7 Real Estate Agent Tips For Beginners

Congratulations! You have your real estate license and you’re ready to get started in your new career. Being a real estate agent is similar to being a freelancer. There is a lot of freedom in terms of your schedule and how you work. However, there is also a lot of responsibility. You are your own boss which means that you are solely responsible for everything, from marketing and networking to paperwork and client relations. It can be daunting, but this blog post will help set you on the path to success. Here are 7 real estate agent tips for beginners.

 

7 First Year Real Estate Agent Tips To Start Off Right

1. Being a Real Estate Agent Means You’re a Business Owner

Becoming a real estate agent isn’t a job, it’s a business and you are an entrepreneur. Entrepreneurs spend a lot of their time marketing their businesses and successful agents will do the same. Lead generation is essential for real estate agents and it’s what your business is all about.

Starting out, it’s important to make financial goals to reach the income you need for the year. Your financial goals will influence how many leads you need and how you want to approach finding them. On top of getting a commission, there are many fees and services that real estate agents have to invest their money into in order to get new leads. Here is a calculator that can help you get started.

The life of a real estate agent is vastly different than a life as an employee. The biggest change is with your schedule. Your time and schedule will be largely dependent on your client’s needs. They may call you at any time of the day and may need your assistance on weekends or holidays.

 

2. Be In The Business of Helping People

Being a real estate agent means that you are in the business of helping people. It’s important to keep this at the forefront of your mind because when clients sense that you care about helping them and not just making a commission, they will be more likely to recommend you to their friends. Alternatively, if clients don’t feel like you have their best interests at heart, many will not hesitate to leave you a negative review online.

Working to help others is also a rewarding business. It’s very satisfying to help a family find the perfect home or sell their house without a hitch. Real estate is an incredibly important resource for people and by being a real estate agent, you are playing an important role in people’s lives.

 

3. Use Your Strengths To Shape Your Brand

There is a low bar to becoming a real estate agent, which has both benefits and drawbacks. The benefit is that it doesn’t take much time and money to become a real estate agent so almost anyone can do it. The drawback is that there is a lot of competition amongst agents.

With over a million real estate agents in America, marketing yourself can feel like standing in a crowd of people. So how do you stand out from the crowd?

The answer is by using your strengths to shape your brand. Every agent can help people sell or buy real estate but what makes your service different from anyone else’s?

Keith St. Onge is a real estate agent and Negotiator in central Florida who was once the former barefoot water skiing world champion. He markets himself as a real estate agent who will apply the same dedication and commitment that he put to becoming a world champion in serving his clients.

Ask yourself who your target audience is and try to define what it is that makes you uniquely adept at servicing that audience. It could be your industry knowledge, your attention to detail, or even your personality. Your brand works best as an extension of yourself and not a persona that you put on for work.

 

4. Find a Brokerage That Gives Mentorship

There is no understating how important mentorship is in the professional world and especially as a real estate agent. A good mentor will have a wealth of experience and knowledge about the real estate industry that they can share to help you navigate to success. More importantly, they can keep you from making terrible mistakes that can cost you dearly.

Many brokerages don’t spend a lot of time training new agents but some offer great training for new agents. Make sure to do in-depth research of the brokerages in your area to see what they offer new real estate agents. You can also look at small brokerages that give you direct access to the broker for assistance. Some brokers are great teachers and will naturally become your mentor.

 

5. Find What Lead Generation Tools Work Best For You

Lead generation has evolved a lot over the years. Before the internet, real estate agents would generate leads with printed ads, direct mail, or word of mouth. Now, there are a variety of methods you can use to generate leads. The amount of options you have can be overwhelming but you don’t have to focus on using every option. Although it’s recommended to generate leads using a diverse amount of techniques, you should use techniques that are right for your business. Here are a few ideas on how you can generate leads as a real estate agent.

 

1. Social Media

It’s a given but having a social media presence is a must for real estate agents. Having social media accounts allows leads to find you while also giving you the ability to reach out to them. It also adds to your credibility if leads can look at your profile to see your track record. Social media can also be useful to use paid ads through. Facebook, in particular, has a great advertisement system that allows you to target users in a specific area and with specific interests. Paid ads are an easy way to develop a lot of leads in a short amount of time but make sure to track what is working and what isn’t.

 

2. Email

Newsletters are one of the main ways real estate agents interact with their leads. Email allows agents to provide leads with content directly to build a relationship with them over time. Eventually, when they decide to make the plunge into real estate, they hopefully have a good enough relationship with your content and decide to contact you first. You can also segment your email lists based on how much they interact with your content. If a lead is opening every email, they are going to be more likely to use your services in the future.

 

4. Create Content

In the world of the internet and social media, many real estate agents have to become content creators. Creating content has many benefits. It allows you to show your authority on a subject, which builds trust with potential clients. Creating content also allows you to rank on Google, which can generate a lot of leads if done correctly. And finally, it gives you something to share on social media and email to generate leads. You can create blog posts, videos, or even have a live Q&A on social media. The content you create must have value for your target audience so that they keep coming back for more.

 

5. Word of Mouth

Even though everyone will tell you to develop an online presence for new businesses, many businesses do well enough without one because of word of mouth. Word of mouth is one of the most effective forms of marketing because it comes with a personal recommendation from a reliable source. This is why real estate agents should always try to get referrals from past clients. Word of mouth also has great ROI because it’s free.

 

6. In-person Networking

People are always buying or selling real estate. It’s just a matter of finding them and convincing them that you are the best person to help them do that. As a real estate agent, you will be servicing a specific area and getting involved in the community of that area will be beneficial in getting your name out there. If you’re a good agent, people will want to help you get work. You can volunteer, help with local gatherings, get involved in the church, sponsor community events, etc. The more people that get to know you, the more leads you will get organically.

 

7. Print Still Works!

Yard signs and business cards may be going out of style but they still work very well in real estate. Brand awareness is half the battle as a new agent and there are plenty of people who don’t use the internet as their primary source of information. Getting your name out there physically with a poster or a yard sign in as many places as possible will help you reach those leads who prefer a more traditional method of marketing.

 

6. Have a Great Website

In all of your marketing efforts, you are going to need an anchor point to send all of your leads. That anchor point is going to be your real estate website. Your website should give leads all of the information they need to be able to contact you and feel confident in their decision to hire you as a real estate agent. Users are looking for proof that you are reliable as an agent and there are many ways you can help them find that proof on your website. Make sure to include:

• An introduction video on the homepage.
• Signup for your email list.
• Various testimonials about your service.
• A way to get in contact with you.
• The area(s) that you service.
• An about me page that tells the reader about what makes you different.

A website can also help you rank on Google for local SEO. People typically turn to Google when they are first searching for real estate agents near them, so it’s important that you appear as high up in the search results as possible. Optimizing your website with keywords related to real estate and your specific location will help you achieve this.

 

7. Manage Your Budget

One of the biggest mistakes new real estate agents make comes from how they manage their budget. You are now a real estate agent which means that you now own a real estate business. In every marketing effort you invest in, you need to track and review to see if the ROI is worth the money. You are also taxed differently as a real estate agent. Now, you are considered self-employed which means you will be taxed at least 15% of your net income. However, there are many tax deductions that you can apply for based on the costs of operating as a real estate agent. Tracking all of the fees and costs that you pay for throughout the year is necessary in order to get these deductions but it’s also good practice for making sure that your real estate business is profitable.

 

Become an NRP To Standout as a Real Estate Agent

Not sure how to standout from the rest of real estate agents? With so many real estate agents active in the US and so many of them failing to meet the expectations of their clients, it can be difficult to stand out as a real estate agent who is good at their job. The industry is saturated with real estate agents and many of them are simply not cut out for the job.

NRPs or Negotiator Recognized Partners is a program for real estate agents to distinguish themselves from the run of the mill real estate professionals. The Negotiators brand is associated with only agents who have proven themselves to go above and beyond for their clients while providing the highest quality of service. NRPs also get access to branding and marketing templates, educational events, and can be featured in The Negotiators TV show that highlights the value of working with Negotiators.

Nominate yourself or an agent you know for the Negotiator Recognized Partner program here.