Ready to become a top producing real estate agent? Join us as we talk with Super Agent Josh Hisaw on how to build a business independent of market conditions, how to do proper marketing and why investing in yourself is crucial for success.
Josh got into the market in 2008, the worst possible time. To add to his terrible luck, he was also going through a divorce. Yet, at a time where many agents lost all their business and left the market, Josh thrived. Today, he’s grown his company to a team of 6 that closed 158 transactions in 2013, equivalent to $25 million dollars.
How To Build A Consistent Business
Depending on the time of year, agents usually love or hate real estate. In order to always be happy, and grow your business to new heights, you need to find ways to have steady consistent business. Josh offers the following advice to do just that:
1. Stand out: Everyone and their uncle is a real estate agent today, which means it isn’t hard for a seller to find someone. Stand out from the crowd with a unique value proposition you can offer your sellers above anyone else. For Josh it’s, “We will sell your house in 45 days or less or we will pay your mortgage until it’s sold.”
2. Follow The Money: A lot of agents work for works sake, and never end up making any money. The only thing you should be focusing on as an agent is the things that make you money: marketing, and signing listing/purchasing agreements. Everything else can and should be delegated.
3. Get An Assistant (or Agent): Josh credits hiring an assistant as soon as he entered the market as the smartest thing he ever did. That’s because extra hands let you focus on building your future business without sacrificing the attention your current clients deserve. Josh’s first assistant was able to take clients through the closing process while he found new business. Today he’s got buyer agents (who cost no money, by the way) and multiple staff.
4. Find The Right Market: It is true that everyone needs to buy a home, but that doesn’t mean every market is great for a real estate agent. Instead of entering into a market you like or know well, find one that makes logical business sense. For Josh, any given farm must have at least a thousand homes and have a market turnover of at least 6%.
- Know Your Numbers: Having data is crucial for building a consistent business, and the reason for choosing a market with the aforementioned criteria. Once you get started with marketing, you will be able to know how many listings you can get from appointments, how many should sell and how many will fail to close. This helps you have more fun in your business and tweak your systems accordingly.
How To Market Like A Millionaire Agent
Marketing- everyone does it, but few do it right. Here’s how you can market like a millionaire agent:
1. Have a plan: Agents send 1 postcard out every few months and call it ‘marketing’. That’s not going to cut it; you need to have a marketing plan you can consistently work on. With mailers, that could be creating a multi-postcard series with call-to-actions to be sent out every week to a different lead source.
2. Give it time: Majority of the people who read or hear your marketing material for the first time are not going to contact you. They don’t know you and are often very busy. But that doesn’t mean your material doesn’t work. To really benefit from any marketing campaign, Josh recommends running them for at least 6 months.
- Focus On What Works: Every market has different lead segments. Test them all out and double down on what works. For Josh, that is targeting more expired and FISBOs in 2014 through Direct Mail and Radio. If you think you and your team have what it takes to dominate with radio, apply here.
Personal Development: The Secret Ingredient
Personal development is the #1 thing every real estate agent should be focusing on. It’s free and easily accessible to everyone. At any given brokerage, top realtors most likely have mentors or work on themselves, while the remainder do not. Josh credits a mentor and personal development for helping him enter the market on day one with a strong plan and appropriate mindset. Today, Josh is investing in himself once again by working with a hiring coach to help his team beat 160 transactions.
Best Books For Agents
No B.S. Direct Marketing by Dan Kennedy
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