Are you on track for growth in 2015?

With the end of the financial year upon us (yes I know, can you believe it!) now is a great time to take stock on where you are at. It’s a great time to review what has gone well for you this year, what hasn’t gone so well. To have an honest conversation and ask yourself, have I done everything I need to do to achieve my goals? What do I need to change to achieve them?

For some of us the answer will be clear and we will know we’ve been doing everything we can. But for a lot of us, we will know that there were times we could have tried harder, been more focused, avoided distractions, been more disciplined, and perhaps got a bit further ahead.

These are some of the questions I am asking our members and coaching clients this week:

What to review from the first half of 2015:

·         What was your original growth goal for the year?

·         What numbers have you hit for the year to date?

·         Are you on track for where you need to be?

·         What worked well for you?

·         What could you have done differently?

·         What was your number 1 lead source?

·         Do you need to shift your goals

What to ask yourself for the second half of 2015?

·         What is your ultimate goal around growth numbers? Total or monthly.

·         What is the goal broken down into weekly and monthly goals?

·         What activity is required to achieve those numbers on a daily and weekly basis?

·         What time do you need to schedule into your days to ensure the activity is met?

·         How will you track your progress?

·         What is 1 new lead source you will target?

·         What are barriers to your success? How can you overcome them?

·         What tools and support do you need to help you achieve this?

So once you’ve asked yourself these questions, where are you at? Hopefully this will paint a clearer picture of your progress and what needs to shift.

If you’ve realised you want more help, guidance and accountability in your new business and growth journey heading into the second half of 2015, simply book a time to chat and find out how I can help you, your team and your business.

Otherwise, good luck over the next 6 months, stay focused, persevere and even when you’re busy, focus and make time for the activity that will produce you results and income!

Hermione Gardiner

Real +

Cutting Through the Techno White Noise

Every day Property Management teams are inundated with an abundance of new software programs and apps that promise the earth to make their lives easier, and for the most part they will, provided you don’t try to bite off more than you can chew.

It can be very easy to get excited and jump on the bandwagon of something new, but we need to be cautious that it doesn’t become like the shiny new toy on your desk and then forgotten in seconds for something that may seem more important.

We are facing a constantly evolving space when it comes to the needs of the consumer who want everything now at the touch of a button. At times it can seem overwhelming with demands, however the basic property management tasks for the most part, have not changed. We need to be cautious not to overcomplicate these tasks until we find that those tasks are controlling us and not the other way around.

Most property management teams are not using the software that is currently in their office to its full potential and in some cases may only be utilising 20% of its capabilities. Before jumping onto the next big thing, ask yourself a few questions;

• Is it going to save time and reduce my stress levels?
• Can we integrate it with the current systems in my office?
• Do we already have something that will do this task well or will something else do it better?
• Will it help so that we can increase growth and profit?
• What is the purpose of implementing this technology and the outcomes for the business?

Make sure that you are weighing up all the options and find the best fit for your office. What works for one team, may not suit another and it is never as simple as a one size fits all approach. Above all, enjoy those shiny new toys and make sure you get the most out of them. Don’t get too caught up in hype, and make it work for you.

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Heidi Walkinshaw
Business Manager, Real+

What Is Your New Business Marketing Pitch?

Further to a new business marketing webinar I ran this week, we discussed many marketing techniques but also touched on how to pitch and angle yourself to win more business.
It is important to learn how to sell your services by selling the benefits of what you do, not relying on just reeling off service features. We need a marketing pitch or angle to jazz up what we show clients, communicate and market to them to show what we do is different and why they should choose us.

I cannot tell you how many ‘unique selling points’ and ‘points of difference’ I hear that are, well, mostly the same as others ... but let’s save that topic for another day.
I thought I would today start to give some tips on developing your marketing pitch for new business so you can start to think of selling a little differently! So, how do you develop your marketing pitch and key points of difference, and then sell them? The key elements lie within problem, value, credibility, difference and action – and starting to think about things in a slightly different way. 

Problem
What problem does your product or service solve? What pain is your ideal customer experiencing? Perhaps bad service with other agents, rent not paid on time, bad tenants, high vacancy, wants more return on investment, highest rent etc.

Value
How does your product or service deliver value (results in terms of dollars, time or quality)? How does your service solve their problems or meet their needs? In even simpler terms, how do you help people or businesses? For instance, our marketing means wider exposure to tenants, to get your property leased faster. Our rent management system ensures 98 per cent of our tenants pay rent on time, giving you peace of mine.

Credibility
What can you say that will demonstrate your ability to deliver value? How can you support your claims? What evidence and stats do you have? How have you delivered value to others? Case studies can be useful as social proof, for example ‘Our days on market is 3 compared to the industry average of 12’. ‘We’ve had zero tenancies go to tribunal in the last 12 months’.

Difference
How is your business, your product or your service different? How is it better than the potential alternatives? What’s your unique selling proposition? What is the benefit of the service or features? (Hint – it can’t be the same thing your competitors promise. You need to be the only one to have this, or sell it in a unique way). i.e Our tenant booking system not only allows flexibility to show tenants at times that suit them, getting your property leased faster, but it also means we have a pool of qualified tenants waiting to hear from us about your property. Our routine inspection reports with photos allow you to look into your property regularly to rest assure your tenant is taking good care of the property.

Action
Our marketing pitch (whether on paper or in person) requires us to give a call to action. If in person, this can include asking if they agree that what you have told them would be the best option for them, asking for the business, outlining the next steps. Or if a marketing piece is asking them to take a specific action to call you, transfer a management to you or refer someone to you. Action is the key to the success for any marketing pitch.

Stay tuned for more new business and marketing tips soon. 

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Hermione Gardiner
Business Manager, Real+

Managing Social Media

If like many agencies you have a team of younger employees, you will be well aware of the constant barrage of sites flooding their computer screens and phones such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest. How we deal with this intrusion can either make or break our team culture and productivity levels.

With a generation in our workplaces who are more tech savvy and hungry for anything that may be technologically and socially related, we have very quickly seen the rise of sites such as these, which provide a daily distraction. So how do we control it?

In many industries, sites these are completely banned, no access from any employee is permitted. While this is a quick and easy option, it does leave gaps as most of the younger generation may find ways to get around these blocks or filters as well as the availability of smartphones. Another option could be only permitting employees to use these sites during their breaks.

It is important to implement a social media policy and ensure that all employees are aware of their obligations and have them sign off on it so that you have it in writing. You can find an example of a social media policy on the platform.

Also, educate employees about the consequences of disclosing or misusing the company's confidential information or intellectual property in the social media context.

While it can be a distraction for many, these sites can also be a great marketing tool that can assist in business growth and one which shouldn’t be taken for granted. Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, even Pinterest can help raise your brand awareness and gain you popularity in the market place. Many agents are now utilising these sites for landlord and tenant information, inviting them to follow their office pages and keeping them up to date with the latest news and events that are happening within their agencies and the community.

It’s a given that the social media in some form is here to stay and is constantly evolving. How we react to this daily intrusion in our working lives can help us thrive or just survive. Find a solution that works well for your office and run with it.