Increase Your Bottom Line...(Part 2)

Here are some more steps to make more money in your real estate business.

4. Identify your best client

Are you spending your time on your best prospect? (Putting on my Realtor hat) I could drive a shopper around for months to see every house that happens to be in a particular town and have a certain number of bedrooms. Or, I could refer that shopper to some other agent who likes shopping and spend my valuable time locating my ideal client (who has 2 days to select their next home, is pre-approved with my favorite lender and has a pleasant personality).

Don't get me wrong. There are a lot of potential clients out there that are serious about making a decision to purchase a home. I'd just prefer to spend my time on the client that will be decisive and agreeable. (And, I know when I've found that type of person. And I do everything in my power to ensure that they will do business with me.)

So, transpose this idea to your business. Are you looking for a service provider, a property to purchase, a tenant or a buyer? In each area, identify your best client and serve ONLY those that fit similar criteria.

If you spend more time on client screening you'll find that you: Waste less time (on bad clients that probably won't perform anyway), Experience less stress and Make more money. And isn't that was business is really about?


5. Provide top quality service

Do you have a niche? Are you the "best" in your area? If you want to make more money (without necessarily working more) you need to give you clients amazing service. It's common knowledge that people will pay a premium for a high quality product or service. (And usually that means that service is provided to fewer clients.) So, if you're interested in serving fewer people and charging them at a higher rate, I suggest you provide an amazing service.


6. Satisfy your customer

Somewhat aligned with the last bullet point, customer satisfaction creates great referrals. Once you have taken the market by storm by the quality of your product, don't forget to ensure that your client loves it.

I have a great listing presentation. I pull out all the stops and typically walk away with a signed contract. (Unless I have determined that my prospect does not fit my "best client" criteria. In which case, I tell them "Thank you" and offer to refer them to another agent in my office...or a competing brokerage if they are really high maintenance. Ha!)

But Once I have the contract signed, if I don't satisfy my client with consistently amazing service, I've hurt my entire business.

Make sure that your client is aware of what you intend to provide and be sure that level of service satisfies their needs...at the very least. (And, if it doesn't, you probably did a poor job at at client screening and have wasted your time and theirs...so cut them loose. Oh! I'm so cold!)



...I'll have more tips to come. Please leave me a comment and let me know what you do to be the best in your market or how you have created a niche.

FREE! Generate 27 Leads Per Day!

It all boils down to marketing. Really, it all boils down to the headline. (And I want you to have great headlines!)

You could have the best product/content/service in the world (or you could have the worst...) and if you don't have strong marketing, NO ONE WILL BUY IT! So, take a look at some of these headlines and start putting them to use.

Here are some of the highest producing headlines I am aware of:

• FREE! (This is the single most powerful word in print advertising)
  
• Handyman Special
• $129,900 Fixer-upper - $19k under appraisal
• Must Sell
• Sell on Terms
• Owner Financing
  
• Owner Desperate
• Broker Desperate
• Vacant Properties
• No Underwriting
• Free Payments
• NO Payments!
  
• Bank REO's
• $500 Down Gets You In
• Free List of...

And my personal favorite:

• Discover How to Generate Up to 27 Calls Per Day from Qualified Buyers and Sellers With No Prospecting, No "Selling" and Absolutely No Pressure or Rejection...

Increase Your Bottom Line by 133% or More! (Part 1)

When I started my career I took advantage of a few techniques that really cranked up my income as a real estate agent. (I screwed up by failing to continue to apply them.)

1. Get passionate about your business.

When I realized that a large number of successful people in the United States owned real estate, besides their primary dwelling, I became excited about buying, selling and owning real estate for myself. I was convinced that if I learned more about real estate investing I too would find myself among the ranks of the monetarily wealthy. (Since I was working in an 8 to 6 job at the time, that was an exciting thing to daydream about.) I became passionate about starting a real estate investing career.

2. Get your phone to ring.

Once I started on my new business path I found that if I had no clients, I had no income. (And that really stretched out my path to becoming monetarily wealthy.) I realized that no matter what business I was involved in, my job is to make my phone ring. I also realized that my business is much easier when potential clients are calling me as opposed to when I cold call them.

3. Have a marketing message that sets you apart.

Do you do the same thing as everyone else? I don't. And my clients need to know that. I have made it a point to have a marketing message that lets my clients know that I sell homes faster than the average agent.

For some ideas on good marketing messages check out my previous blog:

"FREE! Generate 27 Leads Per Day!"