Here’s how to absolutely predict they will be successful selling real estate. Nope, it’s not about behavioral profiles. Although they are somewhat accurate, there are qualities, traits, and skills that most profiles don’t measure. It’s not the entrancing, rehearsed answers they give you to your equally entrancing questions during the interview. Words are cheap. It’s about measuring activities.
Watch What They Do
Yes, you’re going to ask the right type of questions during your interview (See ‘behavioral predictor questions’ in The Complete Recruiter and Your Blueprint to Select Winners). However, even when their answers are on track, they’re not actions–yet. Instead, watch and measure what they do from the first day in the business.
What New Agents Say They Expect
From my survey of hundreds of agents under three months in the business, I found that more than 1/2 of them expected a sale the first month of the business. What does that mean? When do they have to start looking for leads? That first week in the business! Yet, how many of them start lead generating even in the first month?
That’s why my book, Up and Running in 30 Days, now in its 6th edition, has them lead generating in week one. It’s your assurance plan they will get a sale fast and will stay in the business.
Expecting ‘Dumb Luck’ to Carry them to Success
Inevitably, there is a new agent who has an Aunt Martha in his back pocket. That is, Aunt Martha wants to buy a home, and has told nephew Tommy she’ll wait until he gets his license to purchase from him. Ca-ching. Dumb luck. Tommy concludes that’s how the business goes. You just wait for someone to find you and sell them a home. We know that’s not the norm, though.
Unfortunately, Tommy’s going to wait a long time for that next transaction! The ‘dumb luck’ approach to the business results in low results. Since the ‘dumb luck’ agent isn’t doing a business start-up plan, we have no way of predicting results, because we can’t measure business-producing activities. We can only measure other ‘dumb luck’ agent incomes. That’s way too late to actively coach–or to terminate with purpose.
Are You a Pardon the Expression–‘Dumb Luck’ Manager or a Business Start-up Coach?
Dumb luck managers just look at results; sales and listings sold. So, they are not aware that agents may be failing for months. If new agents expect to make a sale in month one, how many months do you think it takes for them to get dis enheartened? 2-3? Not long. So, once they’re mentally and emotionally out of the business, they will resist any help from you. They’ve decided they can’t make it in the business. They’ll stay awhile, though, for ‘dumb luck’ transactions.
Leave Them Alone–They will Leave–and You’ll be Surprised
They’re nice. They are team players. Although they aren’t selling much real estate, they’re not causing problems, so you leave them alone. One day, they come in and tell you they are going to ABC Realty, because they will get ‘support’ there. They have a marketing person to help them, etc., etc., etc. You are surprised and dismayed. You thought they were happy with you, even though they weren’t experiencing much ‘dumb ‘luck–or any kind of luck. That’s the problem with leaving them alone until they fail. It’s too late for them–and you. It’s a huge retention problem.
Tip: Even though they keep rebuffing your efforts at ‘help’, keep trying to put them into a business start-up plan, so they’ll come to the conclusion that you are on their side, and that is the way to create a concrete, predictable business. Then, if they leave, they leave without blaming you, or trying it with another company who provides ‘more support’.
Lead Generating on Purpose
Do you start your new agents in a specific lead generating plan their first week in the office? Is it made up of prioritized lead generating activities? Does it have ratios of activities to results, so the new agent knows whether he is on track to his goals?
Here are my activity ratios that will result in 8-12 transactions the first year in the business:
20 contacts to get one buyer or seller lead
8 times of putting people in the car to sell someone a home
3 listing appointments to gain one marketable listing
80% of listings sell
80% of transactions close
What are the ratios in your office? Do you coach your agents to those ratios? Do they know the work it takes to consistently generate the income they want to generate? Or, are they counting on ‘dumb luck’?
Here’s an article from productivity experts (including me) on advice getting started: 26 Agents Reveal the Road to Success.
$24.95 hard copy/$9.95 digital copy.
