It’s a Mobile World. How Do You Stack up?

In the last 30 years, brokers have seen their primary means of selling and advertising go from newspapers and referrals to online or digital sources. According to NAR, almost 95% of homebuyers used a website to search for homes last year with 72% of those using a mobile or tablet app.

What is equally interesting is the prevalence of mobile usage across demographics. Of Course 99% of millennials used mobile devices or apps to assist in their home search and 58% of them found the home they bought on a mobile device. Even consumers between 35 and 65 used their mobile devices for real estate research at a rate over 89% and roughly 40% of them found their home on a mobile device.  Another interesting dynamic is that overall, 14% of all buyers found their real estate agent using a mobile device.

Real estate agents have been on the front lines of the mobile revolution as well with over 90 percent of REALTORS® using digital or mobile devices on a daily basis. Despite this, REALTORS cite “keeping up with technology” as one of the biggest challenges for brokerages in the next two years.  So how can brokers assess their use of mobile technology and insure they are keeping up with the industry?

Common Mobile Strategies

Going mobile in 2019 means more than just texting and getting email on your smartphone. The following guidelines are critical if you are to be effective, and want to appeal to the shifting demographics of both homebuyers and new agents you may be trying to attract. Here are a few things to consider:

1. Is your website mobile friendly?If you haven’t looked at your site carefully on mobile devices lately, then you may want to do a review. Mobile standards are changing with new technologies like Google AMP which will drive the proper performance of your site on mobile devices. Mobile responsive design of your website is a requirement now and even sites that worked fine on mobile a couple years ago, are due for an overhaul.
2. Is your advertising mobile friendly?Many brokerages are running Google Ads but did you know that these ads must be specifically optimized for best performance on mobile devices? Make sure the people who are running your paid search advertising are using the latest mobile algorithms and extensions in the setup of your campaign. Mobile search is a slightly different animal than traditional desktop search and you shouldn’t just assume that your campaigns are optimized for it.
3. Facebook Advertising?With 95% of Facebook users accessing their account from mobile devices, there is no mobile presence for your brokerage without a solid presence on Facebook and Instagram. You should consider both organic posting and paid advertising on this medium so that Facebook users in your locality get to see and experience your brand in a more social setting.
4. Mobile Chat Anyone?Direct messaging, or mobile chat, is the new email of real-estate marketing. Whether you use old-school text messages, Facebook Messenger, Snapchat, or real-estate specific apps, mobile chat can sync up listings, manage customer relations, and improve communication between your team, too.
5. Mobile Client Management. If you want Millennial generation agents to be comfortable in your brokerage, pay attention to the capabilities of things like your CRM. In 2019, that CRM needs to come with a good mobile app that makes client management and communication easy.

Getting Up to Speed With Mobile

It’s certainly a challenge for independent brokers, even if they are tech savvy, to keep up with and train agents on the best uses of mobile technology. That’s why brands like Weichert have put so much time and energy into figuring out and implementing mobile-focused digital strategies. Weichert.com recently completed a site redesign focused on providing an optimized mobile experience. It attracts over 3 million visitors a month and is key to the company’s digital strategy to attract leads to its Customer Care Center. Those leads are delivered to our brokers and agents in real time, on both their desktop and mobile devices and directly into our Weichert PRO CRM. The CRM features a mobile app which allows easy access to all features including client management, marketing tools, email and more. Weichert offers a mobile app to help agents stay on track with monthly production goals by allowing them to easily set and track their activities. In addition, Weichert places local Facebook advertising optimized for mobile users to help build brand awareness in its markets.

Keeping up with technologycan be hard, but there are other solutions. By affiliating with a company like Weichert, you can take advantage of their vast resources for keeping up, so you can focus on managing your business.  If you’d like to hear more about available Weichert resources and how they could benefit your business, contact Weichert today to learn more at weichertfranchise.comor 877-567-3350.

Original content posted on https://www.weichertfranchise.com/blog/its-a-mobile-world-how-do-you-stack-up/

How to Make Millennial Real Estate Agents Feel at Home in your Brokerage

As you recruit agents into your brokerage, it’s important to acknowledge there are differences in the way various generational groups communicate, respond, work and interact. Understanding these differences can be your secret weapon in motivating and communicating effectively with your team. Millennials currently make up the largest portion of the workforce and account for 50% of workers in the next 2 years. Here’s how you can make sure your brokerage is a good fit.

Values That Match Their Own

As an experienced broker, you already have a good handle on the basic qualities that an agent looks for in evaluating a brokerage: leads, commission splits, support, education, etc. However, if you want to both attract and retain Millennial real estate agents, you’re going to need to appeal to more than just those cornerstones. The desire for self-fulfillment is strong in this generation and drives them to seek out companies that strongly support their growth and learning at this stage of their career and down the line. Millennials are especially driven towards companies that promote a positive, well-rounded and healthy culture. If they do not form a strong connection with your company culture and trust in its genuinely altruistic nature, they will not hesitate to leave for greener pastures. This is a key difference from the Baby Boomer generation who has more of a “pay your dues” mindset and would usually stay with a job for years to gain experience. By contrast, a Millennial will leave quickly if the fit isn’t there.

Technology That Supports Their Goals

Although it is not their top priority, tech is still an important factor for Millennials that have grown up with it. Tech-savvy tools like a CRM, modern website, and lead generation systems are mandatory to them. Like your company culture, this is an area where you will need to both talk the talk and walk the walk. If you are not yet familiar with all things mobile and social, now is the time to bone up. Remember, these tech-savvy newbies are looking for you to take them by the hand as their leader and show them the way. If you can’t show them at least some acumen and understanding with social, mobile and technology as well as real estate, you will struggle to convince them that they are in the right place.

Someone to Turn to For Guidance

Taking less experienced agents by the hand and making sure that they know they can turn to you for help or guidance is crucial; a rule that applies to new agents of any age or generation. Millennials seek out leadership that frequently engages in positive reinforcement. One way to do this is to find regular ways to recognize your agents for their various accomplishments. If you hold regular team meetings, this would be a good time to hand out various awards for goals reached or at least acknowledge those agents that are making progress towards goals set like listings taken or open houses held. This will also contribute to the positive company culture you are trying to foster.

Team Meetings

Team meetings help to build camaraderie and give a brokerage that familial feeling that Millennials crave from their place of work. The more that you can make them feel as though they are a part of a family working towards a shared goal, the more invested they will become in the overall success of the brokerage. Again, injecting your team meetings with positive reinforcement and recognition for a job well-done will resonate with Millennials. They are also a great time to offer continuing education on day-to-day issues that real estate agents face and technological advances that could help the team with their goals.

Do You Have The Right Stuff?

As Jim Weichert emphasized when he started Weichert, Realtors® over 50 years ago, it’s all about the personal. As a successful real estate broker, connecting with people on a human level is in your wheelhouse, so don’t be afraid to tap into those fundamental skills when working with Millennials. Making your brokerage more attractive to Millennials is just a small evolution, not revolution. If you have a holistic company culture, tech-savvy tools, an abundance of leads, and good systems for ongoing education, then Millennials, and everyone else will want to join you.

Weichert supports its affiliates with things such as sales meeting templates, an awards and recognition program, ongoing training, technology support and more, providing a perfect plug and play system to help brokerages create an optimal fit for Millennials.

With Weichert at your back, you can do even more. Give us a call today at 877-957-9692 or visit us at weichertfranchise.com for more information.

Original content posted on https://www.weichertfranchise.com/blog/how-to-make-millennial-real-estate-agents-feel-at-home-in-your-brokerage/

The Power of Collaboration

As a real estate broker, you are no stranger to collaboration at many different levels. Building collaborative networks that are vibrant and mutually beneficial can be a catalyst for positive change and growth, when you have the right people on the other end. We live in rapidly evolving times and your ability to be successful can depend on getting the right guidance and advice, at exactly the right time.

Collaboration takes many forms in the real estate industry.

• We collaborate with clients to help them through the buying and selling process.
• We collaborate with vendors to obtain services and deliver them to our clients.
• We collaborate with other agents and brokers to create a win/win situation during a sale.
• We collaborate with the community, to be a positive influence and serve a greater good.

As a broker however, you also need collaboration at a higher level. You already know how to sell houses, but your challenges are more strategic, and business related. What’s the most effective strategy to get more leads for my agents? What technology will help me best run my brokerage? What CRM tools should I provide my agents for lead nurturing? What recruiting practices are most effective? How do I differentiate my brand? Collaboration and networking with other real estate professionals can provide good advice, experience, and opportunities in these areas.

Collaboration For Brokerage Growth Challenges

Broker growth issues and recruiting challenges benefit from the opinions and experience of other brokers, real estate coaches, and subject matter experts. For the independent broker finding people with such diverse experience who are willing to share, coach and consult is either rare, expensive, or both.  Still, you owe it to yourself to establish a network of professionals who have proven success in one or more areas so that you have a support system for your growth roadmap.

Consider some of the following activities to build your network:

Networking Groups – Get involved with organizations like the Chamber of Commerce, LeTip, the local Real Estate Board, or participate in state Realtor events. These are valuable opportunities to network and meet like-minded professionals. Consider getting involved with them at a leadership level if possible.

Complimentary business partnerships – Partner with related businesses or non-competing agencies. They will likely share similar challenges and can also serve as a resource for ideas or help you avoid mine fields they may have already encountered. Through your alliance you can refer leads or collaborate on events, such as a home-buyer seminar.

Social Media Networking – Facebook and LinkedIn are actually excellent places to connect with non-competing brokers, and mentors. There are established real estate groups on these channels that you can join and whose discussion you can monitor and participate in. This is one of the most efficient and least time consuming ways to build out your network.

Another Solution to Collaboration

At Weichert Franchising, we’ve found that the desire for collaboration is one of the biggest reasons many brokers seek out a brand affiliation. It turns out that an affiliation with Weichert provides networking, coaching and training opportunities most brokers never dreamed of. In addition to the instant help with lead generation and recruiting, having a team of like-minded peers and industry experts who are always available and invested in your success is a powerful thing. At Weichert our affiliates get collaborative support in a number of ways:

• Training Systems – designed to teach proven processes for success, whether it’s for a new agent, experienced agent or manager.
• A Regional Service Manager (RSM) who is available to train and guide offices on the tools available and how to get the most out of the Weichert® System for day-to-day business success.
• A Regional Director, who is like your own personal trainer and helps with everything from business planning to sales & marketing systems, recruiting and financial management.
• Broker Networking through formal events like local broker council meetings, regional rallies and exciting national conferences to our collaborative Weichert culture which encourages brokers across the country to just pick up the phone or interact on social media to get opinions and advice.

Having positive, expert collaboration with the right people around the right processes and systems can be a huge sigh of relief for today’s independent brokers. Call the Weichert Team today and see how we can help you do more.

Original content posted on https://www.weichertfranchise.com/blog/the-power-of-collaboration/

Is Your Business Plan In Place to Rock the New Year?

The right time to do a business plan for the year ahead is the October-November the year before. This way you are off to the races come January 1^st. If you didn’t manage to get to this last year, you’ll want this to be your first priority in the new year.

For many brokers, writing a business plan can easily fall through the cracks while chasing leads, driving closings, recruiting agents, training staff, paying bills or any of the hundred other things that consume the day of a busy broker.  The problem is that without it, you meander without purpose and can easily waste a lot of time on the wrong things, instead of being driven by a focused, well thought out plan of attack designed to achieve specific results.

Key Parts of Your Real Estate Brokerage Business Plan

There are many templates and formats you can choose for a business plan. Weichert for instance, has guidelines to follow along with business coaches who help you and hold you accountable for completing it. At the end of the day though, the template you use is less important than the thought process that goes into it. Here are a few things you will want to cover in your business plan.

1. Define Your Business – At the highest level, take some time to think about what kind of brokerage you have, and what kind you want in 1 to 5 years. Formally identify your products and services, the nature of your market, and how you will manage risks and challenges to your growth. It is a good place to define your company culture too; how you will go to market, how you will treat and value your employees, and your philosophy of customer service.
2. Financial Goals – Having some realistic financial growth goals for the coming year and the years beyond is the single biggest decision from which many other parts of your business plan will be derived. Pick a growth number that is just a bit outside your comfort zone (stretch goal). Break down these financial goals into sales goals in each area of your brokerage that is appropriate like home sales, relocation sales, rentals, etc. Be as specific as you can.  Define the activities you need to complete in order to reach these goals (i.e. how many listings you need each month, how many agents you need to recruit).
3. Marketing Plan – Key to your success will be the marketing tools and strategies you plan to use in the new year and establishing a budget for them. As a guideline, NAR recommends that brokers spend no more than 1/3 of their total expenses on marketing. This can be a difficult discipline to keep. An advantage of affiliation with a real estate franchise like Weichert is that you don’t have to spend time and money creating marketing tools or researching best-in-class tools, technology or sales strategies. Your franchisor invests in developing those tools and templates and has the ability to regularly refresh the materials available for your use, so you can spend your time and resources elsewhere. Weichert also defines the recipe of activity for success, which makes it easier for you to estimate the costs to execute. However you choose to proceed, a detailed marketing plan has to include the following:
   1. Who are your target customers?
   2. What marketing mix will you use to promote to them?
   3. How will you capture and nurture them through the buying/selling process?
   4. How will you differentiate what your brokerage has to offer from others in your area?
   5. What is your content plan for web and social media channels

Make sure your plan is something that can be executed within your available resources.

4. Recruiting Plan – Key to achieving your growth goals will be your recruiting plan. Your financial growth goals will translate directly into recruiting goals and without a specific and consistent plan for this we can tell you from experience that it won’t get done. In your recruiting plan be sure to specify the number of recruits you need to bring in each month and the activities you need to complete to get them in the door. Also make sure you have a plan to train new agents and get them productive as soon as possible. Weichert for instance provides its Fast Track training for new agents which is specifically designed to bring them up to speed fast on proven tactics and systems that allow them to generate income quickly. Brokers love Fast Track as well, because it removes much of the burden of new agent training from their shoulders.

There are many other elements in a good brokerage business plan but the most important element is to sit down and do it! Once you have done it once, then updating it every year and managing it throughout the year, is much easier and will help you adjust your activities when you go off course. It’s better to know right away that you haven’t met your recruiting or listings goals than to be surprised at the end of the year when it’s too late to do anything about it.

And if you feel that you could benefit from expert advice and a business coach to support you every step of the way on your path to growth, then consider talking to the Weichert franchise team today. Go to weichertfranchise.com or call 877-567-3350.

Original content posted on https://www.weichertfranchise.com/blog/is-your-business-plan-in-place-to-rock-the-new-year/

How to Appeal to Downsizing Boomers

When the kids move out and mom and dad retire, the expense of that big house and all that property maintenance can start to feel like an expense they don’t really need. This is the mindset driving downsizing for many Baby Boomers. As an experienced broker with deep knowledge of your local market, you and your team are uniquely qualified to help them with this transition. And make no mistake, this is a transition, not just a buying or selling of a home for most Boomers. It represents a change of life, finishing one chapter and opening a chapter on the next part of their story. Your ability to facilitate an empathetic and informed approach to this market can be a highly rewarding and mutually beneficial endeavor.

Put Yourself in Their Shoes

Whether you are a Boomer yourself, or a young broker/agent working with older clients, the first step to winning over the Boomer business is to put yourself in their shoes. Even more so than working with Millennials, Boomers have a story, a well-developed one, and your ability to relate to it in a real way is what they need to see before they will trust you with their business. Treat their home with great respect be it big or small. It is the place where their memories were carved. Let them tell you their story and if you win their business, remember it as you show them homes. Find common points of reference, but emphasize the excitement of the new.  For Boomers, turning the page may be tinged with sadness, but your ability to be empathetic while emphasizing the positives of change, will make their transition much easier and leave you feeling good long after the deal is closed.  Do this right and they will also become a great source of referrals for other Boomers in the same situation.

Play Matchmaker with Your Boomer Leads

Being the responsible broker that you are, you know it is important to take careful control of your inbound leads and care for them accordingly. As such you may want to consider that a lead opportunity with a Boomer, may merit some special considerations. For instance, Boomers who are downsizing often feel more comfortable working with agents who have similar interests.   Pay careful consideration to match all of your Boomer leads with the type of agent that is best suited for their needs, best matches their life experience, or has a particularly positive personality.

You Have to Be Where the Boomers Are

One of the best ways to scale your business as a real estate broker is to network strategically and build meaningful relationships with referral partners. If you are striving to attract Baby Boomers, you would be wise to seek out valuable connections with other professionals that frequently work with this group. Home care providers, assisted living facility managers, estate planners, estate attorney’s and those working in finance are all excellent connections that could help to build your referral business. LinkedIn is great for forming these relationships, just as joining local networking groups like BNI or the chamber of commerce.

Since you already have your thumb on the pulse of buyers and sellers, you know very well that they all want relationships with people they trust. When it comes to attracting downsizing Baby Boomers, credibility, trust and empathy will go a long way.

Winning with Boomers Requires the Right Philosophy

When Jim Weichert said, “People buy people before they buy your product or service,” he was describing all real estate business relationships, but this is even more true for today’s Baby Boomer generation. It’s this philosophy that drives all our processes and systems and is fundamental to success.

Authenticity breeds success, that’s the Weichert way. If you are looking for solutions to get your brokerage on the path to growth, contact us to see how we can help. Go to https://www.weichert.com/ or call 877-567-3350.

Original content posted on https://www.weichertfranchise.com/blog/how-to-appeal-to-downsizing-boomers/