Job Description for Commercial Real Estate Sales Agent
In commercial real estate, it pays to assign clear duties to the role of a ‘sales agent’. The only way anyone makes a good share of commissions in our industry is to focus on the things that really matter. That is where a ‘job description’ has high value.
It should be said that the sales agent role involves a number of tasks, some of which will take time and others will waste your time. Priorities and choices are really important to the process, so that the correct things are done.
Sales Agent Planner
Here is my version of this key role in a commercial real estate business. I have put some order to the process given the ‘typical working day’ for most brokers and agents:
- Research the market for opportunities and new business targets. To do this correctly, every day a degree of time should be spent in locating new people to talk to; the best time to do this is in the early evening at home (using the computer). That will involve researching property ownership records, business owners, tenants, and property investors. Some of these people are harder to locate than others. On that basis the research issue needs to be controlled and regular. Every day you can find a few more people to talk to. Consistency is really important. Over time you will find the right people to add to your database.
- Prospecting should occur first thing every day for a couple of hours at least. It can be repeated (if time allows) at the end of the day after 0330 p.m. where you can get on the telephone again and make some more targeted calls. The repeating process has great benefits in conversions for an agent or broker. Some people (our prospects) live a different ‘time schedule’ so you will not reach them in the morning.
- Appointments and inspections should occur after 1100 a.m. when the prospecting has been completed for the morning. The only reason that you should break this rule is if you have a deal in negotiation and you must meet the people involved to hold the deal together.
- Negotiations are a bit like ‘appointments’ in that you should try to do them mid or late morning when the prospecting has been done.
- Paperwork associated with marketing, contracts, leases, and deal support paperwork should occur during the afternoon when all your meetings and inspections have been done.
- Inspections are best left for the afternoon for all of the reasons above.
- Client contact calls and meetings can occur in the late afternoon. At that time you would have achieved all other issues in the day that should have been done.
- Database updates and additions should happen at the end of the day or when you get the fresh information (if you are sitting at your desk when you get the call). Your database will give you the growth in market share and listings if you accurately control the information collated and act on it.
This list will give you some structure for your business day. You are the only person who can create the structure and the momentum.
Top Agent Planning
Top agents control their day well and protect the important things that will help them build market share and listing profile. Control your day well and you will find the new business.
