There are many benefits to why many people want to join the real estate business. As a real estate agent, you work on your own time, connect with important people, and make good money. Not to mention that you become your boss and can take a vacation whenever you want.
Sounds interesting, right?
However, making money in real estate is never easy. The real estate business is very competitive and huge. The only way to make money in this industry is by employing the right business strategies.
I know you are asking yourself this question: How do I become a successful real estate agent? Don’t worry. Follow these business strategies and start making money within a few months!
Let’s get Started!
1. Have a Business Plan
A real estate agent needs a good business plan. You need to set goals and objectives as a new or veteran agent. Ask yourself this question: What do I want to achieve in this business?
If your main goal of venturing into real estate is making money, then you need to make monetary goals. Set the number of deals you want to complete by the end of a month or year. Also, write down the number of successful client connections you want to establish in the same period.
On the list, add the number of social events that you wish to attend to recruit new customers.
You can include as many goals as possible in your business plan. However, these goals should be measurable and set within a specific timeframe. In doing so, you can track whether you are making positive steps or not.
Besides business goals, add the following as part of your business plan:
- Mission statement
- Marketing and advertising strategies
- Competition
- Strengths and weaknesses
- Sales strategies
A comprehensive business plan helps you to make the right decisions and adopt the right strategies for building your real estate business.
2. Build a Strong Personal Brand
Successful agents have good reputations and strong brands. These two attributes are built through trust and reliability.
Can your clients rely on you to help them? Do you inspire confidence in your customers? Ask yourself these questions.
Real estate agents are seen as reliable only if they are well-informed. Simply, real estate agents must know almost everything that is happening in real estate.
For example, let’s say a client wants to buy a house. Before buying, they expect you to tell them about the newly built houses’ location, prices, amenities, and so on.
Trust is a vital part of the real estate business. Every property buyer wants to work with an agent they can trust. Always remember that new clients are only willing to give their money to trusted agents.
Some key factors to improve your image/brand include:
- Good appearances: Always tidy up nicely. Wear good clothing, makeup, and accessories.
- Punctuality: Always be punctual when meeting your clients. No client wants to waste countless hours in an office, restaurant, or golf course waiting for you to show up for a meeting.
- Face-face meetings: New clients usually prefer face-to-face meetings. Make time for them. Do not forget to be courteous and attentive to their specific needs.
3. Network/ Build Relationship
Successful real estate businesses are founded on a strong network of individuals. Therefore, you must connect with many people as possible.
Start connecting with people that are close to you. Connect with family, business associates, friends, former classmates, gym colleagues, and sports team members. Make sure they know what you are doing and be their first “run into” person when they need any information about the real estate business.
These groups will generate leads and bring referrals for your business.
Similarly, expand your network by attending conferences, seminars, and other similar events. By appearing in social events, you are more likely to meet new people who can become future customers. In addition, you get a chance to associate with fellow real estate agents, mentors, and investors. This group will give you much-needed career advice. Like the social network, this professional group has the potential to bring you new customers, through referrals.
4. Cold Calling
Cold calling is one of the old-fashioned ways of actively reaching potential clients. There is a reason why many businesses use cold calling for lead generation and sales increase.
Assume you are a real estate agent building a business from the ground. It is not easy to enroll new clients. In fact, it may take days or months to see a new client walking through your office door. The same thing may happen when your business hits a plateau.
In both situations, cold calling can really help in sales growth. Do you have a list of attorneys, inspectors, contractors, or mortgage bankers you refer your clients to? Call them. They are likely to send new clients your way.
Real estate investors and landlords can also prove resourceful, especially when your well of clients has dried up. When your focus is on sales listing, you can call them. They are often willing to sell their properties at a sniff of any good opportunity.
So, reach out to them.
5. Create a Listing for Home Sellers
Another way to make money in the real estate business is by listing homes on behalf of property sellers. Real estate agents who list properties for sale are called seller agents. Often, these agents work closely with homes and other property sellers. What do they do?
They help sellers identify the right opportunities for selling properties. As a seller agent, your goal is to ensure that the property sellers get a fair value for their assets. Therefore, you will determine the good prices for properties on behalf of the sellers based on market prices.
Source: Buildingbetteragents.com
On top of listing properties, you will help sellers advertise their properties. There are several ways that you can use to drive advertising campaigns. For example, you can publish property listings in newspaper or TV ads.
Real estate marketing also involves photographing properties on sale, preparing flyers and sales signs, and creating a virtual tour.
Besides, a seller agent must ensure that the properties are in the right condition for sale. For example, check for potential broken door handles, tarnished walls, or leaking pipes before taking your client for inspection.
NB: The success of seller agents hinges on their ability to work with an extensive network of property sellers. The larger the portfolio of properties you list, the larger the potential customer base.
6. Gather Knowledge from Mentors and Fellow agents
New real estate agents must learn as much as they can. One of the most effective ways of gathering expertise in real estate is by working with other professionals within your field.
You should know that not all real estate business tricks are learned in school. Beyond book knowledge, there is much to learn about real estate. This is where your mentor or fellow agents come in.
They will help you navigate the challenges you encounter in the business. Besides, they will teach you about the processes and systems they use, for instance, how to inspect properties. Most importantly, they will connect you with fellow clients or professional colleagues by making useful introductions.
NB: Learning in the real estate business never stops. Always be willing to learn new skills.
7. Develop Strong Interpersonal Skills
Real estate agents spend most of their time speaking with different people. Hence, a real estate agent needs to be a good speaker.
Property buyers are attracted to agents that are willing to listen to their needs. Most importantly, those that show deep concern for their needs.
Similarly, fellow agents or landlords prefer people they can easily talk with. Hence, always be friends with them. Don’t forget they are the primary source of your referrals.
People who love to talk will surely have an easy time interacting with clients, fellow agents, or property owners.
Nevertheless, if you are not a good speaker, you can improve your communication skills using these tips:
- Keeping eye contact: Always look directly at the person you are conversing with. Don’t shift your eyes sideways. Your client will have the impression that you are disinterested or hiding something. Instead, maintain eye contact and show concern for the client’s needs.
- Being a good listener: Give your clients or colleagues a chance to express their ideas or opinions. Every person appreciates being listened to.
- Asking questions: Asking questions is a good way to seek clarity. If there is a part of the client’s requests you don’t understand, don’t shy away from seeking further clarification.
In summary, good communication skills foster strong business relationships. Ultimately, they contribute to the success of your real estate business.
8. Advance your Education in Real Estate
Currently, many universities and colleges offer basic and advanced real estate courses. If you don’t have background education in real estate, you can enroll in these schools for a diploma, certificate, or degree program in real estate. You can take physical or online classes depending on your work schedule.
Source: Shutter.com
A diploma or degree is not mandatory for you to become a real estate agent. Nevertheless, having a professional course in real estate or related areas such as law, business, marketing, or law isn’t a bad idea.
You can learn about the real estate market’s laws and regulations, valuation, and investment through formal education. Besides, diving deeper into books allows you to become an expert in analyzing dynamic market changes within the real estate industry.
The competition also becomes less stiff.
Usually, educated real estate agents are more successful than those who are not. Besides, new clients will always prefer estate agents with some form of formal education.
9. Choose a Unique Niche
Choose niches that are unpopular to minimize the competition. Don’t run into listing new homes for “newlywed couples” or “starting a family” type. Instead, focus on other areas that are not saturated with many agents.
For example, you can choose to work on selling expired listings, auctioned homes, or luxury properties. Despite these niches being popular, they are not saturated with agents. As a result, the competition is less stiff.
It is simple. The lesser the competition within your area of specialization, the higher the chances you have for making more money. Unique niches will help you realize exactly that.
10. Adopt the Right Technological Tools for Marketing
Your ability to choose the right technological tools for marketing determines your success as a new real estate agent. There are many marketing methods that you can adopt to reach your target audience. However, having a strong social media influence and a website tops it all.
Advertise your real estate across multiple social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. Engage your audience with regular and high-quality posts about your business.
If you lack the expertise or time to manage your social media platforms, you can consult a marketing firm to do that.
Source: Businesslinecompany.com
Similarly, a website boosts your marketing plans. Many home buyers usually search for homes online before making a purchasing decision.
Therefore, as a real estate agent, you must be present in the online space. One of the simplest ways of doing that is by creating a website. A website is an attractive way to build awareness, prove credibility, and generate leads. Get help building your real estate website here.
Final Thoughts
A real estate agent is a lucrative career worth exploring. There are countless benefits you can enjoy from becoming a real estate agent. Nonetheless, you must put in a lot of time and effort before witnessing the fruits of this business.
