With over 2 million real estate agents according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR), becoming a successful real estate agent takes more than just a license and a knowledge of current laws and regulations. The first year drop out range estimated to be from 40% to 80% demonstrates that many real estate agents are not as successful as they could be and research suggests that 90% give up after 3 years. The following 7 tips may help you avoid becoming one of these statistics.
1. First and Foremost YOU are a business.
Real estate agents work for a broker, but are independent, commissioned sales people. This means that you are a small business and must run your practice as a business. Again, remember you are a small business owner.
2. Embrace a Planning Attitude If you don’t have a plan, then you are on some else’s plan – usually the successful real estate agent. Most people place more value in planning a trip to the grocery store or a vacation than planning their lives either professionally or personally.
3. Research Your Market Plan Since you as the real estate agent are responsible for your own expenses, do your research specific to your marketing plan within your strategic plan. Time spent in constructing your marketing plan is definitely well spent. NOTE: Remember a business plan usually is data driven, while a strategic plan identifies who does what by when.
4. Establish Sales Goals Using your strategic plan, establish sales goals. If you are new to this industry, it may take 6 months before the first sale. HINT: Use the W.H.Y. S.M.A.R.T. criteria for goal setting.
5. Create a Financial Budget Budgeting is critical given the up and down of this volatile market place. Your financial budget should plan for your marketing costs, any additional costs such as education and your forecasted income.
6. Make Managing Yourself a Priority Building a business is not easy. You must learn how to manage yourself especially in the area of time management, ongoing real estate sales training (continuing education units), real estate coaching and personal life balance. Real estate is said to be a 24/7 business much like any small business. However, it is important not to lose sight of your personal life including family, friends, physical health, etc.
7. Find a Mentor or Real Estate Coach Going it alone is not easy. Take the time to find a mentor who can help you steer through some of the known obstacles and help you during the “peaks and valleys.” If you have the resources, you may wish to hire a real estate coach or an executive coach who specializes in small business help.
Being an incredible sales person and entering the real estate market does not guarantee similar success with the real estate market. However, these 7 tips may help you avoid many of the pitfalls by not being one of the four who quit within one year or one of the nine who give up after 3 years.
Top 7 Tips to Real Estate Agents’ Success - To learn more about this author, visit Leanne Hoagland-Smith's Website.
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Leanne Hoagland-Smith
(Visit Leanne's Website)
Are you where you want to be? Are you
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Which of the following would make you more excited about the outlook for a hypothetical real estate market?
