One of the biggest challenges real estate brokers, owners and managers face today is the process of recruiting great producers. When successful, recruiting infuses a business with energy and growth, but all too often it can feel like a long and frustrating practice that yields very poor results for the effort required. How can you change this? The first step is to get face-to-face with talented agents.
While this may seem obvious, it’s becoming increasingly difficult for companies because of the changes happening in our industry. In 2013, 68 percent of agents were spending 30 hours or more a week working from home. In 2014, that number jumped to 73 percent, and this year we’re expecting it to reach over 80 percent. This means you have to find ways to get these pros, working primarily from home, into your office.
Why does face-to-face interaction matter? That’s where the recruiting magic happens. It allows you to demonstrate how you do business, share your company culture and ultimately determine if the agent is going to be a good fit. Based on the character and competence traits you’re looking for, list the core people you’d love to work with, then call or write to them to introduce yourself. Ask if you can stay in touch with fresh and relevant information to help them in their business. Providing them with value and striving to truly connect, instead of overwhelming them with information about what your business could offer, means that the door to talking about the possibilities of working together will open in a more natural and organic way.
Once you’ve identified the agents you’d like to work with, have started to nurture and build relationships and are providing value, the next step centers around creating events and experiences to get your team and prospects to come in to the office and network with each other while sharpening their skills. At Buffini & Company, we’ve made it very easy for companies to deliver world-class training. We’ve created an option to stream over three hours of live training from Brian Buffini’s Success Tour straight to your office for all your agents to attend. This sort of investment develops highly productive agents, delivers excellent results and differentiates your company from others in the marketplace, while demonstrating to industry professionals that you care about your team. If you take a vested interest in your people and help them to perform at high levels, word will spread that your company is the place to be, and top producers will sit up and take notice—a trickle-down effect that is incredibly powerful.
In order to increase marketshare, gain influence and create healthy profits, you must always be growing and looking for talented people to align yourself with. Successful recruiting takes time and patience. But if you get in front of the right talent, provide value, stay consistent and work to build and protect your organization’s culture, you’ll ultimately reap the rewards of your efforts.
Dermot Buffini is CEO of Buffini & Company, North America’s largest real estate coaching and training company, which has helped over three million sales professionals in 37 different countries improve their business, increase net profit and enhance their quality of life since its founding in 1996. Before assuming the role as CEO in 2013, he spent 10 years as the senior vice president of Business Development, where he was responsible for developing new markets, corporate partnerships and the overall growth of the company. For more information, visit www.buffiniandcompany.com or call 1-800-945-3485 ext. 4.
