10 Key Strategies for Real Estate Success

Welcome. Good morning to Mike Ferry TV. You know, it’s an interesting time for all of us because the inventory shortage that we all are very aware of is not going away. And I’m convinced it’s not going away because sellers don’t understand the value of their homes today. And too many agents, unfortunately, do not understand the value of homes today. And as a result, sellers aren’t listing because they want the prices from 18 months ago. And you and I both know they can’t get those prices today.

But second to that, we know that most agents work with buyers. I saw a report recently that said up to 90% of all the agents in North America primarily work with buyers, which means the pool of listings has to shrink because there’s fewer and fewer people working on taking listings.

So what I’m going to do over the next few weeks is explore some thoughts on building your business, whether you are a strong listing agent or you’re a strong agent working with buyers. So we’re going to go through ten thoughts today. I did share some of these at the Superstar Retreat last July. So for those that were there, it’s a small reminder to what we went through together.

1) Attitude and Success: Zig Ziglar’s Wisdom

So here’s the first thought. About 50 years ago, Zig Ziglar made a statement and I was present at a seminar when he made this statement. He said, “Your attitude determines your altitude.” And then he said, “Question, what is your attitude towards the business you’re involved in and the market we’re involved in today?” There’s no question when there’s less transactions like we’re experiencing today, and we have in just the US alone, 1.6 million agents, there’s fewer transactions to go around. So the attitude you have, which is how you see and feel about somebody or something, determines the amount of business that you’re going to do.

2) Mindset Over Market: Controlling Your Real Estate Productivity

The second thought I want to share with you today, most agents feel the market controls their productivity. Great agents, like all of you know that your mindset and your work habit, not the market, determines your productivity. How many transactions have you done this year so far? How many transactions do you want to do in 2024? That number is 100% up to you, and it really is determined by the mindset that you have towards the market and the mindset you have towards selling Real Estate and the work habits that you have.

3) The Accumulation Effect: Building Long-Term Success in Real Estate

The third thought I want to share is always remember that what I refer to as the accumulation effect always has an effect on your day-to-day and your long-term productivity. By the accumulation effect, I’m referring to the fact that what you do on a regular basis starts to accumulate, whether it be good or bad, in terms of thoughts, work habits, transactions, etc. For example, if you walk every day or exercise every day, the long-term accumulation effect is better health. If I eat a hot fudge sundae for breakfast, for lunch and for dinner for a couple of weeks, just the reverse happens. The accumulation of that is going to have a negative effect on my health. The accumulation effect is determined by the types of sales habits that you have.

4) Conquering Goals: Overcoming Reptitious Boredom in Real Estate

The fourth thought I wrote down is this: If you’re going to conquer the goals you’ve set and stay ahead of the competition, which I believe you can do, you have to expect that repetitious boredom will not only take place in your business but also put you far ahead of your competitors. Selling Real Estate, as you know, is exciting when you get a contract signed. It’s exciting when a transaction closes and you get a paycheck. But there are many periods of time where it’s not very exciting. In fact, probably it’s boring at times. And I’ve always said that learning to deal with the repetitious boredom that our business offers is a big advantage of you over the competition, because you have days when you do your job at the highest level and nothing happens of consequence that is positive. But that’s a learning experience that we have to accept.

5) Knowledge and Confidence: The Power of Knowing in Real Estate

And with that thought being said, my fifth thought today there’s two kinds of people in the Real Estate business: Those that know what to say and what to do, and those that don’t know what to say and what to do. And then my question for each of us is the following … Which group do you belong to? Because knowing what to say and what to do gives you the confidence each day to go out and do your job. Knowing what to say and what to do gives you a head start on the competition. All you have to think about is this: If a seller and buyer is always going to ask the same questions and give the same objections to you. By knowing the answers, you have the confidence to deal with the problems that come up when you’re making a presentation.

6) The Power of Communication: Engaging with Real Estate Clients

Number six every day we have a choice. Talk to people about Real Estate or feel the pain of not achieving what you have set out to accomplish. I know it has to be discouraging if you’re an agent that is not doing the job every day that you know you’re supposed to do, and you have the capabilities of doing, and then you’re watching other people at the same time in your office, doing transactions on a regular basis. What is the difference? They are involved in talking to people all the time. We are in a people-communication-and-image business. That is the business of selling Real Estate. The more people we talk to, the better chance we have. The stronger our communication skills, the more they’re going to accept what we have to say. And then of course, the image we present, whether it be professional or non-professional, is many times the difference maker for you.

7) Embracing Growth and Change in Real Estate

Thought number seven for today. Remember that growth is painful, growth is painful, change is painful. But doing nothing is as painful or but doing nothing is as painful as staying where you are in terms of productivity when you’re trying to grow. Asking people to change their behavior in Real Estate is one of the most challenging things that we as a company face, whether it be myself, one of our speakers or one of our coaches. Why? Because we’re independent contractors. And then on top of that, so many of us in Real Estate have no business or sales experience prior to starting. And then with an average age of a realtor being someplace in the high 50s, 57, 58 years old, people get a little stuck in their ways at times. So we know that growth is painful, change is painful, but nothing is as painful as staying at the same level of productivity in 2024 that you had in 2023, and then you were disappointed in 23, which means you’ll be disappointed in 24 without changing.

8) The Impact of Choices on Real Estate Productivity: Laura Heigl’s Insight

But then this great quote from Laura Heigl, an agent in Indianapolis, Indiana. “I am today because of the choices I made yesterday.” And then she said, “It makes me think about prospecting. I am today in terms of productivity, the choices I made last month regarding prospecting.” When she said that a lot of the people in the audience at the Retreat were caught a little off guard, and then she was overwhelmed with people wanting to talk to her at the break after she said that. “I am today because the choices I made yesterday.”

9) The Importance of Prequalifying in Real Estate Transactions

So I wrote down number nine. What is the most important part of the Real Estate sales process? And I have been saying for all of 2023, and now as we head into 2024, the most important thing for an agent, whether you represent a buyer or represent a seller, is the prequalifying process. We’ve got to have the courage to ask all the questions to find out the motivation of the party that you’re talking to because there’s nothing worse than spending your time with somebody that they tell you at the last moment, “I can’t afford to buy. I don’t want to buy, but thank you for your time. I can’t sell, I don’t want to sell. But thanks for your time.”

10) Be in the 5% of Real Estate Agents who Prequalify 100% of the time

So think about this. Number ten. Can you imagine a doctor recommending surgery without prequalifying the patient in depth? First, it’s not only unethical, but the doctor would probably lose his or her license. And yet, in Real Estate, maybe 5% of the agents prequalify in depth. And if you prequalify in depth, you not only understand the party that you’re talking to and a little bit deeper level, but you find out the motivation of the party you’re talking to.

So I’m going to make a suggestion, review these ten points every day for the next week to make yourself a little bit stronger in terms of the habits that you have. Thanks for participating in Mike Ferry TV. Talk to you next week.