Do You Have Raving Fans?

When was the last time you referred a business to a friend or a family member? What was it that made this business stand out from the rest? Why are you talking about them? 

Most probably it is due to a fantastic level of service, a great product or perhaps unexpected value that made you want to share this experience with your family and friends.

Now, I want you to ask yourself? When was the last referral your business received?

A successful referral network has people talking about you and referring business to you when you are not looking. The first step in building this network, is to ensure your business is likeable, referable and energetic. 

Are you providing an amazing service that people love to talk about? Do you have raving fans? If not, that’s ok. You may need to implement and improve some of your systems, procedures, and policies in order to deliver a little more, or the additional 1% of service than your clients expect.

When you have your network of raving fans, it’s time to take advantage! The simplest and easiest way is to ask the question.

o    “If you knew anyone who had an investment property would you refer to them to me?”

o    “This year I am growing my business; do you know anyone else I can help?

o    “On a scale of 1 – 10, how likely would you be to refer a friend or family member to our business?”

Whether it’s over the phone, in person or via an online survey – if you don’t ask the questions, you’ll never know the answer!

It is also important to know why people are referring so we can leverage off this in future – but even more importantly this can be a great way to identify any areas that may need improvement. There is always room for improvement in every Property Management business.

And finally, whenever you do receive a referral, don’t forget to say thank you!

Lauren Kirk

General Manager at Real+

0422 069 905 / lauren@realplus.com.au

The Pursuit of Knowledge

I won’t be the first person you have heard bang on about how your staff are your most valuable asset and I certainly won’t be the last.

I also know that as real estate agents, you will definitely understand when I say that investing in your most valuable asset is just something that has to be done to keep the asset growing and therefore, producing. 

So what exactly does that mean? In this context, I am referring to training and development.

In the wise words of Brandon Travis Ciaccio “The pursuit of knowledge is never-ending. The day you stop seeking knowledge is the day you stop growing”

Both professional and personal development is something that needs to be a priority, for yourself and for your team.  In fact, let’s take away “professional” and “personal” because really, it’s one and the same isn’t it?  More than ever before, our personal and professional lives have collided and it is now just our world; there is no definition.

The point I am making is that whether we are doing something for the benefit of ourselves, or professionally – really it’s one and the same.  And it’s going to benefit us as a whole at the end of the day.

Maybe when you think of training your team, I bet you’re thinking of having to spend an entire day away from the office, locked inside a room, listening to someone ramble on and speak at you, not telling you anything you didn’t already know.  No wonder it’s so unappealing to some!

It doesn’t need to be like that.  In fact, it’s actually not like that anymore. Training and development is now so attainable, accessible and worthwhile.

We have so many resources at our fingertips, think; webinars, online training, mentoring and coaching, networking -even something as small as signing up to one of the many industry-related social media groups, where you can share ideas, brainstorm and just connect with people in the same industry. These are all really accessible and worthwhile resources that are very time effective with maximum return.

In addition to the above things that you can be doing on a daily/weekly/monthly basis just as part of your development routine, you have amazing events such as AREC and ARPM.  Not only do these sorts of events provide a platform where you can be inspired and empowered by some of the thought leaders of our industry, you are given the opportunity to connect with people in your industry.  

These events are all about learning.  And you can learn something from just about anyone. 

The benefit to you and your business will be phenomenal.  When you have a team that is constantly growing their knowledge and developing themselves, you will have a team who are genuinely all about quality and improvement.

You need to lead from the top.  Be the change you wish to see.  When you are constantly growing and developing your knowledge, you will be a better leader and you will inspire others to be better.

Encourage people to attend training events, people often make the mistake of seeing this as an expense.  Rather,  look at the return that comes with investing in your most valuable asset.

I’ll finish with a quote by Christopher Morley - “There are three ingredients to the good life; Learning, earning and yearning”. 

Leaning will lead to earning which in turn, will create a yearning to learn more, so you can earn more! (makes sense to me!).

Happy learning!

Alison McGavin

Recruitment Team Leader Real+

alison@realplus.com.au / 0434 014 012