following up isn’t easy. Also, just a heads up, mastering the lost art of the hand written note will catapult your follow up game. There is always a reason to follow up. Pro Tip: use Lone Star Agent Marketing materials, they’re easy and customizable. Oh, and they add value!
“Saying Hello doesn’t have an ROI. It’s about building relationships.”
-Gary V.
Here is to an amazing 2019!