As a new agent just having received your business license you have a choice to make. Will you do all you can to succeed? If the answer is no, then stay home, watch TV, and go on welfare. If the answer is yes, keep reading for the crucial first steps to earning an income selling homes right from the start.
What makes the difference for agents that sell homes every month and seem to never have a bad month? Using a real estate business plan (also called a business model). Seriously. It’s not because they are so much smarter or more talented than everyone else. Of course, it doesn’t hurt to be smart and have talent. The point is, using a real estate business plan to get started as a real estate agent will be what separates you from all the other agents. You see, most agents get started selling real estate based solely on their current talents with no real direction. That won’t happen to you.
I’ll go over the parts that should be in your business plan and why this is so critical to your success.
First, get out paper and a pencil. Good planning involves writing down all your thoughts. Begin by identifying what the individual parts of your agent business are. This is the flow of your business. It may help to ask yourself these questions to figure out what the parts are:
- How will I find leads?
- How will I convert those leads into appointments?
- How will I convert those appointments into clients under contract?
- How will I service my clients? How will I handle transactions during escrow?
- How will I keep track of my performance in each part of my business?
- How will I track my finances?
You’ll find, as you think about the flow of your business from start to finish, that you’ll identify what you should be doing during each part of your business. A business plan is your road map to achieve your objective. What is your objective? Write it down. Refer to your objective as you write your business plan. It’ll help you write down the steps needed to achieve that object without getting side tracked.
After all, if you’re working in your business hard everyday and are not seeing results, you may have strayed from what will achieve your objective. I’m sure you know that but it’s easy to get caught up in things and lose track.
A business plan is not merely an outline or some suggestions of what you can do in your agent business. It’s the same thing as a job description for employees. When a new employee starts a job they are handed their job description and duties. This is the only way they’ll know what they are supposed to do when they show up to work each day. Makes sense for real estate agents to know what they are supposed to do when they show up to work each day as well.
This takes the guess-work out of your work. Too many agents waste time each day because they lack direction. This direction comes from creating and using a business plan every day.