The last year and a half have definitely been some challenging times. Remember in uncertain times you can still control your own environment, be proactive and come out a winner. My personal friend and mentor Brian Buffini always reminded us to consider all areas of your personal and business life are in check. Consider your spiritual, family, business, financial and personal and ensure your 5 Circle fit. The 5 circle fit check can help you stay motivated and energized no matter what life throws your way. As a real estate professional, it’s helpful to hone your focus on the business circle. Here’s how:
Stick to a Schedule
If we don’t take control of our own time someone or something else will Working for yourself gives great freedom – you get to set your own hours and be in charge of your own calendar. However, with great freedom comes great responsibility! As a business owner, it’s easy to get overwhelmed by the sheer multitude of the tasks you have to complete every day. This is why a schedule to keep you on track is vital. Start and end your day at set hours. Also, designate special periods for dealing with administration, checking email and running errands so you don’t get distracted by non-lead generating activities that waste time.
Invest in Relationships
We are in the relationships business and have missed that connection and face to face time so much the last year and a half. Strong relationships are at the heart of every good business, so you have to make building them your business! Calls, notes and a drop by gift, coffee or lunches are powerful ways to consistently reach out and connect with your clients and others in your sphere of influence. When you go above and beyond to serve your customers and prove your trustworthiness, they will become megaphones for you in the marketplace, eager to refer you to others. This way, the stream of referrals will never dry up!
Stay Motivated
If it’s meant to be, then it’s up to me! In difficult and demanding times, it can be hard to stay upbeat and motivated. To remain positive, be careful what you watch, read and listen to. Tune into educational and informative podcasts. Avoid people that drain you and seek out resources that provide facts-based knowledge and encourage growth and personal development! I can’t emphasize the importance of guarding yourself it really is about energy management versus time management.
Track Finances
Tracking, measuring and shifting along the way is key! When you’re running your own business, finances are a serious matter. To know exactly where your money is going, you need to create a spending plan for your business and yourself. Separate your business and your personal accounts, pay yourself a salary based on your budget and remember to factor in rainy-day reserves and a retirement fund. By conducting a financial overhaul and getting your business on the right track, you’ll outlast your competition and be able to live the good life.
Get a Real Estate Mentor/Coach
When it comes to achieving goals, accountability is key. We all do better when we have to answer to someone! The best real estate mentor will help, encourage and celebrate you, but he or she will also hold your feet to the fire and make sure that you do what you promised to! Who is mentoring you? Who is encouraging you? Who is holding you accountable? It has been an honour to be able to serve so many over the many years and never take that lightly.
I trust some of these reminders will help you get on track or back on track this next few weeks and be able to really finish 2021.
Knowing what the biggest objection you face over the next few months allows you the edge to be prepared when it strikes. We all know the #1 objection all agents are going to get from real estate buyers and sellers is “We want to wait until the spring to buy or sell our home.” So having the ability to change how the buyer and seller feels about waiting to buy or sell until the spring is imperative to your winter real estate success!! Don’t try changing their minds and building their defense mechanism up but educate them and change how they think and then they change how they feel about buying over the winter instead of spring. The fact of the matter is, the reasons and myths are endless so it’s our job as REALTORS® to be equipped with facts and a strong reality check to combat these reasons we hear every day. To help you educate the consumers through the winter season I put together some of my top reasons a client would want to choose this time of year to buy, sell and list a home.
Here Are The Top Reasons to Sell Real Estate Over The Winter
#1 – Only The Serious Buyers Are Looking Over The Winter – Yes there are fewer buyers, but those buyers are usually very SERIOUS about making a purchase or many HAVE to make a purchase. Who else would want to look at buying during the winter?
#2 – Fewer Winter Listings Means Less Listing Competition – Most sellers wait until the spring or summer to list, so your home will have far less competition. Spring = Greater supply = Same Demand = Less Money
#3 – January Is The Biggest Corporate Transfer Month – More corporate relocation moves happen during January than any other time of the year. Catch the corporate relocation buyers while you can.
#4 – Better Personal Prompt Customer Service – By putting the home on the market during the winter you experience better, personal and faster customer service from movers, lawyers, banks, insurance providers etc. Listing realtors have more time to better serve their sellers and get all the marketing strategies in place.
#5 – More Bargaining Time to Get More Money – By starting to market your home early, you may be able to secure a higher price with more listing exposure time. This season allows a seller to not be in a rush to sell and allow for more market exposure time and ultimately generate a higher price than in the spring.
#6 – Timing Is Everything. So Sell Now & Buy In The Spring – If your home sells quickly, you will be able to shop for your next home during the winter, a great time to find a bargain! More time to look and not pressure to shop and beat the other buyers. Sell first and then buy in the spring when the inventory and selection begins to rise for you when you are the buyer.
#7 – Standing Out In A Smaller Crowd – Most REALTORS® and offices have less inventory during the winter, enabling your home to stand out even more. Less marketing noise out there for the buyers and they see your home with ease now.
#8 – 20% Of Sales Still Happen During the Winter – Buyers and Sellers are usually quite motivated to get the transaction completed. We still have 20% of the business in the year occurring during the winter. This can mean less price haggling and fewer hassles during the process.
#9 – Buying Without Having Something To Sell First – By selling now you may have an opportunity to be a non-contingent buyer during the spring, when more houses are on the market! Less “subject to the sale” offers from buyers and you are not one of them when you are buying your next home.
#10 – No Yard Work When It’s Freshly Covered In Snow – Great time for a home that needs a yard make over to sell. No need to worry about your yard work. Snow makes it look fresh and white.
BONUS…..
#11 – Buyers Time Everything Too – Buyers begin the search and purchase for spring moves in January, February. Busy move times are March Spring Break, April Easter, May long weekend and July long weekends
#12 – No Pricing Wars With Others Sellers – Less choice for buyers means less sellers to play pricing against each other. Buyers will often make more concession in their buying decision with less choice
#13 – A Holiday Magic Feel To Your Home – Property shows well, almost staged with holiday décor adding to the ambiance. Tis the season for your home to shine!
#14 – Higher Quality No Looky Loo Showings. Little chance of quick showings and not being prepared to show your home. Easier time of year to make appointments and give sellers advance notice. Higher quality showings
#15 – Right Buyer, Right Time Odds – The odds are the same for the right buyer looking at your home regardless of the season. Right buyer, right time, right home
Here Are My Top 10 Reasons to Buy Over The Winter
#1 – Fewer Or No Multiple Offers – Little or no chance of multiple or competing offers for the buyer during this time of year
#2 – Better Personal Prompt Customer Service – Better service from all service providers like the agents, banks, insurers etc. Not as busy now.
#3 – Sellers Are Motivated – Sellers motivated at this time of year if still trying to sell from summer or fall. Sellers willing to negotiate, been on the market for some time now. Give and take.
#4 – Expired Listing Inventory – Buyers can shop the expired listings market, which has the largest selection this time of the year.
#5 – Better Closing Options – Good time of year to make an offer and do the due diligence, buyers can move quickly now or slower in the spring if not in a rush.
#6 – More Alternative Housing Options – Easier for sellers to find alternative housing, not as much pressure finding a rental vs. the really busy spring and summer season.
#7 – Contingencies and Subject to the Sale Of Acceptable – Great time for buyers to make contingent “Subject to the Sale” offers and get them accepted and movement on the price.
#8 – Better Available Moving & Service Providers – Easier time for a buyer to move and find help and services like movers, cleaners, storage.
#9 – Smoother Mistake Free Completions – Better timing for buyers on completions with lawyers, banks land registry. Not that busy and time to attend to you now.
#10 – Buyer Competition Lower – Less competition for the same property from other buyers on the deals that pop up this time of year.
Bonus…
#11 – Having More Time – Having time to make a decision and not be pressured in to offers or pressured into removing conditions or speeding up your due diligence time.
Now that you’re equipped with ammo to overcome any objection, educate the consumers and debunk the myths and go out there and list and sell some real estate this winter season!!
Every year when I put together this post I hope many of you will do more than just “plan” to pick up some of these books and implement what they teach. Reading these and similar books over the years are a huge part of why I have had the success in my business and personal life that I’ve come to enjoy.
Reading not only offers us more information, it also keeps us in the “student” mode of life which helps keep things fresh, new and exciting while opening ourself to new and previously unknown possibilities and opportunities.
In my early years as a real estate agent I had the privilege to see Jim Rohn speak at an event. One comment he made all those years ago still sticks with me today “miss a meal before missing a good book“.
HERE ARE MY MUST READ BOOKS FOR ALL REAL ESTATE AGENTS
1. The Miracle Morning for Real Estate Agents
The Miracle Morning for Real Estate Agents beautifully blends strategy and inspiration in an enlightening parable from the bestselling authors of The Miracle Morning, (7L) The Seven Levels of Communication, and The New Rise in Real Estate. This book takes you on a journey into the lives of real estate agent Rick Masters and mortgage professional Michelle Phillips. Rick and Michelle face new challenges as the demands of their industry have left them stressed, overweight, and unfulfilled. Something has to change.
They attend an event and meet other agents who have transformed their lives. Although Michelle is optimistic, Rick is skeptical. Little does Rick know, there really is a not-so-obvious secret that will transform your life in just 30 days.
Discover it for yourself as you join Rick and Michelle on their life-changing journey. You’ll learn how 30 days from today YOUR life and business can be everything you’ve always dreamed. It’s your time to rise and shine!
2. Your 1st Year in Real Estate
Welcome to the world of real estate sales, and the start of an exciting new career! Your destiny is now in your hands. Along with endless opportunities, flexible hours, and the freedom to chart your own path, you also have the potential to earn fabulous amounts of money. All you need for total success is preparation. Revised and expanded, Your First Year in Real Estate contains the essential knowledge you need to start off right in today’s vastly changed real estate market, avoid common first-year missteps, and get the inside edge that will take you to the top.
Real estate expert Dirk Zeller has compiled the industry’s proven secrets and strategies that will enable novice agents to hit the ground running and excel from day one. You’ll get the insider’s guide to:
• Selecting the right company
• Developing valuable mentor and client relationships
• Using the Internet and social networking to stay ahead of the competition (NEW!)
• Setting—and reaching— essential career goals
• Staying on top in today’s challenging real estate climate (NEW!)
• And so much more.
3. The Book of YES
In The Book of YES, you will find the most powerful scripts in the real estate industry today.
If you’re tired of the same old sales scripts or if you’ve done away with them all together, I know how you feel because I’ve been there.
I was tired of seeing the same B.S. (bad sales) approaches and I wanted something that felt more natural for me.
So I started creating my own scripts, for the simple reason that I hated being told, “No.” For me nothing was worse than that feeling of rejection. I was determined to figure out the perfect thing to say in every situation, and how to say it in a way that would cause sellers and buyers to want to say “Yes!” to me every time. This book is the result of that quest.
And I’ve broken it in two unique parts so you can spend less time reading it, and more time using the life changing scripts inside.
Part 1 will give you the foundation for making the scripts work for you. Not just some of the time, but every time! You’ll master how to inspire sellers to say “YES” to you giving you the magic key to unlock the success you want as a real estate agent.
Part 2 Is the actual scripts that allow you to have smooth, choreographed conversations that lead you down the path to more success and more income. Included in this section are…
a. Prospecting Scripts for sellers that lead up to the listing appointment.
b. My Unique Listing Presentation Scripts with examples of exactly how to deliver them for maximum impact.
c. The Buyer Scripts that I’ve personally used for years to build my own real estate business from scratch.
d. The Objection Scripts that will show you how to overcome any objection with ease and never be scrambling for words when a client throws you a curveball.
In all there are 27 scripts in this book that will show you how to handle any situation, conversation, and objection that might come your way.
And each script has been tested, tweaked and perfected. How do I know this? Because I’ve used each and every one of them to close millions of dollars worth of real estate in my nearly 2 decade career.
4. Secrets of Top Selling Agents
In this must read book, Joe Sesso shares the top tips and secrets of real estate giants from the webinar series Secrets of Top Selling Agents. Barbara Corcoran, Dave Liniger, Gary Keller, Chris Smith, and others tell you exactly what you need to do to be a top selling agent!
Each chapter includes advice and tips from a different real estate superstar. In the Secrets of Top Selling Agents you will learn how:
•Barbara Corcoran turned her real estate business into an international brand.
• A devastating illness forced Dave Liniger to rethink his life and change his perspective on the business.
• Gary Keller and Jay Papasan focus on the one thing to achieve success.
• Katie Lance leverages social media to bring the real estate industry into the twenty-first century.
• Chris Smith discovered how you can increase your GCI by 50 percent.
• Jay Baer created the concept of “youtility.”
• Jimmy Mackin manages multitasking and reaching the elusive “Inbox Zero.”
• Other real estate professionals have adapted to today’s challenges.
These titans of the industry will change the way you approach your real estate business.
5. The Lazy Realtor
The Lazy REALTOR by Wade Webb is built on universal, proven and tested business principles designed to inspire, coach and educate you into reaching and surpassing your wildest dreams to build a successful real estate business and to enjoy the lifestyle that goes along with it.
The Lazy Realtor goes into great detail on all the main components required to start, grow, and maintain a recession proof real estate empire.
• Learn about getting started, the learning curve, budgeting, goal setting, how to become an EXPERT
• Buyer & seller cycles, listing cycles, pricing psychology
• Databases & relationship lists, expanding your database
• Potential clients everywhere, multiplying leads, lead generation, cashing in on leads
• Glengarry style, sales and power prospecting methods
• Enter the World Wide Web, power of connecting, new Marketing IT
• Open House strategies
• Triggering emotions, features vs. benefits, psychology in sales
• Staging homes, selling sellers on staging
• Farming, direct mail, cold calling, warm calling
• Expired listings, for sale by owner, FSBOs
• Making listings more salable
• Managing your time, time blocking, breaking the realtor-phobia, selling yourself
• Showing luxury homes
• In buyers shoes, one house at a time, Exclusive Agent anyone?, helping owners with direct sales
• Winners never quit, quitters never win, discipline can go a long way, 3-Part Formula for Success
• Pricing strategies, connecting with your sellers, getting inside their head
• 22 solutions to kick-start your business development (and yourself!)
6. How to Become a Power Agent in Real Estate
The realtor’s essential guide to harnessing true earning power
How to Become a Power Agent in Real Estate gives real estate agents both the powerful sales techniques and the practical management tips they need to double their income by closing more transactions. Based on the outstanding success of Darryl Davis’s seminar “The POWER Program,” this motivational guide utilizes POWER Principles to help the new agent as well as the experienced top producer dramatically increase listings and sales.
The book is full of Davis’s surefire methods for managing the sales process, including time management for agents, prospecting for listings, handling the seller’s and buyer’s concerns, maintaining a winning attitude, and generating more sales in less time. He also reveals how clever use of the Web can provide a competitive edge and how the top producers work smarter ¬¬not harder. Offering field-proven tools and techniques, Davis shows agents how to progress at their own pace to their own personal Next Level and accelerate their entry into Top Agent status.
7. Million Dollar Agents
Have you ever wished you had direct insight into how the top agents have successfully built a sustainable and prosperous real estate practice … without overinvesting in lead generation and marketing?
Have you ever wondered how million-dollar agents meet loyal clients, make a 6-7 figure income and create a steady stream of referral business year after year?
Have you ever wanted to increase commissions, get more listings and stand out as a real estate professional while working less hours and having more work-life balance?
If you want to know how the top agents operate a successful real estate business and create a truly abundant lifestyle, then this book is for you.
A select few of the top 10% of real estate agents in North America reveal decades of insider knowledge that carried them to the very top of the industry and also what it takes to stay on top.
Featured in Million Dollar Agents, are interviews with industry leaders with a wealth of insider knowledge in the real estate industry you won’t find anywhere else.
Uncover the behind-the-scenes techniques and insights that you can use to build your own successful real estate business.
8. UnMarketing: Everything Has Changed and Nothing is Different
UnMarketing shows you how to unlearn the old ways and consistently attract and engage the right customers. You’ll stop just pushing out your message and praying that it sticks somewhere. Potential and current customers want to be listened to, validated, and have a platform to be heard-especially online. With UnMarketing, you’ll create a relationship with your customers, and make yourself the logical choice for their needs. We know you’ve been told to act like other people, talk like other people, and market like all the people, but it is time for you to unlearn everything and start to UnMarket yourself.
UnMarketing includes the latest information on:
Idea Creation, Viral Marketing and Video, Marketing to Millennials, Authenticity, Transparency and Immediacy, Ethics and Affiliates, Social Media Platforming, UnPodcasting, Word of Mouth, Customer Service, Consumer Advocacy and Leadership.
9. Little Red Book of Selling: 12.5 Principles of Sales Greatness
Salespeople hate to read. That’s why Little Red Book of Selling is short, sweet, and to the point. It’s packed with answers that people are searching for in order to help them make sales for the moment―and the rest of their lives.
10. Perfect Phrases for Real Estate Agents & Brokers
The Right Phrase for Every Situation…Every Time
In our current real estate climate, it’s more important than ever to have the right words at your fingertips. Whether you’re new to the game or a seasoned seller, Perfect Phrases for Real Estate Agents and Brokers has just the right words and phrases you’ll need to track down prospective properties and clients, manage transactions, negotiate terms, facilitate communications between buyer and seller, and close the deal. This easy-to-use, quick-reference guide gives you:
• Hundreds of quick, ready-to-use words and phrases
• Coverage of every situation you’ll face, from meeting a new client to finalizing the sale
• Winning approaches that persuade prospects and generate sales
• Expertise from a top realtor educator and author
11. The Million Dollar Real Estate Team
Ever feel like you can’t jump off the real estate merry-go-round of listing appointments, property showings and one transactional fire after another? Do you want to build a team that can operate without your day-to-day involvement, but don’t know where to begin? If you’re like thousands of other successful agents, you probably feel like you’re producing as much as you can as a sole operator, but moving from ‘Captain Everything’ to an ownership mentality sounds too daunting. Contained in this book is a step-by-step business plan with simple, unambiguous directions on which steps to take and in what order. Learn from Chris Watters and Bradley Pounds how they scaled their business at a breakneck pace and earned a profit of over $1 million in just three years.
12. Shift: How Top Real Estate Agents Tackle Tough Times
Markets shift, and you can too. Sometimes you’ll shift in response to a falling market, and other times you’ll shift to take your business to the next level. Both can transform your business and your life. You can change your thinking, your focus, your actions, and, ultimately, your results to get back in the game and ahead of the competition. The tactics that jump-start your business in tough times will power it forward in good times. No matter the market-shift!
SHIFT explores twelve proven strategies for achieving success in any real estate market, including
• Master the Market of the Moment: Short Sales, Foreclosures, and REOs
• Create Urgency: Overcoming Buyer Reluctance
• Re-Margin Your Business: Expense Management
• Find the Motivated: Lead Generation
• Expand the Options: Creative Financing
13. The Honest Real Estate Agent
Thousands of new Real Estate Agents have bought “The Honest Real Estate Agent” book since it was first published in 2011. This is the 3rd Edition with brand new content and helpful ideas to build your career as a new Realtor. One of the drawbacks of most real estate schools is they teach you only how to pass the real estate exam. They don’t teach you how to succeed as a Real Estate Agent once you get your license. This is the book for you because it will help you hit the ground running once you get your license.
14. How to Make it Big as a Real Estate Agent
“There are many great suggestions in How To Make It Big As A Real Estate Agent. I am returning to real estate sales after a several decades long hiatus and have a game plan to implement which lines up with those which Mark has used. But the idea of building a team is a new one to me and is one I will implement. Great advice for new agents, particularly making it clear the extent of dedication and hard work required to achieve the upper levels of success. I strongly recommend this book.” -Ray Mark Ferguson has been a Realtor for over 15 years. He runs a sales team of 10 who have sold over 1,000 homes. Mark has personally sold over 200 homes in one year. Mark has been featured in the Washington Post, Yahoo, Zillow, Realtor.com, Realtor Magazine, Time, Trulia and many other major media outlets. In this 220 page book Mark describes exactly how he has made it big in real estate and what to expect as a real estate agent. Mark breaks down how much money real estate agents can really make as well as how much work an agent will have to do. There are many stories out there about how little money agents make and how they are on call at all hours. The truth is real estate can be a wonderful business if you treat it as a business and plan accordingly. There are many things an agent can do to be successful, which Mark details in this book. Choosing the right broker Getting off to a fast start selling houses Finding the right lead sources Where to spend your money Where not to spend your money The best ways to network How to build a business not create a job How to make your real estate agent business a sell-able asset Much, much more If you are family with Mark and his writing style, you know he hates fluff. This is a straight to the point book with an immense amount of usable information and techniques.
You can find mark at https://Investfourmore.com, where he has created one of the most popular real estate blogs.
15. Ninja Selling: Subtle Skills. Big Results
Stop Selling! Start Solving!
In Ninja Selling, author Larry Kendall transforms the way readers think about selling. He points out the problems with traditional selling methods and instead offers a science-based selling system that gives predictable results regardless of personality type. Ninja Selling teaches readers how to shift their approach from chasing clients to attracting clients. Readers will learn how to stop selling and start solving by asking the right questions and listening to their clients.
Ninja Selling is an invaluable step-by-step guide that shows readers how to be more effective in their sales careers and increase their income-per-hour, so that they can lead full lives. Ninja Selling is both a sales platform and a path to personal mastery and life purpose. Followers of the Ninja Selling system say it not only improved their business and their client relationships; it also improved the quality of their lives.
16. The Emigrant Edge: How to Make It Big in America
A New York Times, USA TODAY, LA Times, and Wall Street Journal bestseller!
Brian Buffini, an Irish immigrant who went from rags to riches, shares his strategies for anyone who wants to achieve the American dream. Born and raised in Dublin, Ireland, Brian Buffini immigrated to San Diego, California at the age of nineteen with only ninety-two dollars in his pocket. Since then, he has become a classic American rags-to-riches story. After discovering real estate, he quickly became one of the nation’s top real estate moguls and founder of the largest business training company, Buffini & Co., in North America.
But Brian isn’t alone in his success: immigrants compose thirteen percent of the American population and are responsible for a quarter of all new businesses. In fact, Forbes magazine boasts that immigrants dominate most of the Forbes 400 list.
So what are the secrets? In The Emigrant Edge, Brian shares seven characteristics that he and other successful immigrants have in common that can help anyone reach a higher level of achievement, no matter their vocation. He then challenges readers to leave the comfort of their current work conditions to apply these secrets and achieve the success of their dreams.
17. Mindset, Model and Marketing!
Real estate is a tricky business. Some agents dominate the market, while others can barely keep their heads above water. There are secrets the top producers possess that every agent needs to know. This invaluable guidebook from #1 New York Times best-selling author Tom Ferry explores the systems and strategies that can transform you and your team into real estate rock stars.
In Mindset, Model and Marketing you’ll learn how to:
• Take the massive action necessary to become the dominant agent in your marketplace
• Win listings by presenting and closing with confidence
• Profit from your database and geographic farm
• Implement one of four team models to scale your business
• Take control of your time to work smarter, not harder
With Tom’s proven business-building techniques, you can become a force to be reckoned with in the real estate industry and secure the future you’ve always wanted.
18. Deliver the Unexpected: and Six Other New Truths for Business Success
Praise for Deliver the Unexpected
“Richard’s insights are exactly what entrepreneurs need to read to transform their business in today’s new reality.” —Margaret Kelly, CEO of RE/MAX International
“Deliver the Unexpected is an absolute must-read for any entrepreneur serious about changing the game.” —Robin Sharma, bestselling author of The Leader Who Had No Title and The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari
“Much more than just a fascinating story and much more than just a book on success. Be ready to come away with knowledge of the principles that will help you take your career and income to a whole new level.” —Bob Burg, coauthor of The Go-Giver and author of Endless Referrals
19. Interrupt the Pattern
I do this work because I believe we have been and continue to be misled. We have bought into ideas, concepts, and programming that don’t allow us to experience and live as our authentic selves. My whole life I have questioned everything. I have known deep within my soul that we live in an environment that continues to pull us away from our true self in our constant need to gain approval from everyone but ourselves. We have been programmed to believe in that which does not serve us. We have bought into it and continue to repeat our unhealthy history. We are then left very unhappy, unfulfilled, and empty inside. We are encouraged on the surface to cultivate self love. But, if you look deeply enough, the conditions are never present for us to be secure enough to allow ourselves to be loved.
We are conditioned from cradle to grave to live in a way that encourages us to believe we are separate from each other and nature. But the truth is we are all connected and we are nature. Our misunderstanding of the concept of love leads us down destructive and tormenting roads over and over again.
When you give yourself the gift of looking deeply into yourself – your programming, your life – you can unravel the big lie you are force fed. When you identify the source of your insecurities, you are automatically on the road to coming into your true power as a human being.
There is no doubt that working with Interrupt The Pattern will bring you into cognitive dissidence. This is part of the process because the truth you will discover will directly polarize that which you have been conditioned to believe.
This book will take you on a journey of exploration. In the following pages, you will discover that you always have the choice to create whatever you want in your life and that, when you are in service to yourself first, other people benefit.
20. The Conversion Code: Capture Internet Leads, Create Quality Appointments, Close More Sales
Capture and close more Internet leads with a new sales script and powerful marketing templates
The Conversion Code provides a step-by-step blueprint for increasing sales in the modern, Internet-driven era. Today’s consumers are savvy, and they have more options than ever before. Capturing their attention and turning it into revenue requires a whole new approach to marketing and sales. This book provides clear guidance toward conquering the new paradigm shift towards online lead generation and inside sales. You’ll learn how to capture those invaluable Internet leads, convert them into appointments, and close more deals. Regardless of product or industry, this proven process will increase both the quantity and quality of leads and put your sales figures on the rise.
Traditional sales and marketing advice is becoming less and less relevant as today’s consumers are spending much more time online, and salespeople are calling, emailing, and texting leads instead of meeting them in person. This book shows you where to find them, how to engage them, and how to position your company as the ideal solution to their needs.
• Engage with consumers more effectively online
• Leverage the strengths of social media, apps, and blogs to capture more leads for less money
• Convert more Internet leads into real-world prospects and sales appointments
• Make connections on every call and learn the exact words that close more sales
The business world is moving away from “belly-to-belly” interactions and traditional advertising. Companies are forced to engage with prospective customers first online—the vast majority through social media, mobile apps, blogs, and live chat—before ever meeting in person. Yesterday’s marketing advice no longer applies to today’s tech savvy, mobile-first, social media-addicted consumer, and the new sales environment demands that you meet consumers where they are and close them, quickly. The Conversion Code gives you an actionable blueprint for capturing Internet leads and turning them into customers.
I hope these books will open your minds, lives and hearts as much as they have for me.
Please leave a comment with your own recommendations in the box below.
I am always amazed when I get to see mastery in sales at work and how the best can make it look effortless and it really isn’t sales at all but something that is natural and who they are like poetry in motion. The legend, my friend and one of my mentors Floyd Wickman taught us to be effective consultants and not sales person’s with people by using what he called the “Diamond of Salesmanship.”
4 Points to the Diamond of Salesmanship
The Diamond of salesmanship was the perfect tool to help come across as a consultant or an advisor with people and not another salesperson. These four powerful activities allowed the best of the best to get the result they were wanting on almost every single appointment and you can to.
At the top of the diamond was “Use their names” when meeting with people. When you use someone’s name a lot they begin to feel like they are important and special to you. Using their names a lot also makes people trust and like you faster during your time with them.Let’s be honest here, who doesn’t like to hear someone say your name over and over again? I don’t know about you but personally I love this part of the diamond for another reason and that is I am excellent with faces but absolutely terrible with names and using someone’s name over and over again helps me internalize and remember their names so much easier.
The second point on the diamond of salesmanship is “Ask questions” the world’s greatest conversationalist is someone who says little or nothing because they ask powerful engaging questions and are then quiet and listen.Wouldn’t you all agree it is not by chance we all have 2 ears and one mouth and we were designed to speak less and listen more. The most difficult skill for myself is to ask more questions and to listen more and be present and attentive to the other person and their needs and not my own needs. When we ask more questions and let the other do the talking you find them saying “I don’t know what it is but I feel like I know you and that I could talk to you forever” and you just smile and say, “I get that a lot.” So remember, ask questions and listen more and you get the results you want.
The next point on the diamond of salesmanship is “Facial expressions and Voice inflections” the greatest part of communication is the non-verbal piece. Your client clearly understands and hears you better when communicating with the right facial expressions and voice inflections. We have all heard that your energy level changes when you smile while talking over the phone. The English language is so complex when you say a word and end it with a up voice or down voice inflection. For example the difference between really and reeeeaaallly.The first is heard like you are surprised or wow. The second is a response is heard as possibly an exaggeration. Never forget that almost 86% of communication in sales is from your facial expression and tone or voice inflection every time.
The fourth and final point of the diamond of salesmanship it “Visuals” never “tell” but always “show and sell”. In sales we have always heard the statement “talk is cheap” and this is so important when dealing with others and not to tell but use visuals to show and sell.Half of the people we deal with are auditory learners and half are visual learners including myself but you will never know which one the client is so never tell, rather show and sell. Honestly the most powerful sales tool on the planet is a note pad and pen. While I am communicating I am always writing, drawing while communicating to visual enhance my communication with the other party.
So there you have it, the four things you do at any appointment to get the results you are wanting. Take the time to study and practice these skills and please don’t practice this on your clients first but on your peers, family member or spouse and become proficient in the diamond of salesmanship and take your business and effectiveness to another level.
Feed Your Real Estate Business with the Knowledge… Wisdom and Experience of Others
As a young man in school I really struggled with school and to be honest I read very little unless I had to.
In my early years as a real estate agent I had the privilege to see Jim Rohn speak at an event. Jim was the most amazing business speakers I have ever seen to this day. He made a few comments like grow yourself and grow your income and miss a meal before missing a good book.
Those statements never left me and I began to become a student of my profession and began to read everything on leadership, sales, finance and more.
The ideas and information I learned from these books began to really expand my thoughts, ideas and success year after year.
I would like to share some of my personal “must reads” for all of you and add some of my personal favorites I have found in the last year.
Here Are My Must Read Books for All Real Estate Agents
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Your First Year in Real Estate contains the essential knowledge you need to start off right in today’s vastly changed real estate market, avoid common first-year missteps, and get the inside edge that will take you to the top.
Real estate expert Dirk Zeller has compiled the industry’s proven secrets and strategies that will enable novice agents to hit the ground running and excel from day one. You’ll get the insider’s guide to:
Selecting the right company Developing valuable mentor and client relationships
Using the Internet and social networking to stay ahead of the competition
Setting—and reaching— essential career goalsStaying on top in today’s challenging real estate climate
The 4-Hour Workweek: Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich (2007) is a self-help book by Timothy Ferriss, an American writer, educational activist and entrepreneur. The book has spent more than four years on the The New York Times Best Seller list, has been translated into 35 languages and has sold more than 1,350,000 copies worldwide. It focuses on what Ferriss refers to as “lifestyle design” and a repudiation of the traditional “deferred” life plan in which people work grueling hours and take few vacations for decades and save money in order to relax after retirement.
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Stephen R. Covey’s book, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People®, has been a top-seller for the simple reason that it ignores trends and pop psychology for proven principles of fairness, integrity, honesty, and human dignity.
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“Big Data” introduces you to the recent bestselling book by Viktor Mayer-Schönberger and Kenneth Cukier. The book examines the way big data changes how we live, work and think. In the book we describe how we will use big data, and where big data’s value lies. We also look at Big Data’s dark sides, and how to ensure that they do not take control. The book is published in the US by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, and in the UK by John Murray.
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In this book, Berger reveals the secret science behind word-of-mouth and social transmission. Discover how six basic principles drive all sorts of things to become contagious, from consumer products and policy initiatives to workplace rumors and YouTube videos. Contagious combines groundbreaking research with powerful stories.
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Deliver the Unexpected is a parable structured around a series of false beliefs. Each will present an accepted or common insight into success, then expands, clarifies, or contradicts it with a new truth. The parable follows Josh Abrams, a real estate professional who has been down on his luck and needs to deliver results in order to keep his job. He turns to his competition and an unusual coach for help.
Each of the seven myths is a lesson that readers must internalize in order to find success. Individually, each myth challenges accepted wisdom, replacing it with a new, more effective insight. Together, they form a cohesive framework applicable to personal or business achievement.
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Most people believe that the best way to motivate is with rewards like money—the carrot-and-stick approach. That’s a mistake, says Daniel H. Pink (author of To Sell Is Human: The Surprising Truth About Motivating Others). In this provocative and persuasive new book, he asserts that the secret to high performance and satisfaction-at work, at school, and at home—is the deeply human need to direct our own lives, to learn and create new things, and to do better by ourselves and our world.
Drawing on four decades of scientific research on human motivation, Pink exposes the mismatch between what science knows and what business does—and how that affects every aspect of life. He examines the three elements of true motivation—autonomy, mastery, and purpose-and offers smart and surprising techniques for putting these into action in a unique book that will change how we think and transform how we live.
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In this first new and totally revised edition of the 150,000-copy underground bestseller, The E-Myth, Michael Gerber dispels the myths surrounding starting your own business and shows how commonplace assumptions can get in the way of running a business. He walks you through the steps in the life of a business from entrepreneurial infancy, through adolescent growing pains, to the mature entrepreneurial perspective, the guiding light of all businesses that succeed. He then shows how to apply the lessons of franchising to any business whether or not it is a franchise. Finally, Gerber draws the vital, often overlooked distinction between working on your business and working in your business. After you have read The E-Myth Revisited, you will truly be able to grow your business in a predictable and productive way.
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The Energy Bus, an international best seller by Jon Gordon, takes readers on an enlightening and inspiring ride that reveals 10 secrets for approaching life and work with the kind of positive, forward thinking that leads to true accomplishment – at work and at home. Jon infuses this engaging story with keen insights as he provides a powerful roadmap to overcome adversity and bring out the best in yourself and your team.
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Named one of the best books of 2013 by Amazon, the Financial Times, and the Wall Street Journal- as well as one of Oprah’s riveting reads, Fortune’s must-read business books, and the Washington Post’s books every leader should read.
Using his own pioneering research as Wharton’s youngest tenured professor, Adam Grant shows that these styles have a surprising impact on success. Although some givers get exploited and burn out, the rest achieve extraordinary results across a wide range of industries. Combining cutting-edge evidence with captivating stories, Grant shows how one of America’s best networkers developed his connections, why the creative genius behind one of the most popular shows in television history toiled for years in anonymity, how a basketball executive responsible for multiple draft busts transformed his franchise into a winner, and how we could have anticipated Enron’s demise four years before the company collapsed–without ever looking at a single number.
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The Go-Giver: A Little Story about a Powerful Business Idea is a book written by Bob Burg and John D. Mann. It is a story about the power of giving. The Go-Giver tells the story of an ambitious young man named Joe who yearns for success. Joe is a true go-getter, though sometimes he feels as if the harder and faster he works, the further away his goals seem to be. And so one day, desperate to land a key sale at the end of a bad quarter, he seeks advice from the enigmatic Pindar, a legendary consultant referred to by his many devotees simply as the Chairman.
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How to Win Friends and Influence People is one of the first best-selling self-help books ever published. Written by Dale Carnegie and first published in 1936, it has sold 15 million copies world-wide. This grandfather of all people-skills books was first published in 1937. It was an overnight hit, eventually selling 15 million copies. How to Win Friends and Influence People is just as useful today as it was when it was first published, because Dale Carnegie had an understanding of human nature that will never be outdated. Financial success, Carnegie believed, is due 15 percent to professional knowledge and 85 percent to “the ability to express ideas, to assume leadership, and to arouse enthusiasm among people.” He teaches these skills through underlying principles of dealing with people so that they feel important and appreciated.
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Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead is a 2013 book written by Sheryl Sandberg, the chief operating officer of Facebook.In Lean In, Sandberg digs deeper into these issues, combining personal anecdotes, hard data, and compelling research to cut through the layers of ambiguity and bias surrounding the lives and choices of working women. She recounts her own decisions, mistakes, and daily struggles to make the right choices for herself, her career, and her family.
She provides practical advice on negotiation techniques, mentorship, and building a satisfying career, urging women to set boundaries and to abandon the myth of “having it all.” She describes specific steps women can take to combine professional achievement with personal fulfillment and demonstrates how men can benefit by supporting women in the workplace and at home.
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This book is about you-your choices, your future, and your potential to make a huge difference in whatever field you choose. There used to be two teams in every workplace: management and labor. Now there’s a third team, the linchpins. These people figure out what to do when there’s no rule book. They delight and challenge their customers and peers. They love their work, pour their best selves into it, and turn each day into a kind of art.
Linchpins are the essential building blocks of great organizations. They may not be famous but they’re indispensable. And in today’s world, they get the best jobs and the most freedom. As Godin writes, “Every day I meet people who have so much to give but have been bullied enough or frightened enough to hold it back. It’s time to stop complying with the system and draw your own map. You have brilliance in you, your contribution is essential, and the art you create is precious. Only you can do it, and you must.”
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Little Red Book of Selling includes Jeffrey’s 12.5 Principles of Sales Greatness and strategies and answers from a lifetime of selling that will teach you how to make sales forever. In this book, you will have the opportunity to understand why sales happen. And by mastering the elements that Jeffrey Gitomer gives you, you’ll make sales happen for yourself forever. It is loaded with small bite-sized pieces of expert “how to sell” information and sales techniques that inspire and encourage the reader to become the expert in sales as well as in the industry in which they sell for. It is hard packed with sales tips and advice for those learning sales basics and is an excellent refresher for the seasoned sales person.
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Gary Keller knows the beauty of a simple path to a spectacular goal! Whether you are just getting started or a veteran in the business, The Millionaire Real Estate Agent is the step-by-step handbook for seeking excellence in your profession and in your life. This book presents a new paradigm for real estate and should be required reading for real estate professionals everywhere.
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Mr. Shmooze: The Art and Science of Selling Through Relationships teaches many principles of sales excellence that you won’t learn in business school, but that will put you on the path to great success in sales! The protagonist, “Mr. Shmooze,” is a business and marketing consultant modeled after several “superstar” salespeople. Mr. Shmooze has built a huge business by giving of himself to others, while always adding value to the lives of everyone he touches.
The reader follows Mr. Shmooze through a variety of meetings and encounters, learning from his techniques alongside Robert, the young protégé. Robert aspires to be a “young Shmooze” as he watches his mentor making powerful emotional connections that lead to better results and more fun in sales. An easy and compelling read, Mr. Shmooze is a parable about relationship selling to be prized by salespeople, business executives and entrepreneurs. Learn how great salespeople achieve super sales results when they make powerful emotional connections with prospects and bring laughter and fun to each encounter!
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The No 1 reason that stops people from getting what they want is lack of focus. People who focus on what they want, prosper. Those who don’t, struggle. In The Power of Focus you’ll discover the specific focusing strategies used by the world’s most successful men and women. Find out how to: Focus on your strengths and eliminate everything that is holding you back; Change bad habits into habits that will make you debt-free and wealthy; Create an excellent balance between work and family life – without guilt!
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In The Power of Habit, Pulitzer Prize–winning business reporter Charles Duhigg takes us to the thrilling edge of scientific discoveries that explain why habits exist and how they can be changed. Distilling vast amounts of information into engrossing narratives that take us from the boardrooms of Procter & Gamble to sidelines of the NFL to the front lines of the civil rights movement, Duhigg presents a whole new understanding of human nature and its potential. At its core, The Power of Habit contains an exhilarating argument: The key to exercising regularly, losing weight, being more productive, and achieving success is understanding how habits work. As Duhigg shows, by harnessing this new science, we can transform our businesses, our communities, and our lives.
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Sheldon Bowles and Ken Blanchard’s Raving Fans, is written in the parable style of Gung Ho!® and The One Minute Manager®. It uses a brilliantly simple and charming story to teach how to define a service vision, learn what a customer really wants, institute effective systems, and make stunning customer service a competitive advantage—not just another “flavor of the month” program. This book has become required reading for organizations around the world and is a necessity for those who are serious about survival and service excellence.
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In his groundbreaking Secrets of the Millionaire Mind, T. Harv Eker states: “Give me five minutes, and I can predict your financial future for the rest of your life!” Eker does this by identifying your “money and success blueprint.” We all have a personal money blueprint ingrained in our subconscious minds, and it is this blueprint, more than anything, that will determine our financial lives. You can know everything about marketing, sales, negotiations, stocks, real estate, and the world of finance, but if your money blueprint is not set for a high level of success, you will never have a lot of money—and if somehow you do, you will most likely lose it! The good news is that now you can actually reset your money blueprint to create natural and automatic success.
Secrets of the Millionaire Mind is two books in one. Part I explains how your money blueprint works. In Part II you will be introduced to seventeen “Wealth Files,” which describe exactly how rich people think and act differently than most poor and middle-class people. Each Wealth File includes action steps for you to practice in the real world in order to dramatically increase your income and accumulate wealth.
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To help people uncover their talents, Gallup introduced the first version of its online assessment, StrengthsFinder, in the 2001 management book Now, Discover Your Strengths. The book spent more than five years on the bestseller lists and ignited a global conversation, while StrengthsFinder helped millions to discover their top five talents. In StrengthsFinder 2.0 Gallup unveiled the new and improved version of its popular assessment, language of 34 themes, and much more. While you can read this book in one sitting, you’ll use it as a reference for decades. Loaded with hundreds of strategies for applying your strengths, this Wall Street Journal, Business Week, and USA Today bestseller will change the way you look at yourself — and the world around you — forever.
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The One Thing: The Surprisingly Simple Truth Behind Extraordinary Results by Gary Keller and Jay Papasan is an excellent self help book which explains how to prioritize tasks when there are an avalanche of things to get done in the near term. The book shows how people quickly lose focus and accomplish little or nothing in an attempt to get too many things done on an immediate basis. The One Thing is a wonderful book which addresses the dangers of analysis paralysis and the lack of focus in trying to wade through too many items on the agenda. The authors make it clear how to set priorities to begin getting the right things done the right way. This book will benefit management at virtually every level in an organization.
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The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference is the debut book by Malcolm Gladwell, first published by Little Brown in 2000. Gladwell defines a tipping point as “the moment of critical mass, the threshold, the boiling point”. The book seeks to explain and describe the “mysterious” sociological changes that mark everyday life. As Gladwell states, “Ideas and products and messages and behaviors spread like viruses do”.
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The Greatest Salesman in the World is a book, written by Og Mandino, that serves as a guide to a philosophy of salesmanship, and success, telling the story of Hafid, a poor camel boy who achieves a life of abundance. The book was first published in 1968, and re-issued in 1983 by Bantam. Mandino’s clear, simple writing style supports his purpose: to make the principles of sales known to a wide audience. A parable set in the time just prior to Christianity, The Greatest Salesman in the World weaves mythology with spirituality into a much needed message of inspiration in this culture of self-promotion. Mandino believes that to be a good salesperson, you must believe in yourself and the work you are doing. It is a simple but profound spiritual philosophy about how to succeed in the world’s marketplace, easily understood and easy to take to heart.
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Think and Grow Rich is a 1937 motivational personal development and self-help book by Napoleon Hill and inspired by a suggestion from Scottish-American businessman Andrew Carnegie. While the title implies that this book deals with how to get rich, the author explains that the philosophy taught in the book can be used to help people succeed in all lines of work and to do or be almost anything they want.
Think and Grow Rich has been called the “Granddaddy of All Motivational Literature.” It was the first book to boldly ask, “What makes a winner?” The man who asked and listened for the answer, Napoleon Hill, is now counted in the top ranks of the world’s winners himself.
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An Amazing Way to Deal with Change in Your Work and in Your Life, published on September 8, 1998, is a motivational book by Spencer Johnson written in the style of a parable or business fable. The text describes change in one’s work and life, and four typical reactions to said change by two mice and two “littlepeople”, during their hunt for cheese. With Who Moved My Cheese? Dr. Spencer Johnson realizes the need for finding the language and tools to deal with change–an issue that makes all of us nervous and uncomfortable. Most people are fearful of change because they don’t believe they have any control over how or when it happens to them. Since change happens either to the individual or by the individual, Spencer Johnson shows us that what matters most is the attitude we have about change.
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I hope these books will open your minds and hearts as much as they did for me.
Please leave a comment in the box below to let me know your own recommendations for me to read in the balance of 2014. Would really love to hear from you all and add to my book repertoire.
Strength and courage,
Wade
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The last year and a half have definitely been some challenging times. Remember in uncertain times you can still control your own environment, be proactive and come out a winner. My personal friend and mentor Brian Buffini always reminded us to consider all areas of your personal and business life are in check. Consider your spiritual, family, business, financial and personal and ensure your 5 Circle fit. The 5 circle fit check can help you stay motivated and energized no matter what life throws your way. As a real estate professional, it’s helpful to hone your focus on the business circle. Here’s how:
18. Deliver the Unexpected: and Six Other New Truths for Business Success
