5 Secrets of Successful New Real Estate Agents

Everybody starts somewhere. Including real estate agents. That somewhere is usually at the bottom of the ladder.

But new real estate agents don’t have to stay on the last rung for very long. Plenty of new agents start moving on up pretty darn quickly — thanks to strategic, well-placed efforts.

Just starting out in real estate? This post is for you. These are the five secrets of successful new real estate agents.

Secret #1: They Create a Business Plan

Any entrepreneur who’s serious about being successful knows that a business plan is essential.

A business plan is like your roadmap to success. This written document outlines your goals, then provides a guide on how to achieve them.

New agents who take the time to create a business plan for themselves at the very beginning are well-positioned to make things happen.

Start by creating a plan for your first year in business; later, when you’re established, your business plan can cover a period of up to five years.

This business plan is for your eyes only, so it doesn’t have to follow any hard business plan rules or structure. At a minimum, it should contain the following elements:

• Market opportunities. What areas have you identified as being opportunities to have an impact? For example, luxury real estate, retirees, condos and so on.

• SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) analysis. Your strengths and weaknesses are internal factors, like social media prowess and lack of experience. Opportunities and threats are external, such as a large population of first-time buyers and well-known real estate teams.
• Goals. What do you want to achieve in your first year of business? Aim to have at least three actionable and realistic goals. Goals could include to launch a blog, sell 10 houses and deploy four postcard campaigns.
• Action plan. Identify the specific steps you’ll take to reach each goal and a rough schedule for each step.
• Financial plan. Create a monthly budget for business expenses such as marketing, phone, internet and transportation.

Secret #2: They Work On Their Non-Sales Skills

Of course, closing your first deal is essential to becoming a successful real estate agent. But smart new agents know that making deals happen comes down to so much more than sales skills.

Don’t get us wrong — you should be reading about sales philosophies and best practices (like some of these five essential real estate books). But you should also be brushing up on your:

• Copywriting skills. For writing effective real estate copy for listings and your website.

• Graphic design skills. So you can use design tools to create cool visuals for your blog and newsletter.

• Interior design skills. For being able to offer educated opinions to buyers and sellers.

• Public speaking skills. Crucial for addressing a crowd at an event or confidently speaking with open house attendees.

You don’t need to be an expert in all of these areas. But having at least a basic proficiency assures that you can tackle all parts of the biz with confidence.

Secret #3: They Develop Their Networks

Real estate is about what you know and who you know. Successful new real estate agents don’t forget about that last part.

Of course it’s more difficult to develop your networks when you’re still trying to land your first client. But there’s still lots you can do to make sure you’re growing your circles and getting your name out there.

Focus on establishing a real estate referral network of other professionals in your area — people whose services you’d be happy to recommend to a client, and vice versa.

Because you’re just starting out, begin with people you know. Your longtime hairdresser, your friend with a contracting business, your bakery-owning neighbour and etcetera.

Give them your business card, provide some information about what you’re trying to accomplish in your real estate business and make it clear that any successful referrals will be rewarded.

And don’t forget to broadcast your new business widely to your personal network; every one of your friends and family members should know that you’re now a full-fledged real estate agent.

Secret #4: They Choose a Niche

Real estate is a highly competitive industry. There’s no shortage of agents just like you who are going after your same prospective clients.

Successful new REALTORS® know this. To make sure they have a competitive advantage, they quickly identify and select a real estate niche to specialize in.

There are all kinds of real estate niches to choose from — environmentally-friendly homes, accessible spaces, tiny spaces, luxury homes and so on.

The key to picking a niche that you can successfully own is to consider your interests and skills, as well as the needs of the market in your geographic area and how those needs are already being served. Don’t choose a niche that you’re not especially interested in, or that’s already being owned by dozens of other agents.

Remember: choosing a niche doesn’t mean that you’re forever limited to helping buy and sell those types of properties. It just means that you offer a specialized service that will help you stand apart from the crowd.

Secret #5: They Set Up Their Digital Presence Right Away

The biggest mistake a new real estate agent can make is to launch their business without a fully-fledged digital presence.

To position yourself for success right out of the gate, you need:

• A personal real estate website. With a bio, images, working links, IDX search and, ideally, a blog.
• Social media accounts. Choose two to four platforms you want to focus on and create accounts. Then write descriptions or bios, add profile photos, follow relevant accounts and begin posting.
• Create a Google presence for your business. You know that column that appears on the right side of your Google search results when you’re Googling a restaurant? With an image, description, hours and contact details? You need that for your real estate business so that anyone Googling you has immediate access to your contact information. HubSpot has a great guide on how to set this up.

Of these three digital necessities, a website is of the highest priority. But for new agents, creating a professional-looking site can be intimidating.

We can help. If you want an amazing real estate website that’s well-designed, responsive and with all the features we mentioned above (and many, many more), without the work, let us take care of it for you.

myRealPage creates industry-leading websites for real estate agents that look great and help generate leads.

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Are you a new real estate agent? What strategies are you using to get your name out there?