New Agents

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How to Reconnect With Past Real Estate Clients

Thursday, August 7th, 2008

Do you have potential repeat and referral real estate business in your contact list that you’re just not sure how to tap into?
If you’re like most real estate agents, the answer is ‘Yes!’ To make it easier for you, we just posted an article on how to EASILY reconnect with those past clients when you think a little [...]

Zestimate Shmestimate

Wednesday, January 23rd, 2008

OK, here’s an example of why I believe Zillow’s home value estimates should be used primarily for recreational purposes:
A few days ago a friend called me because his kids are selling their home in one of the cities near Seattle. It’s been listed in the high $200’s for over a month, down $20K from where it started a few months [...]

How to Take a Great Business Photo

Monday, January 14th, 2008

OK, not all of my business photos have turned out as sketchy as the one above. (Trust me though - I’ve had some close runner-ups.)
In any case, I ran across some excellent photo tips in Christopher Knight of EzineArticle.com’s blog post on how to take a great business photo.
It’s a short article, but he tells you [...]

My 17 Best Business Tips for Real Estate Agents

Tuesday, December 4th, 2007

Want to add thousands of dollars to your real estate income next year?
And add loyal clients to that bank vault of contacts you need for long term success? Then follow these tips. (After 8 years of running a now-thriving real estate business, I honestly think I would have at least $100,000 more in the bank if I had read [...]

Resources for New Agents

Monday, October 1st, 2007

We just updated The Agent Guide’s main resource page for new agents - if we do do say so ourselves, it’s pretty good! Head on over and see what you can find - there’s plenty of free stuff, plus our top picks for good business tools that work.
(And if you just need a smile [...]

Sometimes, Call When You Have Nothing to Say

Friday, August 17th, 2007

So… On Sunday, the other agent said you could expect the inspection response from his clients to arrive on Monday or Tuesday.
Now it’s Tuesday 3 pm, and so far nothing.
Technically, they’re still within the time frame they mentioned (and their legal deadline doesn’t run out until Wednesday).
On the other end, your own clients know that [...]

Never Get Too Good To Be Interviewed

Monday, July 16th, 2007

I was shocked last year to lose some buyers that I’d been working with in the 700K to 1 million price range. I referred them to a well-known agent who worked with many high end clients, and who was a “neighborhood expert” in their area of preference. I assumed it would be a perfect match.
Wrong. [...]

How To Get Better Testimonials
(And actually get them in your hands!)

Thursday, June 21st, 2007

Did you know that testimonials are one of most under-used sales tools in real estate? The power of your current customers to sell your value to others is far greater than your own power to sell yourself. And unlike most forms of real estate advertising, testimonials are free!
Unfortunately, most agents spend years generating happy clients [...]

Passing Along Some Good Advice to New Agents

Saturday, June 9th, 2007

A few days ago I heard that an old friend of mine, Rick Bakke, had just passed away.
I hadn’t talked to Rick in a couple of years, but back when I was a struggling new agent 7+ years ago, Rick was kind of the maverick warhorse in the office - a high-volume agent [...]

Flood Plain “Gotcha”
(Would you have known this one?)

Tuesday, June 5th, 2007

Here’s a reminder of how easy it can be to overlook important information when representing clients in a transaction. We’re sharing it in the hopes it will help someone avoid making the same mistake in the future:
Home buyers Bob and Ellen (not their real names) weren’t looking for a property in a flood-prone area. They [...]