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Over the past few years I have seen huge changes to the real estate industry, not only on the consumer side but on the sales side as well.
As with the travel industry and the insurance industry, consumers are cost conscience and have cut out the intermediary, which in real estate is the sales representative. Yet, I still work with a travel agent for all my travel. The main reason is that she is an expert on travel, can get me what and when I want it. If something does go wrong (emergency, airline bankruptcy, overbooked hotel etc) I am protected and any loss I incur is covered.
I am a firm believer that the majority of home buyers and sellers want to work with a true professional and most appreciate the diligence and hard work most of us do when working with clients.
Business models have to change to keep pace with consumer’s requirements and their interdependence on information.
Every Brokerage say they offer training and coaching, have this tool or that one, (be it outdated or stale, or worked 5 years ago), have the best administrative staff & support, are open 12 hours a day, 7 days a week etc.
Let me ask you, in the long run, who pays for that? The buyer does not care what real estate sign is on the property.
My experience with most sales representatives (the conscientious and good ones) is that they have a home office, a fax, mobile device, laptop and other tools at their disposal and the only time they go to their brokerage office is to pick up their commission cheque or meet a friend for lunch.
With direct deposit, back office, internet administration, online office feeds and other modern and efficient systems, you can truly be called an independent contractor. (And, not pay your brokerage like you are indebted to him or her.)
As the Broker of Record and Owner of Envelope Real Estate Brokerage Inc., my personal standards & the standards I have set for the company are as follows:
We know our target customer. We understand their pain points. We offer simple, clear solutions for them. We operate from a set of core values and weigh every decision against them. We never waiver. We obsess on how those values are made manifest across every touch point – digital, terrestrial and interpersonal. Our agents abide by that commitment from day one.
Until these things are practiced like a religion they are, well, just things. Brands are created when peoples’ perceptions, interpretations, thoughts, gut feelings, and beliefs are in line with a company’s vision of itself.
Here are just a few of the steps I use to build this business and help share my knowledge, to infuse some flair mixed with a little eccentricity. Just enough to push the envelope. To innovate. To attract people who are cut from a different cloth.
Hire the best, not the most. And when I say best, I don't mean some top producer I'd obsess about poaching then give away the store to. I recruit people who are passionate about my vision and give them real training in real business skills: negotiation, property marketing, management and more. No "quick trainings" or "boot camps" for my people. My commitment to my agents runs deep.
I attend to their continued education. Not on the things they should already know, like how to use a computer or how to write capably. The ones who need help with those things can work for the other guy. My agents will know how to price homes to sell. And how to turn down a listing if the seller thinks they know better than we do. When the best conferences in real estate take place, I send my agents on my dime. My agents will be at least three years ahead of the competition.
Obsess on image and brand. If any of my agents have dogs, none of my clients would ever know unless they asked. My people would dress sharply. No Tommy Bahamas, shorts and flip flops. We transact six- to seven-figure deals, and we dress like it. You don't see lawyers, doctors or talent agents walking around with Bichon Frise earrings dangling from their lobes, shirts with their image silk-screened on them, and 20 stuffed animals lining their dashboards.
You think being 5-10 minutes late matters? Not following up matters? Not being brutally honest about price matters? It matters so much it is the difference between another $50,000 plus a year in income.
Envelope Real Estate Brokerage has one goal in mind: to be so different, so special, so obviously better, that we don’t run neck and neck in market share with everyone else year after year.
Our profits (shared with participating agents) is invested wisely and not squandered on insane splits with “top producers” and ball-and-chain vendors pimping inferior products. As the Broker of Record, I will know everything there is to know about everything I could get my mind around and if not, hire on contract someone who does know. Intellectual curiosity is underrated in our business.
If I accept young and inexperienced agents, they will mentor with the veterans for one solid year before they call a single closing their own. And I’d make that clear in my public messaging because when I tell consumers that real estate is the most important transaction they will ever execute, I want them to know I really mean it. And honour it.
The Envelope Real Estate brand is not built on a promise. It is built on a promise kept. Every single time. Self worth is more important than net worth
The following articles are for those who want to live a quality and balanced lifestyle, believe that adding value for a client is more important than just a commission fee!
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