Where to Start and Why
By Real Estate Coach Judy LaDeur
You may be at a crossroad in your real estate career and not even realize it. Many agents struggle with the lack organization or working too many hours a day before they cave in. Some agents burn out and leave the business, while others take it to the next level. Where are you?
Building a team takes time. It is essential that you take your time in hiring the right people. There is an old adage that goes, Slow to Hire, Fast to Fire. In my experience, truer words were never spoken. I have learned the hard way that it is best to fire an unproductive team member fast.
First, profile the position so you know what type of person you need to fill it. Potential hires should ALWAYS take a DISC Profile or a similar personality profile. Overlay the new hire prospect profile with the job profile to determine the likelihood of success. A common mistake within the industry is that we hire the first warm body that comes along or we hire a family member to fill in the gap. It is delaying the inevitable and will only frustrate you as you try to build your business.
Team building should ALWAYS start with the team’s infrastructure. You need to determine how many hours you are spending on administrative duties. If it’s more than two hours a day, you need help immediately. It is not unusual to think that hiring and training will take too much of our precious time. But keep in mind that if you don’t have an assistant, then you are the assistant. First, create the full job description. Think about tasks that drag you down, identify them by listing what tasks take away precious time from your money producing activities. Write down the personal attributes that would best suit this position. Design a job description around these needs. This will streamline your interviewing process.
For every one hour of training you provide to someone, you will save ten hours in completing those same tasks. When considering the support you need, determine if you need a licensed or unlicensed assistant. Building a strong staff foundation is critical to the success of expanding your business or improving your quality of life. Working smarter always allows greater opportunities. Maintaining a strong database will also help lead to your greater success. There are many good options out there.
Are you letting inquiries and potential buyers slip through the cracks? This is another common indicator that you need to grow a team. AFTER hiring support staff, the next step would be to hire a buyers’ agent to handle your overflow. This will provide a greater return on your marketing investment and allow you more flexibility to manage your business. Once you’ve done this, you have the freedom to manage your business.
Avoid common mistakes by first gaining a bit of knowledge about team building and team management. Hiring, firing, compensation options, team structure, job duties, referral business, goals, planning, accountability, and team marketing strategies are just a few of the areas that need to be addressed before building a team.
COACHING TIP OF THE WEEK
MANAGE YOUR MESSAGE
One of the most effective ways to manage your time and your day is to change your voice mail message every day and let people know your schedule. While we tend to let our phones run our lives, an hour or two out of the loop won’t ever really kill a deal.
Your message can be something like this: “Hello and thanks for calling. This is Judy LaDeur with XYZ Realty and today is October 22nd. I am out of the office on appointments all day, but feel free to leave a message here in my voicemail. I will return calls at 11:30 this morning and again at 4:00 this afternoon.
No matter who is calling, they know exactly what the deal is and what to expect. There is nothing worse though, than forgetting to update the message daily!
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