Bigger. Better. Bolder. Inman Connect is heading to San Diego. Join thousands of real estate pros, connect with the Inman Community, and gain insights from hundreds of leading minds shaping the industry. If you’re ready to grow your business and invest in yourself, this is where you need to be. Go BIG in San Diego!
In a time when many agents are struggling with high lead costs and low conversion rates, broker Josh Ries out of South Dakota has developed a system that uses one of the oldest tools in the book: open houses.
“If you’re wondering how to get face-to-face with more buyer and seller prospects, open houses are one of the best ways to do it,” Ries said in a recent interview. “And when done right, they generate real results.”
He isn’t speaking in theory. His strategy is consistently generating prospects, and it’s designed to be repeatable. From content planning to signage, every step of his process is intentional.
Where it all began
Ries’s background in digital marketing started early. At 13, he was already running Google Ads for local businesses. That background helped him later when, after getting his real estate license in 2016, he and his wife discovered their business had a profitability problem.
“We were selling homes, but we weren’t making money. Our lead generation and nurture costs were too high,” he explained.
That’s when he tore everything down and rebuilt it with one goal: reduce acquisition cost and boost conversion through efficient, repeatable strategies. Open houses became a core part of that system.
The secret is in the setup
Once a listing is secured, Ries and his team skip the standard “just listed” and “open house” posts on social media. These posts and promotions are driven by educational short-form content. They identify unique or compelling aspects of the home and create videos around those features. They also tell stories about the different rooms and features and how the current family enjoys these areas of the home.
These videos serve two purposes:
They boost listing exposure by aligning with keyword-driven, SEO-style content.
They promote the home, and in turn the open house, in a more engaging, curiosity-piquing way.
Targeted marketing with social science
Every post and video is created based onGoogle keyword research. That ensures the messaging resonates with what people in that market are actually searching for. Social platforms are chosen based on where the ideal buyer is most likely to engage — whether that’s YouTube, Instagram, Facebook or another channel.
Ries avoids trends or “viral” styles and instead focuses on lasting visibility through search. Google keyword research can be extensive, but an easy way to identify what people are searching for is to go to the Google search bar and type in [Your City] home features and benefits.
Once you press search, Google now provides an AI overview of the most desirable features and benefits for your area. The list of desirable features and benefits provides a simple way to identify the features you should highlight in your social content and promotion of the home.
The neighborhood packet
Before the open house, Ries assembles a “neighborhood packet” that includes:
An MLS sheet with the home’s specs
QR codes to the educational videos created about the home and the neighborhood
Local stats and seller-friendly insights
These packets are distributed while door-knocking in the area prior to the open house. The goal is to drive traffic to the open house and also build curiosity and seller leads.
If they are too busy to door-knock the neighborhood, they send the packet as a mailer (with those same QR codes). This helps get better reach than traditional open house flyers.
Day-of: A high-tech, low-pressure experience
Ries uses QR codes throughout the house during the open. Each code links to a video explaining the amenity or room where the QR code is located. At the entrance, visitors find a table with the home info flyer, the neighborhood packet and a buyer’s guide.
Ries never forces people to sign in. Instead, he positions himself in the kitchen and lets visitors tour at their own pace. If it feels natural, he offers to text or email a video version of the buyer’s guide or the home’s details.
Tools and tactics that elevate the experience
Ries emphasizes branding consistency across QR codes, packets and social media.
He recommends:
Using the same headshot and style across materials
Including platform logos (YouTube, Instagram) next to QR codes to boost click-through rates
Leveraging pattern interrupts, such as unusual signs or offers, to draw attention
He also uses social platforms as digital resumes. “The content we drive them to should prove what we promise. It shows we’re out there, actively doing the work.”
The follow-up most agents skip
After the open house, Ries doesn’t just debrief with the seller — he has a system for following up with the prospects that visited the home, utilizing Instagram’s connection to your contact list to drive prospect awareness of him. Instagram has stated that when you connect your Instagram account to your mobile device’s contact list, it will use your contacts to help you connect with people on Instagram in that list.
Ries said the first thing he does after the open house is that he adds the prospect to his contact list, including their phone number and email address. He then follows the prospect on social media. He utilizes a video text the afternoon after the open house to thank the prospects for attending, including a contact card they can save.
If he hasn’t heard from the prospects within three days after the open house, he follows up with a phone call. He stated they often tell him that ever since the open house, they have been seeing all his posts on social media, which he credits to this process.
After-the-sale neighborhood follow-up
Once the home is sold, he revisits the neighborhood. He door-knocks the neighborhood again with details about the sale, along with a seller’s guide. This compounds his efforts from the original open house and creates brand awareness for him and his team as neighborhood experts.
A system that converts
Ries’s open house system solves multiple problems. It gives agents a way to generate buyer leads affordably. It enhances seller marketing with modern tools, and it provides tangible proof of value during listing presentations.
Whether you’re in a hot market or a slow one, this process works. And for agents or team leaders struggling with profitability, it might be the refresh they didn’t know they needed.
Jimmy Burgess is a real estate agent and national team builder with Real Brokerage in northwest Florida, serving the 30A, Destin, and Panama City Beach markets. Connect with him on Instagram and LinkedIn.
Bigger. Better. Bolder. Inman Connect is heading to San Diego. Join thousands of real estate pros, connect with the Inman Community, and gain insights from hundreds of leading minds shaping the industry. If you’re ready to grow your business and invest in yourself, this is where you need to be. Go BIG in San Diego!
Real estate can be a roller coaster ride from multiple transactions in one month to none the next unless you develop a systematic, daily plan of activities. In this article, I’ll be sharing five daily habits that successful agents are leveraging right now to create consistency and momentum in their businesses.
Utilize direct messaging on social media
Direct messaging (DM) on social media has become a common way for friends to communicate. It’s more personal than a text. It’s less intrusive than a phone call. And ultimately, it facilitates a conversation where people are spending their time.
All of these factors make it the perfect format for deepening relationships and helping you stay top of mind for prospects or for potential referrals they might be able to send your way.
Direct messaging has moved from something I sporadically did to being at the top of my morning to-do list. Nos. 1-10 on my daily to-do list that I fill out before going to bed each night say “send a DM.” I often end my morning DMs with a question to get my daily conversations started.
I don’t force the DMs and only send them to people I truly like or someone who posted something that caught my attention. Be natural, and don’t send something unless it is genuine. When you start your days with personalized conversations, you set the tone for a positive day.
Post on social media in the morning
If you want to grow your social media following, consistency is key. Daily posts are ideal, but find a pace for posting where you can have some peace.
I prefer posting on social media in the morning, right after I’ve done my 10 DMs. There have been discussions that the algorithm rewards those who are active on the platform, but either way, your interaction through DMs absolutely should increase the interaction the people you’ve DMed have with your content.
The question then becomes, what should you post? You don’t have to recreate the wheel. Adam Mosseri, head of Instagram, shares the types of posts that Instagram is favoring. If you’re curious about what those types of posts are, check out this article on Instagram posting best practices.
Another way to find posts or Reels that will perform well is to study what agents in other markets are posting that have elevated engagement compared to their normal posts. I do this by going to another agent’s profile on Instagram. Then I click the Reels button. This allows you to see the number of views each reel has.
I look for the ones that have four or more times the agent’s normal views. These Reels are ones to consider modeling on your account.
If you’re looking for a list of agents to model, this article shares 25 Instagram accounts agents should be following.
Share hot sheet highlights
Every great agent I know checks the hot sheet every morning. They look for new listings or listings with substantial price reductions that they can share with prospective buyers. I’ve found there are typically three categories for agents when it comes to buyers, and all three can utilize the hot sheet to engage or expand their buyer prospect list. I call these processes sharing the hot sheet highlights.
The first group is agents who have active, hot buyers. These are buyers who are ready, willing and able to buy as soon as they find the right home. These are our priority prospects who should be emailed details about homes that appear on the hot sheet as soon as possible.
Many of these prospects may be on drip campaigns with automated emails going out when homes meeting their criteria hit the market, but personalized service to these prospects is essential.
I like to use BombBomb to record my screen, going over specifics on a home meeting the prospect’s criteria. I share my screen and show photos and highlights of the home. I also use aerial maps to show where the home is located in relation to landmarks that are important to them.
The second group is agents who have a large database, but the engagement with these prospects is low or limited. Many of these prospects are receiving automated property updates as homes come on the market, but you may not have spoken to them in a while.
This group should be initially reengaged via text or email with something along these lines:
This is [your name] with [your company]. You’ve been receiving property emails from me for a while now. I don’t want to overwhelm you with emails you don’t want or need, but I do want to make sure I am sending you the information you want. With that in mind, should I make any adjustments to the types of properties I’m sending, the price range of homes or the frequency of emails?
This will result in some opting out of receiving the emails, while others will respond with changes in their criteria or confirming that they are receiving what they desire. Once they respond, find a home that hits the hot sheet as soon as possible so that you can send the screen record video mentioned above for the hot prospects. This is a great way to turn some of those cold leads into sold clients.
The third group is the agents who have very few, if any, buyer prospects. If that is you, you have to begin to focus on building your database so you have buyer prospects you can send the hot sheet highlight to as often as possible. If you are wondering how to bring in more transactions, this article shares 25 ways to generate leads that are working now.
Send unsolicited video CMAs
The biggest question homeowners are curious about is the value of their home. A unique way to provide them with this information continues to be providing them with an unsolicited video CMA.
This can be done by recording your screen and walking the homeowner through your CMA while sharing your screen on the video. This provides the homeowner with information they want that they can view when it’s convenient for them, and it is presented in a way that helps you stand out from other agents.
If you’d like a more detailed description of this strategy and how to prepare effective video CMAs, check out this article.
Track real estate-related conversations
All of the previously mentioned activities should lead back to you having as many real estate-related conversations as possible. Nothing happens until we talk with prospective buyers and sellers. Conversations lead to appointments. Appointments lead to contracts, and contracts lead to closings.
The industry average has been widely reported as 50 real estate-related conversations lead to one contract. If you break your transaction goal down by how many daily conversations you need, you will be on a path for success.
Tony Robbins once said the key to success is to take massive action. I would add that the key to true success is consistent action on the right activities. If you are consistent with the activities mentioned above, true success and consistent success will follow.
Jimmy Burgess is a real estate agent and national team builder with Real Brokerage in northwest Florida, serving the 30A, Destin, and Panama City Beach markets. Connect with him on Instagram and LinkedIn.
Bigger. Better. Bolder. Inman Connect is heading to San Diego. Join thousands of real estate pros, connect with the power of the Inman Community, and gain insights from hundreds of leading minds shaping the industry. If you’re ready to grow your business and invest in yourself, this is where you need to be. Go BIG in San Diego!
Leads from YouTube may be the most overlooked opportunity in real estate today. Leads that come from an agent’s YouTube page have found the agent through specific searches, and they’ve gotten a feel for the agent through watching them on video.
Noah Escobar, servicing the 30A market in Northwest Florida, has generated over $16 million in sales directly from YouTube over the past 12 months, and his average time from the prospect first reaching out to him until they go under contract is only 17 days.
Escobar has built his business with YouTube as his foundational lead generation strategy, and in this article, I will break down the three main types of videos he utilizes to dominate the neighborhoods and areas he covers.
The process of success with search
Escobar focuses on new neighborhoods where there will be new construction homes for sale with three main videos to establish himself as the resource for this neighborhood.
The first video is an infrastructure video that provides an overview of the community as it is being developed. The second is a community overview video that comes as construction has begun for homes in the neighborhood. The third is listing tour videos of homes in the neighborhood.
Infrastructure videos
The infrastructure video comes early in the development process. Usually, once dirt is being moved and people begin wondering what is coming to the property, Escobar records and publishes these first-glimpse videos of what is to come.
The initial video often covers multiple developments, and he shares the details for each of these developments. Not only does he cover the details about what the development will be, but he also highlights how this new development will impact the home values of properties near the development.
These videos begin with an introduction used to capture the attention of the viewer by providing details about these developments that most viewers are unaware of. He starts each video with an on-camera introduction, then records a voiceover for the main content. This provides the videographer with the ability to layer in drone shots and additional B-roll footage of the neighborhood matching the script he has prepared.
The outro then provides a call to action for the viewer to reach out for additional information or to subscribe to his channel for the latest details about new developments for the areas he serves.
He will often follow up his initial video that covers multiple developments with a specific infrastructure update for the specific neighborhood. He also does infrastructure updates on new phases as they are being developed in the targeted subdivision as well.
By being the first person to provide details about these developments, Escobar positions himself as the neighborhood expert early in the development process. Because he is early, he also gains a jump start on the organic search rankings for the neighborhood on YouTube. This positions him at the top of the search for many of the neighborhoods he covers.
Escobar provided the following breakdown for the structure he uses for these infrastructure videos.
This is an example of an infrastructure video showcasing multiple developments and commercial infrastructure additions for an area:
This is an example of a specific phase update for a community:
Community videos
As mentioned before, Escobar is typically the first agent to post a video about a new subdivision, often positioning his videos at the top of searches for the new subdivision. The second step in dominating search for the community is to record and publish a series of community overview videos.
These videos highlight the amenities of the development, the characteristics that make this community unique and an overview of the homes available in the community. These community videos not only provide additional details for potential buyers, but they also showcase Escobar’s expertise in the neighborhood to the current homeowners and future prospective listings.
They also provide additional information to the algorithm that Escobar’s YouTube channel is a go-to resource for that neighborhood. While most agents stop after just one video about the neighborhood, the more videos he publishes about that particular neighborhood, the more the algorithm sees his channel as the best resource for people searching for details about that neighborhood.
This is the framework Escobar provided for the structure of his community videos.
This is an example of a community overview video:
This is another example of a community overview video for the WaterSound Origins community:
Listing tour videos
The third type of video Escobar utilizes is listing tour videos of homes in the neighborhood. These videos showcase Escobar’s listings, model homes and builder spec homes in the neighborhood. These videos are used not only to market and sell his listings, but also to showcase his marketing skills to other homeowners.
All of these are benefits to Escobar’s business, but these videos also continue to show the algorithm that he is the expert for this neighborhood, leading to his videos showing up at the top of the page for search terms in these neighborhoods.
This is the framework Escobar shared that he utilizes when creating his listing tour videos.
This is an example of a listing tour video for Escobar:
This is an example of another listing tour video with a builder in the targeted community:
By utilizing YouTube, Escobar eliminates one of the biggest issues many agents have, which is consistent lead generation. During my interview, he stated he had five leads come in one day last month, and two of them went under contract within three days of them first reaching out to him from a video they saw.
YouTube also solves the issue many agents have of not prospecting enough each day. Escobar’s average watch time each day last month was over 13 hours. This means his videos were being watched, and he was passively prospecting, on average 13 hours a day every day last month.
Finally, YouTube has accelerated his prospect nurturing process. While watching his videos, the prospects get to know him, and the videos actually nurture his prospects before he ever meets them or has them in a CRM.
This leads to the incredible average of only 17 days from the first time the clients reach out to him until they are under contract. That stat alone hopefully motivates you to take action on building a YouTube channel for your business.
Jimmy Burgess is a real estate agent and national team builder with Real Brokerage in northwest Florida, serving the 30A, Destin, and Panama City Beach markets. Connect with him on Instagram and LinkedIn.
Bigger. Better. Bolder. Inman Connect is heading to San Diego. Join thousands of real estate pros, connect with the power of the Inman Community, and gain insights from hundreds of leading minds shaping the industry. If you’re ready to grow your business and invest in yourself, this is where you need to be. Go BIG in San Diego!
Do you ever wonder what you should be posting on Instagram? Wonder no more. This article shares 11 examples of Instagram Reels that top agents have found success with recently. I’ll break down why these Reels were successful and how you can model them in your local market.
Coming Soon community amenity Reel: Alyssa Curnutt
Alyssa Curnutt out of Spokane, Washington, is one of the best in the business, sharing local content about existing or in-process community amenities. She has positioned herself as the resource for all things Spokane, which, in turn, has led to her thriving real estate business.
The Instagram Reel I want to highlight was her sharing the news about Spokane’s first indoor farmer’s market. This Reel generated over 231,000 views and 10,500 likes. There are a couple of reasons why this video has done so well.
She starts the video with a simple selfie video with the intro of “Spokane’s first indoor farmer’s market is on the way, and here are all the details.” The casualness of the framing and the way she gets right to the point about what the video will include capture the viewer’s attention.
She then goes into the details via a voiceover with fast-moving, B-roll footage she shot while on the construction site. This keeps the viewer engaged and increases her average watch time.
The call to action at the end is what really drives the virality of this video. Instagram CEO, Adam Mosseri, recently shared that the Instagram algorithm loves shares because it involves users interacting with each other and increases the community atmosphere Instagram is looking to create.
Curnutt ends the video by saying, “Share this video with a friend who loves a good farmer’s market.” This simple, but broad, call to action led to this video being shared over 11,400 times. If you’re looking for inspiration on local content, Curnutt’s page is one you must follow.
Coming Soon listing teaser Reel: Andrew Undem
Next up is a Coming-Soon-styled video by Andrew Undem, out of the Baltimore, Maryland, metro area. You will definitely want to check your local rules regarding coming soon listings, but this is an example of a video that creates marketing momentum.
He utilizes dramatic background music and drone footage to share just enough information about the home to create questions and DMs requesting additional information. This is the type of creative marketing that can help your listings stand out in a market where competition and days on market continue to normalize.
Builder interview Reel: Noah Escobar
Noah Escobar, serving the 30A market in Northwest Florida, utilizes builder interviews to highlight new construction opportunities. Builders love showcasing their homes without the expense of hiring a videographer or social media manager.
These videos provide you with the ability to highlight new construction while building a relationship with the builder. By being with the builder in the video, you are seen as the expert on the new construction product you are highlighting. Escobar has done these types of videos with builders, onsite sales agents for national builders, and listing agents of homes they listed for builders.
This is a way to expand your audience, and set yourself up as the resource for new construction in your local market.
Local airport update Reel: houston.unlocked / Katie Day
Katie Day, with the Move Me to Texas team out of Houston, started an Instagram page at the end of last year titled houston.unlocked. This page came as a result of Day realizing she had a lot of agents following her @movemetotx account, and she wanted to be able to focus on more local content that would provide a more localized audience.
On this page, she focuses on news for the Houston area, including upgrades to sports facilities, new restaurants, and everything in between. This page has generated over 1.5 million views and over 10,000 followers in just a few short months. If you’re wondering what types of local content might work in your area, model the best-performing reels on this page, and you will find success on your page.
Some of her most viral Reels have been news about Bush National Airport and updates to their services. The Reel linked below announced a renovation project that will create some delays and changes during the renovation. This video has garnered over 87,000 views and over 18,000 shares. Notice the call to action at the end of the video where she says, “Share this with a friend who loves to travel.”
Closing day behind-the-scenes Reel: Omer Reshid
Omer Reshid, serving the Washington, D.C., metro markets, is one of the most creative young minds in real estate today. He’s built a following in excess of 32,000 on Instagram and nearly 160,000 on TikTok. He does an impressive job of mixing creative content with subtle sales messaging.
The Reel shared below is a behind-the-scenes overview of what a closing day involves for Reshid. He flows from getting ready for the day to purchasing a closing gift to arriving at the title company to the client signing to happy customers after the closing. The messaging moves from him showing how he treats his clients well to them smiling at the end of the process.
This video is an example of a Reel that would do well in any market.
Just Sold with a twist Reel: Lynley Ciorobea
Lynley Ciorobea, serving the Miami, Florida, market, created a Just Sold post that utilizes several effective strategies which, when brought together, perform well. She grabs the viewer’s attention at the beginning of the video by saying, “Our client sold their house for almost $700,000 more than Zillow said it was worth.”
She then goes into six things that happened during this sale. She walks through her initial meeting with the clients, where she identified their needs, then her staging process, followed by her marketing process, along with her negotiating process, and then she reads the reviews both the buyer and the seller left for her.
Telling the story of your next closing while focusing on the process and the people is a recipe for success.
Anchor bio video Reel: Colby Anderson
Colby Anderson, serving the 30A market in the panhandle of Florida, created a video bio of who he is and who he serves. This video will be an anchor marketing piece for his business. He can utilize it as an Instagram Reel (as seen below) or through a QR code on everything from his email signature to direct mail.
Anderson utilizes a style that flows from him being interviewed to him on job sites. It shares his credentials and why a prospect should do business with him. The video varies the speed, angles, and cuts in a way that keeps the viewer engaged.
If you’re looking for an anchor video for your business, this is a great one to model after.
Upcoming local amenity — prototype Publix grocery store Reel: Ken Pozek
Ken Pozek, serving the Orlando and Central Florida market, is another expert at creating local content. He is a must-follow if you’re looking for examples of content you can model after for your local area. This Reel shares a prototype grocery store that is being built.
Local weekday restaurant specials Reel: Emily McAllister
Emily McAllister, serving the Greenville, North Carolina, market, varies her content from local real estate information to community highlights. One of the most effective strategies McAllister utilizes is highlighting local businesses.
By adding the businesses as collaborators on the Reels, her videos show up on the business’ grid once the collaboration is accepted. This provides an opportunity for her to expand her audience through their followers.,
An example of this strategy is the video below where she highlighted five weekday specials from restaurants in Greenville. This Reel generated over 35,000 views and over 550 shares.
Seller’s guidebook lead capture Reel: Jason Gruner
Jason Gruner, serving the Nashville, Tennessee market, does a great job producing content that generates leads. The example below includes him calling out his ideal client at the beginning of the video by saying, “If you’re a homeowner in the Nashville area considering selling your home, I would strongly suggest downloading my seller’s guidebook.”
He shares the value of the book and then tells the viewer they can download the book at topdollarnashville.com. This lead capture page alerts him when someone opts in for the guide. These leads are homeowners considering selling, and it doesn’t get much better than that.
Unique local business highlight Reel: Stephanie Peters
Stephanie Peters, serving the greater Portland and Bend, Oregon, markets, also mixes real estate content with highlighting local businesses. In the Reel below, she highlights a local business with a unique claim to fame. The hook at the beginning is, “Tthis is the largest sandbox in all of Oregon.”
This video plays perfectly to her ideal client base of young families as well. With over 93,000 views and over 570 shares, finding a unique business to highlight in your market might not be a bad idea.
You may have noticed that some of these Reels had nothing to do with real estate. But don’t miss the fact that they had everything to do with building a local, personal brand. Focus on becoming the first person people think of when they think of your city, and your business will explode.
Jimmy Burgess is a real estate agent and national team builder with Real Brokerage in northwest Florida, serving the 30A, Destin, and Panama City Beach markets. Connect with him on Instagram and LinkedIn.
Bigger. Better. Bolder. Inman Connect is heading to San Diego. Join thousands of real estate pros, connect with the power of the Inman Community, and gain insights from hundreds of leading minds shaping the industry. If you’re ready to grow your business and invest in yourself, this is where you need to be. Go BIG in San Diego!
Have you ever felt like your business has stalled and everybody around you seems to be having success? We all feel that way at certain times in our business, but you’re probably further along than you think.
If you’re feeling discouraged, please understand that odds are you’re not behind. In this article I’ll be sharing a few truths and strategies top agents embrace that lead to their success.
Don’t judge a book by its cover
The first thing to understand is that the posts on social media you see from other agents are their highlight reel and not the full picture of their business or life. They don’t share about their friend who listed with another agent. They don’t post about the low appraisal that blew up the deal they really needed to close. They have many of the same struggles you have; they just don’t post about those things. The cover of the book never tells the whole story.
According to Redfin, 71 percent of real estate agents didn’t close a single transaction last year. Based on this statistic, if you simply sold one home last year, then you outperformed over 70 percent of your competitors. It’s been a tough couple of years, and social media shows us there are many agents hoping they can fake it until they make it. Don’t fall into this trap.
My grandfather once told me that if I treated everybody like they were hurting, I would be right about 90 percent of the time. We all have things going on in our lives. We all have struggles and difficulties. Don’t let the highlight reel of social media distract you from your journey and your progression.
Don’t compare your 2nd chapter with their 10th chapter
Success is a process. It wouldn’t be fair to compare yourself with your two years of experience in a very challenging market to someone who’s been in the business for 10 years. That’s eight additional years they had to build relationships. Eight more years they’ve had to hone their skills and refine their processes.
The challenges you may be facing now were likely the same challenges they faced at some point along their road to success. I’ve never met a successful agent who didn’t have seasons of struggle and discouragement. Keep moving forward, and some day you’ll be the agent others compare themselves to.
Who you spend time with controls the speed with which you grow
One of the best ways to accelerate your learning curve is to ask questions of people who have done what you want to do. This doesn’t necessarily mean you need to always be asking the highest-producing agent you know. Many times, it is the agent who is just a few steps in front of your production level that can provide fresh insight since they were more recently in your shoes.
Whether you want to learn from top-producing agents or ones that are just ahead of your production, the process is the same. How you approach them can make a huge difference in how they respond. No one, especially a busy agent, gets excited when another agent asks if they can take them to lunch to “pick their brain.”
Instead, ask yourself if there is an area where you can give them value in exchange for asking them a few questions. Maybe you could help them with their social media, marketing a listing of theirs, or providing free headshots if you have some talent as a photographer. The key is to lead with offering to do something for them in exchange for some time to get their opinion on your business and what you can do to grow.
The key is that when you get the opportunity to ask them questions, be prepared. These are a few questions I might ask.
What do you wish you had known or done when you were at my level in the business?
Was there a time when you felt like you really built momentum in your business, and what did you do to build that momentum?
If you had more time, which I do, what is one strategy or thing you would focus on or do more of right now?
By asking the right questions and taking action on the experience of others, momentum will build for you.
Be who you are
I’ve watched so many agents, myself included, try to emulate someone or something that simply isn’t in line with who they are. When I first started in the business, I really admired a top-producing agent I met at a conference. I asked him some of the questions above, and he told me all of his success came from FSBOs. He even gave me his scripts, and I was excited because I felt like he had given me the golden ticket for success.
Turns out I hated working with FSBOs, and the prospects could tell. Yes, I had some successes, but I was miserable. The lesson I learned was that just because something is successful for others, it isn’t necessarily what I should be doing in my business.
Your ideal client wants and needs you. They don’t want the version of you that is trying to be like someone else. Embrace who you are and amplify it through your marketing. The riches truly are in the niches, and when you show up authentically, your ideal clients are naturally attracted to your business.
Become the agent you want to be
What would your ideal business look like in one, three, or five years from now? What type of clients would you be working with? Would they be buyers, sellers, builders, or investors? Once you can clearly identify who your ideal client is, we can begin the process of becoming the agent that attracts those types of clients.
Yes, you were created with a certain skill set. A certain personality. A certain group that you naturally have influence over. But there are traits and skills that your ideal client wants and needs in their ideal agent. When you focus on becoming their ideal agent, they will absolutely be drawn to you.
Don’t be discouraged. You are exactly where you are supposed to be at this point in your career, even if it doesn’t feel like it. You’re developing grit that you will carry with you for the rest of your career.
Do your best not to compare yourself to others. Focus on learning from agents you admire. Surround yourself with the best mentors, coaches, and agents you can. Be authentic and develop the skills you need to become the agent you want to become.
If you’ll do these things, the best is truly yet to come!
Jimmy Burgess is a real estate agent and national team builder with Real Brokerage in northwest Florida, serving the 30A, Destin, and Panama City Beach markets. Connect with him on Instagram and LinkedIn.
