I have a good friend who is a very successful real estate salesperson.
 
He gets up every day and feels successful. He feels prosperous. He enjoys peace of mind, financial independence, security, good health, and an enjoyable social life.

 

His family life is great. He has the respect and admiration of everyone who knows him. Many people want to do business with him. And even more people want to be his friend.
 
However, he hasn't always been so successful. He can still remember the days when he tried harder but did no better than most other sales people he knows.

 

Now he is glad that he knows what he knows. And more importantly, that he made the effort to take what he knows and put it to good use. He smiles whenever he thinks about how easily he finally learned how to prosper.
 
He can tell you about the day he realized that almost everyone who succeeded in life was really an effective sales person, whether they realized it or not. "Successful people," he observed, "sell others on the value of their services. Successful parents sell their children on leading happy and productive lives. Successful leaders sell their abilities to help people get what they want. Even successful scientists sell their ideas to those who provide research funds which enable them to do their work."
 
He remembers thinking, "If I can learn to sell well then I will do well in whatever I undertake."
 
What about you? Have you learned to sell well? Have you committed the time, money and energy to learn the skills and techniques necessary to grow your real estate business to the next level and enjoy the life of a very successful sales person?

 

Or, are you one of those salespeople who don't want to learn new skills and techniques? Do you use the excuse, "That's not me, I will rely on the strength of my personality?"
 
Personality will make you some money, but skills and techniques will make you a great salesperson.
 
They is no such thing as a natural born salesperson. Becoming a great salesperson, a professional salesperson takes work, dedication, commitment and a willingness to change. What are you going to do today to learn the skills and techniques necessary to grow your real estate business to the next level?
 
Focus on your goals, choose your strategies and get started today on the action steps necessary to move you closer to your objectives.

 

No excuses. No distractions.

 

Only a clear focus on completing the activities that will get you to where you really want to go.
 
Remember, if it's to be..It's up to you!

 

 

Do you want to see your business take off and at the same time make all of your potential customers, clients, friends, relatives and referrals feel important?
 
Create personalized thank you notes and set a goal to send a minimum of five each day. Challenge yourself each day to reach that goal.
 
If you have a pleasant encounter while out prospecting, send the person a thank you note. If someone gives you a potential lead, even if that lead does not generate a transaction, send them a thank you note. (And if it does generate a lead you send them another thank you note at the successful conclusion of the transaction.) 

 

Everyone who attends your open house should get a thank you note. Of course, all clients who do list or buy with us get thank you notes.
 
Who else can you send a thank you note to? Be creative.
 
A personalized thank you note is one of your greatest business generating tools. 
 
But only if you use it.

Whether you set goals using a formal process or you use a more informal "wish list" for what you want to accomplish, goal setting is an important component of personal growth and development. This article capsules information to help you set grand goals and achieve them! Each goal setting capsule links to more detailed information.

If you've been struggling to achieve the goals you've set, your solution might be to use a different process, but this may also be an indication that the goals you're chasing are not really your goals.

Approminent and often suggested guideline for goal setting uses the SMART acronym. It's not the only way and may not even be the best way to set your goals, but SMART goal setting has some definite benefits. We'll look at other goal setting strategies in future articles.

The SMART acronym has various meanings, but typically stands for:

Specific: The goal should be described as specifically as possible. A goal of losing weight is not specific. A goal of losing twenty pounds from a current weight of one-ninety is specific. Even better is to set a specific target weight of one-seventy pounds.

Measurable: To be effective, the goal must be measurable. Obviously, weight is measurable, whereas being more generous, being a better parent, and working harder at your job are not measurable as stated. If your goal is in an area like the latter, such as being a better parent, identify some aspects of better parenting that are measurable. Perhaps spending 20 minutes each day in an activity that your child selects would be appropriate.

Achievable: There's an art to goal setting that revolves around the goal's difficulty. A goal too easy is not energizing. A goal too difficult seems hopeless. Both too easy and too difficult are goal setting no-no's. Set the level of challenge somewhere in between. A good way to decide that a goal is achievable but challenging is to visualize yourself reaching the goal. Can you see yourself there? Are you energized by seeing the vision? If both of these are not present, revisit your goal.

Realistic: Do you have the knowledge, skill set, and competency to reach your goal? If your goal involves weight loss, do you know all you should know about nutrition, calorie content, and metabolism to achieve your goal? If not, perhaps your first goal should be to gather this information.

Time: Setting a deadline provides necessary positive tension to give you the energy to get on with it. The time frame you select should be realistic. Losing twenty pounds in twenty weeks is realistic, whereas losing it in five weeks is not only unrealistic but unhealthy.

The SMART technique of goal setting is especially in favor in business because it is a measurable process for performance appraisal, but you've got to take action for any goals to become a reality.

Do you respnd to internet inquiries when they are about somebody else's listing? Most real estate practitioners don't bother responding to inquiries posted on their Web site when they are about somebody else's listing, according to a Secret Shopper test by consulting firm WAV Group.

When Secret Shoppers asked a question about properties listed on practitioners Web sites through IDX agreements, only one-third of them got a response. And when a practitioner did respond, it took awhile-an average of nearly 11 hours.

The WAV Group concluded that home shoppers are likely to be happier if they visit sites that syndicate listings, such as Realtor.com, Yahoo! Real Estate, Trulia, Zillow and Cyberhomes, because these sites refer inquiries to the listing associate.

WAV believes that ignoring a query about a competitors property is a mistake.

"I do believe that agents need to take the relationship with the online consumer more seriously and deploy systems that will improve response rates to increase consumer satisfaction and confidence," said WAV Group partner Victor Lund.
 
How quickly are you responding to inquiries? Do you have an auto-response set-up? Did you know you can subscribe to services that will convert your email inquiries into instant text messages?
 
Remember, each lead is important. Use all of your resources to either capture or kill each one and you will see your business continue to grow.