“Strength and growth come only through continuous effort and struggle.”
-Napoleon Hill

We talked about starting a real estate business or increasing your current business to 20 transactions with this post Building a Successful Real Estate Business.

Further we discussed some Activity and Marketing.

Now, let’s grow your business in to an income producing machine!  We’re looking up to 50 transaction per year.

Assumptions:

$185,000 Avg Sale

3% commission side

You want to grow exponentially and are willing to put in the work.

Congratulations you are already getting ahead of a lot of your peers and competition in real estate. You have successfully built a foundation to grow your business to the next stage. Here we will expand on dealing with growth, when to seek help, maximize your ROI with your broker, and your focus on saleable listings.

You are the CEO, and a CEO’s focus is not deal doctoring, it is growing the business, knowing competition, and developing new ideas to work more efficiently and provide more service for your clients and customers.

• Keep your business plan and goals with you at all times.
• Update your business plan monthly, quarterly, annually. Keep your Goal constant, but adapt your approach and activity.
• Continue what you were doing when you got started or grew to 20+ transactions.
• Branding is a must now. Be sure all signs, business cards, postcards, emails, Social Media, etc. are consistent. Do research on the importance of branding for any business. Apply to your real estate business. Leverage your broker branding to your benefit.  Just because you are an independent small business owner doesn’t mean you shouldn’t capitalize on your broker’s brand.
• Have all email signatures for all email accounts the same.
• Identify if your broker can help you get to the next stage in your career. Do they have a vested interest in a “sky’s the limit” approach, or do they cap your commission; therefore, decrease their financial interest past that cap. In business, a cap on your commission = overhead to a broker. Seek brokers that want to help you reach your goals, no matter what.
• Keep building your database. By this time, you have 250 families you can reach out to. Keep making 25 prospecting calls a week. Don’t cheat yourself; you owe it to yourself to keep your pipeline full and busy.
• If you haven’t already, be sure your website is full of information. People want info, and they want it now. Drive traffic to your website via your email signature, target advertising, yard signs, blog, etc.
• Offer market updates, both local and hyperlocal (subdivision) to your COI and clients.
• Look in to Virtual Office Assistants

Develop a process for all aspects of your business including:

• Prospecting – just listed/just sold campaigns, calling the neighbors, Open Houses, Expireds in your area, FSBO’s in your area
• Listening Consultations – use a prelisting packet and deliver prior to your appointment.  Deliver to their work for them with their permission.  Wouldn’t you like to create some buzz when their colleagues ask “Who was that?”
• Buyer Tours and Counseling – Use interview sheets to better qualify buyers from lookers.
• Customer Service and communication with clients/customers – set a schedule and expectations for each client.
• Are you turning down or referring buyers and/or sign calls? Are you having issues scheduling listing appointments for when potential clients want to meet? Time for help.

Hire an assistant

• This is HARD TO LET GO OF SOME CONTROL.
• Set expectations for the Assistant
• Paperwork
• Inspections
• Appraisals
• Compensation – a licensed person is easier to pay on each transaction, instead of hourly/salary.
• Track leads to determine ROI.
• Non-moneymaking activity that you encountered while getting started/administrative work.
• Put together call lists to hold you accountable.
• Set expectations.
• Train them to your systems and encourage them to provide efficiency feedback.
• Be sure they know the importance of your mission and values. Respond in a timely manner. Answer the phone.
• Back you up so you can take a break now and then!

Ground Zero Prospecting Approach – see other posts on prospecting for more info. Turn every listing in to 3 more. Contact Derek for personal coaching on this approach.

• Assist with Customer House Warming parties.
• Expand your Farming efforts and get to know HOA board members.

Buyers’ Agent

• Do you have enough business to get you through lean times?
• How will it affect your time and income to have to train someone else?
• Do you like working with buyers?
• How much time are you spending with buyers that you could be prospecting?

For more ideas or to discuss further, we’d love to hear from you.