Whether you’re thinking about becoming a real estate agent, or you’re navigating the early years of your career, there’s a lot to take in. Colleagues are always full of tips for new real estate agents, and it can be overwhelming!
To help make sure you’re setting yourself on the right track, we’ve gathered six common missteps to avoid as you start your career as an agent:
1. Thinking of yourself as a salesperson first and foremost
When people think of “salespeople,” they don’t necessarily picture someone who has their best interests at heart.
The surest way to erode trust with a client is to make them feel like you’re pushing them into one of the biggest financial decision of their life: buying a home!
You want them to know you’re a partner who’s there to guide them through their decision-making process. They want to know you’re going to support them for the long haul – not pressure them into properties they aren’t in love with.
2. Counting commissions before the money posts to your bank account
As experienced agents will say, a deal isn’t “done” until you have money in the bank.
Deals can fall apart for all kinds of unexpected reasons – even at the closing table – so make sure you’re budgeting only according to deals that have already come through.
3. Not investing in yourself as a business
Your new job as a real estate agent is a small business: You want to make sure you have a business plan, a marketing budget, and long- and short-term strategies.
And like any new business, it’s going to require an investment up front. It might feel painful to spend money on marketing before your earnings really pick up, but that up-front investment is what’s going to make you busy down the road.
Try investing in something like a Google business profile, which can have a huge impact on your visibility and reputation. A verified profile appears at the top of search results will all your contact information and reviews, and it’s a key tactic to improve your SEO and boost your Google ranking. Homesnap Pro+ is one way to quickly verify and manage your profile, so your Google ranking improves over time.
4. Not using “feast” months to prepare for “famine”
Even if things are going really well during busy seasons, you want to make sure you’re saving for the seasonal ebb and flow or unexpected market shifts.
Real estate sales can be a roller coaster! You might make tens of thousands of dollars in one month and see no closings at all the next month. Make sure you’re using your busier times to continue marketing yourself, so you have a strong funnel of leads as the slower months set in.
5. Staying too busy with your “backup” job
It totally makes sense to keep an alternate income stream while you’re building up your client base, but you want to make sure you have the flexibility to be attentive to your clients.
Make sure you’re upfront with clients about your availability.
Also, consider channels of communications — like sending messages through the Homesnap app — that allow you to be responsive without disrupting other jobs you might have.
6. Dropping client relationships after the sale
There’s no reason to let contact fall off completely right after a sale. Though that client isn’t an immediate prospect, they could help you get more leads by referring you to friends who need a real estate agent. Plus, they might become repeat clients some years down the line.
Keep in touch with past clients via Facebook pages or an email program that offers an occasional newsletter or check-in. Apps like Evernote can help you organize client reminders if you want to send a nice note on the anniversary of a closing, for instance.
Once you’ve built up a client base, the leads will multiply over time.