Systems

It's truly amazing to see how much technology has leveled the playing field. An entire real estate business can be effectively run (actually, more effectively run) from a laptop, mobile phone and the Web.

Web sites enable you to host more and better content that is visible to far more people, for much less money than print.

Email enables you to contact more people, faster and easier for practically no money; and it can link directly to all your Web content

Online real estate systems can hold all of your contacts, your schedule, your notes, your correspondence (both outbound and inbound), and complete histories; and make them accessible from your laptop or PDA⁄phone anytime, from anywhere.

These same online real estate systems can easily and quickly expand from a single agent to dozens of agents and staff; all networked online; all sharing the same database, notes, schedules, correspondence and histories.

These same online real estate systems can automatically capture Web leads as well as schedule and distribute entire, year-long, targeted, custom, marketing campaigns.

Other online systems can be integrated to create documents, obtain signatures, and manage entire transaction processes.

Given all that capability, plus the speed and coordination advantages, at comparatively very low cost; it's increasingly hard to justify the high expense of renting, furnishing, equipping and maintaining a brick and mortar office. That money could be much more productively spent on additional marketing.

Smart systems selection and implementation will give elite boutique brokers a huge competitive edge over the old schoolers.

These are the eight pieces within the Systems section of the Model.

1. Relationship Management

The higher the volume of business you want to do, the more you'll need to automate your starting, building and maintaining of your relationships. If you want to bring additional agents into your operation, you'll definitely want to automate your relationship management.

More and more often your first point of contact will be your Web site. You'll need Web forms that capture visitor contact information, automatically import it to your contact database, and automatically trigger a sequence of email and call follow-up.

After that you'll need additional targeted sequences that distribute appropriate information to niche buyers and sellers.

In addition, you'll need automated follow-up appropriate to newly met people who aren't currently in the market; as well as appropriate continuing communications to your "Mets" and past clients who are not currently in the market either.

The volume and complexity of keeping up with all the various sequences is daunting, unless you have fully automated relationship management systems in place; then it's a snap.

2. Scheduling

Staying on top of your own schedule can be a challenge. Factor in some administrative staff and additional agents and you've got the makings of a three ring circus.

To function as a smooth running team, that doesn't drop any balls, you'll need an integrated scheduling system that all of you can access anytime, from anywhere.

3. Lead Generation

Over the last 50 years homeowners across the U.S. moved at an average rate of 10% per year. Local conditions have made local move rates fluctuate between 5% and 15%. The good news is, no matter what the conditions, homeowners keep moving.

The trick to lead generation is to get them to pick you. "Pick" is the key word, because movers have lots of choices. The trick to getting people to pick you is to offer them something you know they really need and would like to have.

Once they respond to your offer the relationship building clock starts.

The trick after that is to offer the next logical thing that will draw them closer to you; then the next; then the next; and so on.

To generate and follow-up leads effectively you'll first need to use your understanding of your target markets to create compelling Web communications and your email library.

Then you'll need to create a series of automation campaigns for distributing the right content to the right people at the right time.

Enough compelling, targeted offers made to enough of the right people will generate plenty of leads.

4. Presentations

Good presentation production systems will make if fast and easy to create personalized highly professional presentations. These systems should also automatically publish your presentations to the Web so you can do more Webinar like presentations to individuals and groups alike; on the fly.

5. Work Flow

Conceptually, the task is very simple: You want everything, done right, on time.

If you're working alone, and you're doing a pretty good volume of business, meeting that goal can be very challenging at times.

Add a few more people to the mix who can't share the same information and you're in a three ring circus; many, many balls are going to be dropped.

Online systems can enable ever expanding groups of people to easily share information and tasks, thus tightening team coordination and work flow.

6. Listing Management

There are a lot of parts to the job of marketing listings well; staging, photos, virtual tours, Web listings, flyers, agent promotions, showings, etc.

If you do more than one listing at a time you'll have dozens and dozens of balls to keep constantly in the air.

A good, online system will keep you on top of everything and make it easy to delegate and supervise tasks.

7. Closing Management

There are a lot of parts to the job of effectively managing escrows to closing. If you do more than one escrow at a time you'll have dozens and dozens of critical balls to keep constantly in the air.

A good, online system will help keep you on top of everything and make it easy to delegate and supervise tasks.

8. Reporting

To manage a team effectively you need a way to quickly and easily know the status of just about everything. Who's doing what for whom? When's the deadline? How far along is the project?

You'll need a way to answer these questions across your entire team, and down to the individual situation. A good, online real estate broker's system will enable you to do that.

At this point you've got a solid Plan, your Communications are ready to go, and you've got your Systems in place to handle everything in the most efficient, productive manner. Now it's time to consider your Team Work.