The Top 7 Must Haves in Commercial Real Estate Brokerage Recruiting
In commercial real estate brokerage there are some rules to follow or targets to hit when it comes to finding and employing new sales people to brokerage and agency. Quality people may be hard to find (as many team leaders will confirm), but those people of a lesser quality and or inexperience generally do not last long in the industry or are a challenge to control from a risk, performance, and team perspective.
Recruiting Checklist
So it pays to set some targets when it comes to recruiting and introducing a new team member to a brokerage business. Here are some factors that are high on my recruitment checklist:
- Personal motivation and drive – Most of the results achieved in the industry come from the consistent personal actions and focus of the best individuals on the right market segments and clients. That is something achieved at the level of each individual broker within the team; understand just who you have in your team and how you can get the best results from them. You will have different people with different approaches to the business. Actions are more important than words in our industry, so you want the right people who know how to take action. You want people that can get out into the property market and do things without being prompted to do so. Most brokers and agents have a few things to learn and improve in both skills and knowledge; watch for those pressures and priorities.
- Real estate knowledge for a property type and a region – Certainly knowledge can be learned; however a broker with established local market knowledge in a property sector can get out and find new business without much prompting. They will know what to say and do in a client presentation and how to go about converting new listings using a professional presentation method supported by logic and market comparisons.
- Organisation – Time is a valuable resource in commercial real estate today. Every broker and agent in your team needs to know how to stay organised and effective within the business activities of the day. Errors and omissions can occur when a broker is swamped with unnecessary tasks and diversions. Show your team members how to get their time under control and directed at the things that really matter.
- Communication skills – We work in an industry where ongoing communication and client contact are valuable skills to nurture and improve. There are many different characters to work with when it comes to client contact. The best agents know how to shape their communications to the character and the thinking of the client. That is a communication skill of great value. Remember the communication variables and factors of marketing, email, letters, formal presentations, meetings, and client contact. These things take practice and refinement so that communications convert and connect in the right way.
- Professional appearance – Like it or not, we are judged on personal appearance and presentation before anything else we may say or do. As brokers and agents we need to be very aware of the expectations of our clients and customers when it comes to personal appearance. Without getting the ‘visual’ aspect of business under control, all other parts of what we say and do are a real challenge.
- Business systems and methods – New business systems and prospecting methods are things that will help in the compounding of brokerage results. A good brokerage is built around established systems and broker administration. You want all the team members following the right methods when it comes to prospecting, marketing, inspections, negotiations, and documentation.
- Listings and client focus – Most of the higher quality business that we create will be achieved from a marketing focus, regular client contact, and an exclusive listing or property priority system. Top agents know just where the best listings are and who the top clients are. Over time they can then convert more opportunities.
So when you find the right people employed with these seven factors correctly developed in commercial real estate, then you have a good broker to nurture and encourage in your team.