First Tim answered the question- What platforms should I focus on? Tim explained that he wouldadvise to use Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn, but choose to mastereither Facebook OR Twitter. They have very different audiences andlanguage, so choose the one that matches your target audience. Timalso shared why he loves Facebook Live and why any expert, thoughtleader or professional should use it to bring value and build afollowing. The best way to prep for a Facebook Live? Get out anenvelope and write down the top 5 points you would share to helpothers in your industry. Stop making excuses and simply talk aboutthose 5 points.
Tim shared a very simpleframework for the social media landscape
Facebook - people who know youalready
Twitter - people who need toknow you
LinkedIn- people you need toknow
So if you’re looking to usesocial media to generate leads, you start with your friends andfamily, which means inviting them to Like your Facebook page, andask them to invite their friends. Then use Twitter for building anetwork of people who don’t know you but volunteer to follow you.Then you use LinkedIn to follow thought leaders who have their ownfollowers
You’ll also learn:
A simple structure for socialmedia newbies
How to use simple apps to growyour Twitter following and then bring them to Facebook
How to use LinkedIn to connectwith industry thought leaders
How to be short andvaluable
Why you shouldn’t try somethingonce and abandon it
“If you’re new to social media,”Tim explained, “think of Facebook as the place where peoplewho know you gather and are looking to you forinformation.”
Resources & Tools
Crowdfire - https://www.crowdfireapp.com/
As Tim said, if you have aset-it-and-forget-it mentality, you will lose. If you put outcontent people will expect you to engage with them consistently.Set aside at least an hour a day to invest in social media, andexperiment till you find something you can run with.
Click here to download your free PDF, Greg’sFavorite Scripts, featuring scripts for buyer and seller leadfollow up, price reduction and objection handler scripts and muchmore.
We start with how to handlebuyers making a low dollar offer on a million-dollar listing, andJosh explained that he’s learned to remove the emotion from thedeal. It’s all about the numbers and taking every offer seriously,even ones that seem insulting at first. Then we answer a questionon how to use CRM systems to text prospects, Josh shared how histeam uses Big Purple Dot to send 600 video texts per day, and howhis team texts through the CRM so everything is tracked and linkedto the prospects.
Then we dig into how Josh run his Facebook lead generationsystem, from the overall process from the user’s perspective, tothe creative that goes into his ads to create curiosity and get aprospect to take action. Josh finds about 10% of people that clickthrough from Facebook will opt-in on his site, which he considers a“lead.”
You’ll also learn:
Then we go over Josh’s Mega OpenHouse strategy, which they use to sell 30 homes per month, almost50% of their business. “You must learn to become brilliant at thethings you can control,” Josh explained, “the marketplace will notaccept average.” So Josh focused on the factors of an Open Housethat he controls:
Josh also shared how he handles the knee-jerkobjection from Open House visitors that they already have an agent.He explained that most agents don’t follow up, so he doesn’t handlethese visitors any differently than if they don’t have an agent. Hetours them through the home, attempts to collect their informationat registration and then puts them into his funnel. Superior followup over time will beat virtually every other agent.
Resources & Tools
Big Purple Dot - Real Estate CRMsystem Josh and his team currently use
LionDesk - Another real estateCRM Josh recommends http://www.liondesk.com/
PerfectStormNow.com - JoshuaSmith’s CRM product http://perfectstormnow.com/
If you’re looking to take yourbusiness to a new level, Facebook and Open Houses are leadgeneration sources you have absolute control over and can master atlittle to no cost. Then you can add paid Facebook ads to the mix toreally put your lead gen into overdrive. Be brilliant at the thingsyou control!
Joshua Smith is thefounder/owner of Revisto Real Estate Group in the greater Phoenixarea. A serial entrepreneur and one of the top 30 Realtors in thecountry, Josh has built a powerhouse team by coaching agents tomaximize their production. Josh is also part-owner of the upcomingreal estate lead gen system Perfect Storm. Connect with Josh andsend referrals to his team in Phoenix by emailing Joshua@revistorealestate.comand learn about Perfect Stormat http://perfectstormnow.com/.
Click here to download your free PDF, Greg’sFavorite Scripts, featuring scripts for buyer and seller leadfollow up, price reduction and objection handler scripts and muchmore.
We start with a question about dealing with low inventory markets, and Greg explained how they actively go after FSBO’s, Zillow Make Me Moves, 6 month old Expired’s and circle prospecting to expose homes that are currently off-market.
Marti explained that their track record and lead gen efforts allows them to focus on taking listings without much adjustment. Marti explained, “We are a listing house. We are the best listing team, we sell more pre-owned homes than any other agent in our market. You gotta have a really big ego to do this. You have to believe that you’re the best.”
Once listed, their priority is then to probe each offer and make sure their seller client is getting the best offer, with the best terms, from the best-qualified and positioned buyer.
Marti shared how her team gives back and builds relationships with local agents with cash giveaway drawings to any agent who does a deal with their team every 3 months.
Then we dive into Marti’s story, beginning with her start in real estate as a single mother of three, to her shifting focus to listings and starting to build her team. Marti explained that she started to invest in herself with training and coaching which helped position her for the next jump.
What really exploded her listings and allowed her to dominate her market was the addition of radio advertising. Marti became a member of RATE group which helps agents leverage radio to generate listings. Marti runs a combination of One Minute Real Estate Updates, short spots and testimonials on country and talk radio stations that have loyal listeners. Marti shared, “We keep up on our success stories and we try to promote them everywhere. I think 5 years from now people will decide if they’re going to do business with you based on your reviews.”
We also cover how Marti’s team uses personal gift and videos to position the seller before the listing appointment. Marti and her team have shot 20+ videos on varying topics for sellers and about their team, and her listing agents choose the most applicable for each potential seller client, which takes the place of a pre-listing packet.
We finish up by going into how Marti developed her Coming Soon Homes platform and how she uses it in her market to build demand for Open Houses and set herself apart from every other agent. This platform allows both agents and buyers to see homes that Marti’s team is about to bring to market, and captures leads for her team as well. Marti is about to open up her local site to other agent’s listings, making her site the main destination for this information in her market, further entrenching her team as the dominant listing team.
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If you’re looking to separate your team and
dominate the listings in your market, this is a must-listen
episode. Marti has set the standard and continues to innovate with
her Coming Soon Homes platform, which may evolve into a way for
sellers to find their listing agent online.
Marti Hampton is the broker/owner of one of the top RE/MAX teams in the world, finishing #5 worldwide. Marti is also the founder of Coming Soon Homes, an online service that provides pre-market information to both agents and buyers on homes prior to hitting the MLS. To send referrals to Marti’s team in Raleigh/Durham area, contact her via email at marti@martihampton.com and learn more about Coming Soon Homes at http://comingsoonhomes.com/.
Click here to download your free PDF, Greg’s Favorite Scripts, featuring scripts for buyer and seller lead follow up, price reduction and objection handler scripts and much more.
We start with a few pointers on Facebook Live, which Greg is experimenting with in his local area with good success. One great tip is to choose a time to consistently broadcast live, then let people know when you’ll be broadcasting so they can join you.
Next Jeff kicks off our segment on Craigslist posts, currently their #2 top-producing source of online leads. Jeff shared how they outsource Craigslist posting for only $175/mo and it generates hundreds of leads and 60 deals for their team in 2015. As strange as it may sound, even though Craigslist took away the option to put live, clickable links in a post, this strategy still works. Simply direct people to the plain-text link, and people will copy/paste it into a browser. The result is eye-popping 18% conversion of click-to-lead ratio. In other words, if you’re willing to copy and paste a link into a new browser, you’re more likely to register to continue searching.
As Jeff points out, stay ethical and only post in the Offered-by-Broker section of real estate. His team treats Craigslist leads the same as any other buyer lead and converts them at the same rate.
Next we go into Facebook boosted posts, which has become one of the team’s lowest cost source of leads, and among the top 4 lead sources overall. Jeff’s agents post their new listings, fun searches or neighborhood-searches as posts, then boosts the posts with $5, $10 or $20 to Friends-of-Friends or demographic groups they want to target. The posts are dead simple, sending people to Jeff’s Boomtown site where they register to continue searching for homes. Jeff’s agents then follow up like any other lead.
Jeff shared his Boomtown dashboard showing his lead sources for the past 30 days, in which Facebook accounted for 2500 website visits and over 100 leads.
We finish up by talking about Jeff’s highest-dollar value activity, going on listing appointments, and how he structures it so he passes the listing off to an agent and keeps 75%. Jeff also shares how he keeps in touch with his database through video marketing, and how he keeps an eye on what other agents are talking about to get ideas for his videos.
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Hopefully these tips inspire and equip you to try things like Craigslist posts, boosting posts on Facebook and publishing your own video blog. Just remember, nothing substitutes for real follow up, both by phone and in person!
Jeff Cohn is the founder of Omaha’s Elite Real Estate Group, Nebraska’s #1 selling team, and President of Elite Real Estate Systems, which has expansion teams in 4 cities around the country. Click here to learn more about Jeff’s Team Building Workshops or connect with Elite Real Estate Systems on Facebook.
Click here to download your free PDF, Greg’s Favorite Scripts, featuring scripts for buyer and seller lead follow up, price reduction and objection handler scripts and much more.
We start with a quick question on Zestimates and how Todd got into a Twitter war with Zillow CEO Spencer Rascoff. Todd pointed out that the Zestimate was about 60% high on Rascoff’s own house in Seattle, which recently sold for 700,000 below the Zestimate. Todd also answered the question of how a buyer agent should look out for in a short sale situation, explaining that patience and short sale experience is the key.
Then Todd shared how he stumbled onto the short sale/foreclosure market through a chance opportunity to be an expert witness. He gave a Broker Price Opinion in a bankruptcy case. Todd asked who would get the listing, and the attorney explained that banks have lists of preferred agents, so Todd doubled down and spent 6 months finding every bank in the US and getting on their lists. Todd also cold called agents who sold REO, went to every conference and joined every group, so he was ready when the REO market exploded.
The growth was so quick that Todd scrambled to create the systems to handle this growth, eventually growing to over 600 listings and 120 agents working the leads and listings. Those systems also helped get more systematic and more experienced, so even as the REO market declined, Todd’s team can head off problems before they come up. “It was nice to have 60, 70 closings a month, but payroll was over $100k a month,” Todd explained. “I was very fortunate, I was in the right place at the right time, but I did the right things to put myself there.”
Next we dug into Todd’s background in video blogging. Todd was one of the first to use a Flip cam to record educational videos for his database. He shared where he gets his topic ideas, how he systematized the process, and the results of video blogging. Todd can directly attribute over 130 deals to leads coming from his video blog, which now has over 500 videos.
Then we dive into the app Todd has created in conjunction with Kristian Peter, another former REO mega-agent (and former guest of the show). HomingIn is a crowdsourced home valuation tool consumers use to request real home value estimates from real agents. Consumers request an estimate, which then pings all agents in the area, allowing them to submit a home value estimate with reasons, request pictures from the homeowner, and set themselves apart for other agents.
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HomingIn is in the early stages, so get in on the ground floor and try it out. It has great potetial to take off and become a go-to platform for sellers to find listing agents online. And when you spot an opportunity, double down and put everything you have to establish yourself in that niche.
Todd Miller is a top listing agent in Las Vegas specializing in Fannie Mae properties, and together Todd and his wife have sold over 3000 homes. Todd is a former #1 worldwide agent for KW, at one point carrying 600+ listings and working with 120 agents. Todd also runs a popular real estate video blog to which he directly attributes at least 130 transactions. Connect with Tood and check out his video blog at toddmillertv.com. Be sure to download the HomingIn app on the Apple App Store, or learn more about the app at homingin.co.
Click here to download your free PDF, Greg’s Favorite Scripts, featuring scripts for buyer and seller lead follow up, price reduction and objection handler scripts and much more.
We start with a question on the ethics and pros/cons of “coming soon’ listings. Both Greg and Preston agree that there’s nothing wrong morally or ethically in promoting the listing in advance. As long as you’re doing your fiduciary duty of attempting to get the seller the highest price and best terms in the shortest amount of time, there should be no issue with coming soon marketing.
Then we dive into the elements of a great headshot, including:
Timeliness
No obstruction of the eyes
Smile with teeth
Clothing
Preston tested his own headshot using an app called PhotoFeeler, where the public votes on profile photos and gives real feedback you can use to choose your best photos. Check out the app at https://www.photofeeler.com/.
Some of the more surprising results of Preston’s headshot testing were the fact that squinting your eyes helps convey likeability and confidence, and that full body shots were voted very low compared to head-and-shoulders shots. Preston also noted that if you use the PhotoFeeler app, it’s important to wait till you get at least 40 votes before drawing any conclusions.
Preston also shared the early results of interviews he’s conducted with executives and founders of 4 different virtual reality startups. Some of the possibilities include “virtual home tours” where you can view properties in full 3d, tour multiple properties and even make offers without ever setting foot in the home. At the very least it limits the amount of homes an agent has to show in person. However, it also affects the perception of the value of a Realtor, forcing us to explain how our value is in the negotiation and transaction management, not the opening of doors.
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With all the changes coming soon in virtual reality, live video and our entire existence being documented online, it’s important to put your best foot forward. Get comfortable with video, get high quality and effective headshots that convey the right qualities. This allows prospective clients to get comfortable with you in the online world so they’re more likely to contact you and work with you in the real world.
Preston Zeller is a real estate broker in Vancouver, WA in the greater Portland area. Preston comes from a family of real estate entrepreneurs, including builders, developers and investors. Prior to his real estate career, Preston started his own digital marketing consultancy, offering web design, branding and video production. Learn more about Preston at http://prestonzeller.com/ and send referrals to him via email at Broker@PrestonZeller.com.
Click here to download your free PDF, Greg’s Favorite Scripts, featuring scripts for buyer and seller lead follow up, price reduction and objection handler scripts and much more.
We start with a question on how to demonstrate value and maintain your commission with luxury listings. Greg explained how listing presentations need to be customized for luxury clients, how to research them in advance so you know what type of person you’re dealing with. Danny agreed and pointed out an app called Charlie that gives you intelligence on anyone coming up on your calendar to give you common interests and key points from their social media profiles.
Next Danny shared the story of how he transitioned from real estate attorney to licensed agent and how he built his team by continuously getting low value activities off his plate. “That’s the biggest misconception people have is they don’t realize you are a salesperson first, a real estate agent second. So I dove into sales hardcore. I bought every sales book imaginable,” Danny explained. “I know a lot of agents who have the contract memorized but are broke because they have no clients.”
Danny shared why he treats luxury clients the same as any other client, “I think the skills are the same. It’s all about asking great questions.” Danny also explained that some of the best high-dollar referrals have come from lower-end clients.
The systems Danny and his team have built allow them to provide very high levels of client service. “At the end of the day, a system is just a good checklist. So now we have all these 5-star Yelp reviews, and it’s all because our admin people follow the checklist that’s there, and we know that those things work.”
Then we dive into how Danny uses Vyral Marketing, and the Open-and-Click reports from their video emails to their database. Danny’s ISA team makes “customer service” calls to his database based on the response to their emails, looking for people in their database who are thinking of making a move.
We finish by covering Danny’s approach to team building, management and recruiting, and why it’s so important to hire self-managing, self-motivating people.
Resources:
Rocket Fuel -Gino Wickman - Influential book on Danny’s systems-based approach
Basecamp - For running your systems and checklists with your team
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Whether you’re looking to build a dominant real estate team or just want to attract one more client per month, the key is skills and systems. Focus on building your skills, both sales and management, and then create systems so things get done the right way every time.
Danny Batsalkin is the CEO and co-founder of TBG Homes, one of the most successful teams in the Keller Williams network. Danny hosts The Real Estate Zone, a weekly radio show that airs at 7 am on Saturdays on Talk Radio 790 KABC. Danny also trains and coaches real estate agents and is a Certified Trainer for the national bestselling book, The ONE Thing, by Gary Keller and Jay Papasan. Learn more about Danny’s team at https://tbghomes.com/ and send referrals in Bevery Hills or Calabasas via email at dannyb@kw.com or call 310-432-5755 .
Click here to download your free PDF, Greg’s Favorite Scripts, featuring scripts for buyer and seller lead follow up, price reduction and objection handler scripts and much more.
We started with a question on verbiage for listing appointment/consultation. Greg explained why he uses “listing appointment” with himself and his staff, and “listing consultation” with the seller. This helps him think of the appointment as immovable, but less threatening to the seller. Melinda shared why she uses “listing presentation” which sets up the expectations for a sales presentation. We also covered some ideas for marketing a home with a small plane hangar on the property.
Melinda explained some of the keys to her success in 2015, starting with script practice. “One of the things I really focused on this last year was increasing my presentation skills. Really working on my scripts, my objection handlers, knowing the inventory, getting out and previewing properties so I know what I’m presenting. It really makes a difference when you really sound like you know what you’re doing..” She shared her schedule for daily and weekly role play and listing presentation script practice.
“When I first started in this business, I was role playing 2 hours every day,” Melinda said. “I was also practicing all day long on the people I was talking to. They didn’t know I was practicing but I was. In the beginning my closing ratio was maybe 25%, now it’s 85%.”
We also dig into the mechanics of Melinda’s schedule, how she previews 5 homes in an hour, why she still works 10-12 hours a day during the week, and why she raised her minimum buyer standards. She also shared some great tips for door knocking and scheduling. “The key to getting more done is scheduling.” Melinda shared how she holds herself accountable to focus on work during work hours, “I just ask myself, would my client be happy if they knew what I was spending my time on right now?”
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Melinda’s business is a great example of a streamlined rainmaker model, with a support team that plays to her strengths and allows her to focus on new business. In a rainmaker model, increasing your skills, knowledge and client standards are the keys to making more profit. So learn from Melinda’s example, put in the work and you’ll see the results in your business just like Melinda.
Melinda Elmer is ranked among the top 1% of agents in today’s market and works out of Long Beach, CA.. Melinda has consistently been awarded the designation of top buyers agent and top listing agent and she has been recognized for her outstanding achievements by the Women’s Council of Realtors. She is a multi-year recipient of the prestigious Los Angeles Magazine’s Five Star rating. Send referrals in the Long Beach area to melinda@theelmerteam.com or call 562-316-2915.
Click here to download your free PDF, Greg’s Favorite Scripts, featuring scripts for buyer and seller lead follow up, price reduction and objection handler scripts and much more.
We start with the basics of Instagram, including what types of content is most popular, why you should stick with very short videos even though IG raised it’s limit to 60 seconds, and how to find your Facebook friends on IG.
Sarah shared the top three ways Instagram has changed her business:
Sarah explained her strategy behind hashtags, which she breaks into two groups: Hashtags she uses often and funny hashtags. Sarah uses local hashtags to put her posts in front of people looking for real estate, finding the hashtags people are already using and then adding them to your posts.
Focusing on local events and commenting on them using hashtags is a great way to attract more followers. Tagging yourself in specific locations around your city also helps put your posts in front of new potential followers.
On Instagram, interaction is key. Sarah explained that anytime she posts on Instagram, typically once a day, she sets aside the next 15 minutes to interact with people she follows and people using the hashtags she follows. Basically she’s starting conversations with people, who will then check out her profile. Sarah is also careful not to fake-like all people’s recent posts when she starts following them, she prefers a more authentic approach of liking just a few posts.
Then Sarah shared her strategy for mixing personal and business content, why you shouldn’t pay for likes on Instagram, and how to link your IG acct to your Facebook Business page, and why she only boosts non-business posts on Facebook.
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Gary Vaynerchuk says, “One piece of content can change your life” and Sarah is a great example. One short video clip caused her IG account to take off, getting tons of comments and shares from agents around North America. So start sharing pictures and short video clips, interact with people based on local hashtags, and be yourself. You never know when one of your posts will go viral and attract hundreds or thousands of new followers!
Guest Bio- Sarah Johnston is a 10-year veteran Realtor with Maxwell Canyon Creek in Calgary, Alberta. Sarah is a Certified Negotiation Expert, Condominium Specialist, Country Residential and Buyers Representative. To send referrals to Sarah in Calgary, email her at sarah@sarahjohnston.ca or DM her on Instagram, adventuresinrealestateyyc.
Click here to download your free PDF, Greg’s Favorite Scripts, featuring scripts for buyer and seller lead follow up, price reduction and objection handler scripts and much more.
What are the pillars of your business? In our latest interview episode, Justin Woodall shares how he nearly left the business during the recession, why he decided to double down on lead generation, and how he’s built a thriving team on prospecting and referrals.
Takeaways + Tactics
Be client-minded, not commission-minded
Systems are the key to growing your business - every deal is different but your activities are usually the same
Education and follow up the key to converting Expireds - Help them understand the market and their options and then follow up consistently
You have to know that when you do the right thing, when you put the clients first and serve them, that everything will work out just fine. - Justin Woodall
We start with a question from a newer agent on whether they should join a team or stay independent. Justin and Greg agreed that joining a team has advantages but you’re giving up commission, and it’s crucial to understand your niche and what you’re good at.
Next, Justin shared the importance of systems and how they allow him to do 150 deals without sacrificing client service. He explained how he tracks information for listing presentations and has his asst put together a file with all the information he needs for that appointment. Justin also shared his backstory and the structure of his team, including why he hired a second assistant rather than hiring a buyer’s agent as he started to get busier.
Justin explained why he’s hired an ISA to help follow up with leads, the qualities of a successful ISA and how he compensates her. That led Justin to share of his biggest challenges in building a team, “I think hiring the right people is a skill that’s kind of hard to develop. And if you haven’t done it, you don’t have a clue... I’m become a lot more selective on who I bring on my team.”
Then we dive into how Justin holds agents accountable, rewards success, and the metrics they track. Rather than holding a weekly meeting, Justin meets with his team for a 15 minute Daily Huddle and then a larger meeting once a month, which keeps them on track without taking up too much time.
Justin also answered the question, What would you do if you were starting out in the business today? “Get really clear on where you want to be. Do you want to grow your own team, be on a team, what kind of quality of life do you want to have?” We finished by covering how Justin goes after Expired listings and why they are still a pillar of his business.
Justin’s story is a great example of perseverance, investing in yourself through coaching and education, and succeeding through experiments. You’re going to make some mistakes, hire the wrong people, send out the wrong marketing pieces. Focus on giving the best service possible, stay in touch with your database and adjust to the market and you’ll be successful over the long run.
Guest Bio
Justin Woodall is the owner of the Justin Woodall Group with Keller Williams in Athens, GA. Justin’s team consistently ranked in the top 10 teams for the entire Keller Williams Southeast Region for several months in 2015 and continues to grow, selling over 150 homes last year. To send referrals to Justin in the Athens area, email justin@justinwoodall.com and learn more about his team at thejustinwoodallgroup.com.
Click here to download your free PDF, Greg’s Favorite Scripts, featuring scripts for buyer and seller lead follow up, price reduction and objection handler scripts and much more.