Make It Happen

The cookies are baked, the coffee is brewing, the balloons are out. You do a final walk-through of your model, wipe down the countertops and light a scented candle to soften the fresh paint smell.  You are ready for the day, and rush to open the door only to hear the sound of the clock ticking as you sit and wonder: “Where’s my traffic?”

We see it time and time again.  We get ourselves excited about the grand opening, the big open house, the once in a lifetime purchase incentive, and then on Monday when we have to send our traffic reports in, our broker turns and asks “Why were you so slow?”

You think to yourself…”I did everything!!!” but think about it, did you really?  5-10 years ago we were eating the low-lying fruit (the buyer) from the tree. Buyers were eveywhere.  Now the fruit is way up high and we have to start climbing to go get it.

After the big “goose-egg” on contracts from the weekend, you start to point fingers (yes, we all have had these thoughts).  “My broker didn’t train me well enough,” “My builder isn’t spending enough on advertising,” “The owner of the home didn’t clean up,” “I don’t have enough collateral”, and my favorite… ”The sign guy didn’t get our signs out this weekend.”

Back when the fruit was low, you could probably get away with such thoughts.  Now it’s just a cop-out.  Start climbing and make it happen for yourself. There are tons of free listing services out there on the internet that will get you ahead of the game.  Always have your business cards on you, walk fast like you always have somewhere to be, and by all means, get out and drop off some flyers at your favorite coffee shop, salon, barber shop, nightclub, on your way to and from work each and every day.  Also, keep ample signage in your car and take the extra 30 minutes to direct people to your location (just remeber to pick them up before the county does).

There’s a reason why real estate professionals get paid the big bucks. We are specialist in our field.  Just like a doctor who get’s paged when his son is about to hit the game-winning home run at little league, you too have to stop what you are doing and service your customer no matter what is happening.  The days of sitting in a sales center or open house from 10 to 6, 40 hours a week, and waiting for it to come to you are over.  Be a specialist in your field, put in the extra effort and make it happen.