Starting out as a real estate agent is difficult, no matter what market you’re kick starting your career in. You want to hit the ground running and establish yourself as an industry professional – while keeping the long-term goals in mind.
It’s like any rookie professional athlete starting out in the big leagues going against veterans who have years of experience under their belt – and how to properly play the game.
Here is a roadmap for rookie real estate agents to thrive in a competitive market – and take home Rookie of the Year honors.
Learn From the Veterans
Talent you have naturally; developing your skill is acquired by spending hours and hours working on your craft. The best way to do that is to learn from the veterans of the industry and follow their lead.
Find a mentor and absorb knowledge through osmosis. And by that we mean actively seeking out formal mentorship from senior members of your brokerage or team. Nothing will be given to you, so jump right in and carve out your niche
Understand Your Market
Make it a point to work harder, longer and smarter than anyone in order to make yourself and your team more successful. This means analyzing the trends in the market, what the competition is doing, attending industry events and networking with your peers. What will differentiate you in a competitive space will be determined by the work you put in.
Set Realistic Goals
It’s easy to lose enthusiasm when you’re faced with a gauntlet of setbacks and challenges in the early stages. And while there’s a good chance you might not be earning top billing right out of the gate, it is wise to set realistic benchmarks to hit your targets and work backwards. Understand that like many businesses, you’re dealing with little elbowroom to make yourself known. Don’t let a short-sighted lens cloud your long-term vision.
Build Your Brand
Focus on the second word in this sub header. No matter where you go in your career, you always have to put in work to develop your personal and professional brand. And when you’re starting out as an agent, there won’t be a lot coming up in search results pages when prospective clients Google your name.
Start growing your digital presence by communicating your value. Having your own branded website as an agent will help distinguish yourself right out of the gate – and help you generate leads faster. You can pen blogs under your name and start to develop your thought leadership and expand your social presence as an up and coming leader in the real estate space.
Develop Your Sphere of Influence
Starting out as a rookie agent looking on the outside into a crowded and competitive space can seem daunting, especially when you have to hit the phones and cold call. Take a step back and first develop your Sphere of Influence (SOI) to serve as your foundation. Real estate is a business built on relationships, and your strongest relationships, are your most reliable referral source. You can start by cataloguing family, friends, and former work colleagues to serve as your core and look for referrals from there.
Treat Your Customers Like Royalty
This is similar to an entrepreneurial mindset, in the sense that the first few clients you get, you’re able to give them your entire attention because their business essentially allows you to survive – and you’re giving them the best service possible to retain their business. Employing this mindset early on helps set the gold standard that you should always give everything you have to a client, and will stick with you throughout your career.
Lock Down Your Script
You can’t afford to wing anything when starting out in a new field. You don’t have the luxury of decades of experience wired into you to fall back on automatically. Selling is a learned skill and to properly execute a sales call, you need to organize your thoughts, goals, and delivery into a clear dialogue. Your voice should sound confident and professional, and your script should be consistent and natural.
Arm Yourself with the Best In-Class Technology
The tools are all there to make a splash. Take a page from the veteran’s handbook and put the right technology in place to work for you. In a business that is grounded in building deep-relationships, having a CRM makes it easy to keep in touch and stay top of mind with everyone in your SOI, keeps you organized and in control as you start to grow your database, and gives you a big leg up on your competition.
To help Rookies get started on the right foot, IXACT Contact has a special offer of 6 free months for agents in their first year. Start your trial today and you’ll quickly see why so many rock star real estate rookies love IXACT Contact!