Commercial Real Estate Agents – Planning to Win Faster
Most commercial real estate agents enter the property industry with a good deal of optimism and some relevant knowledge. From that point onwards the reality of the property market sinks in. Hard work is required at a personal level to create good listings and commissions; the brokerage that you work for only has a small role to play when it comes to new business and market share.
Systems of focus will take many agents to their goals. Any agent that lacks focus will inevitably struggle. Don’t take too long to understand that fact; the industry can be a fast way to waste or loose money. Start prospecting as soon as you enter the industry.
I have come across many agents that have made big commissions in the good times, and yet they struggle at other times. They struggle because they have failed to plan and take the required actions in their market or business zone.
The reality of the property market is a combination of all of the following:
- Enquiries for properties for sale or lease can be very seasonal. Watch for the variations of property enquiry from tenants and buyers. Prospect for new business based on current levels of enquiry and property opportunity.
- Just about all of the high quality business that can come your way will be through deliberate personal prospecting and cold calling. You have to talk to a lot of people in a regular way. Prospecting should be part of your business model and daily diary.
- Some clients are more valuable to you than others. Review your database for VIP clients and then build the strong relationships with them for the long term.
- There will always be a selection of agents chasing your listings and your clients; on that basis your service should be of the highest quality, and your listings should be exclusively appointed. That’s how you control your market and remove the threat of other agents taking your clients and listings.
- Most clients want to list with the best agent that dominates locally; the clients know that market share is really important for selling or leasing in a timely way. There are a few different ways to build your presence and personal brand in the local area. Signage presence will help you with building market share. In saying that, the signs that you put on listings should be only on those exclusively listed properties. Don’t bother putting your sign in with many other agents on an open listing.
- Quality listings will bring in better levels of enquiry. Conversely poor quality or over priced listings will create little interest and take too much of your time. You have a choice when it comes to listing properties.
All of these points are logical and understandable. Focus your prospecting efforts in and around these issues. Over time you will grow your commercial real estate market share in the ways that you require.