Change happens – how to deal with it

Change is a fact of your business life and how you handle it will determine your success or failure. In my Coaching Tip today let’s talk about change and what you can do to make it work for you.

Staying relevant is key, and you do that by keeping current with changes in the marketplace, the industry and the world. Often you can influence change, whilst other things are out of your control. Especially in our current global climate the uncertainty of what will happen next can be daunting, for your clients and your business. What you can control is the way you work and the service you provide.

You create your own vision for what you want to do and where you want to be, but how far ahead are you projecting? What kind of framework have you built to get there, step by step? You should be looking 25 years ahead, which seems like a long time, but here’s how that works: Take your age and add 25 years to it. When you are that age, where do you want to be in your life? Once you envision this fully you can begin to build a framework to take you there. It becomes less about what you want to achieve and more about what’s really important to your life. You’ll make better decisions once you understand the core essence of what it is you really want to do.

Once you establish that vision for your life and take control of your actions going forward, then the chaos and upheaval around you doesn’t matter. Living your life with purpose and direction is what’s most important. Changes become opportunities for growth, progression and success. You can decide how to change the way you prospect, work with customers, and advance your business. And you can decide for yourself whether you’re going to drive change or it’s going to drive you.

I hope you’ve enjoyed today’s Coaching Tip, and I look forward to seeing you here again next week.

Ep 63 – Putting On Your First Assistant

In this High Performance Podcast for Real Estate Agents Josh Phegan and Alexander Phillips talk about putting on your first assistant They start with limiting beliefs and how to let go of those tasks you shouldn’t be doing. Alexander stresses good training from the start and hiring the right people for your organization, and Josh advises setting expectations from day one. Josh talks about advancing an assistant’s skills and Alexander describes his timelines for employee career growth.
Josh notes that your agency should reflect your client demographic and that should influence your choice of talent. Alexander adds the value of giving your people more responsibility and opportunities to learn through failure.

Perfecting the List to Launch

There are several ways to sell a property and today I’m going to talk about perfecting the list to launch process. The key is to do what’s best for your client, help them make the tough decisions, and make their experience as stress-free and profitable as possible.

I want you to realize that once you list a property to the major real estate websites you’ve lost your leverage for negotiation, so don’t rush the process. Make the most of the time you have before listing to identify and remove anything that might delay completing a transaction. Start the process early to give you more time to sort things out. This also allows you to handle more listings more thoroughly, and avoid rework or delays.

Consider things you can take care of ahead of time like legal forms and contracts, photos, renovations and presentation. Prepare to go to market, but get some prospective buyers to see the property before you list. Make a “buy here first” list of people who have recently missed out on a property, have recently made offers on other homes, or need to move out of their current home soon. Those emotional buyers are ready to buy. Do some compression selling by letting them see each other so they know they have competition. Now when you list someone is going to make an offer. Then you can decide whether sale or auction is the best way to go. Do what’s best for the owner, and set the property up for success.

Work towards perfecting your list to launch by reducing your overall days on market, building social proof with signboards and sold stickers, and providing exceptional customer service that gets you referrals.

I hope you’ve enjoyed today’s Coaching Tip, and I look forward to seeing you here again next week.

Succession Planning

Nobody likes to think about it, but if you’re building a valuable legacy business it’s important to plan for passing the baton to a new leader. In my Growth, Leadership and Management tip today I’m talking about succession planning, what it looks like and when to do it.

It’s always important to bring the best talent possible into your business, knowing from the start that one day they may have top positions in your business. Career progression planning has to be part of your vision, and nurturing your future leadership is necessary from the start. Be thinking 5 years ahead, 10 years ahead, and plan for new people coming in along the way.

Some of your people will be with you awhile and then move on to other agencies, or even start their own office. The people in your business who might one day want to take it over need to be able to plan for that and build the assets to be able to do it. If you want that to happen you need to build a business with an income stream, and you have to make an investment in your people.

Reward is part of the succession plan, but it must be earned. When you pass your business to a new agent that person needs to have earned that ownership. And the business they step into needs a solid property management division and a balanced sales division to ensure that steady stream of income. You have to build value intentionally, and that includes the quality of your team.

Succession planning involves a lot of tough questions about when to bring in new people, how their career progression should proceed, what skills they need to contribute, and how to nurture your upcoming leaders. The Josh Phegan Company is here to help you with all those important choices.

I hope you’ve enjoyed this Growth, Leadership and Management tip, and I look forward to seeing you here again next month.

Ep 62 – Shifting to a Higher Price Point

This High Performance Podcast for Real Estate Agents features Josh Phegan and Alexander Phillips on how to handle the shift upward to handling higher price points. Having confidence in your systems and processes is Alexander’s first point, followed by hunger and motivation. Josh notes that higher-end clients are actually easier to work with, and Alexander elaborates on what they really look for in an agent. They discuss anticipating the client’s needs and being ready to present great ideas before they ask.

Josh notes negotiation points and Alexander adds that thinking of percentage rather than cash is helpful for agents new to dealing in that higher price range. They end on gaining confidence and social proof as you progress upward.

Sell Every Property You Take to Market

The thing that makes an agent great is understanding what it takes to sell every property you take to market. It’s more than photographing homes, working opens and showing up to auctions. In my Coaching Tip today I’m talking about being in control of timing and process, and making the most of your opportunities whilst you have them.

Build and use your buyer hit list. Those buyers who lost out on a property with you before are motivated to win the next one. But you want to get them through the home before it goes live, because once that listing hits the major real estate websites you’ve lost your negotiation power. Present the home beautifully and, more importantly, present the desired lifestyle that home represents.

Use a little compression selling to raise the buyer’s sense of competition and fear of missing out again. If they make that early offer you’re ready to negotiate. Then you need to decide whether to sell prior, go forward into the marketplace, or go to auction to get the best price possible. That decision needs to be made on a case-by-case basis. Your ability to make the right decision consistently and quickly, and sell every property you take to market, will make you a great and in-demand agent.

I hope you’ve enjoyed today’s Coaching Tip, and I look forward to seeing you here again next week.

Ep 61 – Becoming a Great Re-order Business

In today’s High Performance Podcast for Real Estate Agents Josh Phegan and Alexander Phillips focus on becoming a successful re-order business. They tell how they’ve each handled some properties 2 or more times by taking care of past clients and maintaining those relationships over time. Josh notes the need for consistency, and Alexander talks about contacting the people you know near every new listing and Josh notes how that can lead to a zero-competition listing. Alexander lists some advantages of being the known agent and trusted advisor, and Josh advises being a great connector of people.

Josh tells why you want to list some properties in the aspirational price range, and how being a full-service firm changes the way you run your business. Remember each customer is 4-dimensional and thus a potential repeat client.

The Fundamentals that Count

What you’re doing right now will determine how well you do in the months ahead. It all comes down to being great at the fundamentals that count, and in my Coaching Tip today I’ll show you what you need to focus on most.

The best barometer to your success is the number of appointments you meet each month. I want you to look at your diary for the past month. Have you been as busy as you thought you were? Probably not. Set a goal now to book 3 appointments per day, and categorize them so you can track their effectiveness.

I use codes to track how many bar appointments (BAP), listing appointments (LAP) and market appraisals (MAP) I do each month. If you keep a digital diary you can search those items easily. Tracking your numbers of appointments this way allows you to see how they directly affect your listings, sales and income. And that impacts your results for months to come.

Think of it this way: If you’re having trouble just getting face to face with customers, who is going to want to use you as their agent? Don’t just focus on dollar productive appointments because you’ll miss out on opportunities for generating referrals, building relationships and being the trusted advisor people come to when they’re ready to buy or sell property. Of the fundamentals that count, those 3 appointments a day are crucial to your business success.

I hope you’ve enjoyed today’s Coaching Tip, and I look forward to seeing you here again next week.

Ep 60 — Charging What You’re Worth

In this High Performance Podcast for Real Estate Agents Josh Phegan and Alexander Phillips tell how to make sure you’re charging what you’re worth. Discussion begins around how to judge your worth and set your fees accordingly. Alexander cites market share, consistency and results as measurable proof of your expertise. Josh tells how differentiation leverages price, and they discuss knowing where the customer is and what they need to see. Josh describes the fee approximation close, and Alexander tells how he sets his sliding scale fee base. Josh then talks about fee defence, negotiation, and percentage vs. dollar amount.

They discuss the reality that you won’t win every customer. Alexander and Josh list some key actions you can take to secure the listing if at all possible, and points of consideration around how to address the client’s needs.

Your most Important Marketing Tool

Taking care of your customer’s needs is the most important marketing tool you can employ. There’s no competition when you’re the best, and in my Coaching Tip today I’ll show you how to get referrals from satisfied clients by being their best agent.

Cold calling and knocking on doors is harder work and more time consuming than simply providing great service to every client whose property you list. Focus on getting the property prepped and sold quickly, but don’t stop there. Follow up with call-backs at intervals after the sale and make sure your clients feel well taken care of. Every satisfied customer represents at least two future referrals.

Learn to anticipate your customer’s needs before they even know they need you. Start taking care of those details for them right away. Be there to help them with things like insurance, utilities, and mail redirection. Show them you care by delivering six-star service, going above and beyond, and doing what you say you’ll do. Be their trusted advisor and friend in the business and they’ll tell their friends and family good things about you.

Putting yourself in your customer’s place and being there for them really is your best marketing tool and will establish you as the great real estate agent you want to be.

I hope you’ve enjoyed today’s Coaching Tip, and I look forward to seeing you here again next week.