By Todd Robertson, Regional Director This is it! This is the year that you are going to meet and exceed your recruiting goals, right? You’re fired up and ready to hit the ground running, aren’t you? Congratulations, you are officially in Phase One of the Four Phases of Recruiting, the “Enthusiasm/Exhaustion” Phase. Don’t get me wrong, enthusiasm is crucial, and a necessarily, vital tool in attracting the right kind of people to your organization, it is just difficult to maintain long-term without the right momentum. Enter Phase Two of the process which is the “Work for It Phase” which describes most of the recruiting population who are operating on sheer will and work ethic. Again, viable traits when sustaining long term forward movement, but you need something more. You need a shot of the “work smarter, not harder” tools that will give you the highest level of success. Let us explore the third “Systems in Place Phase” which allows you to funnel your enthusiasm and work ethic into processes which help you realize the maximum results for your efforts and time. Stay focused on this phase ladies and gentlemen. Phase Four is the “Had it/Lost It/Burned Out” Phase that most of us have either experienced at some point or have been on the uncomfortable fringes of. This is your year though, so let’s focus on the steps necessary to helping you achieve the highest return for your time, effort, energy and money. Common sense prevails. If you keep doing what you’ve always done, you’ll keep getting what you’ve always gotten. While that seems to reduce the problem to the ridiculous, ask yourself what you are doing “differently” to be more effective. Statistically, most are still stuck in their ruts. 70% of recruiters do a poor job. Why? More often than not, they lack focus, goals, and have no system for follow up. Another 20% do a good job, getting by doing no more and no less than bare minimum with the end result being mediocrity. While good might seem fine to some of you, keep in mind that the cost of greatness is high, but the toll of mediocrity is much higher. This is your year, remember? How do you move from mediocrity to greatness? Master the two common denominators that make the top 10% the industry’s most effective recruiters. First, develop the razor sharp focus that recruiting must be a top priority, NOT a reaction to a problem. Second, develop and implement numerous strategies and systems simultaneously. Now, you are back in the driver’s seat. Smart strategists know that keeping a business plan pro-active, rather than reactive will always pay the highest dividend. Know What They Want: Floyd Wickman says, “People don’t care what you know, until they know that you care.” That lesson is as applicable to the recruiting process as it is to business of real estate sales. We are in the people business, after all, and fulfilling this most basic of human needs is essential to building your organization’s “family.” Agents don’t change offices because the new manager has the latest greatest website available and 24 hour internet access. They do not leave because of flashy bells and whistles. The next “new thing” is not what sways them away. They leave because:
What do they want?
Now that you are clear on what potential recruits both want and don’t want, putting Phase Three into full operation requires putting systems in place. Let me share with you three of our twelve systems for recruiting success. 1. Utilize a Business Base™. It’s more important to reach the people that count than to count the people you reach. More than a pipeline, this system will be the MVP in your tool chest for success if you use it with the razor sharp focus of the top 10% of recruiters. It is based on the results-getting foundation of sphere-of-influence marketing, which is still the single most effective way to build virtually any sales business. Information can and will tip the scales in your favor when it comes to owning the hearts, minds and loyalty of the agents who work for you, and potential recruits. For convenience, we have made this system available as a free download on our website, www.prospectsplus.com. How does it work?
Why does it work? The more you know the more you can determine the best way to serve your associates. Caring about what they care about makes the ability to make them feel valued a much simpler process. Fortunately, many potential recruits advertise their greatest goals, needs and focus right on their websites! With a few clicks of the mouse and a little research on your part, you can determine who is passionate about children’s causes, environmental issues, or team building. In filling your BusinessBASE™ with potential recruits however, keep in mind that in a real estate office, “Opposites Don’t Attract!” Remember to be careful what you wish for, sometimes that super star agent might not be the catch you thought. 2. Overcome Their Number One Fear: Agents number one fear in changing offices is losing business. Show them a way you can help them shorten the downtime and loss and you will have effectively done what few brokers/managers are willing to do. Do your homework, make the appointment, then WOW them!
You have effectively gone above and beyond your competitors. In preparing marketing materials ahead of time, you have shown them you care enough to have done your homework, are committed enough to helping them grow and succeed in their business, and that you “do things differently” than 90% of industry. 3. Support Call Marketing –Just like agents who run into buyers and sellers who are difficult to get-off-the-fence, managers sometimes run into recruits who want to “think it over.” It is a fair trade for a manager who is making support calls for an agent, that they should return the favor and make support calls for a manager. This little system can have a big impact on the success rates of both agent and manager. When an agent runs into difficult buyers or sellers they put in a Support Call Request Form, which lists the prospects information, and asks the manager to make a call. As a manager, you call and lend your support with a simple, “I understand you met with our agent (insert name and date), and I just wanted to call and let you know on behalf of myself and our entire team we will do whatever it takes to help you with your real estate needs.” This makes the prospect feel special, the agent feel special and helps foster the atmosphere of a company that cares. In turn, when you as the manager have a difficult prospect you submit a similar request form to your top producer who may have had a transaction or social interaction with that prospect in the past. Your agent calls and thanks the prospect for a good experience in the past and suggests that should they consider the change to your company, that they will have the full support of your marketing team. By lending a personal affirmation that yours is an exceptional working environment, and that you are committed to the mutual success of each agent, you will have gone the extra mile that other companies simply will not have. I’ll leave you with this thought. If the game is scheduled, and you’ve decided to play, you might as well win. These strategies and systems can and will help you grow your company’s family over the next thirty days. Better still, they will help you provide the strongest possible foundation for the success of your sales associates. Connecting the right people with the right atmosphere is a goal I am committed to. We’re all in the game, so let’s make it a win. Todd Robertson, National Real Estate Speaker and Regional Director for ProspectsPLUS! has educated, entertained and motivated thousands of audiences. He has helped associates across the United States and Canada realize their full potential utilizing the tools and techniques he provides in his unique workshops and seminars. To invite Todd to help your management team master the fundamentals of recruiting, teach your associates how to play at the next level, or sharpen your company’s competitive edge, contact him today at 1.800.287.5710. Open a PDF version of this article: How to Recruit 10 Agents in 30 Days! You will need to Adobe Acrobat Reader to view this file, which can be downloaded free here. Click Here. |
How to Recruit 10 Agents in 30 Days! Three Systems
