Beth's Blog

Good morning - I'm on the run so this will be brief!

The changes in the market have affected everything - including the Appraisal Process. PLEASE stop by the office at 9:30 this morning as our guest appraiser gives you the updates needed to understand and navigate these increasingly difficult waters!

We need office participation in order to continue to get quality speakers and instructors to attend. Please support our special classes!

Jen is out for the next few days...Max Rash, who is working towards getting his license, will be handling the phones today and tomorrow. Can you make him feel welcome and offer your assistance?

Thanks, all - see you in the market center! Beth

Hey everyone - Did you know that KW has some of the best coaches in the nation? It's true! If you click on the link below, you can register for a FREE coaching call with Shon Kokoska. The call takes place Wednesday, and you will be given a call in number and access code to participate. This is an AWESOME benefit - hurry before all of the "seats" are filled! Run towards success!

Converting Buyers to Dollars with Shon Kokoszka Wed., Aug. 20 11 a.m. - 12 p.m.CDT

Good morning!

It's Marketing (and Mindset!) Monday - are you starting your week off right? Do you have a plan for today, tomorrow, the rest of the week? Productivity and success are no accident. What you accomplish is a direct result of what you plan and prepare for.

This requires the proper mindset, as well. You can make all the lists and phone calls and appointments possible - but if you are not working from a positive, professional mindset, your results may be less than stellar. The power to turn it all around - to believe "I'm an achiever, a victor" - lies squarely with YOU. YOU are writing your life story! You determine the level at which you will succeed!

Thought you might enjoy this excerpted article, below. I have added additional commentary, in blue.

Would love to hear about the successes you had and the challenges you faced over the weekend - I'll be in the office most of the day, so call or send me an email. I'm available for private consulting between 2-4pm. Have a great day! Beth

Philip White
Chief Operating Officer
Sotheby’s International Realty Affiliates LLC
www.sothebysrealty.com

There is a reason some agents manage to succeed-despite the market-and that reason is not luck. The best agents achieve and maintain success thanks to hard work and determination, skillful marketing and by making the most of the tools available to them.

Great agents are determined to succeed, and as a result of that singular focus, they are able to persevere.

• They set realistic expectations for the seller and strive to exceed them. This means pricing, anticipated sales price, expected number of days on the market, frequency of showings! 
• Moreover, they have a follow-up system that allows them to communicate regularly with clients and build those relationships in a professional but empathetic manner. ASK your clients "how would you like to hear from me (phone, email), and how frequently?" If you believe the clients' expectations are unrealistic, respond with "as a standard of my practice, I generally..." If you cannot get them in agreement or come to a compromise, think twice about working with them. Overly needy or unreasonable clients will drain you of time, energy and resources - and it's simply not worth it.
• Successful agents continually align their clients’ expectations with current market conditions. You've gotta show who their competition is, and watch it carefully. Buyers need to know what's happening in the ever-changing mortgage guideline universe. It's not just your job to show them houses - you are their ADVISOR, their CONSULTANT!and tell sellers
• They do the due diligence and preparation on the properties they choose to represent. Listings require a significant investment of time and resources; is it worth it? Are you proud to put your name on that sign? Will it attract the type of buyer you want to work with?
• Thanks to their knowledge and careful watch of the markets they serve, they are able to advise their clients with certainty on the current market value. Remember back in CAMP 443, when you were instructed to preview 5 homes a day? This is why! If you know the inventory, you'll know the market!
• They also bring to the table strong negotiation skills that they utilize on their clients’ behalf. Remember who you are working for and be relentless in representing them to the best of your ability...but maintain an even tone and a professional demeanor at all times! Good relationships with other agents are important, too!
• Successful agents set themselves up for success-not failure-by being well informed not only about market conditions but also competing properties. Again, preview, preview, preview!!
• Successful agents also cultivate a diverse sphere of influence and create a system for maintaining a connection through communication. You cannot afford to be a secret agent. You are out there networking and being visible in many ways. You ask permission to stay in touch!
• Top agents are using technology to keep their clients informed on a more consistent basis. Thanks to new technology tools, a top agent’s list of prospective clients can be much larger than in the past. Therefore, they should develop extensive contacts and creative marketing campaigns to connect with future clients. Email, blogging, ecards, enewsletters, notegrams, websites - if you're not utilizing these tools, you have some catching up to do. It's not too late!

Hope you found this worth the read! B

Good morning! Has this not been the most beautiful weekend of the summer or what? I'm looking forward to a fun day with my children, but wanted to share a few things with each of you first.

There has been much discussion in the media and in our market center about the shifting market and Gary Keller's lastest book, Shift, and there's a couple of things I'd like to announce:

• The book is being released this week and we are expecting delivery to our market center very soon!
• It will be the first selection of our Walk and Talk Book Club. Here's how it works - starting Thursday, September 11 at 9am, we will meet at the Ma and Pa Trail in Bel Air and walk - for 45 minutes - and talk - about the chapters assigned the previous week. We'll engage in great discussion, increase our heart rates and cardio vascular health, and enjoy some fresh air. Children in strollers are welcome! Laura, Sybil, and Janeece won free copies of Shift during our Home Staging Workshop - will you girls be the first to sign up for the club? I'm really looking forward to the dialogue we'll share during this time.
• Shift is hitting the road! Tony DiCello will be coming to Baltimore October 2, and what I'm really excited about is that he will be accompanied by my friends Katey Shinn and Dean Poole. They will show you how to shift into action using tools available through eAgentC and Top Producer, which are sorely underutilized by our associates. Katey and Dean developed this course and collaborated for months to make it truly relevant and information - rich. I can't wait to attend, and I hope you will join me!

What's inside SHIFT? Take a look at the Table of Contents ...

I am continuing to make modifications to my Team Leader web site, www.BetterCallBeth.com. Please check in peroidically to see what's been added! It's more than my blog and training calendar; I'm hoping it will introduce you to some of the tremendous resources that this wonderful company brings you. If something you see inspires you in some way, or gives you an idea for a class or workshop - please share! This market center wants to serve you at the highest possible level.

Enjoy this beautiful day! Beth

Who knew a class on Settlement Procedures could be so interesting and informative? Many thanks to Kelly Cimino and John Hauer for an awesome, interactive session yesterday! I was pleased with the attendance and the energy in the room was awesome!

Did you feel the buzz in the market center yesterday? That's what happens when you have excited, passionate people working towards their goal - to build businesses worth owning! I love seeing all of you there!

Our newest associates - Laura Snyder, Janeece Chaplin and Lisa Cates were also in attendance and I was happy to see that they got a great taste of who we are as a company and what we have to offer. Each will be a tremendous asset to our office...please continue to help them along and feel welcome.

More to post later - I'm off to my son's first football scrimmage! Beth

Good morning - Happy Friday!

We had a terrific class with Clint Tsao on Wednesday - and those of you attended (thank you!) earned 1.5 continuing education credits! What was also really exciting was to see the number of guests we had. Our value proposition was on clear display and we are providing opportunity to our fellow real estate professionals - and that's a very good thing.

Hope to see you this afternoon - you have the opportunity to earn another 1.5 credits learning what goes on behind the scenes during the settlement process. No matter where you are with your business, you're guaranteed to learn something new, so join us!

A quick note: I have updated my website - www.BetterCallBeth.com - to include links to a lot of really impressive and powerful KW resources. If someone is asking you about KW, send them to my site! What they'll find is sure to have them wanting more. You should spend a little time there, too - there's an awful lot that most associates don't think to tap into.

Many of you are familiar with the name Craig Proctor. He's a huge producer who also coaches and has developed a program that thousands subscribe to. I appreciate his perspective; lots of common sense stuff that's relevant in any market. What I like about the article I'm featuring here is that you can put these tools to work no matter what your current production is - and they will give you the confidence to accomplish more!

Enjoy the read, and see you around the market center! Beth

RISMedia Real Estate News, Industry Trends, Marketing - Residential & Commercial

First, a big good morning  - I'm off to a great start, how about you? I met with a young woman today who is considering joining us, and I'm very hopeful she will. As a Team Leader, it's always exciting to recognize talent and meet someone you know would be a good fit for our market center. Can you feel the energy that our new associates are providing? It's awesome! I'm thankful to each of you who has been friendly, helpful, and willing to share what you know. It's not easy to start in this business or transition from another company and you have been hugely instrumental in making things easier for them.

But I shouldn't be surprised, 'cuz that's the   Keller Williams Way!

Some of you missed a terrific Team Meeting yesterday...so much relevant and timely information shared! From the FSBO letter to the Workforce Mortgage programs, those of you who made this time a priority walked away with some valuable tools and tips. It is my goal to make these meetings time well spent; and remember, office policy requires your attendance at one meeting per month. Can I count on seeing more of you in September? I sure hope so!

Finally, please take a moment to check out: 

www.wealthbuildingwednesdays.com

It's one of the many, many tools that KW provides you with to enhance your personal and professional growth. Tune into one of Dave Jenks' many offerings - no matter where you are in your business. You'll benefit from a short, weekly visit to this informative site.

please stop by the market center today at 2pm for FREE CE credits! "Non-Contingent Financing in Today's Market" will be presented by Clint Tsao. Your participation will insure the continuation of this valuable benefit. Invite a guest - it's a great way to show off our market center and our Unique Value Proposition. Thank you!

See you 'round the office! Beth

I recently came across this phrase in a real estate magazine - sorry I can't credit the author, but it has stuck with me:

don't let the television tell YOUR vision!

Your goals, dreams and desires belong to you - and you cannot let them be taken away without your permission! So close your ears to the media and the people who say you can't thrive in this market...you can do exceptionally well in this industry if you remain in a positive frame of mind, surround yourself with like-minded people, and WORK SMART. That means having a plan and sticking to it...doing what highly successful people do...taking advantage of every opportunity to network and sharpen your skills...and deciding - KNOWING - that your success depends only on you, no one else!

I hope to see you at our Team Meeting this morning. We have many great things share with you, including:

• An awesome FSBO letter that has generated many listing appointments for it's author ( I should know - I wrote it! LOL )
• A "Mac Daddy" marketing plan for higher priced listings that will earn you more business
• Some great additional benefits that will be provided to you, starting September 1st. We're talking things that are going to save you big $$!
• Our "green plan" for the market center, modifications to the KW Kids room, and more!

The ALC meeting will follow. Folks, you're input and attendance at both meetings MATTERS and is so critical to the success of our office and allows us to support you better. We serve YOU...and we need to know what you need to grow and acheive your dreams!

It's a beautiful day. May you take full advantage of it! Beth

Good morning, y'all:

Let's get your Monday started with a little truth-telling:

 The truth is this: people struggle because they have limiting beliefs that get in their way of success and they get trapped in self doubt, fear and insecurity. Break through - the power is in your hands!

Don't doubt what you are capable of! Seek situations that may force you out of your comfort zone - successful people are prepared to take risks and try new things - because that's how you get rewarded!

This article (below) is relevant and to the point...and let me add another...lead generation should be a part of your daily schedule and devoting time to keeping your internet presence fresh definitely counts! Check out the site mentioned here - and spend some time checking out other agents sites...design and develop your site using our terrific KW tools - and don't delay!

Hope to see you at Power Hour! Beth

Commentary by Mike Parker

RISMEDIA, August 8, 2008-If you were attending an educational session at a major convention it is highly doubtful that two “HomeTown Girls” as they call themselves, from Amarillo-each a grandmother-would be featured on the program giving tips on how to succeed in online marketing. After all, who would think that two agents-one an agent five years, the other just three-located in a place that gets very little press-could have discovered something that would help sophisticated folks in New York or San Francisco?

The two agents, Debbie Moore and Karen Malone, are with Prudential ADA. Having sold 12 houses from their personal website this year (www.moreamarillohomes.com), these mainstream real estate agents are receiving about 20-25 good leads each week from their site. Even now, they are continuing to average more than one home sale each month from their site. What do they know that you don’t know?

“My clients think I am on the ‘cutting edge’ of real estate marketing,” says Moore. “The Internet is a major factor in the way we do business. We knew that the Internet would only get stronger as time went along and because we are so easy to find on the Internet, we are selling homes to folks from outside our basic marketing area as well as within it.

“We had one buyer who was moving here from the East Coast and found our website. They began to correspond with us and soon I was setting up property searches for them so they could ‘shop online.’ I previewed a home for them and sent them additional pictures. They wrote the offer and put a home under contract with us without ever having set foot in our town. They came to town in time to sign the papers, pick up their keys and move in. Another time we were working with two out-of-town agents helping a family relocate here. They told us that they put in all sorts of different searches online and that we kept coming up, so they figured we knew what we were doing in real estate, since we obviously seemed to know about online marketing.”

According to Moore, early in her career, she would sign up for ‘Internet leads’ from lead providers.

“Some of those sources worked, but most did not,” she says. “I had enough success to realize that there had to be a better way of attracting buyers and I believed that the Internet was the way. Karen and I signed up for a good template website and for CompassSearch. Nothing happened from the website, but once I added the search we started to sell homes to Internet buyers. Karen and I are very good friends and both of us are grandmothers. Our goals are to take very good care of our clients and to spend lots of time with our families. We’re in the real estate business and we love it. We may never be “top producers,” but we play just as hard as we work and we kind of let the numbers take care of themselves. We just do our best in every situation and enjoy the journey.”

According to Moore, her Web presence not only helps sell homes, but helps her gain listings, too.

“I use our Internet presence as a selling point by taking some of our website reports to listing presentations to show prospective sellers that we receive plenty of traffic and lots of inquiries from our site,” she says. “They all are impressed because they know that selling homes involves the Internet, today. They are all very impressed that two Grandmothers who bill ourselves as ‘The HomeTown Girls’ can actually be so technologically strong. They know we have the local knowledge but they are sold when we show them our Internet positions.”

Moore and Malone specialize in Canyon, Bushland and Amarillo, Texas Real Estate. The total population of these three cities and towns is about 266,000 people. There are plenty of real estate agents servicing that population, too, but if you go to Google® and type in Amarillo TX Real Estate, you’ll find Karen Malone and Debby Moore right there on page one, currently in the number two listing, just below Realtor.com.

“We work with a lot of first-time home buyers and people relocating to the Amarillo area, thanks to Internet leads. We don’t have a specialty as far as type of property we sell. We just sell great homes to wonderful Panhandle people,” says Moore. “And if anyone asked for my advice, I’d tell them this: never give up. If you are practicing traditional real estate strategies that aren’t working for you anymore, you might want to embrace the newer technologies and marketing strategies that utilize the Internet.”

Compare how you go about selling today to how these Grandmothers are succeeding in their part of the world. Is there something you can learn from them? If people can’t find you online, you need to make it so they can. If you don’t have a personal website, you need to get one. When you have those two things, you can work smarter at succeeding in the part of real estate that everyone wants to succeed in, but that very few do succeed in: online marketing. It’s where 84+% of residential real estate sales start today and it’s the place where 80+% of Internet buyers find their agent-through a major search engine.

The Internet is just too important to not be a part of your plan to succeed. The Internet is the great leveler: You can be as savvy as they come from a big city and succeed, or you can be relatively new from a small area and succeed. The key thing is that you can succeed. Just ask Debbie Moore. 

1. Come to Power Hour Monday and Friday morning at 9am, and get your day started right with an hour of lead generation! Last Friday Sybil earned a listing appointment, and my Team Leader Power Hour netted me four appointments with agents! When you are focused and give yourself an hour, great things will happen!
2. Attend our monthly Team Meeting Tuesday at 10am SHARP...lots to share with you! The ALC meeting will follow; all are welcome.
3. Earn 3 credits by taking advantage of the FREE Continuing Ed being offered on Wednesday and Friday! Topics: Non-Contingent Financing in Today's Market and The Settlement Process. Please call Jen ASAP to reserve your seat.
4. Master our ON-LINE contract forms by attending Thursday's webinar.
5. Sign up for a personal coaching session with your Team Leader. Available times vary by day; please send an e-mail to bettercallbeth@comcast.net and we'll get you set up!

Many, many  thanks to our awesome MCA Tim for all he did around the market center Friday...we now have a computer desk in the KW Kids room, and our listing/sales board has been installed by the copy center! Sweet!

Here's to a fun, productive week! Beth