Keeping It Real Podcast • Secrets Of Top 1% REALTORS ® • Interviews With Real Estate Brokers & Agents

Welcome to the March episode of Learn With A Lender with Joel Schaub of Guaranteed Rate! In this episode Joel talks about the second largest bank failure in the US, and how this situation puts pressure on the Fed to change the course of rates. Joel explains a strategy on how to use higher rates and educate clients and not to buy just because the rates are low but always ask the question “WHY”. Lastly, Joel emphasized agents should organize events, spend money and engage with mortgage people to broaden their network. If you’d prefer to watch this interview, click here to view on YouTube! Joel can be reached at joel@rate.com and 773.654.2049. This episode is brought to you by Real Geeks. Transcript D.J. Paris 0:00What’s going on with these bank failures? And how is it going to impact your customers abilities to get mortgages? Stay tuned. This episode of Keeping it real is brought to you by real geeks. How many homes are you going to sell this year? Do you have the right tools? Is your website turning soft leads and interested buyers? Are you spending money on leads that aren’t converting? Well real geeks is your solution. Find out why agents across the country choose real geeks as their technology partner. Real geeks was created by an agent for agents. They pride themselves on delivering a sales and marketing solution so that you can easily generate more business. Their agent websites are fast and built for lead conversion with a smooth search experience for your visitors. Real geeks also includes an easy to use agent CRM. So once a lead signs up on your website, you can track their interest and have great follow up conversations. Real geeks is loaded with a ton of marketing tools to nurture your leads and increase brand awareness visit real geeks.com forward slash keeping it real pod and find out why Realtors come to real geeks to generate more business again, visit real geeks.com forward slash keeping it real pod. And now on to our show. Welcome to another episode of Keeping it real the largest podcast made by real estate agents and for real estate agents. My name is DJ Parris, I’m your guide and host through the show today, once again is our monthly series called Learn with a lender with Joel shop from guaranteed rate. Now, Joel is the vice president of lending at guaranteed rate. And he’s been doing loans at a high level since 2003. Which, by the way, 20 years congratulations. And he’s got to that level because of what he does specifically for agents, which is that he gives back part of his commission to the client to the buyer on every transaction. Now last year alone, Joel gave back over $300,000 in closing costs to buyers who worked with them. And that put Joe’s volume in the top 1/10 of 1% of all loan officers nationwide. In fact, out of 400,000 loan officers Joel is currently ranked number 137. Last year he closed 319 transactions, his highest amount ever, for 126 million this year. To date, he has closed 43 purchase transactions for just shy of 18 million. So if you are looking for a loan officer or a loan officer to partner with or for your customers, we cannot more highly recommend Joel he’s the very best we’ve ever worked with. I use them as well. Joel can be reached at here’s his email joel@rate.com joel@rates.com. Or you can shoot him a text message or call him at 773-654-2049 Let’s say hello to the biggest Cubs fan. I know Joel, welcome back. Joel Schaub 3:06DJ, thanks for having me on. I love that you made the Cubs reference at Spring Training. It is a new season right. And it’s kind of a new season right now for real estate agents out there as well. We were kind of talking before the show started about how people are getting more energetic and they’re getting back into it. And there’s just a lot to talk about. D.J. Paris 3:26It’s exciting, the sun’s coming out. So if you’re listening and you’re in a in a northern part of North America, where you haven’t maybe seen the sun so much, it’s starting to get a little warmer. If you’re in the southern part where it’s always sunny, then, you know another sunny day down there. But yeah, it’s it’s exciting. We’re starting to see activity as far as real estate, at least here locally in Chicago, this spring market has started we’ve seen activity rates have have been you know, okay, and so I think buyers are back at it. But curious to hear your your perspective, because right now we’re dealing with while by the time this release is you know, this will be probably after but we had some some banking turbulence. You know, we had Silicon Valley Bank, which which basically failed, and is being recovered by by the US government, you have a couple other smaller banks, regional banks chat being challenged as well. And then Credit Suisse overseas. So there’s a lot of uncertainty around the banking thing. And then it’s also like, what’s the Fed going to do? Are they going to raise rates, lower rates, how’s that gonna affect everything? Obviously, our listeners want to know, obviously, no one’s got a crystal ball but curious to hear what what what your interpretation of what’s going on right now is all about. Joel Schaub 4:45We’re back to this phrase. DJ, we’re bad news is good news. Okay. And it’s strange, but it’s true these bank failures actually put pressure on the Fed to change the course of rate increases. So this Bad news, which by any stretch of the imagination, having the second largest bank in history fail is bad news. And what that meant was more money rushing into the bond market. And as the price of those bonds went up, the yields went down. And so did mortgage rates. And so even though we’re not anywhere near the lows of the last six months and rates, the news is telling us that rates are down, and it’s an opportunity for agents to get back out and talk to buyers, because rates are down significantly, from just last week, by the time this airs, we’re probably going to see more of this continued rates and buyers are not afraid now, to see rates in the sixes or sevens. And that’s just kind of the norm. And are you seeing? Yeah, yeah. And so if you’re an agent, right now, if it was a year ago, people seeing rates creep up into the fives or sixes, that put a halt on a lot of buyers. Now we’re into a new year where that’s the norm. And we shouldn’t see them continue to creep down. But we still will see the Feds raise rates in the short term. But we’re already looking ahead to what they do in 2024. And they’re thinking that we’re going to see a cut early next year already. D.J. Paris 6:14Yeah, I think, you know, the, maybe it’s kind of a, a byproduct of our diminishing attention spans as Americans with technologies kind of I think zapped our attention spans tick tock in particular social media. I think I think hopefully, one of the maybe one of the benefits is that people who were upset that maybe they felt they missed the that that amazing rate, time period from a few years ago, I think the you know, I think we’ve forgotten, I think I think it’s we’re moving forward. Now, I feel like the public sentiment is changing. I don’t I don’t hear as much from agents saying, all my clients are really bummed that they missed the three, you know, three plus percent kind of era. I feel like we’re turning the corner on that people are starting to realize, you know, the six is is not a bad place to live. And even the seven sometimes it’s not, it’s not the worst place to date, to data rate. And you can always like Joe, you say, you know, date the rate, marry the home, you know, you can always refi in the future. So I think we’re starting to get more acceptance from the public about about where we’re at currently. Joel Schaub 7:24But if I’m an agent, I’m also talking to buyers right now, I want them to know that there are rate options in the fours and fives, there’s ways to do this. So let’s talk about two things that the agents that I know are really using seller by downs to fund the rates. Okay, so let’s talk about what that to one rate, buydown looks like or a three to one rate by down, understand the mechanics of this. And this could literally make the difference of you getting a buyer that wants to write an offer, or then waiting, okay, so the problem is that rates are high right now. And we think there’ll be high for the next a year or two, we can get sellers to give a closing cost credit to drive the rate down in the first one, two or three years. And so let’s just take a minute and talk about how that works. And how you can use this so that you can go educate buyers on this. And even if you’re a seller, you’ve probably seen this come across your desk. So making sure that you understand this, and can talk to your sellers about why the buyer is asking for our credit. D.J. Paris 8:27Yeah, let’s talk about it. Joel Schaub 8:3030 year fixed rate mortgages, they’re right now in the mid sixes as the time of this taping, but if you got the seller to give a 3% closing cost credit, we can take the rate at any bank and drive that down for the next two years. So that in the first year, the rate is 2% points lower. In the second year, it’s 1%. Lower. And then for the rest of the life and loan, it’s fixed. So it’s not hard to get rates that are in the fours right now. Sellers can pay for this. And it really changes the monthly payment DJ people are saving hundreds of dollars by using this exercise. D.J. Paris 9:06Yeah, no, it makes it makes sense. So the seller basically pays this concession. And does it go? Does it go directly to the bank? I’m guessing does it go into? Does it pay for principal interest or it’s just a part of the package or Joel Schaub 9:22it’s an escrow account so the client doesn’t lose the money let’s say next year rates have dropped drastically and we want to refinance, the money the seller gave is still there, and that will actually go to reduce the principal. So that’s a whole other strategy. Okay. But let’s talk about what that means. If you’re listening and you’re thinking well on a $500,000 home, why wouldn’t I just take 15 grand off the price? I’ll just Why mess around with all this. This seems like a magic trick or look at the math. If you take $15,000 off the purchase price, it might save about nine V or $100 a month on the payment, it’s good. But if you take that same $15,000, and have the seller buy the rate down for the client, on a $500,000, purchase, their payment would drop four to $500 a month. It’s a big difference. Wow. Yeah. And that can make the difference for somebody that can afford a home and not afford a home, okay? And it’s not an excuse to go buy something higher than you’re approved for. If you’re not comfortable with the payment with the way the rates are, let’s not buy let’s be honest with ourselves and be putting ourselves into something that we’re comfortable with. It’s just a way for the next two years, while rates are high, to get the seller to give us a lower rate. And I love lower rates. D.J. Paris 10:48Yeah, we all we all do. And at the same time, we also don’t want to chase rates, it’s like chasing the stock market. It’s anyone who any competent financial advisor will tell you don’t chase the stock market. You know, the smartest minds, financial minds in the country have a hard time doing it. And I’m certainly not one of those smartest financial minds. So I certainly don’t try to, you know, time to market as they say, and in the in the equities market. And the same thing with with rates, right, we know that buying a home is a financial decision. It’s a huge financial decision, oftentimes one of the biggest financial decisions of someone’s life. But it’s also a hugely emotional decision. And so I think the way that you solve for the fact that rates are higher than then probably people would want them to be is to really focus on the Y, right, talking about the y but also knowing that there are these creative financial strategies to make it more palatable along the way until you get to a place where maybe a refi makes sense. Joel Schaub 11:51I’m so glad you said that, because it’s not an excuse to buy, just because that rate is lower, it’s just a nice added benefit. So if you’re an agent, the last piece of this equation is just writing it on the contract as a seller credit. There’s nothing fancy about it listed as a seller closing cost credit. Almost every bank out there right now will do by downs. I don’t know a single bank right now, this is we don’t understand that. So work with a mortgage company that you know, and make sure that they know how to execute a to one rate by down for your clients, for a three to one rate down by down for your clients, and then go out there and submit offers that are designed to win and help. So that’s one strategy. The other strategy to get lower rates right now is let’s stop talking only about 30 year fixed rate mortgages. Okay. There are so many options out there, whether we talk about 15 year terms, 20 year 25 year terms, or looking at Adjustable Rate Mortgages again, okay, they’re coming back and our take out, yeah, either think of this, if we think in the next two or three years rates are going to be down and we don’t have the crystal ball, is there a big downside risk and locking rate for the next seven years. That’s a great arm, right? I don’t like three year arms or five year arms, I just don’t. But I like the seven and 10 year varieties. And when you’re borrowing serious money, all those jumbo arms are a lot lower. If you’re borrowing in that million plus range, you can get jumbo arms down at five and a quarter 5.125. And so speak with somebody about this, don’t just think that the 30 year fixed rates, the only option options to get them lower, D.J. Paris 13:36you just brought up a really good point, I hang out with a lot of realtors, with my different, I do a lot of association work. And so I’m around not even just Realtors at our company. But realtors who are you know, all throughout the industry here in Chicago, and everybody only talks about the 30 year fix. That’s absolutely so true. Realtors only know one number for when it comes to lending. And that’s the number they focus on. And you’re so right that that is not the end all be all number, it’s just the most, you know, discussed number is the 30 year fixed. So that is a really, really strong point is to remember there are other products with other options out there. And not to to think about the entirety of the mortgage lending sort of industry as one number is oh, it’s all based on a 30 year fixed. No, it’s just that’s just the most common number that people know. But there are other options like these bite down options and arms and etc. Joel Schaub 14:35And why is it so common? Right? It’s because it’s the lowest payment. The lowest paying, you’re paying over 30 years. And yes, that works for a lot of people. But you’d be surprised right now the number of people that are not interested in paying a loan for 30 Damn years. Okay, why are we paying it for so long? Yes, my payment will be a couple of $100 more but if I can pay this loan off in 15 years, and I can get it right Getting the low fives, especially right now I’m going to do that. If I have the bandwidth and I have a good income and my debt ratio is low enough, we really should be looking at those options, or at least discussing them. Even if we ultimately do go with a 30 year fixed, having that conversation is something that you should be doing, and making sure that you know what’s available, because a couple of years from now, when rates are even lower, maybe you end up going to a lower payment. But having lower interest right now is one of the key things that is going to get people to buy a property. So now we’ve covered a lot of things, we’ve covered rate by downs, we’ve covered other ways to make sure that we’re not just having 30 year fixed rate conversation. So don’t forget about arms. Okay. Don’t forget about lower terms so that you can get lower rates on mortgages. D.J. Paris 15:52Yeah, that’s really, really helpful. I’m curious, too. You work with a lot of top producers, you know, in our area, I’m curious on what you’re seeing them start to do this year, because we know that this is a, you know, a more challenging market. 2023 So far, has been tough. Inventory is still challenging. Although string market has accelerated things a bit curious in what you’re seeing these top agents doing, I don’t what I’m not seeing as agents running and hiding our top agents running and hiding. So I’m curious because you have such direct connections to them. I’m seeing them do a lot more events I’m seeing I’m seeing a lot of like, customer events, or client appreciation events, those kinds of things I’m seeing. So I’m just curious if you’re noticing anything, and you do a lot of those as well. Joel Schaub 16:46If you’re an agent, right now, it’s all about your sphere, making sure that you’re getting out there and doing events. And these don’t need to be big over the top events. So we’re doing so many things into one right now, in terms of getting out with agents and doing candlemaking parties and doing sips, right doing wine tasting events. We’re doing March Madness, parties, we’re getting ready for the baseball season and setting up viewing parties, things that are simple and getting back out there. And it’s just spending money, okay, you don’t have to do a lot. But if you’re not doing something, you’re doing nothing. And so for the last couple of years, when COVID was kind of like the mainstay, right? We’re finally getting past all of that, we’re getting back out there. And so if you’re not doing events, go partner with a mortgage person, all of these mortgage, people would be willing to spend money on you. Okay, that’s the reason why so many mortgage people hate me. I talk about this all the time. Go work with somebody that’s willing to spend money on you. Because these mortgage people will call you left and right and tell you how fast they are on mortgages and how good they are. Say, Hey, do you want to do an event? This event is gonna cost me $4,000? Do you want to split it with me? The first person that says yes, that’s your person, somebody that steps up and wants to help you grow your business. Those are the people that are going to be in it for the long haul. Okay, so they’re doing events, and then they’re doing client gifting. We’re doing St. Patrick’s Day gifting. We did Valentine’s Day gifting. We’re doing all these off days, like National Pizza Day, find a day send something out to 50 people, even if it’s as simple as just a small token gift partner with a mortgage person. They want to help you and go out there and do events this year, do gift giving, and put it on them. A lot of these mortgage guys have done this with other agents and ask them what are you doing with your other agents? You call me all the time asking for my business. Let’s do some business together. Do you want to help me sponsor something? They’re gonna say yes, the good ones will at least D.J. Paris 19:05I interviewed a woman recently who’s the number one team in her and her husband are the number one team in South Dakota. And I She’s so interesting. So such a neat a neat woman, neat realtor. One of the things she does is they have a moving van like but a big, like a kind of a like a moving truck. And not the biggest ones but you know, like one that anybody could drive without a special license anyway, what she does, it is so brilliant. And she says anybody who works with me can use it at any time. Like I don’t care if you bought a home for me five years ago, you can just call me you can use the band anytime. And on the side of it on one side is her branding for her real estate practice. On the other side is her loan officer that she works with. And the loan officer you know, pays to be on that side of the van it pays for the lease of the van. And so it pays for itself because she’s doing Something that you’re and you know, the loan officer is thrilled because his name’s getting shot all over town. And people are moving. And they’re seeing this. And I thought, you know, I’m sure she’s not the only person that’s ever done this, but boy, that’s a smart idea. I had never thought of that. And I thought, What a cool thing. And she goes, it’s great because in her in her local community, she says, everybody knows that they can just call me and borrow my van anytime whenever they need it. At any point, you know, any of my clients. And I was like, That is genius. Joel Schaub 20:29And that tells the story of somebody that’s willing to spend money. And so go back to your partners, right now, it doesn’t have to be a new partner, it can be one of your mortgage people that you’ve worked with for years, right now more than ever ask them to help you on something that you’re doing. Okay? This is the key, that person was willing to pay a lease, right? That person can do a lot of things that are RESPA compliant, they can never pay you just to give them deals. But there are so many ways that as long as it’s less than 50% of the total spend, you can go out and partner with a mortgage person and put their money where their mouth is, we just had an event, yeah, over New Years, where the total cost was $8,000. And we wrote a check for 4000 of it. And these agents are getting deals because they’re out there doing things. And that’s what I encourage everybody who’s listening to do think of one event that you can do, you don’t have to go from no events to an event per month, but do one a year or one a quarter, and partner with somebody that wants to help you with that on the mortgage. D.J. Paris 21:29It’s just all about relationships. And one of the best ways to deepen relationships is have social gatherings, whether it’s one on one, whether it’s a client appreciation event, whether it’s a drop by gift, whether it’s Hey, I’m thinking about you, you know, and if you if you’re really budget, you know, if your budget is very tight, you know, then there’s other ways you can you can do things but but this is the time to partner like Think creatively partner with a loan officer, who they can basically double your spend, essentially, if you find somebody who is going to be helpful, and Joel and his team would love the opportunity to do that with you as well. Also, one thing that Joelle and his team does that I think is exceptionally important, especially right now around all of the crisis that’s happening financially, at least at the time of this taping, again, hopefully, it’s resolved by the time this releases, but But Well, yeah, it probably won’t be Well, we hope so you’re right. We just hope that the adults are in the room at these at these big financial institutions making wise decisions to keep us all afloat. But one of the things that Joe that you do that I admire quite a bit, and it’s very helpful for me personally, as you send out a weekly email that your team puts together, and it highlights kind of here’s what you need to know about what’s going on in the lending world. And it also even talks a little bit about kind of the broader financial picture. And it’s bite sized stuff, it’s data points that agents, their questions that agents get all the time. And agents have to really kind of comb the internet for their own answers. And I like the fact that you send that directly to my inbox once a week in a bite sized way where I can read it. You know, when I can read it in 10 minutes, and really digested be like, Okay, now I’m, I’m more confident when I’m speaking to a customer. And so I’m just want to make sure that any of our listeners know you can also get on Joel’s email newsletter list. So you can receive these weekly updates as well. Joel, what’s what’s the best way they should do that? Joel Schaub 23:29Well, yeah, that newsletter came about it used to be private, I used to figure out the ways to make it digestible, right. So that we’re not having to explain every single thing to a client. And it became something like kind of a pop culture, people want to see this, they want to know, like, what is he talking about? And so they can email me and just say, add me to your newsletter. It’s just joel@rate.com. So J, o el@rat.com. And as simple as one sentence, add me to your newsletter, and then you’ll get weekly updates, and you’ll be able to speak about the mortgage side. And it’s not so it’s so cumbersome, right, we got to break it down in ways that give you fun talking points and just help you through it. So that’s one of the things that we love to do. And then helping clients get lower closing costs as the second one. So we can send you the email template where clients get a $1,500 closing cost credit if they’re working with us. Once that gets sent over with a newsletter, we’re happy to help buyers as well. So yeah, there’s a lot of good things coming up for the listeners, TJ. D.J. Paris 24:35Well, yeah, this is a great place to sort of wrap up for for this episode. And Joel as per usual, thank you. Great, great content, great information super helpful for our listeners. And for everyone out there. If you don’t have a good relationship with a loan officer Joel and his team would love the opportunity to chat with you reach out to him, you can email him also, whether you want to get on his email list or partner with him or maybe just And a client his way. Or maybe you’re a buyer or seller yourself and are interested in lending opportunities. Joel and his team are fantastic. So you can reach out to him joel@rate.com. And that’s via email. And then Joe, what’s the best way they could reach out by telephone? Joel Schaub 25:17After I did this, I had about 15 or 16 individual conversation, I talked to people all over the United States. And they were shocked to say, like, you’re actually going to spend time and I love it, because I like hearing about different markets and seeing what people are doing, and just sharing my feedback. So yes, 773-654-2049, you’ll either have any pickup personally, or you’ll get a return phone call from me. And it’s really great to see how just different markets were in what you’re doing. And we just share that information and help each other grow, D.J. Paris 25:49and guaranteed rates in all 50 states. So wherever you’re listening to this from a guaranteed rate can likely help you to fit in if they’re not able to assist, they’ll be able to tell you who to talk to as well. So anyway, Joel, thank you once again for coming on. You’ve been with us for years and years and years always brings great content. We love having you on excited to see you next month for another episode. And on behalf of the audience, we say thank you on behalf of Joel and myself to the audience. We also say thank you, please tell a friend about this show everyone listening, just think of one other agent that could benefit from hearing this information. Maybe they’re a little depressed or down right now about the conditions of the market. This might help cheer them up and give them some things to talk about with their clients. So share this with the people in your office or any other realtors that you know that’s the best way you can help us grow and also support our sponsors too. But yeah, reach out to Joel get on his mailing list guys. joel@rate.com asked to be on there. Trust me, it’s worth it. You know, give you the ammo you need when you’re talking with clients. Joel thanks so much. We will see everybody on the next episode. Thank you, DJ

Jesse Stein, founder and CEO of Audience.co and a digital marketer, discusses his experience in digital marketing. Jesse explains the importance of handwritten notes and why his software team build a robot that can write precisely like humans. Jesse also discusses how the card should be personalized to the specific client and how combining the old school method (handwriting notes) with modern methods like a you tube message could be very effective in building the relationships and adding value to the clients. If you’d prefer to watch this interview, click here to view on YouTube! Jesse Stein can be reached at (844) 625-1847. This episode is brought to you by Real Geeks. Transcript D.J. Paris 0:00How cool would it be if all of your digital marketing as well as your physical marketing could be done together and in sync? Wouldn’t that be great? Stay tuned. This episode of Keeping it real is brought to you by real geeks. How many homes are you going to sell this year? Do you have the right tools? Is your website turning soft leads and interested buyers? Are you spending money on leads that aren’t converting? Well real geeks is your solution. Find out why agents across the country choose real geeks as their technology partner. Real geeks was created by an agent for agents. They pride themselves on delivering a sales and marketing solutions so that you can easily generate more business. There agent websites are fast and built for lead conversion with a smooth search experience for your visitors. Real geeks also includes an easy to use agent CRM. So once a lead signs up on your website, you can track their interest and have great follow up conversations. Real geeks is loaded with a ton of marketing tools to nurture your leads and increase brand awareness visit real geeks.com forward slash keeping it real pod and find out why Realtors come to real geeks to generate more business again, visit real geeks.com forward slash keeping it real pod. And now on to our show. Hello, and welcome to another episode of Keeping it real the largest podcast made by real estate agents and for real estate agents. My name is DJ Paris. I am your guide and host through the show. And in just a moment we’re going to be speaking with marketing expert Jesse Stein. Before we get to Jesse, just a couple of quick reminders. As always, first, thank you. Thank you for listening to this episode. Thank you for supporting our podcast. Please check out our sponsors and also tell a friend about the show. Think of one other realtor that’s struggling right now especially with their marketing, send them a link over to our website so they can hear this episode. Keeping it real pod.com is where all of our episodes live. Of course they also are on every single podcast app there is out there so tell someone else in your office you’d be doing us a huge favor. So thank you and you know what, let’s just get right to it my conversation with Jesse Stein. Today on the show we have Jesse Stein from audience dot c o let me tell you more about Jesse. Jesse has an impressive background as a serial entrepreneur. He’s founded, grown and sold multiple online ventures throughout his career. His notable ventures include sports memorabilia.com, also a skincare brand and dietspotlight.com. In addition to his entrepreneurial success, Jesse is a domain name expert who founded and sold Soho digital for $32 million. He’s made angel investments in several companies such as integral ad science TMR, W distillery, data world sketchy blanket and whereby Jessie Ansari and whereby also Jessie holds an MBA from the Wharton School an MA in International Studies from the University of Pennsylvania’s Lotter Institute, and a BA with honors in sociology and Asian Studies from UC Santa Barbara, and Sofia University in Tokyo. Please vote for to learn all things, Jessie, check out his newest venture audience.co That’s audience.co And we’re going to be speaking about that today. Jessie, welcome to the show. Jesse Stein 3:50Thanks, TJ for having me. D.J. Paris 3:53It’s an amazing pedigree, your your background, your vitae as as they say I love reading back and I would really you know, this is a more unusual episode for us so traditionally we’re are normally we’re speaking just to real estate agents about how they became successful and very rarely do we talk to sort of experts out tangentially related to real estate but but not specifically out there producing but I’m really excited to chat with you because you’ve been a digital marketer for or Gosh 20 plus years and I am excited to learn some of your sort of success secrets and what you might suggest our audience part you know, start paying attention to in 2023 Jesse Stein 4:39Likewise, really excited to add value to you guys. You can get your your money back, but you can’t get your time back. So I really appreciate all the listeners here and I just want to add I just want to add value. D.J. Paris 4:51Great Yeah, well, let’s let’s start I would love to hear about the start of your digital marketing journey. Like how did you get into the digital marketing space? Jesse Stein 5:00I just graduated from Wharton in the late 90s. And Right Place Right Time, beginning of the commercial Internet, New York City, I was just married, started a company called Soho digital, which you had mentioned, and grew it into a $30 million interactive agency sold it in 2005. And they’re really learn how to build sales funnels by online media, and do SEO, and all that became the foundation really for my digital marketing career. And after that, I got into Domaining. After I sold that you’d mentioned that. So I bought hobbies.com biking.com boating.com yachting.com. All these like really category defining domain names. And the plan was to take these domain names and build them into full fledged businesses the way that you would buy beachfront real estate and build a condo tower. But the one that really took off was sports memorabilia.com. And Rob bought that as completely raw domain in 2005. And with a group of people eminently smarter and more talented than me, which is a common thread that runs through my career, we built it into the biggest autograph store on the internet top 500 internet retailer and we sold it to fanatics in 2013. And along the way, I built with business partners, a skincare company, two 50 million bucks sold in 2009. And that was all direct to consumer via internet, and then started dietspotlight.com, which became one of the biggest nutrition and diet websites on the internet. And at sports meme, we were sending handwritten notes to our customers. And we noticed that the customers that received the handwritten notes now I’m kind of segwaying into audience dot code. Yeah, the company that sends handwritten notes on behalf of realtors to help them drive more listings, and we combine the handwritten notes with digital marketing. So it’s really cool. We use the handwritten note as a Trojan horse. But at sports memorabilia.com, we’re sending notes. And we noticed that the clients that received notes spent way more money with us. So if someone had bought a mattress, yeah, they spent way more money spent way more money with us. But there was no scale to it. Because we were having warehouse workers and consultants and admin staff send the notes, the handwriting was often embarrassing. So like, there’s no scale to it, we were waiting for someone to do this. And so three years ago, hired a team of software engineers, and we built these robots and the software, and they hold pins, and they write precisely like humans, and we can go into that more DJ. But that’s kind of the genesis of my digital marketing career. D.J. Paris 7:57Well, that’s really fascinating. So I want to go back to the handwritten note, just sort of metric that you were you were mentioning that, you noticed that so somebody would buy something, they buy a piece of sports memorabilia, you’d write a Hey, thanks for being a customer, we really appreciate it, you know, someone would write it, maybe it would look nice, maybe it wouldn’t. But regardless, those people would then return and spend more money. Jesse Stein 8:19That’s exactly right, we noticed there’s a direct correlation between and we would run these AV tests where the control group would be the customers that didn’t receive notes. And then we take a look at the lifetime value of the customers that did. And it was just way beyond any kind of statistical probability. Those that received notes spent way more money were more loyal left, better reviews were happier clients, and so on and so forth. But again, there was no scale to it. And that was key. And then there was no combination with the note and digital marketing, which is absolutely critical, which I can talk about a little bit later on in the show, if you want. D.J. Paris 9:04Yeah, that’s, that’s fascinating. I think this idea of the return to pen and paper is, well, I don’t know that we’ve returned to pen and paper, I don’t know that we’ll ever return to pen and paper as a society. But there is something maybe even more magical these days about receiving a handwritten note. I can count on one hand, the number of handwritten notes I receive from anyone, you know, I outside of birthday cards and things, but just in a year, maybe I get three or four, maybe, maybe that’s even high. But every single time I do receive what I believe to be as a handwritten note, whether it’s, you know, helped with robots with pens, or if it’s somebody actually using their hand I read every single word, because I don’t know I guess we’re just hardwired to sort of appreciate that more. I’m not even sure exactly why that captures my Attention more than an email, but we all know just intrinsically that it does. And it’s also a lost art. It’s something that, you know, obviously, you know, all a lot of industries have moved very far away from. But there is something very, I would say connecting about handwritten notes. It feels like it feels intimate, and it feels special, and it makes the other person feel very. Yeah, very, very grateful. I’d say. So curious to get your thoughts on why handwritten notes why, why do you think that’s working? So well? Jesse Stein 10:36Yeah, just like anything when you zoom in the devils in the details, so it’s the way that we engineer the note. And then the key is the way that we combine it with AI, and digital marketing, which I’ll talk about in a second. And all the components are key, just like just like anything. So what we do with the note is, we print it, I’m just holding up, obviously, the people listening sure won’t be able to see this. But we printed on a thick stock card. We there’s, as it turns out, there’s an ideal character length. So you want your notes, whether you work with us, or whether you try it yourself. You want your handwritten notes, if you’re a realtor, to be right around 650 characters, this is enough character length, to be able to tell your story about for example, how you just listed 17 Chestnut Street in Toledo, Ohio. And you can even include a short market report there as well in the 650 characters, then what you want to do is you want to create a graphic on the front of the note that aligns with the neighborhood, so it’d be a local landmark. And then you want to apply a filter to the graphic to make it aesthetically pleasing, like a water color, or an impressionistic filter. And then you want your note card to be we’ve learned all this through trial and error, you want to know, a bifold. Note. So what it does is, so the card is bifold. And of course the envelope is handwritten, as well. But never use pre canceled stamps. So the temptation is to save a little bit of money by using the pre canceled stamp. As it turns out, people really notice that so use a real first class postage stamp cost is 62 cents handwrite, the envelope should be fixed doc. And then that will get that will get the note from the mailbox to the kitchen counter. Okay, and then it’ll optimize for open rate, which is great. So you have it open, but now they crack it open, they pull out the note. And it’s needs to be aesthetically. D.J. Paris 12:55So they open the note they see something a landmark that they recognize, and that a landmark that is likely to make them feel good about their community or wherever their geography, geographical location, they see something they recognize in a cool way with a cool filter on it that’s on the cover. And then they’re like, Oh, I know what that is. And then they and by the way, we’re really talking in this particular example about a cold mail, mailer. So somebody somebody receives, you know, a handwritten note on on heavy stock. We’re real stamp, not a not a stamp machine. They open it up, they see something they recognize, they still don’t really know what it is, they open it up. And okay, I just wanted to sort of catch our audience. Jesse Stein 13:39Absolutely. So and we can also talk to how to use these notes. Again, whether you work with us or whether you try it yourself, how you use notes for both geographic farming and to nurture your sphere. So there’s two different ways. For example, Tom Ferry, who’s seen every single real estate tool on Earth decided to invest in us and he’s a very happy client. So as Chris Heller, who you’ve interviewed, he’s a charmer of Keller Williams, you can ask all these people, you can go to our site, there’s dozens and dozens of testimonials from top agents, feel free to reach out to any of them. But they’ve opened the envelope, they take out the note, they read it, there should be no bait and switch element whatsoever to to the note or any of the marketing you do for that matter. And remember, in general, your marketing should be about adding value right about guiding more about educating more about helping more about serving more about mitigating and answering questions more than any other Realtor in your neighborhood. So that’s why our template library which is vast and we’ve sent millions and millions of notes so we know precisely the note templates that work depending upon the touch so you’ve just sold a house we know have touched number one needs to look like touch number three. And in general, the common thread that runs through everything we do is it’s all about adding value. It’s all about educating. It’s all about helping that homeowner make the right decision whether they go with you or not. So they’ve opened, they’ve taken the, the note out that notice the beautiful graphic, they’ve read it. And then what’s really important is to include a QR code sticker on there, and you you can’t print the QR code sticker, you need to actually have a real sticker. You can’t just print the QR code on there, because that looks mechanical. So D.J. Paris 15:35write that it’s sort of the whole thing sort of falls apart at that point. Yeah, you got it. Jesse Stein 15:40Yeah, yeah, yeah, that the illusion kind of falls apart. So make sure that the stamp on the front of the envelope is slightly off kilter. Make sure that QR code sticker is slightly off kilter. And what you want to do is you want to record a short, either YouTube video or a video that’s on your brokerage website. That is not personalized to the individual homeowner, because that’s way too much work, but personalize it to their neighborhood. Hey, greetings, Key Biscayne residents. Gradients keepers camp resident, thank you so much for scanning my note, I just wanted to include a little market report, let you know I’ve listed a few homes, in your area on your service, I produce quarterly market reports, remember, give, give, give, give, then get later. So it’s all it’s all about adding value. So you add the value, you have the QR codes ticker, then here’s the real power of the notes. And the real secret. twofold. Number one, you can now use the note as a Trojan horse to market to that homeowner in a variety of different ways. Okay, that’s why I named the company audience.co. I didn’t name it something old school with handwriting or addresses or something else, because I knew it’s all about taking a cold audience. And it’s about warming up that audience. So now, you can even go door knocking if that’s your thing. You can next time you see them at a networking event. And by the way, run this experiment, send 100 of our handwritten notes or do them yourself to 100 households go door knocking, you will be completely blown away at how receptive and warm and welcoming those homeowners are because you’ve generated the most important thing of all, which is reciprocity. You have sent them a beautiful, aesthetically pleasing note that guess what, you’ve optimized for the second secret, which is they’ve kept and displayed it. So the decision to sell one’s home is a really high consideration high dollar amount very, very, among the biggest decisions any consumer ever makes. So what are the chances that they’re actually going to be interested in listing their home on the day you send the note very, very 00. So as it turns out, handwritten notes, and I’ve been a marketer now for almost 25 years. This is the one medium that defies the time space continuum. And let me let me explain that because it sounds a little bit esoteric. there as long as you make it aesthetically pleasing and engineer it in the way I’ve talked about with a fixed doc note the bifold. Note, the note will end up on their kitchen counter will end up on their home office desk will end up even on the refrigerator and a magnet even on their mantel. And they will remember you and their their will have a warm feeling. And they will feel this sense of reciprocity. And so when they are interested in selling their home, you are absolutely going to be top of mind, I don’t care if you’re new to the farm. If someone else has been farming that neighborhood for generations, the fact that you took the time to send these beautiful handwritten notes with a real first class postage stamp will resonate, then use them as a Trojan horse. So what you want to do now and what our platform does is we find first of all, our lead filtering database makes it so we only send notes to the most likely to sell households. So we have map functionality where you can freehand draw, and you can literally take a scalpel out and get super surgical with their leads. So if you listed a home at 17, Chestnut Street, you can then hit surrounding households with our notes, but only the households that are most likely to sell. So we have 200 plus filters. So you can filter by owner age, equity level, how long ago the CLO was issued, and so on and so forth. Then what we do is we find all the email addresses of all this is where my digital marketing background comes in. We find all the email addresses of all the primary and secondary owners, we find all their LinkedIn profiles and we find all their other social handles. And then we have an app that you go to and you automatically follow up. So it’s using the node as a Trojan horse over later from our system, the homeowner gets an email with a subject line that says, Did you receive my handwritten note? And this will, this will double or triple response? Right? So response is typically, all in after all of our follow up between three and 5%, which is 10 to 12 times a responsive normal to right. Yeah, yeah, D.J. Paris 20:21exceptional. That’s exceptional. So so let’s go through the I want to go through the workflow again, because this is, is you’re kind of blowing my mind with all this. So okay, so I just sold a home in a neighborhood, I am going to now farm the rest of that neighborhood, I want everybody to know that I just sold this home, I’m going to send them each a handwritten note through your company, we’re going to slice up the neighborhood, there’s going to have an aesthetically pleasing picture on the front so that they’re going to want to display the car just like they would a birthday card, on their mantel or on their thing, because it’s something that relates to their community. It’s also cool looking. And on the inside, it’s going to have a note with some sort of value add in there and introduction and a QR code sticker, which would then link them to a video, maybe you using Bom or loom or YouTube or whatever your record some sort of video specific to that neighborhood, like, Hey, guys, I am so and so I just sold blah, blah, blah, blah. And I would love the opportunity to work with you, here’s some information about your McPhee i or i can give you a market update or whatever, you come up with some sort of message in the video. And then and then your system is going to go in and also identify those homeowners, we’re going to we’re going to look we’re going to solve for social media accounts, we’re going to pair them with any information that you can find. And then you have an app that will allow you to then start to follow those people. And you can start to then, you know, reach them in other mediums, such as on the digital side is that where so it kind of goes. So you’re saying the Trojan horse is the the the physical, you know card that they’re that your team is doing. But you guys aren’t just the card company, you’re like, Oh, we’re gonna go way, way beyond that. Because now we’re going to, we’re going to go from physical to digital, Jesse Stein 22:13you got it. And we were even inside of your app, you’ll even find optimized LinkedIn content that you can post directly onto your LinkedIn account or on Quora, or other channels. Sure, that positions you as the authority. And that’s all included in the platform. So it really is a holistic marketing platform. And then on the back end, I didn’t want to get into the weeds too much. But this is super cool. So what happens is, that follow up email sequence that I talked about, after you send the handwritten note. It’s a very deliberate and intentional sequence. It’s been totally optimized. And the first rips the first one yet drips. And the first one is very simple. The first email comes a week after our notes are sent. Did we get the note kind of did you get the note and it says, I fear I may have sent it to the wrong address I sent. I sent it here. And and it lists the person’s address that gets an eight to 12% response rate, which for anyone sending cold email? No, usually, it’s amazing. It people lose their minds when they use the platform because it’s all been optimized. So now, the second touch is even cooler. So what we do is we use I’ve been using we collectively as a company have been using chat GPT for two years now. So we’ve really gotten a chance we’ve created 10s of 1000s of articles with it. So we really know how to use it. What we do is we take your bio, as a realtor, we combine that with information about the homeowners home, everything from number of bedrooms to do they have a swimming pool, you name it. Okay with that month’s market report for Toledo, Ohio, or whatever neighborhood or what we what we do is we combine all three, and it creates a letter that says, hey, I sent you an email a week ago, and just wanted to let you know that I really did my research. And this is why I would love to have a conversation with you to at least get you a sense of what your home is valued at. And then it says your home is this your home is that by the way, I always love to add value. Here’s what’s happening in Toledo real estate market listings have been down 21% Baba, bah bah, bah, bah, it’s very organic, feels very casual. And it blows people’s minds. And that gets a really high response rate, too. So that’s all part of the audience platform. D.J. Paris 24:46And I guess maybe the best part about all of this is it’s to some degree automated, right? Like there’s manual review of course of of everything before it goes out so that you know to make sure that it’s it you know, it’s in alignment with the brand handing and all that. But the idea that it really takes a lot of that leg well takes all almost all of the legwork off of the agent’s plate. And you were saying at the beginning, you know, the one thing you can’t get back is time, right? So this idea of this actually is, I mean, I can’t even imagine how much time this would be. It’s just incredible. It just for our audience, the and Jesse, you’ll know this, Ben, I, I believe the the average return rate on a on a physical mailer is like if you get 1%, you’re a genius, like, so you’re, we’re now talking about, you know, 10 times that possibly, depending on on how you do it. But it’s all sequential, right? It’s, these are not one offs, one offs, we find, you know, have a very limited return. So we’re talking about as a sequence, so we’re really just initiating sequence. So your your team does all of this. Jesse Stein 25:56Our team does all of it, we even say automatically detect when you list or sell a home. And we trigger an email to you. And we’ve already set up your campaign. And what we do automatically, programmatically, is we take the home that you just listed, and or sold. And then we take the cover image that you featured on Zillow, or realtor.com. And if the home is not aesthetically pleasing, which some are not necessarily, or if it’s the front of an apartment, or whatever, we apply a water color filter to it, or an impressionistic filter to make makes it look cool. Yeah, look cool. And then we give you some of our best performing just listed just sold templates, you literally click on the link in the email, it takes you directly to the map, where we’ve already pre selected the most likely to sell households around the house you just listed or sold, which you can you can edit and change to your heart’s content. And then within 30 seconds, you can trigger a mailer to 100 200 households. So what clients consistently tell us and they’ve used every solution in the book is just the easiest, fastest, cheapest way to drive listings. And then to form deeper relationships with my sphere. And that’s what everyone wants the one caveat mTOR is, it’s not for agents that want instant gratification, right? takes time, you have to be persistent, you have to be consistent. If you got a listing on our first mailer, or second mailer, it was probably just luck or the right place at the right time. This is for agents that want to sell dramatically more homes over the coming years. And this is not by the way, this is not for folks that are just dabbling in real estate. We’re just a hobby, this is really the audience platform is for agents that are super ambitious and want to make this a career and want to form real deep relationships with the folks in their in their farming sphere. D.J. Paris 28:05And so do the agents have direct edit editorial control over over the content, so they can put their final approval and touches on it in case, you know, there’s certain things that your team wouldn’t know to put in Jesse Stein 28:19100%. So you can go right into the app and do that there’s like a million ways to contact us, you can go to audience health.com. And there’s someone right there on a live zoom. And then we have a large, very talented Customer Success group. So we can work with you one on one to make sure your campaign is perfect before it goes out. D.J. Paris 28:39By the way, I want to just completely stop what we’re talking about just to share one thing about Jessie that was very impressive to me, which I want to give you a compliment because I can count. Also, on one hand a number of times this particular strategy has has even come across my desk in the last bit since I started this podcast, which was about six years ago. So for all of our listeners, one of the neat things about having a podcast that people listened to, is publicists find out about it, and you just start getting blanketed with every guest requests you can imagine, which is very fun and cool and neat. It means you don’t have to go out looking for guests, which is very helpful. But it’s also challenging because you get lots of guest requests you have to filter through there, almost 99.9% of them are email based. Jessie did something very unusual. And I think this is a really great lesson that you can take. It’s into your real estate practice. And he did something very, very cool. He was down in his in one of his factories where his robots were in the process of writing cards, you know, and I’ve seen this before, this isn’t this particular technology isn’t actually new robots writing handwritten cards is not really all that unique. How Whoever. So he was down in his, in his, in his workshop with all these different machines going around, he was like, Hey, man, I want to be on your podcast, here’s all the things I can talk about. And he literally didn’t say like, Look at how cool our robots are, he was like, here’s what I can do for your podcast, here’s what I can give to your listeners. So he employed the same exact strategy, that, that he’s actually suggesting, you might want to use in this case, you know, with a QR code on the inside of the, of the mailer that you send, that goes to a video, Jesse sent me a video. And it literally was, here’s what I can do for you, meaning here’s what how I can help your show. And usually, that’s not the way pitches come across. And immediately, as soon as I saw it, I just said, book it, immediately book it, and when we reject most of the requests we get, but because it felt like he was doing something special for me when she was he was making a video just for me, and it had my name in it and all of that. And I went, gosh, you know, realtors should be doing more of these kinds of video messaging. It’s something that I, you know, if you’re going to text somebody, turn the phone around, make a little video message. If I mean, if it’s just a text in which a one line texting, you don’t have to. But if you really want to say something to somebody, turn the phone around, send it as a you know, as a text, or as a video message. Boy, that really got me and I just wanted to congratulate you for that that really caught my attention. And and the other thing too, is you’re not just writing cards, you have this entire platform. Most companies that do this, just do the handwritten cards. And that’s it. You guys are like no, no, that’s just the beginning, we actually are using that as the, as you say, the Trojan horse to get in to sneak in under under the under the door. And then we’re going to now we have everything and we’re going to be marketing you for up to you know, indefinitely. Jesse Stein 31:54Oh, I appreciate that. DJ, that means means a lot to me. And yeah, so I would encourage anyone listening to just make sure that you like the best way to add value is to think about what are what do I do uniquely? What do I know? Do I know pre construction projects better than anybody else? Do I have, you know, a relationship with the head of admissions at a private school? In my in my area? You know, how is it that I can create content and give give, give, give and then get and then I think the mistake that I’ve noticed a lot of people make is when they do talk about what they know. They often comes off as preachy. It often comes off as you should, instead of I did. And so your outro is he talks about this a lot of Gary Vee and others. And it’s so important. It’s so easy to miss. But the moment you say you should everybody tunes out, right? So the difference like Alex or mosey likes to talk about is you know, you should have oatmeal for breakfast, versus I had oatmeal for D.J. Paris 33:15lunch, once a judgement and the others statement Jesse Stein 33:181,000% And I know it’s it sounds obvious, but no, it’s it’s a it’s a good one, you’ll immediately differentiate yourself from everyone else I can tell you, among the top real estate agents in all of Miami, his name is David Siddons. He sold $600 million in real estate last year. Very, very talented guy. And he is all about adding value. And so he’s constantly interviewing, you know, the important influencers in the neighborhood, the heads of admissions for schools, he’s creating content on his blog. And I really encourage everybody listening to not build their businesses on rented land. And what I mean by that, and I’m getting far afield from from handwritten notes, but I told you I just wanted to add value is that even if you’re with an amazing brokerage at Keller, Williams, exp, Douglas, Elliman, whoever it is make sure that you build your own website, and you build an amazing content and by the way, the brokerages will love this and you’re driving leads to that website building SEO, building expertise, authority and trust. Because who knows if you’re going to be at that same brokerage 10 years from now and right. The important thing is to not build your business on rented land. And by the way, the brokerages love this because you know that you’ll take so much ownership over your own website, and you’ll build that out and you’ll only benefit that brokerage. So all the content that you build, think about at least the way that we do it is think about how can I add value how can I give give, give and make sure you don’t build that content? On rented land, ie on somebody else’s platform. D.J. Paris 35:05That’s a good point because Realtors move, they move firms, even if you’re, if you’re listening now thinking I am never leaving my firm, just assume that someday something happens and you have to leave your firm. So whether you want to or not, when you have your own assets, and you’re not reliant upon the company’s tools and technologies, then you know, a lot of times those go away when you when you move, sometimes you can port them over to the new firm, oftentimes you can’t you want to build your own assets. And that also becomes almost I think, could be a way to leverage a higher commission split to if you’re like, hey, I don’t need your stuff. I’ve got my own. I, you know, that could become a point of negotiation when you’re looking at other brokerages. I wanted to ask you, though, about back to audience.co, which again, I’m just completely my mind is spinning with all of these, all of the services you guys offer. Let’s talk ROI. Because everybody wants to know, what’s the ROI now, obviously, this, you know, what, what are you usually seeing from your successful realtor clients? Jesse Stein 36:07Yeah, on average. So we’ve done a retroactive analysis over the last two and a half years, across 1000s of agents. So 18 months, after 18 months, it’s about 16.2x. So what we do is we look at what we look at our actual sales, but not only actual sales, because we’re not the rooster taking credit for the sunrise. And so the easy thing to do would be to be the company that says, oh, yeah, we sent a note to that homeowner, and that homeowner listed and sold with you, therefore we take 100% credit for that sale. No, that would be the rooster taking credit for the sunrise. And so what we do is we go back to the realtor and say, Hey, where are we responsible? It’s kind of like in digital marketing, first touch, last touch, like how do you do attribution modeling on this marketing channel. So you have to be honest, you can’t sand off the truth and put varnish on it. So that’s why we go to our realtor clients. And we D.J. Paris 37:09just the manual part really like did this? Was this because of us? Yeah. Jesse Stein 37:13Many times, it’s, you know, it’s never one thing. Right? It would be arrogant of me to say that we you know, the handwritten note was the reason why they listed their $5 million home, whatever value home? No, it’s a combination of things. And that’s why we offer in our platform, this integration, this digital handshake, you have to follow the user journey from the mailbox to the inbox, so to speak, you have to follow them from the note to where they are, which is digital. And so that’s that’s what we do. And so we ask a realtor clients estimate, but to what extent did we assist in the sale and sometimes it’s 10%. Sometimes it’s 50%. Sometimes it’s 80%. But we take that percentage, and we multiply it across everybody, and we use the we throw out the high and the low and we use statistical analysis. And then we come up with the number which is after 18 months of working with audience 16.2 And you spend $1 with us, you’re gonna get 16 $16.20 back. And But the caveat is, you have to do the follow up the right word. The fortune is in the follow up. Not work with us. If you don’t use the whole, it’s not a set and forget. Nope, nope, nothing is and any market or any channel that says that you’re going to you’re going to you know, lose lose fat while you sleep or, or gain muscle mass while you sleep runaway. You’re a huckster, we’re not. We’re a very powerful integrated marketing platform. But you do you do have to follow up like anything. D.J. Paris 38:55Boy, you’re in I think, I think the industry is needed a service like this. And it sounds like I’m doing a commercial for you. And I’m not, although if you ever do need someone to do a commercial, I’m teasing. But, but But seriously, I have been in this industry for 13 years, and I’ve yet to see this exact process from from sort of a to z and it also incorporating AI, which, which, of course is big in the news right now. I think so many of our realtors have probably been on chat GBT and GPT and tried tried a few things and then gone okay, I don’t totally know what to do with this yet. I like that you guys have been working with it for years and have actually sort of extracted out some of the best sort of best practices for your particular sequences. And this idea of because like, I know for me when I when I use chat, GBT oftentimes it’s it’s good for like, certain things. It’s not it’s only gonna get smarter though. It’s only gonna get more sophisticated. But you know, right now if I’m like, oh, you know if I Well anyway, I’ve done I’ve done lots of different acts. specimens with it, I find it very interesting. But I use it in a pretty dumb way. I don’t really know how to elegantly extract good data out of there. You guys have been doing this for years. So you do know how to do that. So like if I say, hey, write me a persuasive recruiting email for this realtor that I want to recruit to our firm. It doesn’t come back with anything too impressive, because I’m not really giving it a very, super specific question. I’m just sort of going, hey, just kind of search around online, find something that that you think might make sense, and it comes back, but it helps maybe with creativity helps some starting points. But it isn’t really a set and forget product right now. It’s just kind of like, maybe gives me a few ideas. But what you guys have done is actually done, you’ve done all the heavy lifting to determine this works. This doesn’t work. Here are the metrics. You’re all you know, objectively based. So you’re looking across the board at the numbers. And I mean, gosh, if I could get a 16 times return on every dollar I spend on anything, I would be a pretty happy person. So this isn’t a inexpensive platform, however, of course, but it shouldn’t be and of course, it wouldn’t be for 16 times return. And of course it’s not going to be inexpensive but that’s why this you know, I can’t even imagine the amount of time and energy and money you guys invested into this entire system. If anyone wants to learn more audience.co is the place to go. Jessie, what else should agents Okay, let’s let’s let’s wipe the slate clean for a second I want to talk specifically about Instagram and Facebook only because I think Realtors tend to live on Instagram and Facebook and with their social media lives. Tik Tok is becoming more prevalent for realtors, but I still think most agents are are hanging out on Instagram. And maybe then Facebook, you know, I don’t know which probably Instagrams doing a little bit more traffic than than Facebook for realtors these days, but I don’t know what our agents doing wrong. And what would you recommend that maybe they could make a slight shift or major shift that would they get better results from? Jesse Stein 42:14Yeah, so tours, vertical video. This is the first time in the history of the commercial Internet, in the history of social media, that where you can take one format, and distributed out natively to all the platforms. So Instagram is now native vertical video. So that is holding your phone up like a phone’s not landscape. So holding your phone up and shooting a video, a video walking around the neighborhood a video of a listing a video of a new construction, you name it, right? That’s vertical video, as produced or unproduced as you want to make it you can then distribute that out to Instagram natively, Twitter, natively Facebook, and of course, the most important up and comer tick tock and so people just think oh isn’t tick tock for selling hoodies to 14 year olds. Not at all. It’s so beyond that. And there’s hundreds of really forward looking realtors who are silently crushing it on Tik Tok, because it’s underpriced attention because there’s very few people there. So what I always look for are the opportunities where there aren’t many people there and you’ve got two to three year runway now on tick tock, and the beauty is you can use social media management software tool like a Hootsuite H O T shirt, right, and you can use that tool, shoot your vertical video, and then you can blast it out. And guess what? I bet some of you are thinking, Well, YouTube isn’t that landscape, no YouTube shorts, which you may have noticed, if you’re a YouTube consumer, YouTube shorts, which are minute or less, that’s all native, vertical. So the world is going native vertical video. And it’s really, really important to get on that bandwagon. And the last thing I’ll say, is 800 to 1000 word articles on LinkedIn, car, rush it and you can now on LinkedIn. Okay, on LinkedIn. So algorithmically. LinkedIn has never been about video and I can talk to you about why because of all of its back in training and how they actually make their their money 800 to 1000 word articles about your neighborhoods, market reports and so forth. Try to send you a maximum of four hashtags on LinkedIn and you want to post these articles and then the key is you want to Connect with as many people as you can like when you subscribe to audience, we get you all the LinkedIn profiles of homeowners in your farm. So you’ve got those. And then what you can do is you can use an automated tool like an octopus CRM, which is a Chrome extension to automatically connect to everyone on LinkedIn. And then when you post your content, they all see it. So those two things vertical video and 800 1000 word articles on LinkedIn. D.J. Paris 45:27I love it, I’m going to I, you know, it’s funny, I’m going to reach out Jesse to you because I want to explore doing vertical video for recruiting purposes for our brokerage. So I want to talk about how to do that in LinkedIn offline. So I am excited. This is one of the most exciting conversations I’ve had over the years, I’m really, really thrilled I really want everyone to think about there, we know that realtors are dealing with lots of reactive stuff. So all day long, you’re getting emails, texts, phone calls, you’re getting just lots of messages or things you have to deal with in the moment to secure a deal to deal with a current client. You know, and, and all of that just is going to interrupt your day and take your time. We know this just happens happens to me, I don’t even practice real estate, personally, even though I have a license. And but we have 800 agents here. So I’m getting their their challenges all day long as well. So I know the challenges that Realtors face, one of the hardest things to do is to consistently eke out these marketing strategies and to be able to consistently get them running day in day out, because let’s face it, you just got a lot of things to do. turning this over to a company where you can just kind of oversee and make your final edits, I think makes all the sense in the world. This again, this is what top agents are using. So audience.co is the place to go to learn about how this works, again, about a 16 times return on your investment after 18 months. Yeah, that’s that’s a that’s, that’s beating what I’m getting in the stock market by about a million miles. So this is this is again, it’s not we’re not talking, what we’re really talking about is growing your brand. And by doing by utilizing tools like this, this will allow you to have more time to do what you do best, which I think is the more one to one, intimate relationships, you know, the vulnerable, intimate sort of connections that you want to have with your clients. This allows you to do more of what you do best. Speaking with clients hanging out with them, meeting their needs, allow Jesse and his team to do all the other back end stuff so that you guys can you can do what you do best. So I’m a huge fan. Go to audience.co. Jesse, is there anything else our audience should know about about audience? Jesse Stein 47:49Yeah, well, I just wanted to recognize you and what you do as a perfect representation of the way that we like to guide our clients in terms of just add value add value add value. And the reason why one of the many reasons why kale is so successful is because of what you do DJ and so you’re you are adding value guiding more helping more educating more solving problems more by just having experts on here myself nodding, I’m not positioning myself as an expert. Oh, no, you’re an expert. I think all realtors you have on here and others. And so you really walk your talk. And it’s the reason why Cale crushes it and is able to offer the kinds of amazing Commission’s versus its competition that it does. And I just wanted to commend you for that. D.J. Paris 48:46Thanks, and really grateful to all of our listeners as well for continuing to support this podcast. Please, as you are, as we’re getting close to the end here, please remember to tell a friend just think of one other realtor that is struggling with their marketing right now. And but guess what, in 2023, all realtors are struggling in some way. This is a tough year. Let’s be honest about it. And let’s face it head on. And let’s think about this is the time to actually step on the gas and do more, a lot of agents are going to peel back because they’re going to have to this is the year that you want to step on the gas and push forward and gain market share. So audience dot SEO is the place to do that. Guys check it out. It’s really cool. I don’t have to pitch any more for Jesse because he he did an perfect job himself, but I want to become a customer. And so I’m going to look into this for my own efforts around recruiting. So I’m going to be using the same strategies you will likely be using if you check out audience.co. So check out audience.co Jesse and his team are amazing. They’re legit. He’s got the track record to back it up and all the metrics and data. So Jesse, thank you so much for being on our show. You’ve just been an amazing hour. Really appreciate you And yeah, and for everyone else again, tell a friend, leave us a review to let us know what you think of the show. It really helps us know how to continue to improve to meet your needs. So, Jesse, thank you so much on behalf of the audience and on behalf of Jesse and myself, I want to thank everyone for listening. We will see you next time. Thanks, Jesse. Jesse Stein 50:19Thanks, TJ.

Amy Stockberger talks about her journey as real estate agent, and why she decided to work with her father rather than starting a business on her own. Amy discusses the importance of relationships with the clients and how she started a VIP Club. Next, Amy describes how the agents can use branding themselves through monetizing it and how she created a lifetime support model saving stress and money. Last, she emphasized that building trust between clients and realtor is most important thing. If you’d prefer to watch this interview, click here to view on YouTube! Amy Stockberger can be reached at 605-731-9597 and Amy@AmyStockberger.com This episode is brought to you by Real Geeks. Transcript D.J. Paris 0:00What is a VIP club? And why should you absolutely start one for your real estate clients today? Stay tuned. This episode of Keeping it real is brought to you by real geeks. How many homes are you going to sell this year? Do you have the right tools? Is your website turning soft leads and interested buyers? Are you spending money on leads that aren’t converting? Well real geeks is your solution. Find out why agents across the country choose real geeks as their technology partner. Real geeks was created by an agent for agents. They pride themselves on delivering a sales and marketing solution so that you can easily generate more business. There agent websites are fast and built for lead conversion with a smooth search experience for your visitors. Real geeks also includes an easy to use agent CRM. So once a lead signs up on your website, you can track their interest and have great follow up conversations. Real geeks is loaded with a ton of marketing tools to nurture your leads and increase brand awareness visit real geeks.com forward slash keeping it real pod and find out why Realtors come to real geeks to generate more business again, visit real geeks.com forward slash keeping it real pod and now on to our show. Hello, and welcome to another episode of Keeping it real the largest podcast made by real estate agents and for real estate agents. My name is DJ Paris I am your guide and host through the show. In just a moment we’re going to be speaking with the top producing team in South Dakota, Amy stock burger. But before we get to Amy just a couple of quick reminders please tell a friend about our show. The best way you can help us grow is by telling another realtor about what we do here, send them over to our website keeping it real pod.com Every episode we’ve ever done can be streamed right from a browser or if they’re already into podcast, just have them search for keeping it real and hit that subscribe button. And also if you want to do us an extra favor leave us a review on whichever podcast app you might be listening to my voice right now on it helps us and it also not only does it help us reach more people but it also helps us know what you like about the show and also what we should change and improve because really guys we do this for you and we want your feedback so let us know what you think of the show unless of course you’re only gonna give us one star then you know you can skip skip the review the review all that’s not a word the review. Anyway, leave us a review tell a friend thanks again. We love you. We’re so grateful to be here five or six years in we’re gonna keep making more episodes and now on to my conversation with the great Amy stock burger okay today on the show we have Amy stock burger with Amy stock burger real estate in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Let me tell you more about Amy. Now Amy and her husband are broker owners of Amy stock burger real estate and also run a team reg brokerage model which I’m excited to learn more about. Now. They have been the highest producing team in the state of South Dakota since 2017 and ranked 23rd in the nation by real trends. They served 559 clients for 171 million in volume back in 2021. That was with 15 agents. Last year they did for a work of 486 clients 160 6 million in volume. Now AMI created a unique and all inclusive lifetime home support system that turns their clients into referral machines resulting in over 70% of their business source from relationship referrals. Amy has also successfully monetized each pillar of her lifetime home support model, which has added a lucrative revenue stream while gaining clients and Agent loyalty like no other. To learn more, please visit Amy’s website, which is Amy stockbroker.com, which is m y sto CK BERG er.com. And by the way, we have a link to that in the show notes. Amy, welcome to the show. Amy Stockberger 4:27Thanks for having me, DJ. I’m glad to be here. D.J. Paris 4:29We got started a little late because Amy is down in Florida right now. And I was very, very jealous because I will be actually just a couple of hours from where she is starting in a couple of days. So I got very excited and we talked a lot about the winter months and how nice it is to get away for a moment or two. But Amy, I’m excited to to speak with you and you are you and your husband’s team and all of your agents you guys are just obviously you’re crushing it. So I’m always fascinated by A people who are who are doing really well and our audience loves to hear how you do that and how you started. And I’d love to go all the way back to the beginning of your career in real estate and first learn why real estate you know, how did you get involved? Why, and what was it like when you first started. Got it. Amy Stockberger 5:18So I got into real estate straight out of college, my dad had owned a Coldwell Banker brokerage at the time and did a really excellent thing for me, he got me a job. But at that time, I made $24,000 a year. And I’m the oldest Hi Dee, hi, I and he put me in the back office and said, Hey, sink or swim, see what you can do any any did the best thing for me taught me everything from the back end, the support team part of it and just knowing that the administrative part of running a brokerage, and then I fell in love with the industry, I got licensed, and I’ve done about every single position you can do within the real estate industry. So I started out support, I then we got licensed, and I became a buyer’s agent, which at that time was very, very, very new. There wasn’t a lot of teams at that point. And then I became a single agent went out on my own, and then quickly started my own team with my sister and a part time assistant. And then my husband joined my business back in 2009. And that’s when we really started to scale and take a hobby that paid me and made it into a lucrative career. And then we were team a team for a long time. And then we started our brokerage in 2019, and still run it as a team or as a broker. Yeah, as a team. In our brokerage we call the team rich, meaning that we still give all of that support that we really feel agents need to make them very, very successful in in their craft. And my vision is to create big juicy legacies for everybody within my ecosystem by using my lifetime Home Support Foundation. D.J. Paris 6:52So there’s a lot to unpack there, thank you for that information. I am, I was one thing that really struck me and again, really speaks to how well you run your brokerage and your team is that you really started this in 2019, which, again, you was not at not a champion had an easy year to do much of anything in real estate, right. So the fact that you you know, during the pandemic, were able to put these sorts of processes in place and start the foundation of this team, which again, I know you’ve been working in real estate long time before then. But this idea of doing this in the middle of the pandemic, boy, that’s what a bold and courageous move. Well, Amy Stockberger 7:30we started the brokerage in 2019, we started our real growth pattern really started in 2009. And we started our lifetime home support, you know, our our model of lifetime home support, we started that really in 2015, that’s when I really figured out that the way I was doing things i i loved taking care of the client, I loved the experience that the clients were getting. And I wanted to make sure that we were providing the highest level of service to keep us top of mind for them to have them review it refer us as much as possible and repeat business. And so that was the the really the game changer for us is when we put that into our business because then we’re we had a process a system a strategy to help the client before, during and after the home buying and selling process. And there’s so much to be said about how that before and after relationship part is could be even more important than that during the transaction, relationship heart. D.J. Paris 8:26Yeah, I’ve always thought that that was probably the maybe the thing I’ve tried to focus on in the show and talking to guests is I’m not? Well, initially, when I first started the show, I was mostly interested in how they treated their clients during a transaction. Because of course, top 1% producers are clearly you know, providing a level of service and support that maybe other agents aren’t. So my initially that was my my my main interest when I started the show. And then I realized pretty quickly early on that top producers all had very, very impressive strategies for while working with a client. But then I sort of got bored listening to it because it was a lot of the same stuff. And then I thought, well, I’m actually more interested in what happens in between sales. Because that’s, I think, where a lot of missed opportunities happen, obviously, you know, agents oftentimes just forget, because they’re busy. They’re in the middle of a million other things. And it’s like, oh, so and so bought a home three years ago. Yeah, I should probably reach out but having an actual strategy so that you’re staying in touch and providing value is amazing. But I wanted to actually go back to something you said because I always, every year I say I’m going to remember to ask guests more about this. And I never do. And I’m so glad because I would have forgotten today. But you you actually just jogged my memory. You were saying that you weren’t necessarily super happy with the way you were running things until was it around 2015 When you started really working on your process? So I’m curious is what were you doing back then that you that just to identify a problem or an issue that you were having? What were some of the issues you were having that you caught was due to want to create a solution for? Well, I Amy Stockberger 10:02was looking at the lifetime value of a client, you know, what is your lifetime value of your client, the value of them throughout your entire career, and it was putting the numbers to that, that, you know, when in a career, typically a lifetime value of a client, the times they’re going to transact is that, you know, in our market 100 to $175,000. And then what does that look like then for the lifetime value of the referrals that they’re giving us if if say, 10 to 15% of your your sphere is going to transact within 12 months. What’s that mean? When you you keep, you know, multiplying that success on making sure that your clients are becoming your referral partners. And so what I did in 2015, or before, what made me actually start, the lifetime home support model that I created, is I was running crazy open houses I was spending is immediate, felt like I had all this money going out on lead generation that the ROI wasn’t there. And I just knew that there had to be a better way to take care of my clients so that their experience was top notch. And then I also wanted to make sure that I again, had them there for being my referral partners. And then I wanted to monetize it, I that’s a big part of it. I’m a Systems person, like I said, Hi, di, there’s a system and strategy for every part of our business. And having that in place, I decided to put my my VIP club in. And so what my VIP club is, and I have a lot of different pillars within our business of our lifetime home support. But the one we’re going to visit with you about today was that VIP club where our clients get access to all of our pillars or a VIP club before, during, and after. So lifetime access for free. And so one of the first things I did is I put a moving truck in place, 15 foot moving truck in place. Put that there for my clients to serve them before, during and after for life. They get to use it for free. But But I monetized it right away. So I went back and did you monetize it? So I figured out what my debt service was for it. And I went and sold ad space on the back of it and made money off of my truck. So D.J. Paris 11:58I So did you purchase the truck? Or did you lease the truck? And then put like, how did you do that? Amy Stockberger 12:03Yeah, I purchased it, but you can lease. So yeah, I have created a whole system for other agents to take what took me how many years to perfect and I always say I have a PhD and failing forward, I’ve made all the mistakes. So what I’ve done is created a VIP course start your VIP course.com. And it it basically it’s a copy and paste formula to implement and monetize your VIP club. So agents can go out and take everything the ultimate all the material I have, I have a seven modules I have it broken down into the blueprint for your 32nd elevator speech about your VIP club, I have it broken down on how to monetize each pillar. So I have a moving truck, I have a party supply of a tool shed, I have a discount Market Center, I have a client events section, I have an agent recruitment section. And then I show them how to monetize each side of that with every system they need within it. Like there’s one whole module of just operations, because there’s so much that happens with all the departments within your company. And if you don’t have your systems, you’re not going to scale you need that those two are sisters, you need systems to scale. That’s just how it works. And so I have a whole module that’s just telling you here’s a checklist you need for every part of your business to implement and monetize this VIP program because at the end of the day, your clients are going to remember that experience and this experience that we’re providing which I’ll go deeper into on the next part of it here is that they’re going to remember it no matter what if you’re there and you have the systems in place to keep top of mind you know Gary Keller said it and Millionaire Real Estate that humans have two places in their brain for realtors, and it’s our jobs to knock the other one out and so that we’re staying top of mind so they’re their repeat business and referral business and so the trucks was the first thing monetize those I have two gonna have three here and 23 so monetize those guys. And then I added my party and tool shed almost almost immediately. And so what that is a a party tool equipment that they can use. So like think of banquet tables and chairs, commercial grade food warmers, cotton candy, snow cone, popcorn, machines, platters, anything you could think of for a party bouncy houses, all those things so clients can come back and use those for free for life. But a big part of this is that I put my brand on everything. So again with my truck, my clients get to use my trucks. My trucks are a marketing vehicle for me they get out 600 some, you know, impressions per mile. I bet they’re out there. So and then I monetize the back of them so people that so I make money off of my trucks and then now it’s my party party equipment. So everything that you know people for graduations, parties, people, my clients come back and use these for life. They throw parties, my name is everywhere. My brand is everywhere. So again, it’s more brand awareness right there in there. And I’m able to then you know, obviously my clients are referring us because they’re getting such value from us. And then there’s so many stages of homeownership. So we created our tool shed or tool shed has everything you can think of Um, that a client would need for every season of homeownership so from ladders, wheelbarrows, commercial grade, paint sprayers, carpet cleaners, you know, the big fans, all those things D.J. Paris 15:10they can. So basically you guys have all this equipment, your clients are able to contact you at any time say, hey, I need to borrow a power washer for my deck, or I need I have a children’s party coming up, I need a need to Can I use the bouncy house and then your truck is is there on at the event I’m assuming or nearby the event where people can see it. Your name is everywhere. You’ve monetized the truck. So it pays for itself. And you’re getting all this amazing marketing exposure and you become the person that you’re you create the stickiness because your clients are like, Oh, Amy’s got everything. I’m gonna just go to her. I’m one of her clients. That is brilliant. Amy Stockberger 15:47Absolutely. Then so because because we have we have over it’s actually this year, I betcha we’re going to be probably 2500 reservations that we’re going to have from our clients this year. But because there’s so and again, again, this is your branding yourself, you’re serving your client, which is what you want to do your brand yourself and then you’re monetizing I monetize all of them. So I’ve already said tool shed, they’re all monetized too. And you’re, I created software because of that, because your clients need a one stop shop that’s just about you. So when you think about the cycle of a buyer or seller, they’re out on your websites and your socials when they’re vetting you out. And or when they’re looking for houses. That’s what they’re doing. And that’s it. Yeah, they’re not coming back to your website, again, D.J. Paris 16:29to Zillow, any other time to check your price and see what their home is worth. Yeah, Amy Stockberger 16:33yep. So I created software, my lifetime home support software, so my clients can go out and they sell it to my students to where it has everything they need. So you’re serving, I’m providing value they’re going and looking at all of the equipment we have, they’re renting it on that on my software, so it easily can pick it up, it’s all set up by systems inside of it. So that might FTE my full time employee time on this is next to nothing because it is software, you D.J. Paris 16:57don’t have to actually organize that a lot. It’s all done through a system. Amy Stockberger 17:01And then and then that software though is set up where I have, you know, all my my Facebook blocked my Facebook feed, so that’s in front of them, everything for my client event is up there, everything for my home support team partners, which is another pillar, I’ll talk to you about my private Facebook group for them is on there. So I have listings on there, easy way for us to review or review me and my agents. So again, it’s it’s a place for them to go one stop shop that has everything they need. And I’m not selling to them, I’m serving to them, right. And again, if there’s one lead generation that everybody should focus on the most and spend the most amount of money on is their data bank, their data make, especially in a market like this, and this type of market is an opportunity market for those who, for those who are frozen in fear, they’re going to get just there, they’re going to get passed by they’re going to get passed by right now is it is it opportunity market. And this is where we’re gonna go in and pick up market share, that’s our market share is 23. You know, we’re climbing is the theme of our year that we’re going in. And that’s you need, and you need to do it through your data bank, because they are the best for know like and trust you. And the referrals from your data bank are the best referrals to work, D.J. Paris 18:11you’re almost guaranteed Yeah, they’re guaranteed Amy Stockberger 18:13and they come to you knowing your value. And one of the big things too, about this lifetime home support model, like my isa department, we have an 8% You know, contact to contract. Conversion Rate, you know, the market average is like one to two, D.J. Paris 18:28and then explain that to me. I’m sorry, I wasn’t not sure I totally understood that. Amy Stockberger 18:32My isa contract to close. Right. We have an 8% contract contract to close. Got it. Yeah. So that contract to close. Sorry, from contact to close D.J. Paris 18:42contact cold. Got it? Got it? Yes. Okay. Yeah. So the Minnesota Amy Stockberger 18:45lead comes in. So my lifetime home support model is a hook because you have to know that anybody who is going out to any website, they’re talking to five to six other brokers to so my lifetime home support model is the hook that keeps them with that said, hey, with us, you get access to all of these things for life. And I haven’t gone through all of them yet. But this is what we have. Because we’re lifetime home support. We’re here to save you time, stress and money. And we’re the experts of connecting buyers and sellers. And we do that and help you build wealth through real estate with our lifetime home support model. And so again, having this it just even if you’re doing lead generation for your web leads, you have this hook of lifetime home support that keeps them with you. D.J. Paris 19:21So, yes, and boy, again, you just said so much as a couple of things I want to I want to dial into because from our listener perspective, you said a couple of things that that really sort of grabbed my attention, which was well, actually, I’m gonna ask you a question. So you had said this, and you said this very quickly. So I want to sort of rewind back to this particular point, because I think this year, it’s particularly important and I think you would agree, but I’m curious, because you’d mentioned your database, your sphere of influence your you call data bank, is you know, the most powerful source of of new business And what I am curious about is and you’d set a percentage, and I just missed it. I know the percentage is 16%. That’s the number I know. But I don’t know which number I missed the 10 to 15%. Yeah. So here’s what here’s what Amy and I are talking about. So in your database, depending on what numbers you’re looking at, we’ll say 10 to 15% of the people in your database are going to transact in real estate within the next 12 months, or Amy, correct me if I have that wrong, but something to that effect, correct. So if we, if we know that, and if first of all, I think there’s a lot of agents that have never even put a database together. But if and if you haven’t, this is the time to do it, especially this year, because Amy’s exactly right, all the top producers this year, they are getting market share, they’re gaining market share on the agents that are a little bit reluctant or are pulling back, and maybe they’re a little scared, or maybe they’re depressed because of the way interest rates and inventory. But the brokers that are stepping on the gas a little bit and realizing this is the year to deepen relationships are just going to take that market share away from the agents that are pre are pulling back. But what I wanted to say is we’re basically you just basically smashed a myth or whatever or discredited a myth, which is I don’t have enough potential clients. No, you do, because 10 to 15% of the people you already know, are going to need a realtor in the next 12 months. I guess the question is, how, what percentage of those 10 to 15%? Are you actually going to earn or get, and if you just sit back and wait, it’s probably going to be a smaller percentage that if you’re more proactive, and what I’m reason I’m making such a big deal about this, I think this is such a relief to agents that are like, I don’t have enough leads, I don’t have anything new stuff coming. It’s like, okay, that might be but you already have this, this huge group of people that you could focus on, you know, developing more intimate relationships, more more connected relationships with but anyway, I just wanted to make that point. Amy Stockberger 21:58Oh, and that’s so true in a, the best real estate business you can build is a relationship based business real estate will always be relationship based. And now is that it’s always your should always be doing this, but it’s a game changer when you add something like this in to your business, because you can scale so quickly. And, and you’re serving. And if you’re not in this to serve anyway, it’s likely not going to work out for you, but you’re serving at such a high level that it becomes a law of reciprocity in humans are so predictable. And the Law of Reciprocity is just you get something you give something back and kind that’s just how our brains work. And so the our VIP club is such a huge part of our lifetime home support pillars. And you know, another part to that, I should say, so we have our party shed or you know, our trucks, we get those monetized or party shed or tool shed, those are all monetized. And again, our tool shed are things people don’t want to buy, rent or store we have. And that’s just the way they’re going to need the you know what they’re going to need. And in my course, since I’ve done this for so long, we thought we know and I have it all laid out in there. We know what equipment is good and what is not going to work we know what quiz equipments gonna last you summer, which one’s gonna last you two years. So I have laid that all laid out too, because that’s, that’s a trial and error thing, you know that you just wouldn’t know if you hadn’t done this process. So I’ve done that. But then another part of our home support team is our discount center. So I have a relationship with an online discount center that I’m offering up in this that they can go out and our clients get 85 to 25% off over 100,000 different national big brand names. So like Nike, Under Armour, Walmart, things like that, they get deeper discounts than what they would get on products and services they’re already going to buy that we’re offering up to our clients. So they can save another $5,300 a year just by using that and that so that’s you know, here’s another thing we’re offering you to save you time stress and money. And that has a lot of different lead generation in it that I’m using right now for corporate partnerships and, and building market share on that, which is totally different process. But it’s it’s so so so lovely because again, relationship based is a relationship based business is the easiest business to scale. And then the next one is my home support team. So again, our clients needs so many different services and products throughout all of his seasons of buying and selling right. So I put together what I feel is the best of the best of vendors within my local market who are part of my home support team. And they give our clients preferential treatment, preferential sometimes pricing and are there to make sure they’re giving them legendary care like we do so think of your obviously lender and inspector you know those things. We have all those within its age back. We have carpet cleaners, we have home cleaners, we have D.J. Paris 24:39the interior, probably mold remediation, Amy Stockberger 24:43everything so you know, I I charged these partners $3,500 a year to be a part of my program. And so my clients have access to it. So I have a huge lead gen or a huge revenue source in this but it’s it’s threefold. My home support team is threefold and that is It really is so beautiful for my clients because that’s another value add to my VIP. So they have access to all of my people that I’m keeping in front of them, because we have all the systems in to keep the home support team partners in front of my clients when they need them. They have the discounts, they have all of that. But then the second part of it is obviously the revenue generation. And that’s another big thing that brokers and team leaders really need to be thinking about this year is, what other revenue streams are you adding into your business, it’s very important to have other different revenue streams that you have laying down for to continue to keep monetizing your business and building it. And so so the second part is that we have the revenue stream coming in. And then the third part is market share. So a part of the requirement for my home support team partners to be a part is that we get to come in and present to their employees, we get to come in and tell them about our lifetime home support model all the things they get with being an AMI stockbroker real estate client for life, once we get into that one too many presentations and showing them all of our success strategies. Because we have a, we have a at least by Up program, we have an instant offer program, we have a guaranteed sales program, we will love it or leave it guarantee. So we have all these systems for every stage that once I get in front of them, and I’m telling them about, it’s far better than anything I could throw on social media. It’s far better than anything, it’s a one to many. And then we have a system where we’re staying sticky to where we’re keeping our information in front of that employee. So when they have a life change, which is where we can be a service to anybody in a life change, right? That’s what we do as realtors, that those people are who we can serve? Why would they not call me, they’re calling us because we’re the broker of choice, because we’re the ones who are offering the most amount of benefit, besides being the leaders in connecting buyers and sellers, but everything else they get for life with us. D.J. Paris 26:41So I just want to all of that was amazing. I wanted to point to something that I have never heard anyone else say. And I’m just going to kind of focus on it. Because I think it’s something that really any of our any of our listeners could possibly implement, although I Oh, by the way, for everyone who wants to learn this program in this system, Amy’s got an entire program for you, which is Is she calls it the copy and paste formula to monetize your own VIP club. And if you want access and Amy, it’s start your VIP club.com I believe Correct? Yes. So we’re gonna, by the way, there’s a link to that in the notes. And guys, this is really what you want. Because, look, I mean, anyone can put programs like this together, but I have never seen a broker or realtor put this kind of program together who has the level of success that Amy and her team do. And it’s it’s not like they’re only doing massive $10 million plus luxury deals, you know, she said their average price points, like, you know, 200 250,003 40 Yeah, so so. So that is a very, you know, sort of median price point for a lot of ACLs. She’s doing a lot of transactions, doing 500 Plus transactions a year with her team. And guys, she put all this together, and she wants you to learn more about this as well. So start your VIP club.com has a lot of this information, there’s, there’s, I think even a couple different membership options. There’s like a one time and then there’s monthly and all this but you know, it’s funny, whenever I see these kinds of products, it’s it’s really never backed by a brokerage or a team that’s actually doing a ton of production. So I think you have this really unique spot in this very crowded place. And we’ll show you how to, you know, create this amazing business, just like Oh, I’m actually doing it. And you know, I love that. So start your VIP club.com is where you can learn more about this. But the one thing I wanted to mention, which was a couple of things first having a private Facebook group. The only reason I’m mentioning this for your clients, by the way, which Amy has talked about is this is a brilliant thing I’ve never heard anybody mentioned this idea. Now here at our brokerage we have a private Facebook group for our brokers are in Illinois, everyone’s everyone’s called the broker. So for our Realtors, and they are, you know, they chat back and forth in there. We do trainings in there, we do a lot of celebration stuff, but I never have heard of a realtor having that for their clients. But it’s the same exact idea. It’s brilliant. Because your clients get to know each other, you’re probably posting content in there from time to time, and your clients get more direct access to you and your and the other clients so that in and of itself, I love and that’s something really just about anybody could could put together. But I love the fact that you have created this whole program that shows people step by step how to do things like yeah, you know, I think I do want to offer a van or storage or a shed with tools so that my clients can use it. The other thing you said that was really fascinating to me and as somebody who sort of works on the management side of of a brokerage. I don’t know why we’re not doing this, which is you charge your vendors, the ones that you refer to you charge them to be part of your preferred vendor list. And that is I’ve never heard anybody mentioned that that is such a smart idea. because number one, you want to make sure, of course, that they’re that they’re committed. And these vendors have do a good job, which you’ve already done. But it’s like, no, you should have to pay to get access to my clients, my clients are really the most important thing for me. And I want to know that, you know, I’m assuming that the thought is that you want these vendors to have some skin in the game, so that you know that at least you’re receiving some value along the way as well. Amy Stockberger 30:21Oh, gotcha. And think about it just as a from the realtors perspective, that client is trusting you for I mean, we play so many roles to these, these beautiful humans who are in a really big, big financial decision in their life. And, and they trust who you know, like and trust. And so, most importantly, people have been partners have always been so important to me, but I really, I really wanted to, to offer them to local Sioux Falls like our state, we don’t have a state income tax, like we just have, we have a lot of growth coming in. Because of that, we’re just you know, Forbes is where the best place to, you know, start a business. I think since my since 20 years now, since I’ve been in the business, you know, it’s been so long, but I really love growing local to, like, I really love giving back and growing local, you know, it’s like, Okay, I’m gonna help you grow your business, because I’m going to show you, I know how to market, I’m going to put you into my marketing, I have a whole system that I market for you to keep you in front of the people. And then they stay and they’re going to use you, it’s just a no brainer. And my home support team partners, I love them. They’re so good. And Mike, my goal this year is to have 125. So do the math on that $3,500 a year. Last year, we were right around that 100 mark. And the these these home supporting partners, they’re the ones who also do ad space on the back of my truck. They’re the ones my client events. So we do a really big client events a year and they’re the ones who I have a whole system in my course about this to that they pay for my client events, I have a whole sponsorship category, where they can pay for on that. So my monetize my client events. And again, if you’re not doing client events, you should anyway because you should be loving on them. But typically I sell anywhere between three to four additional units, every client event just from again, the law of reciprocity, and then having it is good for my home support team partners to they’re out there. And they come in, you know, the ones who are sponsoring, they’re there, and they’re meeting my clients face to face. And so it’s a great opportunity. D.J. Paris 32:12And the other thing that you said that I absolutely love, and I’ve sort of been beating the drum on this since I started the podcast, although I’m not a producing agent. So probably nobody listens to me, but but my guests, they do listen to so I wanted to make sure they that because you’ve said so much already, that I know a lot of our listeners heads are probably spinning going, Oh my God, there’s so many good ideas. This is a good one that I had. I’m trying to think of anyone we’ve done almost 500 episodes. My memory is garbage. So maybe somebody said this before, but I don’t think so. And here’s what Amy mentioned. And she said it very quickly. But it was really a brilliant nugget, in my opinion, which was when she has clients. She’s like, Oh, by the way, you know, she obviously knows where they work. She knows, you know, probably enough about the office they worked at or a little bit about their business. And then Amy’s like, Hey, who’s like the HR person, I want to talk to them and see if I can come in and do a presentation for the other employees, which is absolutely one of the smartest things because you’re going to have one of their employees vouching for you and saying, oh my god, you got to have Amy in here. She’ll bring in lunch, and she’ll do a little presentation. And that is absolutely brilliant. And nobody else does Amy Stockberger 33:17that. So I’m creating a course on this because we have you read the book, The Dream manager book? No. Okay, so the dream manager was, I think it was written in 2007. Back before the world was the world now, right where we’ve just had such a hard time with the employees and we own my husband and I own a handful of businesses. So we know how hard it is to keep keep keep attract and retain good talent. And so that’s basically the concept of that book is that it’s getting harder and harder each year to attract and retain good talent, so employees, and that a happy employee is a productive employee. So what I’ve done is I’ve created my and they a corporate partnership with all of these things with the foundation in my lifetime home support, and I’ve gone out to companies and just say here, I want to be a corporate partnership, I’m going to offer you all these things for free all this different parts of my VIP that we haven’t talked about all of it, I’m gonna offer that for you for free to put into your employee benefit program. And you can do this too, to help you become a better place to work for your employees don’t just have one more benefit of working for you. We’re going to offer up different Lunch and Learns activities because again, statistically an employee who owns is typically a more productive employee than an employee that rents is just stats is what it is that we come in and we just did we we get the opportunity to be in front of these people and not and again, I have you know, the high level you have the sea level that I’m getting in front of because we’re offering them this and I also get all the employees too. So the lead gen I’m able to give to my agents from from what we’re seeing from this is fabulous, like my goal is to have 10,000 employees signed up by the end of 23 We just signed up a really big one that I’m so excited about that it’s just going to be a huge thing for us to be able to help them the big company but also my employees or my my agents I’m gonna be able to help them grow their business even bigger than I have, because I’m gonna have more leads coming in for them through In this lifetime home support corporate partnership program. D.J. Paris 35:03Yeah, it’s it’s a, it’s a wonderful idea. Tell us more about the program itself for agents who might want to consider adding in some of not only these processes, but these revenue streams, right? Like, this is an amazing thing that you’ve figured out not just how to, because I’ve had a lot of agents on our show, who have amazing processes and strategies, and really, it’s just incredible, but they haven’t always monetized other parts of the business outside of the actual transaction, which of course, is monetized. So this idea of monetizing everything else, even like you were saying, you know, you know, getting a van and, and, you know, getting advertising on it. And even that in and of itself is smart, because it’s essentially becomes a free thing. But tell us more about the program to start your VIP club. Let’s I’d love to hear like what do people get? And what are the price points for it? Okay, Amy Stockberger 35:55so it’s basically the only course of its kind that gives agents single agents team leads brokers, a roadmap to creating a VIP club that will turn their clients into referral partners for life, and also to walk them through how to monetize each part of it. So from the moving trucks to the party shed to the tool shed to the discount center, I have discounts for all of these and discounts for the products that they can buy, as well as what products to buy, which ones are the best, then I it’s a seven course module seven module course sorry, in there and it has a section on each of the pillars for implementing monetizing checklists has a whole operations module has a whole marketing module for your own, I have a VIP clubs made for you, I have press releases made for you, I have your 32nd elevator speech made for you, I have your your first your rollout to your data bank, that initial rollout to your data bank, I have everything you’re gonna need to get sponsorship for your client events, how to throw a big a big, great client event again, I’m very system centric. So I also in this course gave away as a bonus. So my three of my my high level client event checklist from beginning to end that basically all they have to do is put one thing in it auto populates everything they need to do to run a a profitable client event that their clients are gonna love and their agents are going to attend. That’s the other part of it, to get their agents there to really love it. So that’s included in it. We also have a software, like I said that we created for our lifetime home support model. So it walks you through how the software works and what it’s going to do to save you on employee time. And it’s going to help keep you and give you more referrals because your clients have a one stop shop that that they’re going to need after the transaction again, they’re not going back to your website after the transaction, they’re just not. And so it just gives you a step by step no shiny object like I think our industry is so shiny object, don’t you like people throw money and all this stuff, and then they don’t go back and check the ROI. So this is a no shiny object. Here’s, here’s what you do, I’m going to show you how to do it, I’m going to give you all the tools you need from the contracts to sell off your sponsorship for your trucks to your client events, to your party and tool ship, as well as additional lead generation that goes into it. Because all of this has additional lead generation, I give away all of his stuff to nonprofits for free, I give it away to first responders for free, I give it away I sponsor some schools that I give it away to for free guess what I get to do I get to go in and talk to these people or I get to send in my employees to go in and talk to these people and tell them about our lifetime home support model. Because we’re doing that and it’s a good community to give back. I love that again, you should want to do that as a business owner. That it’s it’s a whole circle all around way for them to grow a airtight, no worrying about any type of market shift type of business. D.J. Paris 38:38So what I love is specifically going all the way back to one of my sort of initial questions was like, What are you doing in between the sales? Well, you’re basically telling us all of the things that you’re doing in between sales cycles, which how long and you’re like, what’s the average time where somebody buys or sells a home, and then on to their next, like seven years, five to seven years, Amy Stockberger 39:00actually three to five in our market. So when you think of the lifetime value of a first time homebuyer homebuyer, they’re a fiber, you know, they’re usually five transactions, you know, so you think about that, if that they’re five transactions for you as a first time homebuyer through the life of your career, then think of how many other referrals you’re getting per year off of them. That’s a really delicious career. D.J. Paris 39:19And the fact that you even have a private Facebook group really allows them possibly depending on how active they are in Facebook, to really get almost daily interactions with you, right, like, depending on how much content you guys are putting in there. But I was going to ask you like what do you do in between sales? Well, you’re doing so many different things where you’re just you’re constantly in contact and I bet you don’t even necessarily have to ask your clients Hey, are you do you need my help buying or selling something because you’re so present in their life? They’re reaching out to you I imagine you don’t even have to ask for the business. Amy Stockberger 39:53We know it’s it’s it’s beautiful. We really are going over 70% of our business comes from repeat each referral business and that’s, that’s a low because I also have an ISA department but my highest isa lead source is off of calls coming in. So those calls coming in are typically off of them either seen stuff that we’re posting out there about our lifetime support model or referrals in from past clients. And so, you know, that’s right, because then it’s then it’s Zillow, you know. So, my ISA is next one is Zillow. So it’s you actually D.J. Paris 40:25get more inbound calls than Zillow. But then you have like, purchasing leads from Zillow. Yeah, Amy Stockberger 40:30the company can list me calls or the commission via house calls. And then think about it though, too. So we, and this is all in my course. Again, it’s the hook, it’s a hook, they’re calling, because they’re contacting five to six different other agents. So again, my agents are trained that if they’re out, you know, the first time they’re showing you say, a client buyer doesn’t want to come in, and they’re meeting them in the driveway. They’re, they’re handing them the marketing sheet about their lifetime home support, and to say, hey, just by the way, oh, by the way, the sales this is what else do we have to do to help you build wealth wealth through real estate with our lifetime home support model with us and one year, you’re gonna save likely over $10,000? By doing something you’re going to do anyway? D.J. Paris 41:05Right? Amazing, what you really have, I mean, when you say you’re a systems person, you are really a systems person. So I imagine one of the main benefits is it just gives agents not just a blueprint of, of, you know, sort of how to think about building these systems, but actually tells them what to do on a daily basis. Amy Stockberger 41:25Yep. So at the end of every module, because that’s what it is, people will take a course and then they won’t know what to do. So at the end of every module, I call it my action step checklist, the end of every module, I have an action step checklist that tells them black and white, this is what you need to do to implement what you just learned. Here’s the checklist, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, on what you need to do, to move to the next step to continue to build that VIP club. D.J. Paris 41:49Yeah, it’s, it’s really amazing. And, and as far as cost, what what is the cost for the start your VIP club? 1997. Gotcha. So just shy of $2,000. And for anyone listening, that’s like, Oh, that’s a lot of money. Well, it’s really less than probably a third of one transaction. Right? So it’s, yeah, yeah, it’s it, guys. It’s a one time payment, you know, basically $2,000. And if some, if you could, you know, I think back to because I have to build the systems for our company in more of the recruiting side, and the retention side. And I can tell you, I spent a lot more than $2,000, putting all of that together over the last 12 years, and I would have killed to have somebody hand me a program like that, I would have gladly paid way more than $2,000, because it actually pays, it doesn’t just pay for itself, it actually generates incredible amount of revenue. Amy Stockberger 42:42Oh my gosh, the amount of revenue that you have from this, just from your repeat business is in there. And then when you think about it, yeah, it’s just a system and strategy. If you don’t have to come up with it. Mark Twain said, There’s no such thing as that original idea. Everything is just out there that just doesn’t exist. Same thing, you take this and it gives you a step by step on how to create it, implement it, and monetizing quickly. And then I also, I have a virtual assistant trained in my lifetime Home Support Program, that I sell time blocks out to my students to who want to implement faster. So my VA is have stepped into my students and help them just go with that if they don’t have either the bandwidth in house right now or they want extra help. As somebody who knows everything about this system already. They can buy time blocks in my lifetime home support, virtual assistants, too. D.J. Paris 43:26Yeah, that that makes so much sense. I I was I was at an event yesterday morning, here for our local association where we bring in top producers and have them speak to two to newer agents and we had about 300 people there. And it was a wonderful event and somebody grabbed me who I didn’t know he I guess he’s a fan of the podcast and said, speaking of virtual assistants, he goes I listened to an episode you did about you know why a virtual assistant makes sense. And I finally pulled the trigger did it he goes, I’ve like doubled my business because Easy, Amy Stockberger 44:01easy, easy. I told my agents all the time. If you’re doing it, then you’re the assistant you don’t need to be do you know my average agent, you know, like getting they’re selling, you know, close to 30 You know, and 22 homes a year and so that they shouldn’t be doing those things. You know, we have I think we have six VAs right now over in the Philippines that that we have and it just helps systemize so many things that we’re not worried D.J. Paris 44:24about. Yeah, we have VAs as well for our free running the back end of our brokerage not client facing vas, but you but but client facing bas are great too. And all of ours are from the Philippines as well. And boy I’ve had I’ve been using VAs in the Philippines for six years now I think and just incredible, incredible opportunities there. So globalized, we can find great talent from overseas, you know, with an internet connection and it’s just it’s just amazing. Amy Stockberger 44:58And right now just to speak to that I think a lot of agents again, and brokers who are just who are frozen in fear and not taking advantage of the opportunity and have let a lot of bas go. So right now there’s an influx of bas available. So again, for somebody thinking about that, that it’s right, now’s a good time to get a VA who’s trained in nearly every tech stack that’s out there. D.J. Paris 45:20Yeah. So what would you recommend, as a first step for somebody who does feel a little frozen right now, they don’t have a whole lot of clients, everyone’s bummed out about interest rates and inventory. And obviously, mindsets really important. So what would you recommend that somebody could do as just like a first step forward, to just start recognizing the opportunity that exists this year, Amy Stockberger 45:47they need to build their database, build their data bank, so if they want to email me, Amy and Amy stockbroker.com, I will send them my data bank builder, for free, send them out to for them to do just sit down and fill out just their data bank builder that’s just going to be memory jogs for them, of everybody they know who should be living within their database within their CRM, and then they need to turn around and do the next step. Put them in their CRM and let it start working for him. And then yeah, D.J. Paris 46:13are you a big fan of collecting as much data of data points as you can to give you a reason to reach out in other words, like how I don’t know how detailed you get with your with your clients in your CRM, but you obviously know where they work, because we talked about why that’s important. And also to you can put Google Alerts up for these companies. And if you see any major news come through another reason to pick up the phone, Hey, I just saw your company one this big deal or whatever. So I imagine a lot I mean, you’ve talked about a lot of what you do is real estate adjacent, or even not necessarily related to real estate, because you’re trying to just immerse yourself in their lives, which include work life, home, everything you I imagine you probably have a lot of data points in your CRM for each one of your your, you know, your data, or you said called Data Bank, sorry, Amy Stockberger 46:59yeah, we do we keep as much as we possibly can in there. I mean, that’s a big part, I think that I tell my agents is to that’s one of the benefits are working for our companies, our business plan is, is set up because I made all the mistakes. And so I’ve set it up so that they don’t have to, and they can scale easily and don’t have to do it the hard way like I did they are they’re able to do it the easy way with everything that we’ve we’ve taken care of for them. Because think about it too. Like I didn’t start as I didn’t use my CRM to the level I use it now, probably 10 years ago. I think if I did my head, I’m like, Oh, you have much more success. I would have had I use that the way I should have. But but then you think of a CRM, what are they using for those drip campaigns? Are they using the built in ones? Are they going back? Are they really putting any of their unique value propositions, my course has it all, I have a whole drip campaign for every part of it from the from the time they rent something to the drip campaign and the funnel they have from when they come in as a new lead. So you have the hook in there from a web lead to a past client to a nonprofit to your HST partners, all those in there. So you’re staying top of mind through all the ways you need to. D.J. Paris 48:05Yeah, it makes it makes all the sense in the world. I don’t know how big the rental the residential rental market is in Sioux Falls. I don’t know if that’s a possible source of revenue for agents. I here in Chicago, we’re in downtown. So obviously, there’s tons of rentals. And so many agents start out in rentals, and so many agents don’t. And I always encourage agents who aren’t like flush with leads, especially if they’re new, which of course nobody is, when they start, I’m like, do as many leads as you can, because almost everyone that owns used to rent, right? And I don’t know if that that might not translate to every market out there. But do you see a lot of agents doing rentals as a way to just as an entry point in your market to? Or do you encourage your agents to do that? Amy Stockberger 48:49If not, you don’t really have the biggest It’s not much. It’s just not even really a thing here? Yeah. D.J. Paris 48:55What about supporting local businesses? So you talked about having a vendor? Do you? I would love to know a little because this is another thing that anybody can go out and do go ahead and tell talk. So okay, Amy Stockberger 49:05so one of my standards of practice for our agents is that they have to be in a performing networking group that meets on a weekly basis. So at least group so and B and I’s are not for everybody. They’re just not they weren’t for me when I first got into the business basically, because I was dirt poor did not have the money for a BNI. And it just wasn’t the structure that my brain worked best in. So I created a leads group and I have a system for my agents to where they have to be a part of a leads group that again, that meets on a weekly basis, the benefit of leads groups, there’s exclusivity to your market, so it’s not like the chamber, I sit on the board of our chamber so I love the chamber chambers a big part of our business too, but it’s not like the Chamber you have exclusivity in that and you’re meeting with all the holidays over the one year you’re meeting likely like 40 times the investment to be in ours is about $45 a month and you have the opportunity to sit down especially as Realtors once a week and during your 32nd interview your 32nd commercial real Going around introducing, you’re giving out all your listings, you gotta get better bet that I’m telling you every seller in my list seller presentation that that’s part of my SOPs for my agents that we’re giving out our listings at everything. So again, word of mouth marketing, that’s the second place for buyers find out about a D.J. Paris 50:13listing, you’re giving out your listings. That’s very interesting. That makes sense. Amy Stockberger 50:17Well, at the second place buyers find out about a house for sale is through the realtor. So that word of mouth needs to be so big. And so that’s, you know, a big thing too, if you and I do have, I have a mini course coming out on that, and a blueprint to build a converting leads group. But that is such an easy, easy feel like you could do 10 transactions a year just from that I typically sell my personal business three to 4 million a year for my group that I started back in 2004. So So it, it’s such an easy, and again, it’s rapport build, it’s relationship building, and they’re out there, you’re building their business, so they’re out there helping you build yours. And again, the more eyeballs you have on your listings, the better. D.J. Paris 50:52Yeah, and you know, the vendor, the vendor list to is or the partnership list, I guess I should say is so important at this meeting, I was at yesterday, this this white, this top producer of that one of the one of the agents was they said, Well, where do you Where’s some of your best referral sources? And he said, Well, everyone talks about their existing clients, and yes, you know, good chunk of mine come from there. But he’s like, you know, what nobody talks about, because it’s maybe just a little bit slightly sort of uncomfortable. He goes, divorce attorneys, divorce attorneys are unbelievable. And the whole crowd you can see kinda like shuttered like, oh, I don’t really want it that’s dark and kind of, you know, maybe uncomfortable, but it was like, he goes, Oh, no, no, he goes, divorce attorneys are, first of all, they’re always in business. They always have lots of business, unfortunately. But, but, or fortunately, depending on the situation, but regardless, they have people who need to move, right. So this is these are huge opportunities to get in, to really think about leveraging these relationships and whether, you know, an earning, so I’d love to, I’d love to hear more about some of those partnerships that you have where you’re able to provide value like obviously on either end there. Amy Stockberger 52:00Yeah. So even probate to Anthony, we have attorneys in town for probate because estate planning attorneys Yeah, they have to. And that’s really one of the reasons like my instant offer program. So we have all like, like I said, systems and strategies for every part of the home buying and selling process for every season. So from that lease buyout, the very first house, and oftentimes that instant offer program we have is the last house. So that’s a really good program for you know, it’s typically it’s the older child who’s taking care of that for their their parents, typically out of state. And so having those relationships with probate attorneys in town to just hand those leads over. They’re just they’re going somewhere we know that they’re going to sell. And that’s a that’s a good good lead source for us. D.J. Paris 52:40Wow. Well, I and by the way, you know, so Amy’s a couple of things we want to mention here. So Amy’s program, you know, to really create a lifetime lead strategy, and have all the systems that by the way, she’s been working on for, gosh, quite a number of years now, and made all the mistakes that you don’t have to make, because they’ve already been made. And she already knows how to, to move past that. And to get her best practices. And again, she’s one of the top teams in the country. This is not, this is not a self help guru that has never actually practice. Like, like somebody like me who goes, Oh, this is what you should do. And you’re like, well, DJ, you never practice yet. Don’t listen to me. But listen, because Amy knows what she is talking about. And if you go to start your VIP club.com You can learn more about all of this. And guys, I don’t ever recommend any. Really, I mean, very rarely do I ever recommend a program for our audience because I don’t want our audience investing in something that that that they are going to come back to me and say, Why don’t like that DJ guy anymore. I just spent $2,000 and got nothing, no, you’re gonna get a lot with this program. And I need to use this program myself. For some ways I need to better strategize and process out are our business. And so this this is I’m going to be a client of this. And I’m going to, really I am because I need what here’s what I need help with. I need help better monetizing our podcast. So I’m going to I would love to chat with you offline about that. But But my point is, is Amy has figured all this stuff out. So guys, if you go to start your VIP club.com Then you can learn more about him, please, please consider investing in it. I know it’s a little bit of money. But trust me if it just gets you even just one deal, it pays for itself and it’s gonna get you a lot more than that. More importantly, it’s not even really about getting one deal and having it paid for it. It’s about setting up systems so that you don’t have to wake up every day and go What am I supposed to do? What should I do? Because that is a tremendous amount of anxiety. You know, we I know what that feels like when you don’t have processes and systems in place. It sucks when you wake up and you’re like there’s fear there’s, you just don’t know what to do. You’re sort of flying blind out there. Get a system this is this Amy Stockberger 54:52paralysis is overwhelmed paralysis. That’s just what happens if there isn’t a direct checklist and what you need to do. That’s what happens. Yep, D.J. Paris 54:59and By the way, the other thing I’ll mention for any agents that are in the Sioux Falls area, or are in, you know, a surrounding area of South Dakota and you’re like, oh, I don’t work with a team like this, my brokerage isn’t quite giving me these kinds of things. Or I would love to like work with Amy or maybe become a member of her team. While she obviously doesn’t accept every realtor that that reaches out. But Amy, she has her team is growing. They have 15 agents right now. And they are one of the top teams in the entire country. I know if I was in Sioux Falls, South Dakota as an agent, I there wouldn’t I wouldn’t even look elsewhere. I’d be like, Why just wanna go with the best. So, Amy, if there is anyone out there and by the way, guys, remember to that when the pandemic happened, a lot of people started moving to places that they weren’t moving to prior to the pandemic or Montana, Idaho, the Dakotas, right? So you might even if you’re not in that local area, maybe you have referrals of people that are now exploring, getting, you know, you know, retirement homes there or, or, you know, maybe just moving to because they can work from home. So even if you just want to refer business to Amy like she would obviously love the opportunity to speak to you but if you are an agent in her in her area in Sioux Falls in in that local area, and you want to consider possibly working or joining up with her team. Me, can you tell us a little bit about what you your team is looking for in an agent? Amy Stockberger 56:21Yes. And for those who who are looking to refer business, we go to my YouTube channel living in Sioux Falls, we have a big book of business for every little I have, I have a very dedicated and systemized relocation integration process. So I guarantee they’ll be taken care of, to the nth degree. But yeah, we’re looking for an agent, we’re looking for agents who are there to serve, you know, again, my vision for my company is to build big juicy legacies, through wealth through real estate with lifetime home support. And that’s what I want for my agents, we have a very support driven model. So we have the insight Tran transaction management listing coordination inside sales department for the generate a lot of leads, we pay for the majority of the tech stack to for our agents so they can be as as profitable as possible for them. And again, I’ve set it up for them to build their businesses. So they don’t have to do it the way I did it, that they’re going to be out there doing what they’re best at, which is taking care of that client. And we have pretty much everything else that we’re trying to take care of for him on the backside of it so they can continue to keep serving more and more clients. D.J. Paris 57:15Wow. So if they’re if there’s an agent that is interested in maybe learning more or providing value to your team, or maybe just wanting your guidance on what’s the best way they should reach out to you, Amy Stockberger 57:27yep, just at AMI at ami stockbroker.com Or they can go any my handles are at AMI, stockbroker realestate.com. And then for our digital marketing or digital courses, it’s just ASR you Academy. D.J. Paris 57:39Yeah, ASR Academy, or if you just go to start your VIP club.com That’ll take you also right there as well. It’ll redirect you. We’re gonna have links to all of this in the show notes. Don’t worry, you don’t have to write it down. It’s all in our show notes. Just look for there. And we will have it in there. But Amy, oh, my gosh, this this is I could have you on every single week, we could be talking about another process another thing agents should be doing. And you know what, that’s not a terrible idea. I do offline. We could we could possibly even drill down now. Everyone, we’re I’m peeling back the curtain for our audience, isn’t it? No, no, but but this is this is what I’m curious. So I was just talking to one of my colleagues this morning, he was going how’s the podcast going? Now I’ll just give everyone a little behind the scenes of what it’s like to run a podcast. And I would call my podcast, a successful podcast because it pays for itself. We have sponsors, we have a pretty sizable audience. And I’m not saying that any sort of brag, or what younger people say flex for that reason, which is so so silly. I’m not I’m not doing it. Because I’m the person that always thinks oh, it’s no big deal. I don’t you know, I’m not that important. But we do have a pretty sizable audience. My point is, is I am always wondering what our audience needs. Now, because podcasting is largely a one way communication, right? I’m listening, you’re you’re listening to me and Amy, I don’t often get a lot of feedback, we get a lot of lovely fan letters, like almost every day, we get some one or two letters from people. It’s so sweet. But I don’t often I don’t often know what our listeners actually want or need, because there’s not an easy way to sort of get that feedback. So what I’m going to ask everyone to do is if you think that this would be really helpful if maybe once a month, we had Amy on and she did a deep dive into one particular, you know, pillar or something, just because I think we could create really, really a lot of value for our agents, or for our listeners, I shouldn’t say and for our agents in my firm as well, but where they could learn some of this stuff, because I think this you have so many processes. I think this really deserves more than than one go around so we could really do a deep dive and learn more so I would be honored to and yeah, and I am excited as well. So guys, everyone out there, please visit start your VIP club.com Also, Amy stock burger.com is another place, I can just go to the show notes, we’ll click on the links, there’s so much great content there, a lot of it’s free, by the way to Amy’s very, very generous around giving. And, you know, let’s it also again, if you’re an agent, you want to maybe join our team, or maybe you have business for people that are moving to the area, obviously, you know, why not refer to the number one team in the area, that’s what I would do. So a visit ami stockbroker.com, as well as an AMI. So as we’re kind of wrapping up here, I definitely saw oh, by the way back back to our audience. So audience, if you like, if you think this would be really helpful for you, I didn’t give you an action step, let us know. And there’s not an easy way to give us that feedback. But if you go on our, our Facebook page, or if you just send us an email, which you can do at keeping it real pod.com We have contact information there and all of our social channels, you can let us know. But if this would be really helpful for you, and I know that it would be, but I just want to double check with our audience, make sure that I’m giving you the value you want, let us know and we’ll have Amy back on. But Amy, on behalf of our audience, I say thank you for taking time out of your busy life, your very, very busy life, to come on our show and talk about some of these processes. And I hope lots of our people really consider investing in your start your VIP club. So they can have a lifetime sort of referral business. And this isn’t the same sort of thing that you get from other sources. This is this is a really unique program that also shows you how to monetize it all. So I mean, that’s, I think just an incredible value add. So start your VIP club.com. And also on behalf of Amy and myself, we want to thank the audience for making it all the way to the end of this episode. We appreciate you we love you. You’re the reason we do this show. And please just if you want to help us grow to things, support our sponsors. So consider investing in their products and services. They’re the reason we can pay our bills. And tell a friend about the show just one other realtor that you that is struggling right now. And guess what, almost all realtors are struggling right now. So send them a link to this episode. Maybe somebody that wakes up on a Monday and doesn’t always know what to do as a realtor. What should I do today? Well, this episode that Amy provided a lot of great suggestions for people to really make 2023 a good year let’s let’s let’s make this a year where you get more market share. This is the year agents are falling away. They’re falling off. And this is a great opportunity for those who stay because you’re gonna pick up that business but you need processes. Amy Stockberger 1:02:32Yes, DJ, thanks for everything you do for our industry. You’re awesome. D.J. Paris 1:02:36Oh, thank you, Amy. Well, I appreciate that as well. And, and again, we’ll talk about having you come on more regularly because I think this would be so much fun. All right, guys. Thank you. We will see everybody on the next episode. Visit our website keeping it real pod.com Tell a friend about the show. Invest in Amy’s in Amy’s in Amy’s program. Start your VIP club.com All right, Amy, thank you so much. We’ll see everyone on the next episode.

Nick Niehaus as a Co-Founder and Head Trainer at Business Video School talks about working with real estate agents. Nick discusses the importance of coaching and training, marketing tips and social media tricks. Last, Nick describes why, based on his experience, he believes video messages are very powerful to create a strong bond with clients. If you’d prefer to watch this interview, click here to view on YouTube! Nick Niehaus can be reached at +1 314-548-9106. This episode is brought to you by Real Geeks. Transcript D.J. Paris 0:00Thinking about adding more video this year to your branding and marketing but not completely sure how to do it? Well, don’t worry, we’re going to talk to an expert today. Stay tuned. This episode of Keeping it real is brought to you by real geeks. How many homes are you going to sell this year? Do you have the right tools? Is your website turning soft leads and interested buyers? Are you spending money on leads that aren’t converting? Well real geeks is your solution. Find out why agents across the country choose real geeks as their technology partner. Real geeks was created by an agent for agents. They pride themselves on delivering a sales and marketing solutions so that you can easily generate more business. There agent websites are fast and built for lead conversion with a smooth search experience for your visitors. Real geeks also includes an easy to use agent CRM. So once a lead signs up on your website, you can track their interest and have great follow up conversations. Real geeks is loaded with a ton of marketing tools to nurture your leads and increase brand awareness visit real geeks.com forward slash keeping it real pod and find out why Realtors come to real geeks to generate more business again, visit real geeks.com forward slash keeping it real pod. And now on to our show Hello, and welcome to another episode of Keeping it real the largest podcast made by real estate agents. And for real estate agents. My name is DJ Paris. I am your guide and host through the show and in just a moment, we’re going to be speaking with business video consultant, Nick Niehaus to tell you exactly what you should be doing this year to take your videos to the next level and attract more clients. Before we get to Nick. I guarantee there’s another realtor you know who needs to up their marketing game specifically around video send please send them a link to this episode Nick gives so many great tips and advice in here it was guaranteed to help them in your in their business. And they’re going to be guaranteed to be thankful to You for sending them a link. So please send them over to our website keeping it real pod.com Every episode we’ve ever done, and we have just about 500 episodes now they can all be played directly from a browser. You don’t even have to open up a podcast app, go to keeping it real pod.com Every episode there and also, we’re in every podcast directory so you can always search for keeping it real and hit that subscribe button. Okay guys, let’s get to the main event, my conversation with Nick Niehaus. Today on the show we have Nick Niehaus with Business Video School me tell you more about Nick. Now Nick Niehaus is the co founder and head trainer at Business Video school he has spent the last six years working with 1000s of real estate agents to help them overcome the challenges of transitioning to video communication, and marketing. In doing so Nick has become an expert at helping email up sorry, me. Repeat that last sentence there I screwed up. In doing so Nick has become an expert at helping small business owners gain confidence on camera and learn how to use video to grow their business through branding. Please everyone go to visit Nick’s website which is biz video school.com Business bi Z bi Z video school.com link to that in the show notes. Nick, welcome to the show. Nick Niehaus 3:48Yeah, thanks, TJ. Thanks for having me on. D.J. Paris 3:50Very excited to chat with you. I you know the world has really changed a lot a while obviously the world’s always changing but certainly with the advent three years ago, you know, with when COVID hit, and we were doing work from home, I saw a shift in Realtors really probably more out of desperation than anything but just embracing some of the video conferencing technology, more video production when it comes to social media. And I’ve seen agents continue to evolve their video practices, even now we’re largely back to normal and we’re moving around and about of course, I’m still seeing that trend continue. Obviously the rise of tick tock has has also increased the popularity of video, but I am so excited to have you on the show because I want to talk all things video. You know, this is something that I think every one of our listeners or viewers can can relate to and try to figure out as they determine what they want to spend their time and energy on. In 2023, I think video is a great skill that really anyone can develop. And obviously, you teach people how to do that. So I’m excited to have you out. Nick Niehaus 5:11Awesome. Yeah, no, and I love talking about this stuff. But that’s the pandemic certainly sort of accelerated and disrupted all kinds of stuff with videos. So it’s been an interesting three years. D.J. Paris 5:21Well, let’s, let’s talk about the role of video. So first, let’s get into your background before we actually start giving suggestions to agents. So what brought you into into this space? Nick Niehaus 5:33Yeah, so I mean, I’ve been, so I actually, you know, when I went to college, I started working as a freshman for a company called College works painting, and then it worked in there for six years. And in that experience, like you basically you run a small painting business, kind of like an internship program. And so that was my first experience with with marketing, which I sort of put quotes around, because there was a lot of door knocking, because it’s like going out knocking on doors, putting fliers out, you know, all that stuff. And, you know, it’s going going away is back at this point. But the reason I bring that up is because I basically had been working in marketing ever since. And so it’s something that I’ve been good at, in some areas, you know, really bad at and others. What happened though, is I actually started a company, man, it’s been almost eight years, I think, at this point. And what we did is we would put out flyers for other businesses, right? So we got working with real estate agents. As a result of that, because of the concept of farming, we had this cool sticky flyer, you could like stick right in the middle of a front door, very, you know, I get kind of catching. And so we started working with them and started doing this farming stuff. And that was, that was probably about six years ago. And it was right when video was really starting to emerge as a marketing tool for small businesses. And so there was kind of this big, this big kind of moment in time where you can start to run your own Facebook, video ads, you can start to run YouTube ads, and very few small businesses were even kind of aware of these possibilities. And so we kind of went to these agents who you’re working with to in these flyers. And part of it was we didn’t want to be out there, you know, putting fliers on doors for the rest of our lives are like, well, what can we do, it’s a little bit more sustainable. And so we started making videos with them, and you know, bringing them into our studio and coaching them on camera. And you know, a lot of it ended up being sort of psychological stuff, you know, getting over that fear of the camera getting over their, you know, qualms about seeing themselves on that video screen. And then three years ago, right around the beginning of the pandemic, actually a little before that, we started to realize, you know, hey, these people are common, we’re making a video with them, you think this would kick start this, this sort of brand effort, hey, I’m going to use video everywhere, I’m gonna start, you know, sending sending my clients video messages and start making social media videos, you know, and it wasn’t happening, you know, and that’s, that’s what kind of led us to saying, well, there’s a gap here, you know, there’s something people are missing, or they misunderstanding, you know, how to use video is that the technical steps? And the more research we did it was there was sort of all of it, you know, and we said, Okay, well, we need to build a training program for this, we need to start teaching people how to use this, this new form of communication, which is the way that we saw it. And so timing, it worked out perfect, because we actually, we built a course and piloted it, we launched that December of 2019. And so like, within three months, the pandemic swept the country. And I mean, literally, we got shut down, we weren’t, we weren’t allowed to make videos with people for a couple months. And that that was a forced pivot, obviously. But we sort of immediately said, Alright, let’s start doing this training. We got this course, let’s see, we can do we brought some partners in, I think we had 900 people come through that first course within about three months, you know, so it’s like, okay, there’s clearly clearly a need for what we’re doing here. And we’ve just been kind of running ever since. D.J. Paris 8:32I, that’s amazing. I remember back, really, before video was so prevalent in social media, in particular, when you would go to do anything in the video, they would typically ask you, have you been media trained? Right, that was that was the the old age sort of skill set that have you been you’ve been in front of a camera before? This is really before, we all just had, you know, high definition cameras in our pockets that could you know, take almost comparable shots with, you know, with these $20,000 cameras. And so it used to be a thing where you’re like, No, you really do need to get trained, you need to know what to say and what not to say. And you still do need to get trained. But thankfully, the barrier to entry obviously has, you know, your phone, which everyone has. And so let’s I think first what would probably make the most sense for our audience is let’s set let’s make the case for video. And when I when we talk about video, let’s define what what we’re talking about. Why Why should Realtors be focused on video this year? Nick Niehaus 9:41Yeah, and I love that question because I think you know, a lot of folks they get into tactics or strategy way too fast, you know, in a lot of these conversations that go straight to like, alright, what kind of videos should I make? And that was one thing that stood out to me when we first started the school and we started looking into Hey, what exists out there is that a lot of the recorded presentations, a lot of the top you know stuff people were talking on was just so far down the path in our eyes, you know, sort of like, hey, they’re skipping a lot of steps here. And no wonder people are thinking they should do these things, but they’re not taking action because they’re, they’re overwhelmed. They’re confused, you know, and it’s kind of a byproduct of the way it’s being talked about. So. So yeah, I think I think taking a step back and asking ourselves like, well, what, what is it? What is video, right? I mean, so that’s where I started, like, in my mind, video is a form of communication, I think it’s important to see it that way. Because everything we do to communicate with someone remotely, right, so if I’m gonna send a text and email, used to be sending letters, we don’t do much of that anymore. But you know, letters, all that kind of stuff. It was all it was all kind of created to supplement or, you know, sort of replace a face to face conversation, right? So the only reason we ever do any of these other kinds of communication is because we can’t be physically face to face with that other person, right? So if we, if we sort of say, Okay, well, ideally, I get into the same room I’m sitting across from the table, we all know that when we’re in that context, we’re able to build relationships the most effectively, we’re able to close deals at the highest rate, all of that stuff is kind of maximized. Well, that’s what video simulates better than anything else, you know. So when we compare it to a phone call, all this kind of stuff, the only form of communication we have available that feels as close to a face to face conversation is clearly video, right? And that has has a ton to do with trust. So when I can see somebody I mean, there’s actually a part of my brains called the fusiform gyrus that recognizes other people’s faces, and it stores that information and tells us, Hey, I’ve seen this person before. There’s an element of how many times right, if it’s somebody, I’ve seen a bunch, I automatically trust you. Because my brain says, Hey, this must be somebody who’s sort of part of my tribe, right? I see them every day, or I see him every D.J. Paris 11:48day, they’re safe, because I see them visually. They’re in my visual space occasionally. Yep. Nick Niehaus 11:55Right. And we evolved, I mean, that’s what’s interesting is like, throughout evolution, like we have not evolved to understand really any of these other forms of communication. So our brains at a at a fundamental level, when they see a person’s face, they the only thing that your brain can really understand is that person must be in the room with me, you know, so consciously, we know it’s not, but most of our brain is non conscious, right? It’s sort of, D.J. Paris 12:19it bypasses a little bit of, of those critical factors of the brain. So when we see someone, especially, you’re so right, because it’s not even just face, I think, I think when people are taking full body videos, it’s like, all of a sudden, we know what their, their physical being looks like. And just like we would with an actor, or somebody on television, we feel connected in some small way, consciously or unconsciously, simply because we, our brain thinks you know that, that yeah, you’re right. We’re in close proximity with them, even though we’re not. Nick Niehaus 12:57Yeah. And that’s huge. And it’s actually I emphasize this a lot in our trainings when it talks about how you frame yourself in a video, right? So a lot of folks like, if they send a video to somebody, their head is for some reason, in the bottom half of the frame, you’ve probably seen this where it’s like, you know, vertical video and their heads right out of the bottom, and they go space above it, you know, for for no reason. And a lot of it’s just they don’t know how to hold the phone, or they feel a little uncomfortable about putting their body out there. But that takes away from that experience. Right? So rather like that, that makes my brain question what’s going on? Now? I’m kind of like, well, I think I’m talking to this person, but like, it’s just their head floating there, which is kind of weird, right? So yeah, I think the more any kind of video I mean, this, this goes for public stuff, it goes for the more more intimate one to one video messages, you know, you should try to sort of appear like you would in front of that person if you were sitting across the table, right? So you want to incorporate some of your body, you want to make sure your face is large enough that they can read all your facial expressions, you know, you want to be somewhat careful about lighting, but mostly just so they can clearly see your face not because you have to look perfect, but you need to make sure they can see you just like they would if they were face to face. And if you do that, I mean that it’s a game changer, right? I mean, this is like I love sending video messages. Like I love to send people like Happy birthday videos. 10 seconds long. It’s such a perfect example of this, because then they see me, right, they have that sort of mini experience of having this kind of really quick face to face chat. But they remember it for months. I mean, I’ve had people that I’ll send him a birthday video one year, and a year later, I miss it. And they’re sending me a message like, Hey, where’s my birthday video, you know, because they remember from the year before, right? So there’s all that there’s all that stuff that’s going on in the human mind. And the reality is, once you get used to doing this, a lot of people look at video and they’re timid about it. And they kind of put it off because of that. But once you get used to using especially video kind of as a one to one or one to just a few people form of communication. It doesn’t take any more time. Right? So the time it takes to sit in front of a camera and say, Hey, let me give you a quick update on the transaction. Here’s what’s going on. In my experience. It’s actually fun faster than typing it out. Because I’m, you know, I type and I make some mistakes, I gotta go fix it, and you gotta overthink what you’re saying and make sure they don’t misinterpret what you wrote with a video, you don’t have to worry about that people understand it better, we actually comprehend more information when we can watch a person talking versus just reading the text on the screen. So that I mean, you know, we could sort of create a huge laundry list of sort of all the benefits for it. But I think at a fundamental level, that’s what you have to remind yourself is, hey, this is it’s not out. It’s not always a performance, right? It can be a performance, just like you can write a blog post that might get read by 1000s of people. But we can also send a text or an email, right? And we don’t we don’t overthink those things, we just do it, it’s just part of our day to day experience. That’s where I think people really need to focus on videos, how how do you just make it a normal thing you do as part of your day to day communication. And if you start there, number one, you see benefits a lot faster, it has an impact immediately. And then you also gets so much more comfortable on camera. So when it comes, you know, a few weeks later, a few months later, when you’re getting ready to build that YouTube channel or build that Tiktok you’re you’re much more comfortable, you’re much more confident on camera, and you just move a lot faster because of that. So I think there’s you know, I think a lot of us have sort of mix that up, we sort of started on the heart and and we need to sort of reset a little bit and come back to the beginning. D.J. Paris 16:16Boy, you just said so much. And my brain is spinning a little bit because I was thinking we were going to really pretty much exclusively talk about how to do video better on social media. And you said something? And of course, you do teach that but I am you said something that that really resonated with me today. Specifically, because it’s just happened to me just before we started our show. So this is so perfect, because you were talking about using video for more regular communication. So yes, of course, there’s a social media sort of strategy there. And, you know, people, realtors are always trying to figure out how much of my personal life do I display do I put on display on my Facebook page and Instagram, etc. But you’re saying we’re really talking about as a different thing right now, which I think is really critical. Because this just happened to me before our show, which was you can send one to one messages to people because we think about branding and like I’m gonna put this out on Facebook, everyone’s gonna see it like you said, 1000s of people might read a blog post or see a video. But then there’s also one to one communication and I just received I will tell you, I we get pitched by advertisers, guests every single day on our show, a publicists, you know, whoever may reach out, you know, hey, book, our guests, I got it. This is probably happened in five years. I’ve out of 1000s of pitches. I’ve probably had this happen five times out of 1000s, no joke. And it was, hey, I made a video for you. I want you to check this out. I didn’t know if this was a guest. I didn’t know if it was a vendor. I didn’t know. I didn’t know anything. I didn’t know what it was could have been a spam message. I had no idea. But he’s like, Hey, DJ, are actually wasn’t even meant to me. It’s for a producer. But but there was like, hey, zonna Check this out. And this guy has this company where he does computerized or robotic handwritten, you know, cards and notes and things anyway, and he was like, hey, DJ, I want to show this to you. I think there’s got to be a good fit for your show. Now, because I watched his 35 second video where he kind of like, I’m like, Oh, I know this guy. I instantly liked him. And and I don’t know anything about him, he might be a horrible human being. He might be, he might actually not be a good human being. I don’t know. But I liked him instantly. Because he took the time to make a video. I can’t even explain why I liked him. But there’s this unconscious part of the brain that when some when you do see somebody, you have a tendency to want to connect with them. And so there’s a visual component that bypasses even logic, like I don’t know this guy, he’s just some dude trying to get on my show, which happens all day long. Why do I really want and by the way, he’s not the only person with this exact kind of business. There’s lots of businesses that have these robotic things that handwriting, so it’s not even a unique value proposition. But for some reason I got so excited that he made me a video he made me though, it took him probably a minute to do it. It was crazy effective had he had just written me and said, Hey, I’ve got this thing I probably would have been like, no, there was something that lit up my brain automatically. The fact that I got a video message a one to one video message. And I know that isn’t necessarily the purpose of our conversation. But it just happened to me and it really affected. It affected the way we were like I’m like just bought it immediately book him. Nick Niehaus 19:50Wow. And from that. No, I mean, I love that actually. I mean, I think realistically I mean there’s a lot of people talking about how to do video for social media. I mean that you know, because because you can There’s a whole career of influencer, right? So there’s people out there whose job is to grow a following on social media. And I think it’s it’s a little bit unfortunate that so many business owners are looking to those people, and they’re learning about video from them, you know, I mean, then there’s, you know, they’re not all bad. It’s not a comment that they shouldn’t be doing that. But it’s a distraction. I think that’s the real problem, right, is that there are you know, I actually put out a sort of small survey on LinkedIn the other day, I was curious was like, Well, hey, remember when email first came out? You know, it’s been about 30 years at this point, right? But it’s like, remember, when it first came out? How did you use it initially? Did you send email to a single person at a time? Did you send it to like small groups? Or did you blast out, you know, massive newsletters to 1000s of people? And obviously, every single person said, I sent emails to just one person, right? Yeah. And we miss that step with video. Right? So we got, we got to the Yeah, so it’s like we started on on the other end of the spectrum, because a lot of that, I think, is because we all grew up with, I sort of define it as three primary categories of video, maybe just to, obviously, movies, television, and then some of us home videos, right. So some people will say, like, well, one, my dad had a camera, and he recorded us all the time. So they were on camera, but as you know, very intimate setting. And I think what happened is that a lot of us as we started to realize, hey, we have cameras in our pockets. Now we’ve got these tools available. We thought about the kinds of video we had the most experience with, right? So of course, we sort of immediately went to public facing video television shows stuff that, you know, 1000s Millions of people might see and talk about intimidating, right? I mean, and I did the same thing my very first video ever made, I put on Facebook, you know, I may have even put some money behind it. So I’ve seen by quite a few people. And it took me months. I mean, I went out and I bought equipment. And I set up a little mini studio and all this all stuff I tell our students not to do now. I did it. And it took me forever. But I still you know, I’m a fairly early adopter. So this was still six years ago at this point. But yeah, I mean, the further I got into it, the more I realized, like, Well, cool, that was great. And if I do that, consistently, I can do this branding thing. And you know, that all worked, especially over a long term period of time. But then I started sending video messages, you know, and that and that’s, that’s your example. I’ve had that happen a bunch of times. I mean, I had, you know, I was a totally new entity in the real estate space, because we weren’t, we weren’t working with realtors, and we sort of made this pivot into real estate. And for anybody who’s ever done that, you know, you kind of know how hard it can be to get through that front door. You know, obviously, real estate agents get pitched all the time, there’s all kinds of salespeople trying to sell to him. And so I was sending these video messages to brokers saying, Hey, can I come in and do a presentation for your agents and talk about video and I was putting a video in those emails, you know, and I got booked, I got a lot of doors opened. And you know, I’ve even had people tell me like, this is the most effective cold email I’ve ever gotten, you know, now granted, they’ve gotten more video emails since then. I’m not the only one doing it in St. Louis at this point. But I think there’s there’s another part of this kind of coming back to your example that is, is really urgent, you know, because there’s, there’s lots of reasons to get started doing this stuff right away. One thing that happens today, though, is that when somebody sees you make them a 32nd video that was just for them, they still have the same reaction of hey, this, this feels like television. And so they look at it, and they go, I would be too intimidated to do that. So that that is that additional layer of sort of like wow, like, you know, somebody’s used to make a video, it’s quicker than writing an email. So for them, they’re like literally saving time. And then the recipient is going oh my gosh, what an Impressive, impressive effort feels D.J. Paris 23:39like Saudi did something big, like when I saw this, right, this guy was it was in his warehouse with all of his machines, you know, scribbling robotic hands writing letters, and I was like, wow, look, I’m getting a behind the scenes tour. Of in literally all he does pull his phone out of his pockets. adj that’d be Yeah, you’re right. It seemed like a bigger deal to me than it than the effort that he put in. So the, the reaction you get is actually amplified more than the effort that’s put in, in theory, right? Nick Niehaus 24:14Yeah, yeah. And obviously, you know, you can’t know if that’s going to happen with every person, if you email somebody who’s a professional, you know, TV presenter or something, they’re not going to be as impressed. But that is, I mean, that’s a big deal. I mean, that’s especially like we this is why we talked so much about birthday videos, because every single person that gets that video from him, it was so little pressure on your part, right? I mean, you can literally go to Facebook, on your phone on the app, and you get a list of everybody’s birthday and literally next to each name is a messenger button, you click that now you’re in a one on one chat with them. And there’s also a video recording feature built into the messenger app, you know, so you basically hold the button down you say a few words and you click send and you can send 10 of these in like five minutes or less. I mean, that is you know, in terms of habits because obviously everything you want to do you as much of it as possible should become a habit makes a lot easier for you. I mean, that is a very, very easy habit to form you know, as a every day. But as I get my coffee or as I have lunch or you know, you’re tied to something already doing daily, I’m going to pull my phone and we’ll look at the list of birthdays, I’m gonna send one to anybody who I want to say that to you not to do it all your friends, but But I mean, imagine like somebody has been dragging their feet on making their first video, and they’ve been building this this Megan in this big mountain that they’re having trouble kind of overcoming. Start there two weeks from now you’ve you’ve made 30 videos, you know, you’ve increased the awareness with 30 people substantially, you’re developing those relationships, you may already have business from that outreach, even though all you’re doing is saying happy birthday, just from being top of mind, we had a we had an agent pick up like a $3 million listing a few weeks after sending somebody a happy birthday video, right? So you might have results already. And it’s like, I just I I can see, I see people sometimes almost kick themselves because they thought five years ago, they should start using video and they spent the past five years, procrastinating essentially right sort of finding reasons to keep waiting. And all it’s harder than I thought, Oh, it’s you know, it’s instant. It’s intimidating. And then they send these birthday messages and like, wow, this I should have started five years ago, you know, like, this is not there’s nothing about this. That’s hard. And it has such an incredible impact. You know, and I think that it just resonates with people. But the the urgency I was talking about is that more every week more businesses are doing this, you know, and I think if you do it first in your industry and the first customer, the customers are kind of getting video messages from you first. The advantage of that, like you you’re an innovator, this is stuff people go tell their friends about I mean, wow, you’re the hotshot agent in town. If you wait another six months, another year, another couple years, there will be other businesses doing it. And now all you’re doing is catching up, right? You don’t you don’t have the innovation. So the benefits still there. But you don’t set yourself apart the same way, right? D.J. Paris 26:47Boy, I agree with all of that. I actually think the one to one sort of option that we’re talking about one to one, meaning I’m going to produce a video for one person, in this case, the example of the happy birthday. This, this is such I’m only giggling because it is it I think about this, I was thinking about this, as you were talking that every year, of course, I have a birthday and Facebook tells you know the world that it’s my birthday, and I get you know, however many people say happy birthday, and I you know, 100 or whatever it is. And it’s lovely. And I’m so grateful for that. I get exactly zero video messages from anybody who say, you know, hey, I noticed it was your birthday today Happy Birthday, even if it was a 15 second message? Do I remember who out of those 100? Who wrote me on my Facebook page? Happy birthday? No, I mean, you know, whatever. It’s probably the same people every every year, I would remember who who made me a 15 second video because it would be the only video. And you’re right, it is a simple and easy thing. And it’s also a great way to get introduced to video if you’re not comfortable in front of the camera, because there’s really nothing at stake. You’re just like, Hey, happy birthday. And that is it. You know, you can use there’s other social media platforms that that can be used to prompt things like this. So birthday on Facebook? Absolutely. Like you said, go there every day. Look, first of all friend everybody you know, on Facebook and Instagram and or Instagram doesn’t have birthdays, but or maybe they do I don’t know. But But LinkedIn, LinkedIn does something very interesting where they show you when people have work anniversaries. So that’s another huge opportunity. Oh, I just saw you, you know, your fifth year at such and such company. Congratulations, hope you’re doing well. Or promotions or new jobs or you know, other life events. LinkedIn is really good. So that’s another place where you could find reasons to do that one to one short video. Why, you know, I’ve we’ve been doing this podcast for five or six years now. Nobody has talked about one to one videos. I am so one to one video messaging, I am really, really grateful to for you for this because it’s kind of blowing my mind. Nick Niehaus 29:06Yeah, well, I mean, I this is one of those things, too. It’s like, this is why I like you know, what was in our school, like, I get to focus 100% on video, my job is to learn about video and all different ways to use it and you know, kind of be as much of an expert as I can. And it’s an incredibly broad category. I mean, there are so many different kinds of video. But yeah, I mean, that was one thing that I’ve still been, I mean, the companies that make these tools like you know, just to name a few like, you know, bom bom dub, Vinyard loom, right? They, you know, they all kind of do similar things now, I mean, they talk about this stuff, obviously, you know, they some of these companies have written books and whatnot. But I don’t know if it’s just that people will just hear that as hey, you’re just trying to sell your product and so they tune it out or what, but when I’m listening to and I’m trying some of this stuff and I’m talking to some these power users, I mean, it’s it’s a no brainer. You know, a lot of the folks that I’ve seen that they get into a habit and hey, I did this for three Three weeks, I am never turning back, I will never stop using this tool like my clients are all understanding me better, my customer service has improved drastically, I’m getting more referrals, I’m getting more repeat business, it impacts everything. And here we are, and everybody’s still talking about tick tock and YouTube and all this other stuff, you know, and it’s not, you know, it’s like, I think we get stuck in this hole, one or the other type of mentality, it’s not the don’t ever do those things, there’s just so much more benefit to be had in the short term, especially from this much more intimate, you know, much higher touch kind of kind of experience, you know, and so as soon as Yeah, I mean, I’ve, we actually, you know, as we started to understand more of this, we sort of we created our curriculum and our school to focus on it, I mean, we, we sort of redeveloped our entire process, and we said, look, you start with video messages, you know, we actually have sort of four strategies we recommend people implement, so they start with video messages, they get that, you know, make that a regular part of how you talk to people, you know, to the point where it’s like, you just can’t help but reply by video, when it’s appropriate, then you start to incorporate video, basically, sort of scale yourself with video now, so this is like your, your FA Q’s, you know, like training for employees, if you tend to have employees on the team, you know, think things where you’re, you’re saying the same thing more than once in a several month long. Period, right. And so then that at that point, then those videos out is intimidating, you know, it’s not as hard they come because you have all this experience on camera now, you know, and then it’s like, so then the third one is, is build a video marketing funnel, something that you you control that’s designed that you can sort of predict the outcome from that you can, you know, put people in at the top and expect a certain amount of results to come out the bottom. And then once all that is in place, that’s when we recommend doing the social media stuff, you know, and if you do it that way, then all that new attention you generate from hopefully cross your fingers getting, you know, going viral on social media, then all that attention, which by the way, is more likely, because you’re you’re good on camera, you know how to make a good video at this point, you know, that that drives those people into a system, right, so then they hit your marketing funnel, they get, they get nurtured by that automatically, they come in your loot, you’re using video to convert the leads, so they’re seeing, you’re continuing to see you, you know, it’s like, it’s always, it’s always been kind of weird to me, that we have these folks out there that have all this video from a marketing perspective and running video ads or doing social media video, and then somebody comes into their system, and they stop seeing them on camera, you know, how all of a sudden everything’s just text and email, you know, and I’m always just kind like, when they’re kind of weird, like, you know, they already know you at this point, they’re seeing you on camera all these times, you know, and all of a sudden, the communication becomes less personal feeling like, that’s interesting and disorienting. You know, so I think we do it the other way around, you know, it just continues to feel like I’m just getting to know this person that much more. And yeah, I mean, I just the just the efficiency of this stuff, you know, getting to a point where by the time that person calls you and they say Okay, I’m ready to sell my house, like they’re well educated, they’ve been watching you. I mean, you know, we hear examples all the time people talking about like the the father in law, disrupting a transaction or something, it’s like, well, now you can educate people ahead of time before they ever even contact you. And they can forward those videos to their, their relative and say, Hey, you’re, you’re wrong, stop trying to tell me all this stuff, you know. But yeah, there’s just there’s so many different ways that this has an impact. And I think if you go in that order, if you sort of start with the simpler stuff that’s more direct, and then you build to the more public facing stuff. I think it all just just works more cohesively makes a lot more sense to your customers, right? D.J. Paris 33:27It does. And it’s really a quite a shift of process if you’re going to really think so you start with the easy quick video messages, the one to one, celebrate celebratory stuff or the universe, you know, things that are easy quick and you can you can just do daily, happy birthday, happy anniversary, but all those kinds of happy home anniversary, whatever, you do those and just a really quick procedural question. Because I’d love to get your thoughts so you mentioned you know, like, you go to facebook you see here’s five people’s birthdays today you make five videos. Are you sending them the video via Facebook Messenger which is you said you know, you could do or are you texting it to them? So that it’s been my experience that people open S texts more often then like Facebook Messenger, but curious on what you might suggest for like a happy birthday video. Nick Niehaus 34:28Yeah, I think you’re looking in that situation at a trade off between convenience versus impact. Right. So I think if number one, I don’t have the phone numbers of a lot of my Facebook friends so because of that I just have to send a message that’s kind of the first question is what do you have in terms of contact info? I also because it’s so fluid, you know, and I have all kinds of qualms with Facebook but not to get into that some of the stuff they do is really effective right? So the birthday things I mean, that’s been one of their their home runs from basically day one right? They got it ready to give them their per day. And that’s been one of the things that keeps people engaged in the platform, the fluidity of basically looking at the list clicking I mean tonight, and if you’re listening to this, like, try this sometime, you’ll see how fluid it is, right? It’s like you go in, there’s the messenger button, you click it, you click the button for the video, camera turns on, you hold it down, you record hits that I mean, and then you just hit the back button two or three times, and you’re back on the list. Right. So that yeah, so I’m always looking to kind of like, if I tell somebody to do it certain ways, like, are they going to do it, you know, that that’s obviously a challenge you run to with coaching quite a bit. Right? So that would be that’s the first thing I would say. Now, you are right, though, which is that people are going to be more likely to see the text message, right. So I think the way I would sort of think about it is like if you have a core group, you know, so you’ve got maybe like those 20 3040, people that are like, they’re the ones that pass you the referrals, they’re the ones that are repeat customers, the ones you really want to stay, you know, 100% in front of, that might be worth sending them a text, you know, and then even then even following up, if you don’t hear anything back from your student 100%, sort of certain that they’re going to get it everybody else, I think just doing it through Facebook is probably fine. Mostly because it is just so easy to do. And it’s a lot easier to build a habit because of that. So I could set an alarm on my phone for 9am. Every day it goes off, I go to Facebook, boom, send my five or 10 messages, and I’m done. So I would say you know, think of it that way, right? What’s going to be sort of the most, what are you gonna be able to execute on regularly. D.J. Paris 36:28I also, that’s a great answer. And I also love the idea of sort of jumping ahead a bit to having these sort of intro videos as well. So now that you’re going to be doing this regular, happy birthday, happy anniversary, kind of kind of, you know, event focused, you know, videos, you can also then create longer form videos that can be reused. So hey, you know, here are 10 questions that first time homebuyers tend to ask, I’m going to send this to you, I’m going to send you this video, which will maybe answer some of your questions. So I don’t waste your time later on, you sort of I guess you package it around, this is to help you and us, you know, be more efficient or effective, and provide value along the way as I made this little 510 minute video, which is here’s some pitfalls to avoid, or whatever, or here’s how to prepare for our meeting, or here’s what how the process works. It could really be anything that a realtor has found that their clients continually ask about. So that could be like the basis for how do I come up with these videos? Like what’s the content? Think about the questions you’re most commonly asked. And then you can make videos about that and say, Hey, I’m gonna send this to you ahead of time. And yeah, I’m always available, you can call me anytime, of course, too. But I want to sort of start edge leading you down a path and providing content to you that’s relevant and valuable. Instead of you having to ask me, I’m going to be pushing this to you proactively. Nick Niehaus 38:03Yeah, yeah. And I love that. I mean, that’s where, you know, it’s a shame, because I feel like a lot of times in these sort of business contexts, you have to talk about doing something from almost always from the standpoint of making more money or growing your business, right, like, that’s the hook, right. But it’s a little bit too bad, because video is so effective for customer service, you know, and I’d love to be talking more about that. And there are obviously a lot of agents that care about that. But that’s the place where of all the impacts it has. And there’s there’s I mean, you can you can double and triple E conversion, and just the numbers, you know, in terms of what video does are kind of mind blowing. But the customer service part is really crazy to me, because you can preempt I mean, you can give people an experience where they feel like you’re you’re reading their mind, right, because you know what they’re going to ask, you know, what the processes are, you know, are the sticking points in a real estate transaction are going to be, and this can all be automated, I mean, so it’s this incredible experience where somebody comes in, and every couple days or whatever the right touch frequency is they’re getting, you know, hey, by the way, the next thing is going to happen is this, and here’s me explaining it to you and, you know, video allows you to show versus just tell, you know, so you can talk about, we’re going to fill out this document, here it is, here’s what it looks like, here’s where you’re going to put this information. This is why you need to have this number figured out. Because it’s going to go here in this document. I mean, the sense of clarity that that creates for people is is immense. And you cannot do it. I mean, it’s almost one of those things where you can’t even really do it in person. I mean, you can make a video that has like multiple different clips in it that cuts from one kind of, you know, piece of paper to another this is obviously getting a little more advanced, but you can you can design it in such a way that it actually explains things in a way that’s more fluid and more easy to understand that even if you were sitting in front of that person and showing them the papers, you know, so I think when you do that, this is the kind of thing that then people come in the door they come in as a lead or maybe they become a customer, they start getting this communication, but it is you Do and I think that’s the part a lot folks overlook is like, they’re not just getting an email with this text in it that could have been written by anybody, they’re actually listening to you, they’re watching you there, as far as their brain knows they’re sitting there across the table from you, while you explain all of this to them, you know, so it’s building the relationship, so you’re helping them, they appreciate that you’re informing them, this is the smoothest real estate transaction they’ve ever been involved in. But they’re also getting to know you. And so it’s almost and I’ll tell you, I experienced this myself all the time. Now, it’s a little weird, then when you meet that person, because they know you there’s it’s called the parasocial relationship, they already have a relationship with you, though, as far as their brain knows, they’ve talked to you several times already. And that’s all going to be there, you know, so So once you do that on a regular basis, for a few months, like don’t, don’t be surprised that a lot of these folks come in, and they’re much friendlier, they’re much more comfortable, you know, they’re not at all considering working with another agent anymore, like they’ve already hired you in their head, and just talk about, I mean, you’re gonna find a better fit, you’re gonna have more of the right people choose to hire you, you’re gonna have higher lead conversion, transactions going a lot smoother, I mean, just just so many different things. And then one additional part I’ll just sort of throw into there is I really, like these are all pre recorded, right? So that’s great, you know, tell me about the process. But if you ever run into something that’s especially like frustrating or has a lot of emotion to it, that’s where you really want to use video, right? So if you’re going to share bad news, like, oh, they didn’t accept the offer, you know, that sort of thing, record a video message, because the empathy is substantially higher on video, right? So that they can, you know, so even even phone calls, you could call somebody, but then watching your face and seeing your facial expressions, and being able to read that empathy on your face, that does still go much further. So I think that’s another place you can incorporate it to, to really, you know, maximize that that sort of sense of, hey, this person has the bases covered, they’re totally in control, I can trust them completely. And that I mean, just in terms of the enjoyability, so to speak of the process and working with your customers, it really helps. D.J. Paris 42:08Wow, I mean, we’re almost talking a little bit of kind of a mini revolution here and communication, like change. Oh, yeah. Like, we’re really talking about one to one video communication, whether it’s pre recorded or live, there is something that activates and lights up our brain and makes us feel connected to the other person. And through repetition, whether it’s, again, whether it’s pre recorded or live, you start the brain starts to sort of build these neural pathways of familiarity. So all of a sudden, we’re like, Oh, I know, I know, Nick, I seen it all the time. is familiar to me, which familiar nice, comfortable, which means non threatening, which is, which is typically a gateway to the ability to sell somebody something, right. So trust, we’re now talking about, you know, know, like and trust. And I think you’re, you’re really on the cusp of this and agents that can start to move away from that. And not that there’s anything wrong with texting, if that’s appropriate for a relationship great. But you can pepper in, like, I love the idea of the bad news video message. So let’s do a real like a use case example. So I’m a realtor, my client loses this bid that they put in this this offer to buy a home, I have to give them bad news. Now. Would you recommend I do that live video? Would you recommend a pre recorded video? What do you think is? And again, it could be anything, every relationship is different. But what’s a general rule of thumb on something like that? Nick Niehaus 43:50Yeah, I mean, I think that one’s that one’s going to depend on the customer a little bit. I think it depends on sort of the question, the difference between those two is that when you when you try to get on like a video chat with them, you’re interrupting them. So it’s like a phone call. That’s one of the disadvantages of phone calls. They have to answer and you’re disrupting their day. D.J. Paris 44:09And they might not be, they might not be in a place where physically they want to be seen. Nick Niehaus 44:14Yeah, they might not want to be on camera, you know, they might not feel you know, so. But that being said, depending on the type of client, like they might prefer that because they want to ask questions, they want to, you know, they want to be able to dig in a little bit on it. On the other hand, if you pre record it, they can watch it at any time. You can be succinct, you can get straight to the point, you know, you can get right to the news right off the bat. So it really just depends on how the previous communication has been going. Right. So I think the thing to look at there is like, Is this somebody who calls you you know, do they like having a lot of conversations on the phone? Have you done zoom meetings with them? In that case, I would say hey, would you mind hopping on Zoom for a couple minutes want to give you an update on on the situation here, right? Sure. And again, that’s one where you want to get to a quick because you don’t want them you know, waiting for hours to get that info. On the other hand, if it’s somebody who’s been doing a lot of texting with you, or things like email, which are, you know, we call it asynchronous, right? So it’s something you should do, you can watch it anytime it doesn’t have to happen right at that moment, then a pre recorded message is probably going to be better for them. D.J. Paris 45:14I love that too. And at the end of a pre recorded message, you can always say, I’m going to call you in a couple hours, to just to check in on you as well. But I wanted I didn’t want to wait for this, I didn’t want to wait a couple hours, I wanted to get get this information over to you immediately. That is, that’s huge. All of this, all of this is huge. It I guess, at the end of the day, it demonstrates care concern, effort, whether it’s warranted or not, is another conversation meaning for some reason, our, our physicality, our the way that we are built as humans, we just like that we just like getting one on one videos. I mean, it’s just kind of how it how we’re wired. So if forget about anything other than it just, it used to be It felt good to get and it still does feels good to get a handwritten letter, those are sure pretty much done. Now, although I still think that that is an amazing thing. But what’s taking its place is these one to one videos, I think, and they’re still very rare. So if you can make a one to one video process, again, start with birthdays, start with home anniversaries, start with, you know, hope your kids are going doing well, when they’re going back to school this fall, you know, whatever it could be, it’s your kid’s birthday, happy birthday, whatever you need to get this information put in and you can do those all day long. And even if you had just did that, if nothing else, if all you did was birthdays, and any other you know, life event stuff that you know, I bet you’d get I bet you’d get business just just from doing that. And obviously that’s like 1% of what you actually do, and still learn the other 99% that is what Nick and his company is going to teach you. So Nick, tell us about about the service. And and you know, what it entails and why our listeners should be checking it out. Nick Niehaus 47:13Yeah, I mean, I think the the main thing to understand about Business Video School is you know, it’s a school for real estate agents, it’s about 95% of our students are real estate agents. And we teach pretty much all aspects of video. Now I will say we’re not for the video expert. So if you’ve been making video for five years, and you’ve already got a YouTube channel with hundreds or 1000s of followers, that kind of stuff, like, you know, there’s people to help you. And we certainly could, but that’s not who we’re built for. We’re built for the beginner. So beginner and intermediate, right. So folks that are, you know, having trouble making your first video, or maybe you’ve made a few, but it hasn’t become a habit. Everything we do is about building video habits, right. So just you know, kind of a quick overview of what we have included, there’s a lot so you don’t do you don’t kind of come in and try to take it all at once. But we’ve got nine different courses, some of which we teach live on a monthly or quarterly basis, we have something called video recipes, which is a script and example of us doing the video ourselves. So you can imitate our delivery style. It’s all the instructions on how to make it it’s the social media posts, it’s any sort of assets like music that might go in the video. So it’s basically all the ingredients, you need to make a video and make a new one of those every week. And then we do things a lot of fun stuff. Like we have challenges every month, we split up into teams kind of compete to make different themed videos, we have q&a sessions live q&a is you can come on to if you ever get stuck. And then a community you know, I think the community is a big part of it. It’s just a bunch of folks that or it’s very much no judgment. You know, this was a lot of folks, Sharon, I this is my first video ever made, you know, what do you think? And obviously, there’s lots of things they can improve. But we’re just there to encourage them when they’re first getting started, obviously. So I think that that’s really what you got to look at is that video, it’s a form of communication, and it is going to take some time to really start to understand and implement fully. So we work with folks sort of incrementally speaking so you can come in, you take a class or two you work on implementing you come in with your Q and A’s and you need them. And that’s why we set it up as a membership because we felt like hey, it’d be nice if it’s not just a course you don’t just buy something and it sits on your computer and you got nobody to talk to you like we wanted to have that community want to have the support the ability to come in and kind of get your questions answered. And that’s what it comes down to you know, so a video is a concern. You know, if it’s something that you want to do more with, I strongly recommend you come check us out. I mean, obviously, it’s one of those things that the sooner you do it, the more benefit you’re going to get. Because it is only increasing more and more people are doing this stuff every day. So I think we we did create a coupon code so if you’re listening and you want to save 10% Just use the code keep it real when you check it out, and you’ll save 10% on your monthly membership. D.J. Paris 49:46Yeah, so everyone please go visit biz video school.com bi Z video school.com link to that in the show notes, use the coupon code, keep it real and get 10% off on the monthly membership, which guys, it’s, it’s less than 100 bucks a month. And imagine if it just, you know, for a year What’s that? We’ll say it’s $1,200. It’s less than that, actually. Let’s just say it helps you get one additional deal. What’s that, on average, maybe $7,000 of commission. So I’d spend $1,000 To make $7,000. Guys, please please do this video is, is what people are. There’s a little bit of a desert of the last three years of interpersonal communication, intimacy, physical interactions, right? We, we even now, we are still recovering from this lack of, of in person stuff. Video is the closest thing we have to simulating real life interactions. It works way better than text, an email, and other even voice, you know, voice voice messages. So please consider doing this. You don’t have to have a big production studio. You don’t have to have special lighting. You just have to be willing to start this process. But let the guys at biz Video School, Nick and his team help you do this. We’re big fans. You know, this is the biz Video School has been around for a while they are huge. labcoat agents is a big fan of you guys. They’re the largest online community for for Facebook. So I know that that this is this is definitely a great service. So I encourage everyone out there to check it out this video school.com Use promo code keep it real? Well, this is perfect timing. I know. Nick is heading off to his next meeting. So we will wrap up this episode. We want to thank Nick on behalf of all of our listeners and our viewers. For all what you contributed to the show today. Thank you for all of your great content. And also on behalf of Nick and myself. We want to thank our viewers and listeners for continuing to support and listen. Support our show, please tell a friend think of one other realtor that could benefit from hearing this great conversation with Nick send them over to our website keeping it real pod.com Every episode we’ve ever done can be streamed right from a browser and sign up for Nick’s abyss video. school.com Use promo code keep it real and let’s get your video up and running. This is the year to do one to one video. Nick, thank you so much for being on the show. And we will see everybody on the next episode. Thanks, Nick. Nick Niehaus 52:23Yeah, thank you for having me.

Pamela Marcus talks about her transition from advertising to real estate and discusses her experience with clients. Pamela also talks about “Pam’s rules” which is to always be honest and tell the clients the truth about the property. Last, Pamela discusses how advertising taught her discipline and customer service – two very valuable assets in real estate business. If you’d prefer to watch this interview, click here to view on YouTube! Pamela Marcus can be reached at pamela.marcus@compass.com and 917-628-8240. This episode is brought to you by Real Geeks. Transcript D.J. Paris 0:00We all know you’re supposed to be honest with your clients. But how can you actually use honesty to attract more clients? Or we’re going to talk to a top producer today who does exactly that. Stay tuned. This episode of Keeping it real is brought to you by real geeks. How many homes are you going to sell this year? Do you have the right tools? Is your website turning soft leads and interested buyers? Are you spending money on leads that aren’t converting? Well real geeks is your solution. Find out why agents across the country choose real geeks as their technology partner. Real geeks was created by an agent for agents. They pride themselves on delivering a sales and marketing solution so that you can easily generate more business. Their agent websites are fast and built for lead conversion with a smooth search experience for your visitors. Real geeks also includes an easy to use agent CRM. So once a lead signs up on your website, you can track their interest and have great follow up conversations. Real geeks is loaded with a ton of marketing tools to nurture your leads and increase brand awareness visit real geeks.com forward slash keeping it real pod and find out why Realtors come to real geeks to generate more business again, visit real geeks.com forward slash keeping it real pod. And now on to our show. Hello, and welcome to another episode of Keeping it real the largest podcast made by real estate agents and for real estate agents. My name is DJ Parris. I’m your guide and host through the show. And in just a moment, we’re going to be speaking with top 1% Producer Pam Marcus. But before we get to Pam, just a couple of quick reminders. Please tell a friend about this episode. Think of one other realtor that could benefit from maybe they’re struggling this year. Let’s face it. 2023 is a tough year markets picking up a little bit right now. But it’s still pretty slow out there. And a lot of realtors are depressed, depressed, dejected, and sending them a link to this episode might actually help them snap out of it and have a great 2023. So do them a favor and it also does us a favor. So please introduce them to the show, you can drive them right over to our website, which is keeping it real pod.com Or just have them pull up any podcast app search for keeping it real and hit that subscribe button we would appreciate it Okay guys, enough of me. Let’s get to the main event my conversation with Pam Marcus. Today on the show we have Marcus with the PAM Marcus team compass in New York City. Let me tell you more about him. Now Pam graduated NYU School of Business and also attended Wharton at University of Pennsylvania. And so she has this incredible pedigree but let’s let’s keep going through her history because it’s so interesting. She spent three years in bank marketing at Bankers Trust before segwaying into advertising as an account exec at Marine Midland Bank and then spent 12 years at grey advertising and 10 at Bates advert 10 years of Bates advertising convincing the public to eat brands like m&ms, Snickers, Campbell’s soup, and raisin bran cereal. And then she spent seven years in the travel business expanding a niche travel company called lawyers travel into other professional firms. And at the time, Pam didn’t even know how to use a computer or write a plane ticket. But the target figured if she knew advertising business, she would know how to take care of their travel needs. She also spent one year in her own consulting business helping hotels fine tune their marketing, and then three years at a startup called barbarac, which is they make ergonomically designed tools for women. And then eventually at the ripe young age of 60. She started her real estate career and I am so excited to welcome Pam Marcus to our show. Before that, I’d like everybody to follow her on Instagram. So please. And by the way, the link to her Instagram account is in our show notes. But you can find her at Pam Marcus real estate on Instagram and everywhere else on social media. Pam, welcome to the show. Pamela Marcus 4:28Thank you so much DJ. It’s really a pleasure to be here. And I’m flattered that you asked me to do this. D.J. Paris 4:34Well, I am flattered that you accepted to do this because I am just so impressed with anyone that starts a career of any sort at at you know the age that you did it with in your case with real estate but your background I am so fascinated with because I’m curious to learn more specifically about how that background helped you when you started and how it continues to help today. So My first question is about, you know, gosh, you had this really incredible career, non real estate related advertising, different marketing sort of jobs in different industries, and then at 60 decided to go into real estate. So why real estate at at age 60? Pamela Marcus 5:19Well, I was a number of reasons. The last place I was, which were the ergonomically designed tools for women, when we weren’t paid for six weeks, I said, this is silly, it’s time to leave. So if I’m not going to get paid, I might as well do something else. Just stay home and have fun. And what happened was, I tried to figure out what I wanted to do, because staying home and doing nothing was not going to suit me, I would drive myself and everybody else crazy. And I realized that I had done a couple of real estate investments for myself, I had done very well and that I love people. I love young people, and I love teaching and helping people. And I love shopping. So I said, you know, I think real estate could be a good fit. Am I went to school and I networked into Corcoran at the time, I knew some people. Sure. And that’s how I got into real estate. And it was an the very first client I took care of happened to be the daughter of dear friends of mine. They were of the ripe age to buy an apartment and they were my first clients. D.J. Paris 6:30Wow. And and how did you? So one quick question, because before we get to that story, because I’m curious, when you when you did start, you know, your background was was not real estate. So everyone, I’m assuming in your sphere of influence, including your friend who, whose daughter, of course, became your first client. I am curious how you made that transition known right to people in your sphere, so that they could start thinking about you as a realtor, as opposed to the marketing that, you know, somebody down on Madison Avenue being in more of the ad space, which is probably how they thought about you. Pamela Marcus 7:06I kind of I if I remember correctly, I did a mailer that basically played off of my background. You know, when I think it was sort of a plane ticket, we’re flying on to the next place. And I was a Manhattanite. I knew all these people. And I guess one tip I would always say is, people remember if they like you, they don’t always remember why. D.J. Paris 7:32Or they don’t always remember what you do, either. They just like, Pamela Marcus 7:35they just know they like you. So whether if they like you, they assume they like what you’re what you’re doing. And you know, this very first sale is kind of an interesting sale. Because I did it. And they wanted to buy an apartment that I told them not to buy. It was a land lease, and we don’t like land leases in New York unless you’re a Brit. And I said, I don’t think you should buy it. But they bought it. Well, about six months ago, I had to sell it. And I always have a rule that might the test I applied to something you buy as well do I think I will be able to sell it in five years without a lot of problems? Well, and can I do I think if the market is good, we can make a profit. Unfortunately, when I sold that this was the first sale I ever made that they lost money on the transaction. And I said to the wife, I said, Amanda, is Greg mad at me? She looked at me and she said, Absolutely not. He remembers you told them not to buy it. And and you know, they bought a very expensive apartment and they love it. And you know, but I think the thing is you if you ask me why I succeeded? It’s being totally honest. Yeah. And I guess that’s always been my nature. But at my age, I’m afraid if I wasn’t honest, I wouldn’t remember what I said. D.J. Paris 9:11So, advertising exec, who’s honest, oh my gosh. Sorry, I just that was an easy joke. Pamela Marcus 9:19But it you know, honesty is it’s everything. They may not want to hear it. But you have to tell them what you think. D.J. Paris 9:28Do you know I’ve done over 450 episodes of the show and hundreds of people I’ve interviewed and I am sure this you’re not the only person with this particular philosophy that I’m going to sort of circle back to because I found it to be particularly interesting, but it’s the first time someone’s verbalized that on our show. So I want to just make a point to step on it a little bit to make sure that it’s not lost and all the other wonderful things you said but you said two things that were really interesting. One was about When you’re always going to tell somebody the truth with the, with the idea of in five years, would I be able to resell this property for you, and actually have it be, you know, hassle free and ideally a profit. And that, to me is is fascinating. And it’s a great credo. And then, of course, you know, having to then deal with people who don’t necessarily take that advice and having to possibly disappoint them, even though you told them not to. And, and, but that honesty factor really goes a long way it reminds me of, and it’s happened just a few times in my life, when I’m thinking of buying or, or you know, buying a product or a service, and the sales rep would come back and say, You know what you don’t want you don’t want this, it’s not going to work for you. And I love that kind of honesty, and I’m always appreciative of it. And it is pretty rare, unfortunately. Pamela Marcus 10:57Yeah, I think I know where if I was giving advice it has to come from. Even if you need that commission check to pay the rent, don’t act like you do. If you have to take money out of a savings account and put it in your in your checking account. So you know, there’s a balance. It’s when you lose sight, and you’re desperate for the money that you will say anything. And you know, I’m I think where that came from from me is early on in my career. I was married and my husband was doing fine. So I didn’t need the money. And when life changed, and I really didn’t need the money, it was so ingrained in me that I’ve never acted that way. And I think that’s what people relate to. And in the end, they’re, they’re more loyal to you. And they stay with you and they recommend you. D.J. Paris 11:55Yeah, absolutely. The other thing too, about being desperate, and then acting desperate is that that oftentimes comes with less rational decision making, because your death because you’re feeling the anxiety or the fear of the financial insecurity, oh, my gosh, my checking accounts down, I need this commission to survive. And and then people start making different decisions than if their bank accounts were full. And so keeping a check on one’s own anxiety is really important. Because if that bank account is low, and you duty the commission, you have to really check yourself when you’re dealing with clients to make sure I’m still acting as if everything is okay. Because that will ultimately be in the client’s best interest. Pamela Marcus 12:43And even if you play a game with yourself, you know, you put money in the account, that’s really not money to live on. But psychologically, you have the money there. And I also think, no matter how little you have, you must give a closing gift. I cannot tell you how many people I have said to me, Oh, I’ll never recommend her. She didn’t even give me a closing gift. D.J. Paris 13:08Yeah, that’s it’s I mean, people can all they have to do is Google. The average commission on a particular like that information is even though they might not see it, when they’re closing, and they might not see the actual amount you’re getting paid, they can figure it out. And you have to assume that they are going to know it, whether they ever asked you or not. And then to think well, she just made 25 grand, and I didn’t she didn’t get me anything. I think you’re right, I think that’s a really good practice. Pamela Marcus 13:38And I also don’t think it’s how much you spend, I think it’s more what the thought else, and that you understand who these people are and what they could relate to, for example, people my age, I will often give them stationery, you know, engraved stationery with the name Manila dress, you wouldn’t want it if it was the last gift in the world. So it you know what makes sense for who the person is. D.J. Paris 14:07So you’re very intentional and thoughtful about what that person might like and want. And you’ve probably know their hobbies and sort of what their interests are, and then can can give them an appropriate gift as opposed to just getting the same thing for everybody, every time. That’s really important. I am fascinated by your ad background. And again, I know you haven’t just been in advertising, you’ve done a lot of different things. But I’m curious because we were talking before we started and you were saying my background really helped me when I decided to get into real estate. Do you mind sharing a little bit about what that means to you? Pamela Marcus 14:41Well, I was an account guy on packaged goods accounts. And by the time I finished it, Bates I was running all of the m&m Mars business. And I’ve been doing it for over 20 years and you really learn customer service and You learned how to deal with people and you learn how to listen. And I think that is the kind of background that I have much more patience now than I would have had. I’m not sure 20 or 30 years ago, I would have had patience to put up with all these questions. And, you know, so I think it it and it also taught a discipline of how to approach something, how to present it, you know, people are impressed if you don’t just walk around with a bunch of loose papers, but you lay it out, I wrote a buyer’s guide. And in the Buyer’s Guide, it has things like Pam’s rules, and people get a kick out of that. Because my rules are things like if we walk into a lobby, and it’s fake flowers, is that the kind of building you want to live in with fake flowers? D.J. Paris 15:53And, boy, I could talk for a full hour about my hatred of fake flower. Pamela Marcus 15:58Okay, there’s your answer. And then if I’m with people that are my age, or even a little younger, I don’t know how I feel about six or eight steps into the building, you know, someday, that may be a problem. And you know, I guess people they tell me, I’m funny. I don’t think I’m funny. I think I’m being honest. You know, to me, a living room that’s narrower than 12 feet looks like a bowling alley. So it’s those kind of things, or I made a mistake when I wasn’t in this business. And I bought an apartment, and it was on the third floor. And I only looked at the daylight. I never knew there was a street lamp outside of my bedroom window. Oh, yes. So those are the kinds of things that I think what you’re what I’m trying to do is educate them in ways that they feel as if they have greater knowledge, you know, how high the ceilings are? Or just the kind of you have to have a bathtub? You know, because if there are babies who need a bathtub. So I think it’s, I call it Pam’s rules? D.J. Paris 17:14Well, what it sounds like is two things. So what I hear you saying is, number one, obviously, your listening skills, your this comes from working on accounts, I’m guessing where, you know, you had to serve various masters during those account meetings, you had to win over groups of people at other companies, and you’re competing with every other ad firm in town who wants that business, and it become, really can become about presentation and, and of course, relationship and all everything, it’s so everything is so important. But then I also heard you talk, it’s really giving your own opinions about things which Realtors oftentimes are, I find, are reluctant to give opinion, because they sort of don’t want to rock the boat. They don’t know what someone’s, you know, particular interests, or, you know, you know, likes and dislikes might be, so they just go you know, I’m just gonna stay neutral. The client likes it good. client doesn’t like it, we’ll move on. I like the fact that you come in and say, Hey, this looks like a bowling alley. I think that is incredibly honest. And it really again demonstrates you don’t need or the commission more more than you need the person to be happy in their home. And I think the willingness to give your own opinion is probably a very powerful tool when dealing with clients. Pamela Marcus 18:35Well, I had an interesting experience the other day, we sold an apartment, and now the woman wants to buy another apartment, and we’ve been looking and looking. And we walk into an apartment. And she says to me, I really liked this. I said, Good now come to the window. And we walked to the window. And the adjacent living room could look right into her bedroom. I said to her, you can’t go to the window on a night gown. Is that what you want? Yeah. And she said, Oh, thank you. And then of course that evening, she had found something she really liked. And she wrote back and she said to me, you know, I want your opinion. Do you really like it? I said, Yeah, you know, you have my opinion. You were in love with the apartment before that and I’d made to go to the window should Oh, yeah, you’re right. But they trust you then. You don’t just keep saying yes. It they don’t need frankly, why do we deserve a commission check if all we do is arrange appointments, D.J. Paris 19:45right? Zillow can pretty much do all of that without you write. For the most Pamela Marcus 19:49we don’t. If we if we don’t add value, then why bother? Which is another one of my sort of pet peeves. I think you need to specialize is in a certain area, you can’t know all of Manhattan. If you I mean, if you look at my website, and you look at what I’ve sold, yeah, I’ve sold all over Manhattan, or even a couple in Brooklyn, and but there’s probably not a building on the Upper East Side that I don’t know about. Yeah. So I’m going to your, your domain that that and Sutton Place it, that’s my domain, and I’m happy to help help you any place. But I have better value in those places. And that’s one of the benefits of a team. Because different people have different skill sets in different areas. D.J. Paris 20:39Now, before we move forward, I always forget to do this until the very end of the show. So I’m going to do it now, since you just mentioned your team, because not everyone makes it to the end of the show, which only taken me five years to figure this out. But I figured it out finally, so I want to make a quick note for our listeners and our our viewers, which is that if you are a New York City agent, and you would like to work on a team, like the PAM Marcus team at Compass, and you think you might be a good asset to them, or they might be a good asset for you. I want you to reach out to Pam, because your team is looking currently for agents. Pam, quick, two quick questions about that. One, what is your team looking for in an agent, what would be like an ideal recruit for possibly your team, and then what’s the best way that they should reach out to you? Pamela Marcus 21:30I only like people who are hungry and want to work hard. It’s a little bit to me, I when I was divorced, and us your friends fix me up a tooth that only takes you so far, you have to be willing to go find some dates on your own. And it’s the same thing with me Don’t go on a team because you just want them to feed you business team will give you some business, but you also need to be building your own network and your own business. So I think you need the sense of initiation, I we all do things differently. But we all should have the same core values. And to me a team is not just to increase the GCI for a higher split to me a team is we think like, I can let you go and talk to a client and I know what will come out of your mouth will be similar to what I would say, the the team, the person who’s on the team, the longest since we’ve had a team is been with me for six years. I hear him speak and I think it’s my voice at this point most of the time. So you know, coming out of a younger person. So I think you need to I look I love to teach, you know, at this point, I love mentoring people. And because when I was in advertising, I mentored a lot of people and I still do. But you have to be hungry, and you want to you have to be willing to work hard. You have to be willing. I’m a little crazy. I can get you know, a little testy. But if you’re on my team, you know I love you and would do anything for you. Yeah. Well, that’s that’s, I think they’re my children. D.J. Paris 23:24Yeah, well, it’s a family. Yes, you know, to some degree and I. So if someone does think they may want to join the family and think they could provide value to you and receive a benefit, what’s the best way they should reach out to you? Pamela Marcus 23:41Shoot me an email. D.J. Paris 23:43Do you mind sharing your email Pamela Marcus 23:45pam.marcus@compass.com D.J. Paris 23:48Easy enough. And by the way, we will have a link to Pam’s email. So pam.marcus@compass.com, we will have a link to that in our show notes as well. And I’d be thrilled. Well, and I would be thrilled to hopefully find one of one of our listeners be possibly a fit for you. The other thing I want to mention very quickly before moving on to the rest of Pam story. And I’m so excited to hear more about I want to talk specifically about the ad background and how you bring the professionalism that you had back then in those client meetings and those, you know, those those types of business winning or possibly losing opportunities into the real estate world. But I’m also I wanted to also mention for anyone out there who is not in the New York area and maybe as a realtor in another part of the country or even in another even in another country. If you have clients that may be relocating moving to New York City, maybe people in the financial world are just for whatever reason moving to in maybe they’re having a second home or or they’re moving entirely over into the East Coast. Pam would love the opportunity to connect with you too and be a resource for you if you have clients moving into that area. So reach out to her as well. She would be honored to talk about Your client. So Pam question about going into appointments with real estate clients, maybe for the first time. And let’s assume this isn’t necessarily a referral, even though I know probably all your businesses or most of your business is probably referral. But let’s say it’s somebody who doesn’t know like and trust you yet. I imagine the idea of walking in? Well, I don’t know, you know, I’m going to ask you, because I don’t want to make any assumptions. Would you walk in, you sort of talked about this earlier, but I just want to drill down, would you walk in to let’s just say, a listing presentation? And let’s say that, you know, that that, that this client may be interviewing one or two other realtors, which, you know, I guess happens, of course, would you come in with a presentation? Would you come in with a blank pad of paper? Would you do it a different way? I’m curious to hear your thoughts on what works best for you. Pamela Marcus 25:52First of all, I wouldn’t do it alone. And I learned this from advertising, people are going to like somebody better than they like someone else. And there’s a woman on my team who’s a little younger than I am, but a mature woman. We have been on two or three pitches together. We have never won the pitch. I always wait. And you always take someone else with you what I find, boy, girl, young, old, different personality. I partner very often on deals with someone at another agency, we’re very different. And that’s it’s not about the ego. If a if a lead comes in or request comes in, I would never do it on Okay, your next man up, you know, whatever. Not everybody’s not equal. You need to understand the situation and bring who you think make sense for that situation. And two peas in a pod, but you don’t need to. D.J. Paris 27:04That makes that makes a lot of sense. Sorry, we have a fire truck going but Okay, hopefully that wasn’t too loud. That Well, that was loud. Sorry. But yes, I that’s very interesting. I’ve yet to hear anyone mentioned specifically, there are lots of teams that do those together. But I’ve I’ve yet to hear anybody say we do this as a group that are to some degree more than me, just in case, maybe they don’t connect as much to me, but my team member, and also just, it really just expands the opportunity to win the business, I think because I don’t see it hurting the business, the opportunity, if you have another person with you, it only possibly could help because you’re right. Maybe they don’t connect to me, for whatever reason, but maybe they connect to this other person. So that’s really a smart idea is to bring somebody who has a kind of a different skill set or a different, you know, just a different Yeah, purse, different personality. Pamela Marcus 27:59Yeah. And it does one other thing if you win, win it, and you’re the only one that went. If anyone else goes to show the listing, they feel that they’re getting second fiddle. If they’re in the listing presentation initially, you’re closer to being on equal footing, and they don’t feel as if they’re being deprived if that person does most of the listing most of the showings that I do all the negotiating. D.J. Paris 28:28I love that. Oh, what a question about the listing appointment. Are you bringing in a presentation or Yes, yes, yeah. Pamela Marcus 28:36But that’s probably my background. And people fall for it. People like it. They like when it it. They feel as if you think they’re important, and you’re treating them properly. And the once or twice I got suckered into going Oh, would you just stop by? It never worked? D.J. Paris 28:59Yeah, it’s I am. I guess I’m impressed by people I know who just go I just bring in a blank pad of paper. And I have talked to those producers, those top producers. That’s the I would say that’s the exception rather than the rule because every top producer I they almost laugh when I asked them like, of course I bring in a presentation. I respect this person and their time. And maybe if it’s your best friend, you might not need that. But if it’s somebody who doesn’t, you know, isn’t in your close sphere. You have to win the business. You know that from the ad game? Pamela Marcus 29:33And even if you don’t win, even if you don’t have to, you’re treating them with respect. Yeah, I got an interesting call to divert a minute, last week from someone and she said to me, okay, I’d like to sell my apartment on Park Avenue. said okay, I said, you know, so many brokers. Why are you calling me you? Have you met me once or you know? Well, it turned out that I played canasta with her in Florida twice. Okay. Ken, so am I said to her? I’m flattered why you calling me. She’s what? I figured we’re good canasta player, you’re good broker. But and I am going down to see her next week. And I said, Well, she already gave it to me. I’m bringing yet I’m putting a presentation together. I don’t think you assume. Yeah. So you treat it as if it’s a new business pitch. D.J. Paris 30:39Even when it’s your canasta teammate, you’re going to say, you know, you’re probably more likely to win the business. And I’m still going to treat you as if you don’t owe me at all. And because there’s, there’s really no downside, right? The only downside is maybe you don’t win the business. But it’s not because you didn’t show up prepared. It might just be, you know, their son might be a realtor in New York, and they ended up doing that instead. Who knows. But, but it’s not because I wasn’t prepared. And that, you know, obviously, in the ad space, I don’t know if it’s still so much that way. But certainly it was in the past, and it probably is exactly that way still. Pamela Marcus 31:16So you can when you do that, yeah. But DJ, when you do that presentation, I think the strongest piece in our pitch package is what percent? Have we gotten relative to asking price on the last 10 sales? D.J. Paris 31:30Ah, Pamela Marcus 31:32so you’re fairly comfortable that we’re not coming in giving you a pie in the sky? Number two, when the listing will show? We’ll do that. Yeah, we’re showing you what we priced it at and what we sold it for. For the end, we keep it up to date on the last 10 listings. D.J. Paris 31:53i That’s just, I’m only pausing because I love that. And it really is, here’s my most recent track record. And here’s why it’s important. Here’s it’s in your case, it sounds like this is the important metric, because it is yes, I have all this history. And I have kind of a neat story. And, you know, my team’s really cool, and we’re great. And let me just show you what we actually do. And that is where the rubber meets the road, the data. And you’re basically saying, Well, here’s the last 10 transactions, because and that’s really, really smart. Because there are going to be if they are interviewing other agents, agents going to come in and go, Well, if I tell them it’s worth X, that might just win the business in and of itself. You’re obviously you’re that goes against your I mean, unless it’s true, you’re unwilling to, of course, you know, inflate a number. And as a result that, but you’re like, but here’s what I’ve actually done. I think that is incredibly powerful. I love that, again, something else nobody’s ever said on our show. Which is that’s why me Pamela Marcus 33:00well, by the time they’re my age. D.J. Paris 33:04Let’s talk about So okay, so I think I have somewhat of a sense of Oh, and by the way, one last thing about the listing presentation or the buyer presentation, where you don’t yet have the business. The presentation we talked about you come prepared, you have something that looks professional has some current data, you know, you’re going to explain everything that you do for the client, how important is the listening part of that, as well. And again, I’m curious to how that relates back to the ad background, where you’ve probably seen mistakes, ad execs have made in these pitches where they’re just like, I know what the client needs, and they push forward. And it’s not really what the client wants at all. And they didn’t do that listening components. I’m curious how important is that listening part when you’re in these presentations, Pamela Marcus 33:52very important. Let them talk let you listen to what they really want. And we never put a price in the listing presentation. We say we can’t give you the price until we see the apartment. You know you can tell us it’s meant and it might have been Min 35 years ago. So it we give you a price when we’re with you or we’ll say we’ll we’ll email you but you’ve back but that’s true in anything DJ about listening and just listening to what people are saying and what’s important to them. And it’s still their home. I mean for the most part we’re not selling investments we’re selling it was their home and they love it. And you can’t you can’t really you don’t want to insult them are very often in New York, it’s an estate and they really not ready to say goodbye to mama. We we I mean and there’s if they’re not ready, we tried to sell an apartment tried to sell it and finally after six months He said, Okay, I give up your complaintant and stage it, while we painted it and stage it and sold it within 5% of the asking price in a week, but they are not ready. So you really got to be sensitive. And listen. And I think you also have to show that there are so many agents, what makes you different. And one of the things we do and because it’s my marketing background, and I have such fun with it, is we wrote the buyer’s guide, we wrote a coloring book. And it’s a coloring book that has about 10 or 15 line drawings that really were photographs of different listings. But on each one is a fact about New York that relates to that picture. I’ve seen other people do coloring books, but it’s just a coloring book. Ours is an educational coloring book. And then it ends with a crossword puzzle about real estate. Now, even though that’s really not for the seller, it says we do things that are a little different. To get attention and show you we care, we just did a deck of cards. And the first card deck on the first card on the deck is the PAM Marcus team deals with a full deck. And the two jokers one is me and one is the team. I love it. And then it’s divided into neighborhoods and places in the neighborhood. So I think people like that they think they’re not just treated that they’re only going to get it just just sold just listed postcard, which I find very boring anyway. D.J. Paris 36:41Well, I would I would ask you what your opinion of just listed and just sold social media posts are but I suspect I know, which is whatever. No, go ahead. What is your I Pamela Marcus 36:51think it I think it’s good to get your name out there and good to give you credibility. And I think I think what’s important, and I tell the team, we all solicit business differently. I can’t tell you that the way I do it fits you. So but you need to do it, whatever is that works for you come up with a plan and do it. I mean, I got a sale coming out of a funeral. I spoke to someone at the funeral, someone sat next to me on a plane. And I ended up selling his father a you know, an expensive apartment three months later, but not everybody is comfortable doing it that way? Sure. So it’s it, you’ve got to, I guess what I’m saying is, you have to be yourself and find what works for you. D.J. Paris 37:47And that takes courage. I think it takes courage to give your opinion about something that it would be maybe easier in some ways to close a sale without giving your opinion like you were saying, the woman with you know, the person looking right into our living room, it would be easy for you to say Oh, I better not show her that. And that would go against all of your values. So I never, I would never suggest you wouldn’t do that. But a lot of agents would. And I think maybe that in it like, this is great. I’ll tell you a corollary example or kind of similar example to me because I don’t produce real estate. But, but I have an accountant, like a lot of us. And like this is this is it almost makes me want to cry. But I love this about my accountant. I never speak to her until she is like, Okay, you need to pay XY and Z. Well, a couple of weeks, or actually before the end of the year, she sent me a note. And it’s always sort of like humorous to get this and but it did make me almost want to cry. But I love this about her. She said, I’m getting really nervous about you this year. And for whatever reason, maybe there’s been some tax law changes or something I don’t know, she goes, I’m getting really nervous. I need you to cut a check to the government for this giant sum that I was not expected. And she goes, I just think this will help cushion the blow come tax time. And as as painful as it was to cut this check. I was like I love the fact that she got nervous about me. Like it sounds simple. But I like when my doctors show that they care about me in a way that’s more than and when my accountants like I’m thinking about you. And I’m getting a little scared. And I want to do this because I want to. And I was like, This is why I love this accountant. And maybe she’s the best out there. Maybe she’s not the best out there. I don’t know. She cares. And I’m in until till I get audited. I’m not going to I’m not going to change because I know she cares, right or wrong, good or bad. She cares about me. And that to me is the most important thing because I suspect she’ll work harder for me because she cares now maybe she’s just saying it. I don’t know, but it seems like she cares. And as a result, I won’t you know every so often I look for another account and just to make sure that my account is doing the right things, but I’ve not I wouldn’t leave unless all of a sudden someone’s like, oh my gosh, she’s really doing the wrong stuff for you, because she cares. So I think that is such an underrated or not talked about you talked about likability earlier, this likability factor is a real thing. And it is people make decisions based as we know that based on who they know, like and trust, and you have an opport, everyone has an opportunity to but you have to earn this, I think you have to earn know, like and trust through your actions. And obviously, you’re doing this, I have a quick question. So we talked about when you have a client, you know, sort of the professional part of going in with, with with all of your ducks in a row and really treating them as special as they are. But then the transaction happens. And then maybe there’s a seven year window where they’re maybe longer or shorter, where they’re not transacting in real estate. And they might, of course, refer business, but they themselves aren’t needing your services necessarily. What are you doing in between that time to make sure that they don’t forget about you? I don’t think they could forget about you, but just in the off chance that they that you don’t want them to what are you doing? Pamela Marcus 41:12Well, I told you, I like shopping. And somehow I started about 15 years ago, I give clients gifts at holiday time. It’s always it’s one gift goes to everybody, but it’s always something related to the house. And it’s young old boy girl never has the brand on it never has my name on it never, you know nothing, not that it is a personal gift. And I have now gone into homes when they go to sell and see seven or eight of them all over the place. So we do do holiday gift stirring COVID We did a couple of gifts, you know, we said you’re washing your hands so much we send some fancy soap. Sure, you know, a month or so later, we sent chocolate and said you need a little sweetness. You know, we if someone refer someone to me, and that person buys something, I send a referral gift, knowing who you are and what you would like, I do send the quarterly reports to the whole CRM database. But I think and the team sort of says that I don’t really follow the CRM database, I just kind of go Gee, I haven’t spoken to so and so in a while. And I’ll give them a call and say let’s have lunch or breakfast or meet for a drink and how are you? So it’s reaching out? Because it’s my network that gives me my business. And I think they can tell why would you want something with the compass logo on it. So D.J. Paris 42:55it’s funny, it’s funny, because I suspect I’m sorry to interrupt, I just want to make this point, because you just said it so beautifully, is you wouldn’t want things with brand specific stuff on it, because it does change the way people perceive that object, of course, and you might not want in your home to have you know, something sitting out that says so and so accountant or, or whatever the professional service is, and I’m in that same group, I agree. And obviously other realtors feel differently, and they do put their logos on things, and that’s fine. But I love the fact that you’re like, I don’t need to put my brand on here because I’m maintaining this relationship regardless. So they don’t need to look at the item and see my name because I’m staying in touch with them. Isn’t is that sort of the understanding is I’m not gonna get about you anyway. Pamela Marcus 43:44Okay, well, but you do need because at this point to be honest, EJ, if the lawyer that I’ve used for a long time got a call from an ex client, and then and he said to the client, well, how come you’re not using Pam on this trade? And it was someone that I had, you know, not been crazy about not really pursued? And she said, Oh, I thought she was retired or passed away, because I haven’t heard from her in a while. So it’s important to keep in touch with who you want to keep in touch with you know. D.J. Paris 44:22And by the way, thank you for that honesty of Hey, everyone, everybody snug Pamela Marcus 44:27Yes, when everybody’s not gonna want you know, and you’re not right for everyone. And this is a personal relationship. So you want to be with someone who you think a understands you b will fight for you and really cares. I mean, I had someone this week is in love with an apartment and doesn’t want to lose it. I said it’s good thing you’re not negotiating. D.J. Paris 44:55I suck because you’re not willing to walk away I said Pamela Marcus 44:59you Because you’d be overpaying, just let me play it out. I promise you, I won’t, you won’t lose it. But I’m not giving them full asking price until I have to it. D.J. Paris 45:13How many agents? What percentage of agents do you think and this is just a guess. But you’ve, you know, what percentage of agents wouldn’t would say what you said? Don’t worry, I have this. I am not going to let you overpay. And I know what what to do here. I think that’s a rare thing. And I applaud you for again, having a conviction having an opinion, and and sticking to it in the client’s best interest. Pamela Marcus 45:43What will you hope? I mean? Also, you have to remember the Jay I can get away saying things that the 30 year old can’t say it’s true, they will take it from me a little more than they’ll take it from everybody else. But it you have to really care. This is a tough business. There’s a lot of competitors. The other parts that I don’t think that brokers realize is how important your relationship is with the other brokers. Oh, I specially I don’t think that’s true outside of New York with all the lock boxes, but we don’t have lock boxes we interact. And very often it’s the broker who decides who gets the deal. And we all know there are certain brokers, I won’t go to their listing, you know, I won’t, they’re just too hard to do a deal with. And if you have that relationship with other brokers, your buyers going to get it because they know you’re going to play fair and square, they know they’re going to get a good board package. So I think people underplay the importance of playing well with their colleagues. D.J. Paris 46:56And, you know, this, too, came so much into play in the last several years during especially during lockdown with will say during the 3% rate, you know, time where we had so many buyers, and there were so many multiple offer situations, a lot of times sight unseen. And there is something to be said that highest and best offer might not win the deal, because maybe they go oh, I don’t know who this agent is, or they don’t have a good track record, or I don’t like them personally. And then they see a friendly name. Oh, I know. I know, Pam, she’s great. She’s gonna get this thing done. She’s a real pro. I imagine that in and of itself wins, sometimes over highest and best. Pamela Marcus 47:40Yeah, I think yes. And the firm you’re with and the credentials of that firm, and it’s important. People want to have a comfort level. So it’s it you have to play nice with the other with the your colleagues as well. D.J. Paris 47:56Yeah, it really just helps everyone, when when you do and I imagine you have to grin and bear it sometimes as well, when other agents aren’t being super nice to you. And I’m sure that happens a lot. Because, you know, for a million reasons, obviously, people treat women differently than men. And you know, people of different ages are treated differently. And again, this idea of also dealing with some of the abuse, I imagine that comes in, Pamela Marcus 48:24I like to you have to remember I built a career on brands. So to me, the brand is important, because it means something. Yeah. And I see, we get a reputation and you can’t change your reputation. You earn it one way or the other. D.J. Paris 48:44I used to do marketing 4 million years ago on right out of college with Anheuser Busch in St. Louis. And this was back when Budweiser was was known as the king of beers even I think today, but it was really the number one that and Bud Light were the two biggest beer sold in the country. And I always before working for them, I thought oh, those are kind of lower tier beers, they’re fine, but they’re not like good quality. Well, when I when I started working there, I learned that the quality control is so impressive at some of these brands, including Anheuser Busch, that oh, you know, they’re maybe they’re at a different price point than higher end product, but their product is perfectly done. And and there was a certain level of perfection that I was not used to in my normal life. And I was like, Oh, this is why they’re at the time. This is why they’re number one. Everything is professionally perfected. And you’re you’re coming from that same world of Yep, we get it, you know, whether it’s m&ms or you know, something that’s considered you know, a different price point for a snack. m&m people, to them, their product is is is incredibly important to them, and of course their professionalism for anyone that one interact with it like you on the on the ad side, you treat it as it’s the most important thing, just like you do with your clients today. I am going to just watch curious for one last question, and then we’ll wrap up. But I think it’s a good one. Or I hope it’s a good one, which is to say, right now we know 2023 is projected to be a challenging year for agents, you know, low inventory high rates, although hopefully the rates are starting to come down, thankfully, but still a challenging year, I’d say would would be fair, or at least according to the NAR Chief Economist who I saw a few weeks ago, so he was even saying it’s gonna be a tough year. But anyway, I’m curious what you would suggest to maybe a teammate of yours or just an agent who is isn’t saddled with a lot of clients right now. Maybe they’re like, I don’t know, really what to do. I’d love to drum up some more business. Just curious, what would you do? If you were maybe finding, oh, gosh, I don’t really have a lot of clients right now. What might you do to sort of seek out additional business? Or what would you recommend for somebody to do Pamela Marcus 51:02focus on where your strengths are, if you have sold in one building a couple of apartments, build on that. Send send a couple of mailings, not just sold just listed. But we we’ve done kitchen, you know, refrigerator magnets for a zip code, and listed 10 or 15, places on that little map. But not You’re not the supermarket in places you might not know about so that their message is, we know your neighborhood. So we know how to sell your neighborhood. Do some interesting mailings. But don’t go try something, see if it works, and then expand it. Everything is not going to work, see what will work and then expand it where you have more knowledge. I mean, I always found people say to me, Well, how do you pick up so much? How do you pick up so many people in an open house? Well, if you went to that Open House prepared, and you knew everything that was in your competitive set, and you knew the neighborhood, and you knew everything about it, they walked out and they said, Hmm, if I had a broker that represented me, I want to deal with somebody who really knows. And you’ve demonstrated that, you know, and that’s, I think, the most important advice, it’s like, you know, an educated consumer is is the best. And that’s what you really you want to be educated. You want to know what you’re talking about, and not just be sending out a bunch of BS and stand out, stand up for who you are, you know, defend your clients fight fear clients, I will just tell you one, I think about it often. My second client ever was a big sale for me. And it was a Fifth Avenue apartment. The lawyers couldn’t get together, everybody was nitpicking over the stupid contract. And I was so green at the time, I didn’t know better, but I called the meeting of the buyer and the seller in the apartment without the lawyers. And I stood there and I said, Do you want to buy? Yes. Do you want to sell? Yes. I said, Okay, well, we’re gonna stand here till we hash it out. And then we’re going to give it to the lawyers to draw up the contract. Do you know work? Brilliant, as well, but it worked. You had you have a buyer and you have the seller? Yeah. And they could not, you know, get past it. And I sometimes the attorneys get in the way for sure. Absolutely. And the truth was after that the when I got back to the office, and eventually it closed, my manager said to me, Pam, you’re going to make it in this business. So I think you know, you do what you need to do to get the job done professionally and showing you care. I’m always buying baby gifts. You know, I’m like The Walking baby gift person, but it’s always something I as I said, I like shopping. So it’s it’s fun. D.J. Paris 54:17Yeah, I just wanted to say one last thing as we wrap up that I meant to interject earlier, because you mentioned this and I again, demonstrating care. This checks that box for me in a way that I’ve never heard an agent say that they do, but it’s something that I would recommend to all of our listeners, and it’s probably something Pam does, which is she said something very important that I thought about after I bought my first condo back however many years ago, I thought, boy, I’m so lucky that at nighttime, this area doesn’t turn into like this crazy hotbed of activity that might interrupt my sleeping or you were Talking about like having a light that might come right into the, to the, to the house that from the street, and just and maybe even just hearing what it’s like when people are home and if it’s a multi unit property are they able to hear, you know, above and below them and those things which become really important once you move in, but maybe aren’t you don’t, you know, maybe you saw it at like 11 o’clock on a Friday when everyone at the building is at work and there’s no noise at all and, and you know, going in, and as a realtor. I always I always thought But wouldn’t it be cool if Realtors would say, you know, it’s a Friday night, I’m gonna head down to the place that you’re looking at. I just want to kind of get a sense of what what the, you know, is there anything weird with the lighting? Is there any weird noise coming from the street, or I’d like to bring you down and let’s make sure you’re comfortable with it. But however you do it, that is a brilliant thing, because that is, boy, there’s nothing more annoying than moving into a place and then finding out. There’s this obstruction that you just didn’t know about. Because you didn’t. We weren’t there at 10pm at night on a Friday. Pamela Marcus 56:01Right? And I always say go walk the neighborhood. Smart. Just go walk, see how you like it. I tell people, I like a block that has a lot of doorman, so that there’s always somebody when you’re walking down the block. But yeah, take your time to get educated. And even in the things we’re not allowed to say. Point them in the direction to learn what they can learn. D.J. Paris 56:29Well, perfectly set in a perfect place to sort of wrap up this episode for everyone listening. On behalf of everyone listening or watching, we thank you, for we thank Pam on behalf of the audience for spending an hour with us, we are so grateful. I can’t even count the number of tips you provided maybe without even realizing it. Well over a dozen of great tips from top, from a top producer about what you can implement immediately. That will increase your professionalism, also, the way that your clients think about you. So I want and then on behalf of all of our audience, on behalf of Pam and myself, we want to thank our audience as well for making it all the way to the end of the episode. We’re here to serve you, the audience. And we appreciate it a couple of quick things, the best way that you can help us grow is by telling a friend so think of one other agent in your office, maybe somebody you know, especially somebody that’s struggling right now it’s a tough year, send them a link to this episode with Pam, and help them help themselves in this year. So you can send it right over to our website, which is keeping it real pod.com All 450 Whatever episodes we’ve done, you can stream right from a browser you don’t have to even use a podcast app. Or if the person is a podcast person, just search for keeping it real and hit that subscribe button. And I also want everyone to follow Pam on Instagram, find her at Pam Marcus real estate. Also, you can email her if you maybe have a referral for her or you’re interested in joining your team pam.marcus@compass.com Both of those links will be in the show notes so you can just click there. But Pam, thank you so much. Pamela Marcus 58:04I thank you so much. I enjoyed it tremendously. Appreciate it. D.J. Paris 58:10Everybody, you too and we’ll see everybody on the next time. Thanks, Pam. Thank you

Kim Rittberg as an Tv news producer ,marketing medial specialist and coach for real estate agents talks about her experience in this field. Next, Kim emphasized the importance of social media and how making simple cheaper videos takes agents closer to clients. She also presents her method to prepare videos – called PATCH. If you’d prefer to watch this interview, click here to view on YouTube! Kim Rittberg can be reached here. This episode is brought to you by Real Geeks. Transcript D.J. Paris 0:00What our top branding and marketing consultants telling Top realtors to do this year to grow their business. Or we’re going to be speaking with one of those consultants today. Stay tuned this episode of Keeping it real is brought to you by real geeks. How many homes are you going to sell this year? Do you have the right tools? Is your website turning soft leads and interested buyers? Are you spending money on leads that aren’t converting? Well real geeks is your solution. Find out why agents across the country choose real geeks as their technology partner. Real geeks was created by an agent for agents. They pride themselves on delivering a sales and marketing solutions so that you can easily generate more business. There agent websites are fast and built for lead conversion with a smooth search experience for your visitors. Real geeks also includes an easy to use agent CRM. So once a lead signs up on your website, you can track their interest and have great follow up conversations. Real geeks is loaded with a ton of marketing tools to nurture your leads and increase brand awareness visit real geeks.com forward slash keeping it real pod and find out why Realtors come to real geeks to generate more business again, visit real geeks.com forward slash keeping it real pod and now on to our show Hello, and welcome to another episode of Keeping it real the largest podcast made by real estate agents and for real estate agents. My name is DJ Paris. I am your guide and host through the show and in just a moment we’re going to be speaking with branding and marketing consultant to realtors. Kim Rydberg before we get to Kim, just a couple of quick reminders. Please tell a friend about this episode. So many agents need help with their branding and marketing. And they can get some unbelievable tips from Kim In this episode, so send him over to our website keeping it real pod.com Every episode we’ve ever recorded, it can be streamed right from the browser, any browser and of course please support our sponsors there they were there who keep the bills paid and keep our staff paid so we can keep producing episodes. So check out their services and products and consider investing in them. All of the vendors that we have as sponsors develop products specifically to help you do more business. Okay guys, enough of that let’s get to the main event my conversation with Kim Rydberg. Today on the show we referred to is a marketing and media specialist I wanted to tell you more about now Kim Rydberg is an award winning digital content strategist and an on camera coach. She spent 15 years as a media executive at Netflix, also People Magazine and in TV news and she launched the first Apple ever digital video unit for Us Weekly magazine. Now Kim coaches real estate agents to be better on camera and make unforgettable social media video and podcast content that brings in leads clients and revenue. Kim has been featured in Business Insider and Fast Company and has been a speaker and instructor at Penn and Syracuse University and is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania and Annenberg School. She also by the way, my brother in law is also a patent grad. And he didn’t graduate from Annenberg. So that’s a new word for me. But graduating from University of Pennsylvania Annenberg School, she also hosts her own podcast called mom’s exit interview, which spurred by her decision to quit corporate and launch her own business after working in a hospital while giving birth to her second child. This podcast helps women craft careers that work for their lives instead of the other way around. That podcast again is called mom’s exit interview. We will have a link to both Kim’s website which you can find all things Gam at her website, Kim rydberg.com I will spell that que imrittberg.com link to that in the show notes as well as the mom’s exit interview podcast. Kim, welcome to the show. Kim Rittberg 4:23Thank you so much for having me. D.J. Paris 4:25Super excited to have you i i only ever talked to realtors. So this is very exciting for me to talk to somebody that works with realtors and also somebody with an extensive media background and really all things media and all things video production TV would love to sort of get your take on what realtors can do to better further their online brands. Specifically social media, you know, video, anything and everything that you see working and also maybe some don’ts, right some do’s and don’ts, but Before we get to that, tell us about your history. How did you get involved in media? Kim Rittberg 5:04So my the beginning of my media career, I was a TV news producer for inside edition. So it’s a bit of everything red carpet, real estate lifestyle, it was great. Learn how to tell stories. And then I worked at on the record with Greta Van Susteren. So that was sure, yeah, a lot of crime politics. And then to be honest, I was never really a news junkie. And so I really wanted to get closer to the creative content. So I worked in long form TV for a bit like wives with knives, True Crime type of stuff. And then I launched the video unit for Us Weekly. So basically, I turned a conference room, into a live TV studio, we had an 18 person team that I was overseeing all the operations and all the creative. And what I love about that is that is what business owners and real estate agents right now are doing, everyone now is tasked with turning their office into a studio. And I think that’s probably one of the best skills that I took away from that storytelling, but also being resourceful with whatever you have. And since then, I also worked at Netflix and marketing and branded content, Pop Sugar, and now I run my own business, where I help real estate agents take those, take what they’re good at what they’re best at, but really harnessing that and helping them create great video and podcast to grow their business. D.J. Paris 6:21It’s really interesting, and you certainly have the pedigree for this conversation, which is why we were so excited to have you on because so often, I only really talk to realtors who do their own social media, their own video production, and some are so impressive. And but again, they’re primarily realtors, this is, you know, an extension of their marketing efforts. And, you know, I like they don’t necessarily have this background and experience in traditional, you know, long form and short form media and US Weekly is a really good example because of course, as the magazine becomes less and less popular, as less people are reading, you know, the the physical copy, obviously, their video has to really shine, which I love what I like about US Weekly, and I’m not a reader myself. But what I understand about US Weekly is they are masters at capturing somebody’s attention, holding their attention for a shorter period of time giving them something that that is of interest or exciting to the reader or their their viewer. And then moving on to the next thing. And they are just I mean, I don’t know that there’s anyone quite as good at the celebrity news game. TMZ, of course, is also really good at that. But But Us Weekly is kind of, you know, I’ve always thought of them as like top of the mountain. So I’m super, and then Netflix, of course, everyone listening as a subscriber or, well, you’re not stealing passwords anymore, because that over the weekend has been? Well, they haven’t officially I think rolled it out just yet. But it’s been announced, it’s the free ride is over 100 million people are going to have to figure out, you know, it gives them the 15 bucks, guys, it’s not that expensive. Let’s keep these big companies in business, we want good content. But anyway, enough about my little Netflix rant. But let’s um, let’s talk a little bit about what Realtors could do. And I think this is the year to talk about it because obviously videos not becoming less popular. But but also, this is a time I think that often our our audience our listeners or viewers are having and this is kind of an unfortunate thing. But this is a tougher time to be a realtor the we have lending rates are are significantly higher than they were two to three years ago. So less buyers are in the market. And we have inventory shortages all over the place. So this is a time when realtors are often very frustrated. This isn’t necessarily the easiest time but it does provide an opportunity to put some time in that you maybe don’t normally have into sort of furthering your video brand or your your social media banner your podcast. So anyway, we’d love to sort of start at the start like what what do agents not understand? Or where could they get started? How do you recommend that people start to learn? Kim Rittberg 9:07Great question and great point. I think you’re right that even when you’re feeling stressed about the clients are the sellers and the rates are. That’s actually the time when you need to say what makes me different. What makes me unique, and how do I stand out? The biggest thing I like to remind people, I think this gets forgotten. It’s not that you’re gonna make one video, and that one video is going to sell a house or that one video is going to bring in a client. It’s that a consistent strategy of doing video will two things, build new relationships, and rekindle old relationships. I have my agent saying they I got a text message from someone I haven’t seen in five years. He goes, I love your Instagram videos. Let’s grab lunch. And it’s that his new videos where he was showing up more and bringing his perspective. It’s reminding someone who already knew you So unless you’re really like just born, what you got, you know, you have five years, 10 years, 20 years of relationships, in your life and in your professional life, it rekindled those. And so that’s another way to think of it. And then online, you can build all these new relationships. So you can be doing collaborative videos with other people, you can use your videos to then engage with people in your area who can hire you. And I think people forget, you don’t just post a video and then like your business grows. But it really works. If you do it strategically. And you have you have what your goals in mind, like, I want to get x leads I’m looking to build in this area, this is my target client. But really being specific about your strategy, it can unlock that. And so one of the biggest things I think that I see from when I have my clients, what they struggle with is there’s three things that are in their head about not being on video and not doing video. One, I hate my voice, or I hate how I look. I’ve never met one person who comes to me and says, I love how I look and sound Kim, I just love it. Everyone hates us out of your own voice is a scientific thing, that how you hear your own voice in your ear is actually different than how other people hear it. Unless people run out of the supermarket screaming from your voice, you probably sound great. Yeah, and, and if you’re a real estate agent, you deal with people all the time, people like talking to you, people engage with you. So you just have to remember that video is just a version of you, you’re not used to it, you don’t like it at first. And you might be a little stiff at the beginning. But over time, you will get better and so you will get better and you will be hate yourself less on camera. D.J. Paris 11:38So and and this is what you said is a really good point about not liking your voice and or your appearance, video and audio. Again, if if we know that for some reason, there’s some sort of mechanism in our brain that that changes the way that we actually hear ourselves versus someone else a third party listening. Don’t listen to yourself. I mean listen to yourself for for things like continuity listened for, for pauses and arms and ahhs and sort of the technical stuff. But but if you’re worried about the the tonality of your voice, or the cadence, or rather just just you know the pitch, maybe ask other people ask them say, Does this is this pleasing? Do you enjoy listening to this is That’s good feedback. But if you know that, if we know that science says you’re not going to like your own image or voice, be very nice to yourself, because that’s not the bra that’s not the judge. It’s going to be what other people think. Kim Rittberg 12:34Absolutely true. And I have like specific tips on how to be better on camera that I’ll go over right after this. But I think you’re right that you you have to be kinder to yourself, all of us do. Like that’s just a part of life. I feel like as I’ve aged, I’m so much nicer to myself, my 25 year old me was much harder, harsher judge of my stress of my life. And I’m sure you know, you we all feel the same way. But in terms of there are ways to get better. But you do you have to say no, actually, that’s who I am. And there are little ways I can be better look better sound better have a better presentation on video. But overall, like we are we are and that’s okay, like, we have clients, we have family who loves us, we have friends. So you have to just get through that and know that every single person hates how they look and sound on video. D.J. Paris 13:19And can we just really quickly dispel the myth that video and audio production has to be perfect perfection. And I’m gonna say one, one thing about that is is that I that I believe, which is I believe people do not necessarily feel connected to perfection. They’re entertained by it. It’s interesting. It’s cool, it’s polished. But people seem in my experience, people seem to connect better with imperfection than perfection. And so if if you’re worried about making a video perfect, and maybe you stumbled over a word, or your hair just didn’t quite look the way you wanted it to. Odds are, I don’t I actually think that will endear people more to you versus push them away going, Oh, well, they didn’t fix their hair up properly. And obviously, you should have an awareness of your appearance and how you sound but this idea of stumbling over a word or two. I’m curious to get your take on that. Kim Rittberg 14:11You are so right because the other two things that stop people is thinking that video is going to cost too much and take too much time. The video that does well today is the authentic content. Like I remember being at Netflix and obviously the budgets for marketing at Netflix are very large compared to things in general but also compared to small business owners. So but there was this moment where we had a video that was from a script reading just the actors sitting around reading a script. And some one of those actors posted a short video on their iPhone of them just being like ooh scrip reading, like five second video 10 second video on their iPhone, and they uploaded it. And I got millions of views. And people were like, wow, this authentic video got millions of views. I’m like, Yeah, that’s what that is what people want. We know that. So I think there are times for those polished videos on the home tours to join footage after selling a luxury home. That is a time for a polished video. Absolutely, yeah, true. But truly, when you are connecting with people, there are only a few things that I think you should optimize for, like, I think you should be well with, try to sit in front of an open window with an open window, or window. To get natural light on your face is really good or get a ring light, I think lighting is good to have. But I think in terms of you do not need to be in a studio, you do not need this super fancy setup. Like you can grow your business grow clients get clients with you and an iPhone, and not only can you today that’s better than the other stuff. And until you’re at the point where you’re like, I really want to really want to level up to that next level. If you’re not doing video, you place your iPhone, with a really solid strategy and messaging can supercharge your business, like I really feel that way. When you’re at that next level. And you’re like I’ve done a lot of footage for Instagram or Tiktok or YouTube, whatever with my phone, I’m, I’m seeing it working, I have money I’m ready to invest for the next level, there is that next level, I think that’s where you bring in a camera crew and you start shooting and you do one day when you sit down and you’re filming a lot of content, and you’re scripting out in advance. Or maybe you’re going around your neighborhood with a camera crew, and you’re really showing off the things in your neighborhood. Keep in mind, all of those things can be done with an iPhone first. So I really think not only do you not need the more expensive stuff, you can grow your business with an iPhone. So yes, this felling GJ dispelling that D.J. Paris 16:42no, it’s an important one because again, that’s the equipment people like, oh gosh, if we think about if we’re following other realtors in our local market on Facebook, Instagram, Tik Tok, et cetera, what what, what we notice is that agents who post a lot of content are showing these non perfect moments, maybe they’re on their way out of the gym, or they’re at a cafe meeting a client or they’re just, you know, getting ready for work. And there’s lounging at home or whatever. There’s a lot of like, This is who I am outside of the polished realtor sort of look, but and I suspect that there’s a message there they’re trying to send about I went to the gym, which I guess demonstrates some sort of level of like accountability for my health and, and maybe that’s considered a good thing. If it one’s choosing a realtor, you maybe want somebody who takes care of themselves. But this idea of getting a behind the scenes peek, like your Netflix example of the table read, where somebody just goes, Hey, this is kind of cool. Like, this is what I get to do before the cameras turn on. That is really people love behind the scenes stuff. Kim Rittberg 17:46Little moments, I think that people forget, first of all people don’t like to be sold to. So while you’re D.J. Paris 17:53some people, some people do, but tiny. Kim Rittberg 17:57So most of your social feed should be educational content or entertaining content. And some of it should be selling. When you can bring people into your life more that will end up selling the end goal is they’re relating to you better, and eventually they will refer you to someone or they will hire you. But those little moments in your life as a realtor and in your life. As a person as a dog owner, as a dad as a brother. It brings people in because if your whole feed is is like only selling that you need that educational portion, you need that entertainment portion. And some of that lifestyle stuff. People do want to see how other people live it people are very curious. They like to live vicariously through other people. So even things that are in your life, you’re like, who cares? Like I’m at Wegmans? Who cares? But you know, people care people think it’s fun. And if you can relate it back to your business, obviously, that’s even better. But people really do like to be brought into other people’s lives. D.J. Paris 18:53Yeah, I think that’s a good point. I think so many agents have one strategy when it comes to social media, which is I just closed the home. I want to post and brag about it. And there’s nothing inherently wrong with that. Kim is shaking your head because I’m with Kim. I don’t think people should do that. But if you’re doing that, make sure you’re doing a lot of other fun exciting cool content, not just look at how great I am. So Kim, you had you were wanting to jump out of your chair though, so I’m gonna shut up what do you think about the I just listed just sold? Here’s how cool I am Kim Rittberg 19:22just listed just sold. Just Listed and just sold is like the basics of someone gives you a photo and you hit Upload. It is not a social media strategy. No, it’s not a social media strategy only because it doesn’t get you to that next level. It is the basics fine. Congratulations. I am proud of everybody for being on social and putting that just listen and just close. I really think though, that real estate agents are working so hard. They’re so smart. Every agent I’ve worked with has their own unique perspective, loves their job for different reason. loves helping people truly like honestly every person that’s why I like working with agents is because every person comes with their own Background comes with their own interests, their own desires, their own perspective of the market. And that’s what’s fun about it. But when you’re just doing just listed and just closed, you’re not showing people anything about why they should work with you. It is just selling. And the point is, this area is called Content Marketing. I did a course on content marketing, no one calls it that you just call it social media. But content marketing means you’re putting out content that people want to engage with. And it becomes marketing, because you brought people into your into your social feed, you brought people into your business. So the main idea is that most of your content should be educating should be entertaining, and should just be people enjoying watching you very little of it should be just listed and just closed. I think that once you’re coming up with new ways to show that I think that is fun. And some people’s feeds do really well. If you’ve lots of beautiful luxury homes. You can grow a business by just doing multimillion dollar home tours. But I still think you’re not really showing somebody who you are. So even if you’d like that, I would argue take not just your hand through the tour, put your face in it. What do you love about the home? Like why do you think it went for X dollars instead of x dollars? What went behind the deal? Was it a bidding war. So I think that tells the story, you have to tell that story. And you have to really bring people into you, you have to bring the you have it because it’s competitive. And to get that competitive edge, you need to insert more of yourself into it. And and if you want I’m ready to give my tips about how to be better on camera for everyone who’s too afraid. D.J. Paris 21:27I am, I am one half second away from that I just wanted to throw an idea to our audience that I love. If you’re worrying about worrying about content, what type of content what should I be, you know, and obviously Kim has courses of exactly what you should and shouldn’t do. I’ll tell you my favorite one. And this is so perfectly tied, I think to Kim, what you were saying that and this wasn’t mine. I just overheard someone doing this and I can’t believe it didn’t occur to me. It’s so simple. So Facebook Live. Now the reason why you may want to consider doing live videos is because people get notified, I think pretty much always if they’re a subscriber to your page that so you know you’re live right now, which obviously is a great indication to maybe they’ll click on it. So I had I talked to a woman this is all she does on her Facebook Live and I think this is just so brilliant. She gets on and she starts talking about Zillow because everybody goes to Zillow, we know this this and let’s not let’s let’s let’s, let’s put aside our feelings about Zillow for a second just realize people do use Zillow, obviously 100 and 100 and some million people a month ago. They’re just in America. So anyway, everybody you know is going to Zillow, and they’re looking at the Zestimate which is the, you know, approximated house value that says that Zillow thinks the home is worth. So she gets on and she goes, I want to show you something. I love Zillow, it’s great, but there’s estimate isn’t always accurate. I just want to show you an example of a Zestimate that I thought looked okay, and then I ran my own numbers. And I found it was wildly off. And I actually so then she goes through and it takes her five minutes. And she does it on the MLS and she kind of shows like, this is what Zillow came up with. But I actually think it’s worth $50,000 more and here’s anyway, and then she goes, Hey, by the way, anyone out there listening, would you like to know what your home’s worth right now. And she goes, I won’t do it here on the call. Because obviously I don’t want everybody to see what your home value is worth. But just shoot me a DM, and I’ll get in touch with you. And to me, that is the perfect strategy for a live video. Because number one, you’re creating incredible value. every homeowner always wants to know what their home is worth. And two, you’re going to the place where they are going to go. And you’re saying hey, that’s okay. That’s a good starting point. But I actually can give you a better number. So anyway, sorry to take up all that time. Kim, I just heard this a few weeks ago, and I thought what a brilliant strategy. Kim Rittberg 23:42I think that’s a great, no, it’s a great idea. And I think that’s a perfect example of this is a person harnessing the idea of educating. So she’s taking educating, she’s saying everybody wants to know what their home is worth. She’s taking that educating. She’s merging it with the platform. So she’s making a platform specific Facebook Live, and I agree about live content, people get notified. So they’re more likely to watch. But then she’s pushing you off social and into a direct relationship, which is with an action step. Yeah, with an action step. So I love that. Because I think you’ll see a lot of places you get a free download. If you click here, bringing people into your into a direct relationship from content is amazing. And I agree with that. I think that’s a fantastic tool. And I think there’s a lot of things that agents can do like that when when you’re creating content, if you’re creating content about a specific thing, having a call to action. Do you want to know like, message me for my blog message me for my market update, message me for the new neighborhoods, I think are going to explode in next year. You know, there are really a lot of unique ways to get people to connect with you willingly on their own. So you know, I think a lot of times we’re chasing, I think the idea is instead of chasing so much, sometimes people will chase you if you have really good content. D.J. Paris 24:54Well, let’s talk about your tips and strategies for people to produce better content. And then just you You know, I know you have you have two different systems you want to talk about. So let’s let’s get to it. Kim Rittberg 25:04Okay, I love going through this first one because a lot of times people don’t put themselves on camera because they don’t feel confident on camera. So I do think that before, you know, saying, What am I going to make, and I agree with your DJ people, I have a video bootcamp. And sometimes people in week one will say, What tool should I buy? Or what do you think about this, I’m like, absolutely ordered the tools. But the truth is, you need to be comfortable on camera, and you need to have a good understanding of what makes a good video. The tools come later. Order it. So Amazon doesn’t have a big shipping delay, but that’s not what’s going to make your video great. The right microphone, the right ring light, that’s not what’s going to make your video great, you are going to make your video great. And your message is going to make your video great. So forget about the tools, forget about the tech that comes later, fine. So I have a system called patch pa tch. And the first P is for prepare, basically to be on camera. You need to prepare not just your message, but your mindset. So a lot of people hate the sound of their own voice. In addition to that feel impostor syndrome, like Am I an expert who’s going to listen to me feel self conscious, whatever the noise in the back of your head is quieting that noise. Sometimes if people being like, what if people make fun of me? What if people troll me? Number one, if we’re being trolled amusing if people are watching, and number two, anyone who’s been negative, it comes from a negative place in their own mind. And I am self employed. I worked in corporate for a long time, I was very hesitant to show up on camera. I teach people to be better on camera, I helped them make video I realized what a hypocrite I am. I had to start showing up on video. And my my sticking point was all the other people who are corporate executives with me, they’re gonna make fun of me, they’re gonna think I’m desperate. I’m on video. And I’m like, You know what? Those people don’t run their own business. I don’t care what they think the truth is, I’m sure they’re not judging me. I’m sure they’re like, oh, there’s can making. D.J. Paris 26:52They have their own problems. They’re in their own. Kim Rittberg 26:56Or they don’t care. They’re worried about their, their child, they’re worried about their dinner, they’re worried about they have enough PTO for vacation, whatever, you know, anyway, they’re really not thinking about us. So P is prepare prepare your mindset and get out of model mode. How do I look? Is this the right angle? How do I sound into teacher mode, think about who you’re helping and who you’re serving. I think that’s the number one thing of preparation is preparing your mindset. And then a authentic basically, your job is to express on video, the authentic version of you. And when I say authentic, I know that that’s a word that’s like very, it’s sort of like it’s everywhere. Who cares. But the truth is, we all have like our inner us. And some of us are goofy and some of us are serious. Some of us are kind and some of us are inquisitive, and some of us are empathetic, that like special sauce of you needs to come through. That takes a little bit of practice. But it’s important to remember, I think a lot of us when I did some on camera reporting, I was generally behind the scenes most of my career, but I did some on camera reporting for one summer. My first time I was like imitating an anchor, like I was like, hello, this is Kim Rupert for photos. Everything. Like I don’t like that. So I was impersonating the person I thought I was supposed to be. And the idea is, you’re trying to just be the most confident version of you. So authentic. So P we have prepared your mindset and your message, but prepare your mindset, a be authentic, and t turn off distractions. When you’re filming, you got to be all in. So turn off your email, turn off your phone, give yourself like five minutes to just drink water, have tea but get in the zone. Because you can’t be like thinking about something else, you really want to be in the message thinking about what you’re saying and delivering it making sure you’re confident. This C is for confidence. Basically, if you don’t believe your message, nobody’s going to, and you have to feel like I love what I do. I love helping you. I love helping you find the right home. For someone else to be feeling that. So confidence is key. Again, don’t think about how you look, don’t think about how you feel. Think about your energy. You want your energy to be raised. That is what competence feels like. And then the H is harness harness harness your energy. That might seem a little like what does that mean? So harnessing your energy is having a self awareness of how you are it’s like what you said earlier DJ about saying, asking your friends about how you can improve asking your partner, your spouse or your business partner. Basically, we all have a natural energy. And of course that’s fine in life. On video. Our goal is to if you’re really high energy and you talk fast, like I am a New Yorker, I tend to talk fast and have high energy. I want to harness my energy to be a little more balanced. I can be when I’m not practiced to high energy. So harnessing my energy means coming down to the center for someone who’s very calm and perhaps introverted. harnessing their energy means bringing it off. There’s always like a mid level and you basically want to be a little closer to that but Will you. So that’s something that it might sound like a little weird harness my energy, you just have to know how you are. And I learned over time, I have a tendency to talk fast, so I have to slow down a little bit. Other people have a tendency to be flat, you have to inject energy, you have to remember the cameras steal some of your soul, the red light goes on, it’s stealing your energy. So you have to practice injecting your energy back into it. So that’s like, it’s, it sounds very complicated. But the more you get used to it, the more you’ll realize, like, Oh, I’m going on camera, I want to make sure not to be flat, I want to smile, and I want to raise my energy, maybe I’m listening to music. Maybe I’m doing a couple jumping jacks, like whatever it is, but you need to raise your energy. And so I think that’s the PA tch. So P is prepare a is be authentic, T is turn off distractions. C is competence, and he has harness your energy. So those are the tips to be on camera and to be better on camera to get yourself there. D.J. Paris 31:00I love those. The patch idea is great. I love all of those those topics. I was actually just reading a book, a YouTube book, and I can’t remember the gentleman who wrote it, I’ll have to, if I remember, I’ll put it in the show notes. But he’s the guy who counsels Mr. beast who is the you know, biggest YouTuber, I think, in on the platform at the moment, if you don’t know who Mr. Beast is Google him, because he is an example of somebody who has really figured out the YouTube in particular algorithm. But more importantly, I was reading about about starting in Utah. And he because his, his mentor wrote this book, he got access to Mr. Beast, and Mr. B said something very interesting. And I don’t really watch his videos per se, but I know who he is, of course, because he’s such a big deal. But what I what he said is, if you’re going to make video, he said, Just realize your first 100 despite your best efforts, despite all of the tools and resources you may or may not have are going to be absolute garbage. And he goes, Don’t worry about it, it’s going to be garbage. So don’t judge it. Look for ways to improve slightly every single time he goes don’t try to hit a homerun at first you won’t he goes like it’s just not going to happen. And your first 100 videos are going to be you’re gonna you’re gonna cringe when you watch them. But he said, you’re gonna get better over time. So I this is an important mindset thing. But if the number one guy on YouTube is telling you don’t worry about the first 100 videos, just try to get comfortable in front of the camera, try to improve and don’t shoot for perfection. Just shoot for a little tiny bit 1% better over time. I just thought I just read that a few a few weeks ago. And I was like, oh, yeah, that’s a great reminder. Kim Rittberg 32:42I agree because if Mr. Beast an award winning video strategist kinrick Berg says it. I mean, it must be true. But I do think and for regular people, I would say you don’t even have to get to 100 if you’re doing consistently one video a week, two videos a week. By month three, you’re gonna be like, Wow, I mean, I host my own podcast and it took me a few first of all God I took did so many takes to get my own voiceover voice well, for the first DJ for the first few months. You’re like, thanks for joining us here. Thank you for being here at Wait, wait. Thanks for joining us, you know, it just takes a while to the point is for everyone listening is it takes a while to practice being yourself on camera. That’s the truth. Being on video. And being on audio is a different version of yourself. It’s an altered version of yourself. It’s so it takes learning lessons and then practicing those lessons but it’s worth it like the truth is I’m giving you these tips because it’s worth it. Like even if you do these tips a little bit each week you will get there and it will grow your business like I’m not I’m not like I’m here to make you an influencer. I’m like, I’m here to make you money. I’m here to get you clients and it’s worth it. It’s worth the investment and it’s worth getting out of your comfort zone. D.J. Paris 33:53Yeah, and it’s so interesting with video now I just realized this as you were talking that the trying to see if the think of this is true, but it’s close enough to true if it’s not actually true. The vast majority of people I watch now content wise with respect to online and not through Netflix, not traditional, you know big media we’ll call it but but just on YouTube of Facebook, I’m now watching probably more media from non professionals or non traditionally Video Professionals than I watch traditional stuff. So I’m watching less Dan rather’s and Charlie Rose’s and more just somebody with a podcast with with a microphone or maybe a YouTube video. So that’s kind of an interesting shift. It’s probably terrifying for the for the big media companies, but that is how a lot of people we are spending more time watching regular people like us do video and short form and long form. Kim Rittberg 34:53I think that’s a really good point. And that is interesting about your own personal statistic and I think people should remember that, basically the structure of an interesting video or a good story, the first two seconds, one second, three seconds. That is where you catch people. So I think when you’re talking about, you know, the people who engage you and you want to watch like, you’re basically you’re stealing time, they’re stealing your money and time from Netflix. But if you’re making a video, one of the core things is catching that attention. So that hook is everything. D.J. Paris 35:27Can I tell you this is really embarrassing. So I’ve done this podcast for I think, five or six years now. And it was about a year ago that I we had a consultant, kind of listen to the show and give some he goes, actually, he’s pretty good. He goes, You guys produce it? Well, it sounds good. It looks good wherever he goes. But one thing that you don’t do, and this is right to your point, is you don’t have a hook. Maybe the title has a hook. But he goes how about the first five seconds of the video or the episode of in this case podcast? Say what they’re going to learn, as opposed to today. My guest is Kim Kim. Rip Berg. Well, you know, you know, some people know Kim, not everyone knows Kim. But if I say Hey, today in this video, we’re gonna have you know, somebody from Netflix, talk about video, you know, then I got it. So I had to learn this five years in. So when you’re starting your videos, you could just spend the first five seconds like today we’re gonna talk about this? Or if it’s an education video, for example, or if it’s an entertainment video, Hey, today we’re doing this, whatever it is, do you recommend doing that at the beginning? Kim Rittberg 36:23Absolutely. So the hook of a video is so important, I cannot express it enough. When I was a vice president of branded content of Popsugar. Like seriously, like media, my boss would say, Okay, your idea for this video for Target or se or Swift or whatever? What’s the hook? And it’s like, he’s like, I don’t even care that other stuff like, what am I seeing? What is the first second event? And the hook is so important? It’s the visual, or the text for someone to look at this in their tiny phone and say, should I watch this? Or should I not watch it. So it has to be eye catching? Meaning even if the visuals are not amazing, I think visuals. The expectation for visuals are a little lowered on social media. But ideally, good visuals. And even if you don’t have good visuals, if you have an amazing text headline, like three, like three reasons not to buy this home, or like, you know, five reasons why you should buy with high interest rates. I’d be like, what was this person talking about? Why I’m gonna watch it. So you have to think about a really amazing headline or a hook. When you think about like 10 years ago, Buzzfeed was like the biggest thing ever in media, they had all of those great clickbait headlines, because you were D.J. Paris 37:35the clickbait kings, the clickbait king, they still are they still, like that’s Kim Rittberg 37:39true, but I feel like it was very novel at that time to have. And I know you mentioned this earlier about like, the catchiness of whoever you’re talking to inside edition or US Weekly. But like a headline, I joke is that I worked at inside edition. And I love the voiceover artists. But if you ever watch a TV show, it has a tease for the show. And it’s like, you’ve never seen a cat do this. And I’m gonna go oh my god, what’s the cat gonna do? So a channel that announcer when you’re thinking of your idea, so I think a lot of my agents are like, oh, I want to, like, I love design or like I, you know, I’m my clients, I think would appreciate like a content about which floors to pick, you know, like, that’s something that like, when they go through the render process, I’m like, Alright, so it’s like, top five floors, like you should look at before it before installing. I’m like, Oh, I would watch that. If I’m in the middle of a renovation, or, you know, when the color of the year comes out that Pantone color of the year. It’s like, like three amazing ways to use the Pantone color of the year in your home. I’m like, Yeah, click watch it. And you know the thing about interest rates, so anything that’s timely, you’re still applying that hook. So interest rates go up or interest rate go down, or whatever you say, a contrarian opinion, so seasonally contradictory, with interest rates high, why you should buy and not just like, because I’m a real estate agent I want you to buy, right, I really like your house. And the reason I have some data to back it up and keep it short. So I have, I have another framework for how to make great video. And one of the tips in that is keep your message very simple. People cannot have a lot in their brain at the same time. This is short form video we’re talking about most of what we’re watching today is short form. YouTube, you can do longer, that’s fine podcasts, obviously longer. When you’re thinking about our short form video. Your message should be very simple. One takeaway, or three things but it’s still to the same point. It’s too much for people. So you want to have it like really, really simple. So a listicle always does. Well a number chart, like a number. You know, five things seven secret, seven, seven best kept secrets of Chicago’s north side. You know, five beaches, you’ve never visited la that you should be your neighborhood expert. You know. D.J. Paris 39:57There’s so much content that Realtors so Let’s go if your head is spinning right now going, Okay, this is all sounds great, what type of content Kim just gave about four or five examples, and I interrupted her in the middle, which I shouldn’t have. But the reason I did is because it doesn’t have to be real estate related, as Kim said, you know, real estate is hyperlocal, right? So you can say, hey, like I live in the Wicker Park neighborhood of Chicago. Wouldn’t it be cool if once a week, I saw a video that said, here’s a restaurant in Wicker Park that you probably don’t know about? That’s amazing. Like, I would love that, right? Because it’s in my neighborhood, I want to support it. I want to go out and try new restaurants. Maybe it’s here’s some cool events downtown Chicago, or in Kim’s case, she’s in Brooklyn. Here’s some here’s what’s going on in Brooklyn this weekend, again, is that real estate specific? No. But is it interesting to your audience, some of them for sure. So it doesn’t have to be look at this home, look at this thing. It should be you should have educational content about you know, things like why you should buy today, or why you shouldn’t buy today or why you should rent or not rent or whatever, here’s, you know, real estate content. And then you should also have some content because people only buy homes every, what, seven years on average. So you want to create content that they’re going to want to use in between those sales. So even if it’s just like, here’s all the cool events going on this weekend in this neighborhood. That’s a really easy video to put together. And it’s something that everybody wants to know about. Kim Rittberg 41:19Absolutely one of my one on one real estate clients, he does a lot of neighborhood tours that do well. And they do well. Because when you think about when you’re as a user on someone’s feed you it’s nice to see the homes. But it’s also nice to see the neighborhood because when you’re an agent, you’re the local expert. And to your point, DJ, we’re trying to bring people from that time when they worked with you kill that next seven years, keep keep in touch with them get referrals from them stay in their world. So any content that’s like local events, local venues, renovation, you know, renovation happens between that buy and sell period. So you’re trying to build and continue those relationships. So one of my agents does a lot of neighborhood tours, specifically the neighborhoods he covers, you know that he wants to get clients and obviously, but it brings people in and this is another thing, remember, again, you are building new relationships and reigniting old relationships with video. So when you’re making that neighborhood tour, you’re connecting with the venue with that social handle. So that’s again, another connection. You know, real estate agents are all about connecting with more people each week and each month, because that’s how you have clients. So you’re connecting with more people when you’re in those other spaces. So I totally agree that it does not all need to be real estate. Everything should be educational, entertaining lifestyle, a little bit of selling, but what you’re talking about can be real estate, it can be design, it can be renovation, it can be your life, it can be your life, in those videos, what you’re doing this weekend, and especially like definitely the neighborhood things, I think you really want to lean into being the local expert. So even timely things that are happening in your neighborhood. So I live in Brooklyn, we have this Brooklyn Queens expressway, a highway that runs in our area, and there’s a lot of hoopla over the last few years, are they going to do construction on it? Everyone’s worried about it? That doesn’t seem like something a real estate agent would cover but maybe maybe that’s the perfect thing to do an Instagram live with a local with a local official or or recorder. So it’s it’s like expanding out and thinking basically, the basics of like, when you’re creating content, try to think would someone watch this? What I read this in a magazine, would I watch this on someone’s computer or their phone? Think of it from that journalistic standpoint. And so like the framework I have for teaching people how to make better video is like me, SS why? So M message, get your message straight. Like I said before, one simple point on a secret gem in your neighborhood you never knew about why you should buy even with interest rates being high one simple messaging is video so and is your message. Ie it’s easy to understand. Nothing too. inside baseball, we’re not talking to the mortgage and mortgage lenders and the lawyers. We’re talking to regular people in layman’s terms. So very simple. You make sure your grandma and your seven year old neighbor neighbor can understand it, then you’re good at strategy. So strategy is like, Who’s your ideal client? Like Who are you trying to speak to? How much are you going to make each each month two videos a month? That’s fine. Four videos a month no problem like one live video a month no problem, whatever it is, be consistent with that and understand what you’re targeting like I don’t like when someone’s like, should I be on tick tock? I say I don’t know your clients on tick tock, then you should you know, I think having a really solid strategy we’ll be sure that you just don’t run out of time or money. So am message easy to understand s strategy? S smile because you’re always on camera. You got to put yourself on camera, and then why you’re a journalist. So basically, you’re a journalist. So what to my point earlier. Think about what is the top bid related to real estate that people might be interested in DJ and I went through a few of these things earlier DJ is going to do a video about something in Wicker Park a new bar in Wicker Park, I am going to do, how to put that Pantone color of the year in your home three ideas. That’s what I love. I love design. And my other agent, he’s doing that live video about the highway, everyone’s worried is going under construction, he’s going to do that. My other agent we are we’re doing design for him. We’re doing he’s doing a tour of three design stores he loves in California, it’s really natural to him talk about authentic. Yeah, he’s picking journalistic angles on things that he feels passionate about. Right and my other my other one, he’s doing the wood floor. So he says, my audience, they don’t want the Pantone color. That’s not what they care about. They want the flooring, I’m like, Great, let’s do the flooring. But the idea is you’re meaning making useful content for people, that’s also entertaining. You’re bringing them into your sphere, you’re connecting with them, you’re rekindling those old relationships and you’re building new ones. D.J. Paris 46:03At the risk of of alienating our animal activist listeners, please forgive me for this. But I had an idea that just today I realized I needed to put a rug underneath my dining room table, I were like in between rugs. And somebody said, you know, what would be a really cool thing to put as opposed to a traditional rug is get, like a cow hide or a calf skin or whatever it’s called. Those are very popular. I don’t know if they’re still popular, but they were popular last couple years. So I said, Oh, I’ve heard of that. But aren’t those like really expensive there, I thought they were like $1,000, which is like a lot for this little tiny pellets basically. And no, they’ve come down in price. They’re like, couple 100 bucks. Now they’re really reasonable. And they’re super cool. But I don’t know anything about it. So I’ve had to go online and learn about this, I spent no more than five minutes kind of, okay, I know what the prices are, I see how it works, I get it. And that could be a video that could be video like, hey, everyone out there, here’s here’s a design idea that you could share with your clients. If you’re looking to, you know, on hardwood floors, you want to put something underneath it. Like, again, it doesn’t have to be anything other than what you’re learning about at that moment. Kim Rittberg 47:13And here’s your hook. The hook again, for that video is one quick upgrade under $100. And that’s the hook to that video. So again, you have your content. I love that a content idea DJ and my hook is your sad looking room, whatever your sad looking room is with text on it and you say upgrade this room in less than $100 and write a quick video where you say this cowhide was only $99. From this and that store. Yeah, you know, follow me for more tips on how to live better on a smaller budget. D.J. Paris 47:46And you could also say stop buying raw ito the hook could also be stopped buying. Stop buying rugs for underneath dining room tables, right? Yeah, like what why should I Kim Rittberg 47:56write for never pay $1,000? For again? See, that’s great. So I think once people start getting into the goodness of it, yeah, it becomes fun. I think once you start thinking like, Well, what did I do this month that like can relate to real estate renovation, construction or my neighborhood? Then it brings you in? What do you do this weekend? Did you find a new bar you’re excited about? Did you get that rug for your house? And once you start living in that mode, and jotting those ideas down, as they come to you, you will find you have ideas? I think it’s when you’re sitting down with a blank journal, you’re like journal who has journal blank iPhone? Oh, no, what do I make. So I think to get to rotate to sort of vary your content feeds. So it’s not just Hunter Hunter just listed just close. You think about those other areas that you enjoy, that feels really fun to you, and then start making content around that. D.J. Paris 48:50And to like one way, endless source of content can be from your clients, when they ask questions, write them down. And because if they’re if a client is asking a general question, maybe they’re buying a home for the first time, or they’re just have a question about the process, or any questions that you get asked as a realtor, write them down. And that is content that can you know, you can say, hey, I want to do a series once a week, I want to tell you the most commonly asked questions that my clients asked me so that you don’t have to ask your realtor about it or whatever. And you could do that you could do a question and answer session. There’s so much content. So don’t get hung up in the aesthetics as much as the content needs to lead the charge, the content, the value of the content, people will excuse all of the aesthetic of sort of imperfections, right that things can maybe don’t look, as Kim said, Yes, get a ring light for God’s sakes get something that at least lights you correctly, but that’s what I mean. My ring light was like $100 but you can get them for $20 They’re not that expensive, but it’s so make yourself look okay, but don’t worry too much beyond that. Worry about the content people will excuse everything else for good content. Kim Rittberg 50:04I totally agree. And I love your idea. I think the q&a is something is a go to for all of my agents, especially when you’re starting out being on camera. And it feels weird to talk to the camera at first, have someone sit behind your phone? Yes, ask you the questions. It’s easier to talk to somebody than to just talk to a camera alone when you’re just starting out. So if you’re nervous thing on camera, write down your questions. Have your friend, your business partner, whomever behind the camera, and answer answer to them. I think that’s a good way A q&a is a great way because it’s full of educational value for your viewers, your consumers, your followers, your clients. But be it’s an easier conversationally, it’s easier to answer questions than it is to like, talk to camera when you’re not in that headspace yet. So I love that idea. I think q&a at the very base, if you’re really just starting out, and you’re maybe not ready for that lifestyle video, you’re not ready to do the neighborhood tour. Question and Answers are great about me, who are you? Like why should someone work with you? What do you love about being an agent, remind people about your empathy, your humor, your kindness, your your financial well being your financial whiz, whatever, that special sauce that makes you you. And then the q&a, the about you. And educational videos, I really think I am somebody I come from news, I think there’s a lot of value in bringing people information, just making sure it’s clear and catchy. So like, three, three, you know, three ways to get a mortgage, blah, blah, that you weren’t thinking whatever, you know, five, five tips for blah, three ways for this, but related to home buying, lending, renovating, new construction, condo, Co Op, all of these different things, but figure out like, what do you want to talk about, and then just put them in little bite sized nuggets. I’m a huge fan of educational content. I think, truly, you’re trying to establish yourself as an expert. I think that I love the lifestyle stuff. I think it’s good to mix that in. But at the end of the day, really people should see you as the expert, they should see you as their go to person. And so if you can create content that says I’m the expert, I’m the authority. This is how I think about the housing boom, the mortgage rates, the the new new construction in that area. D.J. Paris 52:24Yeah, demonstrating competence is really what I think educational content does is it demonstrates competence. And yes, posting a static image of this beautiful home we just sold or listed does in some way mildly demonstrate competence, because it says okay, well, I was, you know, they chose me to sell or buy this particular home. I closed it. Yes, that’s a start. But what what what I think Kim is really driving at is getting beyond that and going into process. So say, you know, this would be a good video content, like, Hey, you probably see a lot of realtors, you know, with with their posts about just listed just sold, you can even almost play off that trope, because it is a trope that everybody knows about. And people kind of roll their eyes like yeah, that that it’s a bad thing. I don’t want to I don’t want to give it a negative connotation. But it’s a very common approach. And you can say, you know, what, my clients and I can do that too. I can certainly post you know, things about, you know, what I’ve accomplished. But what I really what my clients really appreciate is x. And this is what I try and try to focus on. And it’s you’re not selling as, let me show you my process. Let me talk about how I, how I, you know, or how I treat my clients are, like, like you’re missing certain maybe qualities of your personality, or here are some processes that your seat might, here’s my secret sauce, give it away, give it away in video, and it will come back to you and clients or people love that sort of behind the scenes. Here’s the number crunching, they want to see that you have some sort of skill versus just look at how cool I am. Right? Kim Rittberg 54:05Yeah, and I think I’m not knocking just listen and just close. I think it’s good to show the sort of properties you sell. It sort of establishes what neighborhood you’re in what price point you’re at who you serve, I think that’s fine. But really at the end of the day, video is the biggest growth tactic for marketing. So a invest in video, but not just because stats say Mark sets a video marketing is more more advantageous because you get more leads from it. But also use what it’s good for video is good for letting people get to know you. And that it’s a relationship business you’re in, in real estate. So showing those parts of your personality showing your expertise, showing your authority. Photos are good. I mean, it’s it’s if you’re on social, that’s great because the truth is, it’s a lot of time. It takes time to post photos, texts, anything so I’m definitely not knocking being on photo, but there’s only so there’s only so much growth you can have by using filtered headshots, and house home photos, I think you will see your growth supercharged if you start experimenting with video like I will give a challenge to everyone listening that basically, if you start getting on video today when this podcast comes out, first of all, tag me tag, tag us both on on social media on Instagram love on Instagram, I’m also on LinkedIn, tag us on Instagram, you tag us in your Instagram story, we will share it, I’ll share it and then you’ll get more eyeballs on your Instagram story or tag us in your reel or whatever video only video, no no photos. But I think what you will start seeing that I think I know what you will start seeing is that as you start showing up more on video, you will start seeing more more contacts, more lead generation more engagement. And that is what we’re looking for. You’re building that authority, you’re building that expertise and you’re bringing people in and to your point about just listen to just close, I’m actually speaking at a Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices convention. And that’s the topic of my, the topic of my speech is more than just listening, just using video to rekindle old relationships and build new ones. So again, I think that we all have so much work and social media, it feels like this additional thing, so much time video is gonna be so much money, I don’t like my voice. But there are ways to do it faster and cheaper. Again, your iPhone is fine. And the way to do it faster is like we said you’re brainstorming ideas, have a list of ideas you’re going to do, when you sit down to film, film a few at a time, you will find that’s a much more efficient way to use your time. And then put those out once a week, or once or once or twice a week, or however much content you have. But really film a bunch at a time. Again, you don’t need fancy technology, but make three of them be educational videos, make one of them be a lifestyle video, you know, vary the content a little bit. But there are ways to do this efficiently. And, and getting out of your own head, of course, that you’re comfortable being on camera but and ways to get better as you go on. But I think if you really truly you start getting on camera today, your next quarter, your next half of the year is going to look different. D.J. Paris 57:21I agree. And I want to just throw one other idea because I know that a lot of times when agents are starting to think about developing a social media strategy or a video strategy, one of the first questions they’ll ask is what platforms should I be posting to. And I went through this. It’s an interesting sort of exercise, I went through this branding exercise for an organization unrelated to real estate, we were looking to create content for an organization I support that, but we didn’t know where our members hung out. Online. We weren’t sure if it was Facebook, Instagram, tik, Tok, LinkedIn, you know, excetera, Pinterest, and other places. And this is a men’s organization. And we’re like, gosh, we don’t really know. And so what did we do? We asked, we asked our members, we have several 1000 members, and we said, hey, where do you spend time and what we found was not what we were expecting, is that so for for this particular organization? Again, not real estate related, although it certainly could have been real estate related. LinkedIn for this particular organization was the place where most of our members are checking for the kind of content that we would be producing. And that never occurred to me in a million years. So if you’re wondering, should I do tick tock, Facebook, Instagram? What should I do? Well, I mean, you can make an assumption, and certainly, you know, pretty much everyone’s on Facebook and Instagram. So you could always make make a reasonable assumption that that would probably be a good place to start. But are your clients checking tick tock? I don’t know you? Can I ask them. So what I would do is go to your sphere of influence and say, Hey, I’m working on my, my sort of marketing plan for this year, just out of curiosity, I’m looking to create more content, and I want to sort of show up where you guys hang out. I would, and you could do an anonymous survey. So they don’t have to, you know, explain who they are. But I would ask your friends and family and people in your sphere of influence. Where are you spending time online? Is it YouTube? Is it Facebook’s, you know, etc? Because that will help you figure out where to really push your content. Kim, I’m curious to get your thoughts on that. Kim Rittberg 59:28I agree. 100% I think it is up to you to figure out where your clients and where your ideal clients are, and where they’re spending time. You can do a survey. You can also there’s a lot of research about the demographics and like psychographics of who’s using what, you know, Facebook is still the biggest social platform. It’s not growing so fast. So tick tock is the fastest growing but Facebook is still the biggest and for a certain demographic, Facebook is still the winner. So it depends. I recommend, you know, depending on your budget and your time constraints, I say like don’t Be on more than two or three unless you have, unless you have an infrastructure where someone else is posting for you, then I think you could be on more. Like, for example, I post to LinkedIn and Instagram natively, like, I’ll schedule them out, I’ll put them on LinkedIn. And I will schedule it for like the next morning to post to 7am Sure, Instagram, I’ll schedule it or I’ll post it live. Later, I’ll at a different point in time, I will download the videos or have them saved, I’ll put them in YouTube, but I will put in the schedule or in YouTube to post them three times a week, I don’t even think about it, like I do it once every two weeks, and I just have it timeout a lot of other content. So basically, if you don’t have a huge infrastructure, make it easier for yourself, figure out the number one or two places your your clients are, you don’t have to be everywhere. Don’t be everywhere, actually, I would say don’t be everywhere. Because you know, the places that are everywhere have huge, huge budgets. Your agency might be everywhere, they have a marketing budget, they have a marketer, so do not like figure out where you’re best off spending your time. And again, the lessons I was saying earlier about video, they still hold true for anywhere, it doesn’t matter if you’re on Facebook, tick tock, Instagram, LinkedIn, you need a hook, you always need a catchy headline or a good visual. And on LinkedIn, a lot of it’s text based, you still need a good headline, if you don’t have the first line, that’s catchy, people aren’t gonna engage with it. So it’s still the basics of good video is good video anywhere. And the things that are different about each platform are specific things to learn for that platform. But the basics of good video is like you teach, you’re educating, you’re entertaining, and you’re having like a little bit of lifestyle, bringing them into your life, you’re selling a tiny percentage of the time. So I think the crux of making good video is applicable to all of them. And there’s lots of tools to figure out where your clients are a survey research. And then yeah, you can start asking people like, I think if you start start this process, now over the next few months, every single person says, they’re on LinkedIn and tick tock, maybe those are channels, everybody says they’re on Facebook and LinkedIn media, those are your channels. So I think try to really get in the flow of who your ideal client is not who your family is, but not your family, not your college buddies, but really your ideal clients. And I think that that’s it’s a bit of a different mindset. Like in my 20s, I had a jewelry company. I never spent money on myself, I never bought myself nice things. I didn’t have any money. So when I was selling jewelry, I didn’t have a sense of like, What would someone pay for this necklace. I went into the store I started selling, I was like, oh, people will pay like two or $300. So that necklace, wow. You know, that surprised me. I didn’t know that at the time. And the important thing is, don’t let it be colored by your own your college friends, your wife, your husband, your kid, their experience, you’re always talking to your ideal client or your existing client. So figure out where they are. And that’s where it to be. There is D.J. Paris 1:02:55so much to dive into in with respect to video with respect to social media, strategizing Kim, you don’t you’re not just here to do this episode, you teach this, this is your livelihood, you take all of your previous marketing and media experience, which is beyond impressive. You’ve worked for some of the giants, and basically distilled it down to what agents what realtors can use in grow to grow their their brand, virtually, and grow their video and media brand. Let’s talk about the services you provide. Because every I need this for our show. This is an embarrassing acknowledgement but true. We guys, I am I am just like you. I do not have we do not have an Instagram account for this. For this channel. We had one and it somehow got shut down. They thought it was Instagram shut it down. Oddly enough, they thought we were violating fair housing. And we were just promoting our podcasts. Because with housing it things can get tricky. So guys, I don’t even have an Instagram account. I am just like you I need to follow this advice. Because we’ve grown our entire audience just strictly through word of mouth. And it is time for us. Your five don’t wait five years like I did to grow your social channel. This is the year Thank God our content was good that we got a lot of listeners because now I really want to take it to the next level with social media. So I am going to be going on this journey with you. But Kim, tell us what you do for agents so that we can hopefully get some people just to realize this is the push I am going to be signing up but tell us what you offer. Kim Rittberg 1:04:36So basically, I have two offerings. I do one on one packages where I basically am your executive producer in a box. So I help guide you I sit with you. We we start now and then in six months basically you have a whole video component to your business. And so I help you do all of that come up with ideas execute the ideas across the video and podcast. So basically it Take my experience from Netflix and inside edition and People Magazine, and I turn you into a content creation machine. So those are one on one packages I do. I also have a video bootcamp specifically for real estate agents. So that means no matter where you are, you’re not making video, you’re making some video, but you want it more. It’s video Bootcamp for real estate agents to grow your client base. So it’s very, very focused, it comes up with, it helps you come up with ideas, it has tips on how to make videos efficiently and inexpensively. And it has ideas on how to engage clients in new ways. So it’s really an amazing class. So that’s gonna be a boot camp, it’s going to be a group of real estate agents. So you’re also going to have a community. So you’re gonna have new new people that you’re meeting a new referral businesses coming out of that. So it’s going to be a really awesome boot camp that is going to be starting off. And I just, I love it, because I think one of the things that is so great is my agents I work with are like, I never would have thought of that. But now it’s a component of their business. I think sometimes you just need that friend who like I’ve worked in video my whole life, of course, it’s second nature to me, but it’s my job to teach it to you in a way that is not overwhelming. It will help you grow your business, and in a way that you can still go about and live your life and grow your business. I don’t think that it’s your job to be a TV station, that’s not your job. It’s your job to your real estate agent and I help you come up with a video component of your business. It’s a component, it’s not your whole business. D.J. Paris 1:06:30So I agree. And this is it really from an ROI perspective, return on investment, video production, for you know, for your real estate business doesn’t have to be an expensive proposition. Your ROI, as Kim said can be you turn your phone around, you’re on a showing you say I just wanted to really quickly show you this really cool thing about this home, right? That costs virtually nothing, maybe nothing, just a little bit of time. And you can continue to create content on whatever budget you may have, which may be a small to no budget. And this is how people consume content these days. You know, the days of I was even Kim, I’m I’m curious if you’ve had this experience because you’ve been in in you’ve worked in TV. I have a hard time sitting through TV shows now and and movies in particular, my attention span has been reduced. I really I’m like legitimately worried about the future generations who I don’t even go on tick tock personally, because I’m afraid it’s just withering away my ability to concentrate for more than 15 seconds, which is not tic TOCs fault. I’m not blaming tick tock I’m just saying our attention spans are very, very short these days. So you do have to have these these enticements or these immediate hooks, as Kim said. But there is so much that you can do so quickly and for so inexpensively. But you do need to learn the tricks of the trade. Kim is going to teach you all of that. So I encourage everybody listening visit Kim’s website, Kim rydberg.com. Again, KIMRIWTBERGRI TTB erg.com link to that in our show notes she has, first of all her her background is beyond impressive. This is somebody who’s worked in in major media. She’s now taking that learning bringing it down to the individual business owner level and she wants to work with you as well. So check out Kim ripper.com. She has free events. She has paid events. She will she has white papers you can download. She has given a ton of content for you on this and you should be following her as well. On social media Kim, what? Let’s let’s get your social media handles. Kim Rittberg 1:08:50Yeah, great. Um, I am Kim Rydberg KIMRITTB RG, everywhere, Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, and I have a free download on my website. If you go to kinrick berg.com, or on Instagram or LinkedIn, I have a free download specifically for realtors, so that you can grow your business. You can grow your client base, and it’s specifically for real estate agents. So make sure to check check on my website. It’s free, you can grab it, share it with your friends. And I’m really excited. Honestly, I work for myself. And I love teaching people how to grow their business because I think that self employment gives you so much freedom. And it’s awesome. And it can be hard but it’s really it’s so gratifying for me to help other people build their business. D.J. Paris 1:09:36Awesome. Well, on behalf of all of our listeners want to thank Kim for her time on the episode today. She gave us so much great content and I would love to have Kim you’d love to have you come back as a regular guest. But for now, guys, I want to thank Kim so the best way you can thank Kim is by visiting her website Kim rydberg.com KMRITTB ERG dot com link to that in the show notes, check out her offering. This is the year to get into video, you can do it. Look, I have no media history. I am not a broadcaster. I don’t have I’m sitting in my office in Lincoln Park. This is not a professional studio. And we are now one of the most listened to shows in the country. And I don’t say that to brag, because who cares? It’s just more funny to anything. You don’t need all the accoutrements that you might think, to put on a show and get people to show up and watch or listen, I am proof of that. I do not look polished. I do not sound polished. I have moderately nice equipment. But I think altogether after five years, it cost me under $1,000. So guys, and when I started, it cost me like $100 for all the equipment. So you can do a lot with a little and but you need a guide. And Kim is your guide. So please support her. She wants to help you grow. She knows how to do this. So go to Kim rydberg.com r ittbrg.com. Again, link to that in our show notes on behalf of our audience. Kim, thank you so much for showing up giving us such great incredible content. Great advice. Amazing. And on behalf of Kim and myself, we want to thank our audience for making it all the way to the end of the episode. Please help us grow by telling just one other realtor about the show. Think of one other agent that really needs that push to get their branding in place. Send them a link maybe this will encourage them to start video or maybe it will encourage an office so send this out guys that’s how we grow. We grow through word of mouth. Please tell a friend we thank you for that. Kim, thank you so much. And we will see everybody on the next episode. Thanks. Thank you so much. Kim Rittberg 1:11:45This is so fun.

Shalya Twit talks about her own lifestyle as an experienced agent in Sarasota Florida where the competition is very high. Shayla discuses the importance of marketing and advertising in real-estate and how experienced agents should source the business. Shayla also discusses what makes her stand out as an agent. If you’d prefer to watch this interview, click here to view on YouTube! Shayla Twit can be reached at shayla@sarasotarealestatesold.com and +1 941-544-7690. This episode is brought to you by Real Geeks. Transcript D.J. Paris 0:00How do you break into the luxury market? Well, we’re going to talk to a top producer today who did exactly that. Stay tuned. This episode of Keeping it real is brought to you by real geeks. How many homes are you going to sell this year? Do you have the right tools? Is your website turning soft leads and interested buyers? Are you spending money on leads that aren’t converting? Well real geeks is your solution. Find out why agents across the country choose real geeks as their technology partner. Real geeks was created by an agent for agents. They pride themselves on delivering a sales and marketing solution so that you can easily generate more business. Their agent websites are fast and built for lead conversion with a smooth search experience for your visitors. Real geeks also includes an easy to use agent CRM. So once a lead signs up on your website, you can track their interest and have great follow up conversations. Real geeks is loaded with a ton of marketing tools to nurture your leads and increase brand awareness visit real geeks.com forward slash keeping it real pod and find out why Realtors come to real geeks to generate more business again, visit real geeks.com forward slash keeping it real pod and now on to our show Hello and welcome to another episode of Keeping it real the largest podcast made by real estate agents and for real estate agents. My name is DJ Paris I am your guide and host through the show and in just a moment. We’re going to be speaking with top producer Shayla twit but before we get to Shayla, just a couple of quick reminders. First, please tell a friend about this episode. If you find value in it. Think of one other Realtor in your office that could benefit from hearing from shaylen Also, please consider also sponsz That’s not to say sponsor our sponsors but just support our sponsors check out their products and services. We are huge fans of our sponsors. They’re the reason we can keep doing these episodes. So please consider investing in their services. Every sponsor that we have, we are huge fans of and their products and services should be able to help you grow your business this year. Okay, enough of that. Let’s get to the main event my conversation with Shayla to it. Today on the show our guest is Shayla twit. She’s a luxury agent with Coldwell Banker in Sarasota, Florida. Let me tell you more about Shayla Shayla is has been selling real estate in sunny Sarasota, Florida since 2002. Specializing in luxury and waterfront real estate in the Sarasota man Manatee and Charlotte County areas she prides herself on her high touch and artfully curated concierge style originally from Stevens Point Wisconsin. She also hails from U W. SP with a business and a French degrees. She comes from a large family many of which are entrepreneurs as well whether extra time she will either be in the gym, playing with her two dogs and or cat or quite possibly volunteering with a fabulous team at the Humane Society at Lakewood Ranch to learn all things Shayla please visit her website Sarasota real estate sold.com Let me say that again, Sarasota real estate sold.com We’ll have links to that in the show notes welcome Shayla. Welcome. Shayla Twit 3:47Hi, thank you so much. Say to talk to you, TJ, D.J. Paris 3:51I’m excited to talk to you as well. We were Shayla and I were talking just before the show about I love Sarasota. So I am. So like, in my mind, I’m sitting next to you soaking up some of the the warmth of Florida right now. It is currently 11 degrees. No, I’m sorry. It is yes, it is. 11 degrees here in Chicago. It is sunny, but very, very cold. So appreciate. You’re probably having a warmer day than me. Shayla Twit 4:23I’ll try to bring some warmth, your way. We say D.J. Paris 4:27love it. If you have you’ve really done some super impressive things. I always like to start at the beginning of the journey, because so many of our audience really wants to know, you know how you got started, and then how you continued to evolve throughout your business. So how did you get into real estate? Shayla Twit 4:48Well, I went I didn’t go to college to become a realtor. I went and I got my business degree and I came down to Sarasota home of the Ringling circus So yeah, it’s a circus. All right. And my younger brother was here. I never knew anything about Sarasota and my younger brother who was going to bring late art school, which is a really prestigious art school, by the way. We didn’t know anything about I didn’t know anything about it only because my brother was here. And so he landed here, I came down right after college. And because nothing was really kind of working out that calm, we just apply for any jobs, you know? Sure. And nothing was exciting me anyway. And so I just, I had never been to Sarasota. I packed up my 19 Anyone read Oldsmobile, okay, I don’t even know how she made it all down here now. But I came, I moved right in with him, which was so nice to have a place and of course, with my brother and moved in with him. And within the first six months, I kind of was figuring my life out, I got a little job at Outback waiting tables. God knows I didn’t go to school for that. But it was an interim job. And everywhere we went, everybody, the whole conversation evolved around real estate. And so I just thought, like, I think I would do well at it, I would enjoy it, and Excel and just have fun with it. So I ended up just getting into it right away within the first six months of living here. D.J. Paris 6:19Wow, that is, that’s quite a quite a jump. And also to like, Florida has the most number of Realtors per capita of any state. So there’s tremendous competition out there. Shayla Twit 6:33I think I read somewhere as of, I think 2020, there were 195,000 in the state, which is insane. It’s insane. D.J. Paris 6:42It is. It is like, I think it was something like every fifth person in Florida has their real estate license or something like that, Shayla Twit 6:51you know, that’s gonna change, you’re coming up now. But I think you know, a lot of that too, is the people that are part time or they just do it here and there or sell to their family. So we got a lot of those. And then it’s and then it’s like you have that population. And then you have the population that actually makes a living and then you have the top one percenters. I mean, there’s other categories in between, but just to generalize. D.J. Paris 7:15Yeah, no, I think you’re right, we’re starting to see here in Chicago, a mass exodus of the agents who are the onesie twosie, you know, do a couple deals a year, we’re starting to see them exit the industry, which should be, I think, good news for a lot of our listeners. It’s also good news for us, because we have a holding company. So those agents transfer over into a holding company a lot of times to keep their license active. But the bottom line is there are people leaving the industry, and I think that will actually be be beneficial to existing agents, who are, you know, more full time or are really wanting to step on the gas in their business? Are you seeing that trend as well. Shayla Twit 8:02Um, I’m feeling it. I feel like it’s right now as we sit here, and we’re recording this early February. So it’s dated, but 2023. But it’s kind of an interim time right now. I feel like so like showings are down, even for me, and I’ve got a, you know, I’ll get some listings. And so I can only imagine for a new agent, they’re probably feeling that exponentially. And so you can’t help but think that that’s going to ultimately, you know, affect them financially. And I’m feeling the buzz around, you know, our office even. And we are in a tough office, we do have some new agents there. And the buzz around the community, because I have a big, you know, I keep my hand on the pulse within the community and my colleagues and just the talk about town. And, you know, there’s only so much business to go around. And I think with agents exiting exit is seeing how everyone put it, that the cream will rise to the top and that sellers if they’re smart, knowing that their properties will take longer in the market. Now they’re gonna want the full service ages now. They’re gonna want the full marketing package marketing and advertising matter. And so if we don’t have that experience, especially if you’re new in the last two years, you don’t know what you don’t know. You know? D.J. Paris 9:22Yeah, I think you just said a lot of really great things. I think you’re right now is the time to you know, if you are, if any of our listeners out there are wanting to really, you know, attract more sellers. This is the year to get your marketing packets, your listing presentations on point. You know, there’s a ton of services that can help you do this, but realize that right now, of course listings are there’s a lot of competition for listings. So if you are going up against other teams will first of all, maybe consider joining the team, right? So, you know, if you want to be a big player in your local market, find out who the teams are that are capturing this business. And you know, take a look and see what are their marketing materials look like? What what are their listings, they’re willing Shayla Twit 10:17to share. That was the That’s gold. I mean, if I were a new agent, I would seek out someone that’s been in the business a long time that is a top agent, and and mentor with that person, they’re willing to do that, that is absolutely priceless. You’re not reinventing the wheel here, I’m not reinventing the wheel. I’m just doing what works for me as other agents do. And what works for me might not work for the other person. But I do think that honing in on your value proposition and really fine tuning it outlining, outlining that for your seller is important. I go in every single year and I revamp, I find to my marketing links that I send out as a pre package to my sellers. I revamped that this year, because I was like, I really want to express to sellers, like all of the unique curated services that we offer each and every seller, I can’t drive that home enough. Because sometimes I get stuck when someone says, Well, how are you different? Why would I hire you. And it’s like, I sometimes get stuck in the moment. So if you have it already outlined in a format, it’s so much better. You know, that D.J. Paris 11:22is a really, really like easily glossed over thing that I don’t want to gloss over. Because really having a list of services that you provide to your clients is critical. Because there are going to be those elevator kind of conversations where you only have, you know, maybe their in person conversations where someone’s like, hey, so how are you different from every other Realtor in town, you need to have three or four things that you say that you do ready to answer that question? Because let’s face it, the the other groups or teams or big producers in your local market have answers to those questions. Why should they trust you versus x? And it’s not, of course to ever disparage anyone who, who you’re in competition with, but to sort of separate and elevate yourself. And so you do need to know your value proposition. I think that is such great advice. And it sort of goes back to like when I first left college and had my first job, where they said, practice your objection handling, practice your value proposition, your elevator pitch in the mirror. I mean, it sounds it sounds silly, but you really should have three or four things. Or I’m asking RX, I should ask you, there should always be some information that you’re able to provide about what’s going on in the industry to talk to talk when you meet people. Is that? Shayla Twit 12:54Yeah, I would say yes, absolutely. And when I look back at like my older value propositions, I was a little I was too centered on me. And it was more about me, and I’m like, This is not about me how great I am, I think agents, but realtors, especially I don’t know, if we’re too egocentric or something like that the ego is good, but to a point, right? You have to have ego and empathy, empathy for the other person situation. So I totally switch that around. And I made I made sure and I was very hyper focused on the fact that like, you know, I’m curating first impressions for you. And that’s how we start the value proposition, like everything I do is like an art, like, you know, when you go and you make a painting, and you start the painting, you step away from it, and then you come back with new ideas. So you take your time, and make sure that from the wording to the photography, and the entire package presentation is really thoughtful and made for that person and for that property, because everybody, everybody’s property is as unique as them and so we take so much time and care into just the remarks that we put out there really thoughtful, you know, so we start from there and kind of move our way through like the presentation. D.J. Paris 14:18Yeah, I love that. I think every home has a story right? And every, every home should be able to have that story be told, and and really good realtors are able to do that they’re able to identify certain characteristics of a home or a personality type of a home sometimes even and really highlight and focus that in it that should all be coupled with the team or the individual agents branding. So we really encourage everyone to, you know, to think about this is the this is the year to level up your You’re sort of our brand and your brand. Shayla Twit 15:04Yeah, know how you want to portray your clients and their properties, like you want to stand out, like, instead of saying, like, you know, pointing out the obvious in the remarks, like paint a lifestyle, like, you won’t be able to imagine someone in that home and having a glass of wine at the rooftop, or, you know, whatever the, whatever the attributes of the home, you want to really highlight the most and not cover up the objections, but almost address them in a way that’s more artful that you’re not, you’re not hiding something like if it’s on a busy road, make it to a benefit, you know what I mean? So, so that you’re not, you know, people aren’t getting there and saying, like, oh, there’s a railroad track in the back, but like, you’ve already addressed it in a way that that’s creative to where, okay, like, they’re, they’re showing it, or they’re coming to see this, this is probably a better quality showing, because they kind of already know a lot of this stuff. You know, D.J. Paris 16:00there is a marketing principle of that I learned many, many, many years ago called if you can’t fix it, feature it, which basically means that yeah, give Pete give all the information up front. And, and so that when the person arrives there, you know, they’re fully aware of what the situation what the property has, and doesn’t have. I want to talk about lead leads, because everybody, of course, this business, real estate, realtor businesses are contingent upon lead generation. And I would love to know, right now, we know it’s difficult, right? We have are in a higher interest rate environment than we then Realtors would prefer for. So, you know, our lending partners are telling us that, you know, we might see rates in the fives, maybe the the low sixes this year, for 30 year fixed rates, that, of course, is going to have an impact on the number of buyers who want to participate. So we also know inventory has has dramatically shrunk. So we have this to two difficult challenges this year, we have low inventory and higher rates, although I think the rates are still pretty reasonable historically. But what are you? What are you doing to keep busy, stay productive, stay active and stay positive? Shayla Twit 17:30Well, I learned early on, I was lucky enough to be introduced to the Buffini and company system of referrals and repeat, you know that that whole models, so I was very, you know, looking back at 20 years, I’m still in that company, of just getting, you know, having access to the back end system, which was great. And the whole principles behind it, which the definition of real estate is lead generation it is. And however you want to break that down is your question. So, you know, for me, I’ve been doing this now 20, almost 21 years, so I really have my database, so I’m careful to stay in touch with them. Not too much, but just enough like so they’ll hear from me on a regular basis where you know, they’re passively on social media, but they always get like that, the snail mail or an E newsletter every single month. And so you know, staying in touch with those people because if you’re a longtime agent, the biggest thing you can do with what I would suggest is go back and source your business and keep doing what works. And not reinvent the wheel there and then figure out okay, like 75% 80% comes from repeat referral for me. So I keep touching those people whether I call text email, I will say I started this within the last like nine months I want to say and every I always touch them on the anniversary of the sale or purchase D.J. Paris 18:59love that. So we’re, I’m gonna pause you for a second because you’re saying so you’re saying so much great stuff that I I’m gonna I’m gonna slow us down a little because you’re talking about home anniversary, or we’ll call it home sales transaction anniversary date. So So by the way, nobody knows their home anniversary date other than no nobody this is this is a great opportunity to basically create a birthday event for for the property Shayla Twit 19:31and make an excuse to reach out so I took it a step further because I wanted it to be more personal that this isn’t a group email, anybody can send a text. So I made time in my calendar and you carve it out however you can and you can stack on but you go to the person’s house or to the gate or however far you can get to the neighborhood or the clubhouse whatever is art, it’s far into the house and you can get and I do a personal video and I text it to them and then I say In the video, I say, you know, happy anniversary, you bought the house, blah, blah. And I just want to see how the family’s doing. Yeah, you know, whatever the message is. And then at the end of it, I’ll say like, I’m going to follow up and send you your equity update in an email today. So you get your annual equity update. It’s hand selected hand curated for you. And I’ve gotten so many good responses from that. Like, it’s, it’s heartwarming, yeah. Because I’m like, I get excited to do that for them. And then I’m like, I can’t wait for them to see it and respond, you know. So it’s fun. And what D.J. Paris 20:34what you’re saying is, is simple, and you get super brilliant in a way, because it really serves a couple solves a couple problems. One is, okay, I’m not so busy right now. Because the rates in the market and you know, I’m not as busy. But what I could always do is do annual anniversary check ins with my past clients or any, it doesn’t even have to be a past client. It could be literally anyone who owns a property, you could just say, hey, you know, because I know, as a homeowner, the thing that I that I would always be interested in hearing about is what’s my, what’s the property’s worth, right? Yeah, so the idea of being able to send that to somebody on a on an annual basis, okay, I just, you know, did a little quick thing here for you, that is incredibly valuable to people, whether they want to move or not. Shayla Twit 21:32And they remember that and you know, you can take that same formula and spin it however you want. And whether they are just a friend, and you can look them up in the tax record and say, Hey, I saw that you bought your house X, you know, whatever years ago, I just thought I’d send you an equity. It doesn’t have to be a client. So if you’re new, and you’re looking to get business, it’s something to think about too. Like you don’t always have to be an agent of years and years. And I mean, I started somewhere, I didn’t know what the hell I was doing, you know, all these things that you’ve developed over time, they just, they just become systems. And that’s the other thing. You have to develop systems and consistency. And just put the things in your schedule and do like, I’m a big fan of recurring tasks. Me to do them every so whatever. So it pops up. This is what I have to do today. So you’re not like you know what you’re gonna do in the calendar. It’s already organized. D.J. Paris 22:24Yeah, I think this is, it’s so funny. I we’re here in Chicago, there’s 47,000 realtors in our market here. I can count on one hand, the number so I moved into a place new construction two years ago, I can count on one hand, the number of mailers I’ve received. Not that mailers are the end all be all. But if anyone by the way, Chicago, one of the most aggressive, competitive real estate markets in the country, you would and I live in in new development in the city, you would think that even though I just purchased a property, realtors would be consistently bombarding, bombarding me with hey, here’s what your home is worth. Here’s what your price is worth. Here’s what the neighborhood’s worth here. Are you thinking of moving? I have gotten maybe one or two letters, and two years. So this is a huge opportunity. And again, understanding that mailers aren’t necessarily Yeah. There’s a huge opportunity out here to introduce yourself to people, because every homeowner is not every homeowner, but most homeowners want to know what their home property value is worth. Right? And they’re gonna go to Zillow, they’re going to look up their Zestimate because that’s what people do. And then you’re going to come in and say, you know, actually, I think Zillow has got it pretty close to right. But here’s what I actually think your home is worth based on my own research that you could do that all day long. Every day, right? Shayla Twit 24:03Oh, yeah, absolutely. And so to your point, I’ve been doing the mailers so it I think it’s a Market to Market thing. I don’t know, mailers might not be for every market. I do feel like that’s probably the case. I will say for me in my market. I do a lot on Longboat Key, which is just north of Siesta Key in Sarasota and it’s actually span Sarasota Manatee County have nine miles. But so they’re the demographics that are online vote, many snowbirds, lots people that aren’t even here, they’re probably up in Chicago, you know, when it’s cold. And so they are getting my mailer. And in the mailer, they get the listings, they get the QR codes and all the recent YouTube videos I’ve done and then on the back and some other things, and on the back. It’s got all of the market stats for their for their neighborhood or what’s transpired So they’re getting all of that every single month without question. And so that’s a regular that’s another system that we do to, D.J. Paris 25:09to keep that. Yeah. So so in between sales, you’re touching each one of your contacts, monthly or maybe even more often than that, how critical is having that that those structures in place so that people don’t forget that you’re their realtor, right? Shayla Twit 25:32It’s really important because you never know where the business is going to come from, even though I say or another agent says, like, oh, repeat referral, but at the end of the day, it’s because they remember you because you’re sending stuff out and on a regular basis. And so I reach them even more than that, because I do have a YouTube channel too. And so I post on Tuesdays and Thursdays on my YouTube channel, in addition to those, among other advertising things that we do, and the YouTube channel, which goes into my mailer, and it goes into my E newsletter every single month. And what we do is, like, we talked to area businesses, we do an end of the month market update in great detail. We tour restaurants, we give, you know, a lot of people really like the neighborhood tours, because it’s like, okay, you can you can show a house and it’s like, you know, to get the feel of the neighborhood, we take it a step further. So for example, if I, if I take a new listing, I do that home tour on the YouTube, and then we do a whole neighborhood tour. And so our sellers love that too. And it’s something that we have fun with, and that we share with the public, and it gets people to understand, like, get to know Sarasota, and what’s here and the lifestyle, D.J. Paris 26:50that that is really quite quite smart. Because of course, when people move anywhere, they want to know, what is the culture, like, what’s the lifestyle, and if as agents, you know, it’s so interestingly, you’re mentioning this I’ve certainly had on guests before who’ve talked about, you know, creating content, video content, specifically around, you know, different restaurants and retail shops, and, you know, other community focused content to support the local, local industry, local industries, but this idea of doing it with doing it so, so deliberately is really, really important, I think. And I love the fact that you’re doing this regular video content, about lifestyle, like, Hey, here’s what it’s like to actually live in this area. That is not necessarily real estate specific content, but it’s incredibly important and valuable, you know, along with schooling, as well as community, you know, different opportunities that exist. So how important are those sorts of lifestyle? You know, markers, or how important is that to help bring in clients for you? Shayla Twit 28:18Well, it’s been really a learning curve process, I will say that it is a marathon, not a sprint, the YouTube, I think, I think if you’re not doing video, you’re missing a whole channel pun intended, of ways to get people to know who you are. And to get business. If you’re just going to do one or two videos, don’t even do a video. That’s just my hardcore opinion on it, because it’s like you and everybody else stops. So if you’re gonna do it, do it even once a week or every two weeks, like stick to a schedule. I’ve got I’m starting to get more interaction with it. Now. I’m not up to even 500 subscribers yet, but it’s been it’s a it’s a challenging platform. I’ll say that to to grow. Yeah, but But it’s been fun. I think that people are now calling and saying oh my gosh, I saw your YouTube where they might have seen me they may have Googled me first or Google shares that are realtors, you know, and then they stumble on me and then they see my because my YouTube goes to my website, and it auto uploads on my website, too. So that’s why if you gotta do so many things to be out, you know, unless someone already knows about you. So, D.J. Paris 29:37yeah, so this idea of creating content for on social media for your, for the public for for your, your sphere of influence. I’ve I’ve had hundreds of guests on the show over the years, and they all typically tend to, to focus on a providing content, solving problems, I think is a lot of times what drives content. So if you’re a realtor out there, and you’re thinking about, what should I be focused on on social media, I always think, you know, just write down the most common questions that you’re receiving from your buyers, your sellers, and then start to create content around answering those questions. You know, like, and I imagine in Sarasota, you can because when people move, obviously, there’s just a lot of things outside of the house that are factored in. Shayla Twit 30:39I mean, like, we think like, so throughout the day, like, as you have conversations, as problems come up, as unique circumstances come up, we just write them down. And we’re like, Oh, that’d be good video, this would be good video. And a lot of the conversations I have are okay, what are the I want to be walkable to this? I have a dog, where are the dog places. So we did a walkability video, we’ve done the dog park video, we’ve done the spas, the restaurants, it’s not like anybody, like I said, anybody can just show a house all the time. And if that works for your page, great for us, I wanted to mix it up and make it fun. And just again, it’s just it’s people come here for the lifestyle. We have a lot of snowbirds here. That’s my main market, you know, beachfront condos and all that stuff. And you know, they come and go, and it’s been part of the year or half year, whatever. And they want to come here for the lifestyle in the sun. And, you know, there’s other benefits, too, of course, no state tax and all that other stuff. Unlike in Chicago, where you’re at with all the taxes. Sure. And so you want to tell them about all those great things and and learn about the area in that way. D.J. Paris 31:53Yeah, and I love you know, being that you’re in a competitive, Sarasota, southern Florida area, you’re in a competitive agent environment here in Chicago, we are competitive as well. How do you differentiate yourself? What what are some of the ways in which you sort of stand apart from other realtors? Shayla Twit 32:14Well, I think well, one of them is the YouTube channel, because I know there’s so many just start in a completely fall off. I mean, they do. And it’s interesting to watch that happened. And I and I’m happy to, you know, I guess not mentor people, or they comment upon me for advice, which is flattering, but I’m like, Listen, this is how it is like, don’t even start if you’re just not going to commit, you know. So I think because I’ve put myself out there so much, you know, on social media and the various avenues, I did actually get recently approached to do a professionally produced series, it’s called inside luxury listing in Sarasota, we actually did a little book in the studio yesterday. And so it’s going to be really excited to be released in March. And again, that’s something very different because it’s collaborating with other agents in town showcasing luxury properties that people couldn’t get into otherwise, unless they were on this, you know, show, and we’re just doing a different spin on it. And by me collaborating with I mean, I was asked, it was very generous, offered to be asked to be on this. But now with SEO, I can tag him and her and they can tag me and it just like it’s going to be mutually beneficial. So it’s not like we don’t look at that as competition. You know, we look at that as like, there’s enough business for everybody and by us coming together to give a different dynamic is just something really unique and fun and exciting. D.J. Paris 33:47Yeah, I think agents can really partner up and do these things themselves. I, you know, even agents, different offices can really partner up and and, you know, together, work together. It is called a cooperative commission. Let’s let’s not forget that. And yeah, there’s, there’s so much opportunity out there. People have to live somewhere. Right. And so, you know, I’m curious, what are you doing or what are what are you doing to help? Right now, agents are struggling interest rates, low inventory. Buyers are in shorter supply than before, when we were at 3% rates, so how are you staying active, busy? What are you doing to you know, keep your business rolling forward? Shayla Twit 34:47Well, I listen to basically from the time I get up in the morning, I’m listening to positive content, like your channel here and others just really positive mindset, real estate, millionaire billionaire mindset just like positive in positive out motivational, I have routines, I think routines are really impactful and important and the discipline behind that because you can be motivated that discipline. So I go crazy, I get up at four, I get up at four every morning and I get to the gym because I, the days I don’t work out, I just have anxiety, I just feel off. So once I get that workout in, I’m so much more motivated to tackle the day and get things done. And I think that those little rituals that you do, whether it’s journaling, or meditating or getting up or working out, or like playing with your dogs, or whatever, or going for a walk, to start the day, I think is immensely beneficial for people. If they just start, and then they stick with it. D.J. Paris 35:57Yeah, you know, I think the last five episodes I’ve done a peep. interviews have been with all about Miracle Morning, you know, so the Miracle Morning is is a very common popular sort of practice, in the sort of self improvement world, and having habits disciplines are really the kind of the keys to success. And so in this book, Miracle Morning, they talk about, though your physical health, your spiritual health, you’re, you’re basically setting yourself up for success early in the morning. So it’s business, physical, personal, etc. So yeah, I’m a huge, huge fan of that I imagine that book probably had a significant impact on you as well. So I guess maybe what I would be interested in is what your from a customer perspective, what do you think is? What do you think is helping helping you separate yourself from the other agents in your area? What like, what else are you doing? Aside from the CMAS? Shayla Twit 37:16I think that well, especially when I’m working with a buyer or seller, communication is my reputation. So what I mean by that is, for example, I just took a listing a week ago today, and it’s, you know, different market. Now, we got to change things up here. So and I’m reverting back to my old little habits that I did. Because over the last two years, we didn’t have to do all this. And that was one of them is okay. It’s been a week on the market. This is all this is everything that we’ve done. All the marketing, we’re doing a broker’s open, we call the cold call we yada yada. And so it’s all right there. And I like to do that before they can ask. Because when they ask, it’s like, when the seller saying, Well, what have you been doing? It’s like, you don’t want to be in that position. So I want to tackle it. I want to answer their questions before they even have the question. That’s my approach. And we also do a 30 day and I don’t know beyond that, you know, we’ll still do it if we have to do a 6090 day. But do that before they ask the question. Because it’ll it’ll go a long way. Not only just with putting them at ease, but also it will help if you need a price reduction, because my sellers already thinking charity said, Okay, it’s been slow. I think we priced a little too high. Let them come up with it first. It’s brilliant. D.J. Paris 38:44Yeah, you know, it. It’s funny, my boss, when he started to our company here at kale hit, I said, what I asked him, What was your goal, Nick, as a broker, owner of a company and with your clients, he said he only had one goal, which was he never wanted his client to have to call him first. He said, I never wanted a client to have to call me first I. So basically, you just said essentially the same thing. So you’ll be a so this idea of reaching out and proactively having communication with your clients, here’s what’s happening, or here’s what’s not happening. Here’s why. Here’s what the what, why, you know, the how, why, what, where while how, right, like all just basically explaining, here’s where we’re at, here’s what’s happening. And here’s where we’re going to move forward, Shayla Twit 39:43basically, and basically doing what you said you were going to do based on the listing presentation or the marketing link, or how have you produced that or, you know, give it to him. This is everything we said we were going to do at to this juncture and like you you know that that Is your word and you’re following through on your word. And you’re being proactive, not reactive. D.J. Paris 40:05Sure, yeah, yeah. So when, when listing stay on the market in for longer, longer periods of time, of course, then that becomes, they become vulnerable to possibly losing those listings. And so this, this is a great opportunity, because you really need to have a strategy. So that, you know, communication policy, so that at a particular time, whether it’s, you know, seven days, 14 days, 30 days, that you know, that that that person is going to receive that seller is going to receive information about how many eyeballs have checked out the property, online, how many people have scheduled appointments, and then you can use that data to then say, you know, based on other comps in the area, I’m not seeing as much interest in this property, or we’re seeing more interest in this property, and you can make adjustments from there is that how you sort of work it? Shayla Twit 41:05Yeah, and you know, your company might have like the automated you know, they’ll get the number of impressions or whatever per week, we also have that with Cole banker, global luxury. So that’s, that’s already built into what they’re getting. But I don’t think that’s enough, like for them to just get an automated something or they’re from the company, they need to, they need to hear from you. And another thing you can do is you can get a feel for whether they take call text or email, you know, generally you can kind of tell people like go with that, you know, read between the lines, and like, if they prefer a phone call calm and give them the rundown. And, and do it based on the client, and they’re in their comfort zone too. But I think all of these things will show that it shows value. And again, you know, people are gonna people that are still living in 2020 23 to market this is going to be really critical in the 2023. You know, market coming up for price reduction requests, because you’ve already shown you, you’re not just sitting around and calling them when there’s time to reduce the price. You’ve been doing all this work, all this quality. And now okay, we haven’t had anything, let’s get the price down to sell. D.J. Paris 42:17Yeah, let’s, let’s talk about about marketing. I would love to learn a little bit more about how you prospect. How do people find you? What advice do you have for agents who are maybe they don’t have a lot of buyers and sellers right now, what would you recommend for them? Shayla Twit 42:38Well, everybody’s got a phone. Yes or no? computer that you carry around, you have people that you can call? I think what I see a lot of new agents doing and I it’s like so redundant. All they do is they say I’m new, I’m a new agent call me like any business, I’m available for referrals, buyers and sellers, I can I can do this and that whatever. But I say like, give them information for give them value. Give them answers to questions before they can like put that good content out there. It’s still about content, right? And you can call you can text them you can eat you know, email, whatever, FaceTime, you know, and call your database go out into the community and you have a hairdresser go step by with like a little gift and just your card or something that’s the Buffini system where they call Popeyes. You don’t have to do stuff that’s expensive. Like I started out at a collagen and the money so you sell a phone, you could start a comp I didn’t know anybody. I knew nobody in town, my brothers, I can help these and college. He’s got his college buddies. He doesn’t know anybody. So I just started stopping by this. I just literally just walked into businesses introduce myself. I mean, you gotta be out there. You have to, you can cold call. You can get phone numbers now online, like, you can just call neighborhoods and say, Hey, did you know this is happening in your neighborhood? Like, can I get your email add them to the database now they’re on a drip, like there’s so many things you can do whether you’re new or a veteran, D.J. Paris 44:17I that’s such great advice. adding people to your database is really the key and Europe. Buffini person and everybody you know, we all love the Buffini and company company. And what we want to do is really make sure that everybody understands that the most important thing for lead generation is adding contacts to your database. It just is. So if you and I going back about 15 years, but Brian Buffini and Joe NIGO they would hold each other accountable for meeting a certain number of adding new people Pull to their database when they were practicing real estate. So they would call each other say, Did you meet two to five new people a day. That was their goal was to meet two to five new people every single day and add them to your database. Because, as you know, Shayla that your network is your net worth, right? Shayla Twit 45:19Yes. D.J. Paris 45:22Yeah, so. So I’m curious. So we’re talking about staying in touch, right? We’re talking about providing value staying in touch in between the the monoliths of buying and selling, so the transactions are the big, you know, big boulders, and then we have all these things in between. And what we really want to do is provide value to the client between those big boulders and curious on what types of content that you’re providing to them, so that they, you know, remember that you’re a realtor and that they’re in any real estate needs that they Shayla Twit 46:05can I’m here, right? Yeah. Well, you know, just again, from keep up, but like, it’s from, okay, like you can things to do, you can go to the ballet, I mean, people are always looking for stuff like that, like so in the E newsletter that we put out, there’s a little more, there’s more room than just the piece paper, that email. So the E newsletter is a little bit of a spin off of the mailer. And in that there’s more fun stuff, like fun happenings or like newsworthy things of, of Sarasota in the area and stuff like that. And like the restaurants and the other links, and just different things like that. You know, and outside of that I have a whole full list. D.J. Paris 46:52Yeah, I think it was realtors who provide guides for local communities. These can be incredibly helpful, like, is a silly example, but I was visiting my father, who was in Peoria last week. And it’s just a weirdest thing to say. But in Peoria, there’s a large Lebanese pub population for for whatever reason. So I said, Hey, Dad, let’s go to Let’s go to what’s the best Lebanese restaurant in town? Right. And so there’s tons of them. And so we have a lot of them. Yeah, we do. Yeah. And so because I been eating Lebanese food of my entire life, because that’s where I grew up. And curious. Yeah. So I was like, this is really interesting. So as a result, we, you know, we went online, and I, and there’s like, 20 different restaurants in Peoria that are for Lebanese. And so we’re like, I don’t I don’t know which ones. But like, those are the kinds of things that I need to, you know, we need to solve that problem. And I didn’t know which was the best thing. And this is where realtors can really add value and really differentiate themselves outside of even just real estate advice itself. Shayla Twit 48:11Yeah, like you want to be the mayor of Sarasota, or mayor of Chicago or whatever, like, and I thought that term was funny, but it kind of fit if somebody else does that, to me, they’re like, the mayor of Sears. And like, that’s kind of the goal. By the way. I’m happy Turkish, are you? Are you? D.J. Paris 48:28No, I’m not. I’m not. No, I’m not but. But the idea is, is the idea of coming together and train trying to create value for people by solving problems for them, right. So like families need to eat, families need to live somewhere. So this idea of providing content around those basic needs, oftentimes can be really fun. And it’s as simple as really just taking your phone and turning it around and turning the camera on and saying, Hey, today I’m talking about XY and Z. But promoting local, promote locally, and, you know, a lot of these businesses, the challenge here, this is such an opportunity, I think Realtors really miss out on this. So, what they don’t understand is that Realtors what Realtors don’t understand is that they can reach out to these businesses and offer them like hey, I want to I love your product service your store and I want to expose my audience to your you know your wares your your you know, whatever you’re shilling. And as as a result, I would like you to also you know, possibly, you know, mentioned me so you’re basically giving them free advertising by you know, doing a real or a video or a story about why you liked this particular vendor in your local community. And then you can from there go on to create content, supportive of that community, and then tag those, those those, you know, different businesses in there, and hopefully drive more engagement. Shayla Twit 50:24This is actually how my channel started. So it’s funny you say that because I was just going to be doing like logo, not just but it’s kind of started into from that. Because I’ve got friends who own businesses, and I just was like, I want to have you’re the channel that benefits me because it’s our channel. But really, it’s promoting you. And I hope it drives I hope it drives customers to you. And it’s been so nice to give back in that way. And it’s complimentary. We don’t ask anything in return, we just, and we just we have one of the video. And then we promote the video from these different platforms, email, social media, and the mailers. So they get hit a few different ways. And, you know, we pay for all that advertising, of course, and it gives the customer the recipient of the piece of mail or, you know, whatever something to look at and value and I’m not Honey, let’s go to this restaurant, or let’s go check out the football game at this bar or something like that. And it’s cool. And actually, so we’re coming up on our 300th video, and we invited everybody that was has been a guest thus far on the channel to the vet, one of the first places I did a video at was Rafferty’s bar, downtown Main Street. And so we’re gonna have it at the bar. And we’re just gonna have like a happy hour. And it’s we’re gonna do a little video and pass the microphone around. And it’s just gonna be like a big like to do and we’ll tag everybody and it’s just and then they can meet each other exchange car, there’s gonna be like a little business networking thing on top of having this great video. And it’s just like, it just, it feels really good to do that stuff. And I didn’t I didn’t see it coming, you know this far? Like it hasn’t it’s just been really enjoyable D.J. Paris 52:04process. Yeah, you basically created a community, it sounds like, and that’s really exciting. And people like community, we need it. We, we embrace it. And you know, I always think like, every single person always is thinking about the weekend, right? Like, what am I going to do this weekend? What are the events going on? What am I gonna do with my kids? What am I going to do with personally, and when you have these kinds of events, sort of structures in place, you can then begin to start to, you know, just help other the residents in the area sort of know what, what, here’s all the cool events that are happening in this area. And I think there’s tremendous value in that. And it’s, Shayla Twit 52:55it just makes my heart happy. And it sounds corny, but I’m like, it’s just fun to be able to do this. And they’re excited, and I’m excited. And we’re just sharing and listen, like, you know, I want people to make money. I want my friends to do well. And so whenever I can do referrals are great. And if Hey, they remember me and give me a referral person. I want that. And it kind of always comes back full circle. So it’s a win win. For sure. D.J. Paris 53:23Yeah, I totally, totally agree. And for anyone out there who’s listening who may want to refer business to Shayla, so she’ll tell us a little bit more about what you provide for you in Sarasota to your clients. Shayla Twit 53:42Well, I have staff just me I do have a full time assistant and her name happens to be Shayla as well, so she’s available. She’s been with me about six and a half years now and the Sheila’s so we have the two of us full time and you know, I guess from working with my sellers and and buyers, we’re just at your service basically. And happy to do that. D.J. Paris 54:12Or great grateful for you coming on our show but he gave tons of great information and strategies and content. We are so honored to have you Shayla thank you so much for being on keeping it real. I want to remind everybody to please visit Sarasota real estate sold.com Sarasota real estate sold.com which is everything related to Charlotte and we’ll have links to those in the show notes. Please follow her on social media, Instagram, Facebook as well as Tik Tok. So please do that. On behalf of the audience. We want to thank a Shayla for are coming on our show. We appreciate it. We greatly greatly appreciate it and be on behalf of the listeners. We want to thank you the listeners as well. To make sure to please tell another friend tell a friend about the show. Think of one other agent that could benefit from hearing from our Sorry, I’m gonna I’m gonna redo this one at the end. But anyway, yes, we are grateful to have you. Thank you so much for being on our show. And we will we will see everybody on the next episode. Please tell a friend. Thank you. Thanks so much Shayla. Shayla Twit 55:36You’re welcome. Thank you

Andres Bustamante talks about his own life journey as a young real estate agent in Texas. Next, he describes why he thinks that starting with renting is the best strategy to increase sales. Andres also discusses why “referrals and social media“ helps new agents to grow the connections. Andreas also emphasizes that an agent should be a good storyteller, educator and problem solver. If you’d prefer to watch this interview, click here to view on YouTube! Andres Bustamante can be reached at Andres@victornino.com and (915) 227-9301‬. This episode is brought to you by Real Geeks. Transcript D.J. Paris 0:00We know the expression with age comes wisdom, but what about younger agents that already appear to be wise and crushing it? Even if they’re in their early 20s? Or we’re gonna be talking to one of those agents today? Stay tuned. This episode of Keeping it real is brought to you by real geeks. How many homes are you going to sell this year? Do you have the right tools? Is your website turning soft leads and interested buyers? Are you spending money on leads that aren’t converting? Well real geeks is your solution. Find out why agents across the country choose real geeks as their technology partner. Real geeks was created by an agent for agents. They pride themselves on delivering a sales and marketing solution so that you can easily generate more business. Their agent websites are fast and built for lead conversion with a smooth search experience for your visitors. Real geeks also includes an easy to use agent CRM. So once a lead signs up on your website, you can track their interest and have great follow up conversations. Real geeks is loaded with a ton of marketing tools to nurture your leads and increase brand awareness visit real geeks.com forward slash keeping it real pod and find out why Realtors come to real geeks to generate more business again, visit real geeks.com forward slash keeping it real pod. And now on to our show. Hello, and welcome to another episode of Keeping it real, the largest podcast made by real estate agents and for real estate agents. My name is DJ Parris. I’m your guide and host through the show, and in just a moment, we’re going to be speaking with Andres Bustamante. But before we get to Andres, just a couple of quick reminders, please the best way you can help our show two things, please support our sponsors. They’re the one that pay the bills, and they are the ones that allow us to do as many episodes as we can. So thank you, please check out our sponsors their services and products, consider investing in them by investing in them that will not only help your business, but also help us stay in business so we can keep doing these episodes. And the second thing to do is to tell a friend about the show 2023 is a tough year so far for real realtors, so let’s give them the best chance of success, introduce them to the show, send them over to our website, keeping it real pod.com They can check out some of our episodes, and they can always of course like and subscribe on any podcast platform that they might be listening to shows on. Alright guys enough of that. Let’s get to the main event my conversation with Andres Bustamante. Today on the show we have Andres Bustamante with Keller Williams Nino team in Austin, Texas. Now I am really excited to tell you more about Andres. And if you are a listener of our show, and if you kind of just zone out during the bio, I really want you to zone in only for the next 30 seconds, because this is probably going to pique your interest. This is a really fun one today. So let me tell you about about Andres. So Andres Bustamante was actually born in El Paso, Texas to Mexican parents. He graduated from the University of Texas at Austin as a first generation. He also spent one full year in France with an exchange family when he was 16. And that helped him become independent at an early age. And when when he was 19. He actually got his real estate license again at 19 years old. And this is the reason why he needed to figure out a way to pay for college. Now being a leasing agent. He was able to accomplish this he actually paid for his college education by being a leasing agent. Now this is where it gets really amazing. His first ever sale as a 21 year old was for $1.1 million. And at 23 years old, he decided to do real estate full time clearly he’s good at it. And he joined a team. Now his first year full time he earned rookie of the year he sold 21 homes for almost 7 million in volume. That’s in year one. Now in year 237 homes for 17 million. And in year three another 37 homes for 19 million. He’s currently by the way, guys, he’s currently 26 years old. Now visit all things Andreas on his Instagram and Tiktok at Andres booster TX A NDRESBUSTATX links to both of those will be in the show notes. Andres Welcome to the show, my friend. Andres Bustamante 4:55Thanks, DJ. That was a great intro. I mean, that’s the bio D.J. Paris 5:00It is the bio and I wasn’t joking, you are fascinating to me. And as a young man in this industry, to have this kind of success is is is amazing. It really is inspiring. And I’m so so happy to to I don’t know if you found us or we found you. But either way, this is an exciting interview for me. So let’s, let’s start at the very beginning, which by the way, it wasn’t that long ago. But let’s start at this idea of being a leasing agent at 19. Sort of how did you even know about that? I mean, at 19? You don’t even want to know what I was doing. I was like bussing tables? For nothing. What you got it? How did you how did you learn about that real estate? Andres Bustamante 5:44Well, firstly, I mean, you ever had one of those moments in life when you just don’t know what you want? For your life? D.J. Paris 5:51Sure, every moment of my every moment of every day? Yes. Certainly when I was younger, for sure. Andres Bustamante 5:58Yeah. So that’s how I was in college. I’m just like, I switched majors, like three times. I was supposed to be doing supply chain, that yeah, then I was like, oh, finance. And then I’m like, oh, I want to travel abroad, let’s do international business. But one thing I knew for certain I needed to find a way to pay for college. But But I didn’t want to have like that job towards like, I had someone telling me what to do. And this and that. I know a lot of us realtors can relate. So a buddy came to me, it’s like, Dude, you should try being a leasing agent or real estate agent. And that’s how I really got into it. Because I needed to find a way to pay for college. And I needed to find a way to make more money than anyone else could at that time as a 19 year old. D.J. Paris 6:42Yeah, and they’re just let’s, let’s face it, there just aren’t a lot of opportunities for 19 year olds, right? Like, you get a a minimum wage, or a low paying job, because that’s what 19 year olds get. And the fact that your friend came to you with this opportunity is is truly amazing. I imagine you have a tremendous amount of gratitude to that friend. Andres Bustamante 7:04He’s one of my best friends. He was my roommate. And when he was my roommate for like, five, six years. D.J. Paris 7:09Yeah. Wow. So So when when you started as a leasing agent, what did that look like? How did that work for you? Andres Bustamante 7:16Oh, it was insane. So it was back when we didn’t have the bluetooth for your phone to open lock boxes or anything. So I would have to go to like there was like 20 leasing offices in West Campus. That’s where the university students mostly stay. So I’d have to coordinate with like groups of students that were living in the condo to be like, hey, I want to show your place. I have several clients that are interested. It was crazy having to coordinate that, then I’d have to go to the leasing offices to get the keys. So no joke picture a 19 year old driving in his car with like, 20 keys in the clipboard. And I would frantically be like, Oh, is this the key? Or is this the key? And I had moments when the keys wouldn’t work. So I’m just like, I turn around to look at my clients. I’m like, Hey, guys, I don’t think we’re going to be able to see this one. But they were usually older. So I was always like, Oh my gosh, are they gonna trust me? How is this gonna go? Yeah, it was? D.J. Paris 8:10Did you? Did you work closely with students? Andres Bustamante 8:14Students, and I had several graduates. During that time, though, mostly students, through groups that I had joined that everyone lives 98 95% of students rented. So the apartments would pay me the condos would pay me once I got them to sign a lease. D.J. Paris 8:33It’s it’s it’s such a brilliant strategy. Because, you know, obviously, college kids have to live somewhere. A lot of times they’re bankrolled by their parents as well. So getting, you know, sort of that part approves probably a little easier. Because you’re, you know, I know when I went to college, or I went to the school called Miami University in Ohio, and I think we had to pay the whole semester rent upfront. I don’t know if that’s still done these days. But well, it was like 200 bucks a month, you know, so. So it was it was, you know, they were like, We don’t want to, you know, the landlords over there. Were like, we’re just going to collect it all. You Yeah. But, but but in your case, you know, it was probably a really great idea because you could network with the people that you knew in classes and in your social circles. And, and I imagine you were probably the only person in your social circles, aside from your best friend who was also doing it. Were you guys the only two that were really doing it? Andres Bustamante 9:33So my best friend actually did not end up doing it because he didn’t have like, he could not do it because of some certain visa requirements and whatnot. Sure. Yeah, unfortunately. But I was the only one in the group and I was part of like four groups. I was part of the UT soccer team, University of Texas soccer team. So every year people would need a rent. So I would get repeat clients for three years. And once once I set the systems, I would just tell the property manager Hey, I’m sending people over and they’re I’m pretty much sure they’re gonna sign. So it was like maybe 500 bucks per bedroom. And as a college student, that’s pretty amazing. Huge. D.J. Paris 10:07That’s amazing. And then did you have the foresight at that time? And again, a 19 year old? You know, look, we, you know, just that you’re even doing that at 19 is impressive. But did you have the foresight at that time to think, at some point, these these, these leasing tenant, these tenants are going to graduate? And, you know, I don’t know how many of them stay local, or, you know, leave and go elsewhere. But were those relationships? Like you said, you worked with them while they were in college every year? And then were you able to find the people that did stay after college and maybe even continue to assist them? Andres Bustamante 10:49Well, the thing is, my mindset wasn’t really on that I always thought I was going to be working as a in commercial real estate as a tenant rep with JLo, because I had internships with them. But then I was like, I don’t want to have an eight to five and I had a set salary there. So my mindset was never really it was more so I need to pay for college. This is what I’m going to do with this is D.J. Paris 11:11just getting me through till I get to Jones Lang LaSalle. Yes, because I Andres Bustamante 11:15had an internship with them. And in my head, I was like, I’m too young to be a real estate agent. And you are, yeah, yeah, that’s true. It was like people are not going to trust me. That was my mindset back then. That’s why I was saying, Oh, no real estate full time. I mean, a lot of my friends would be like, Dude, you don’t sell a house, you’re done. Or you don’t do this. You’re done. So I would, I’d be like, oh, yeah, they’re right. It was like a Yeah, the mindset thing, wasn’t there, unfortunately, at that time. D.J. Paris 11:43Well, I mean, you can’t expect a young person at that age to have a, you know, a healthy mindset around opportunity, right? They know, you don’t know what you don’t know. And at the same time, you’re also in college, you’re like, Okay, I’m gonna go down this path. I’m getting a degree, I want to go into commercial, I want to work in the, you know, for a more traditional commercial firm, like Marcus and Millichap Cushman and Wakefield, those those are the firm’s, you know, Jones Lang LaSalle. As you mentioned, CBRE, you know, places like that, and, and then you’re like, Well, wait a minute, I’m pretty good at this residential real estate thing. But I’m also in 2020 2122. But you did have success pretty early on, and you’ve had success every year. And so as much as your mindset obviously has shifted, you are obviously incredibly skilled. And I think skill is, is oftentimes, you know, the missing factor. For people who, who are struggling, you know, it’s mindset is part of it, of course, but also just being able to do the job is not an that isn’t, let’s talk about your first sale. So we’re sort of I’ve started dancing around it, you, you’re 21 years old, you have your broker or your your realtor license, whatever they call it in Texas, I don’t know if it’s broke or whatever. But your your realtor, and now again, a very reasonable thought nobody is going to trust me with this, you know, I wouldn’t trust a 21 year old, with my home, I just wouldn’t. And you know, what, that’s ageist and it’s, it’s probably ignorant on my part, but it’s understandable. And so you are now in the position of, I gotta grow, I got to try to figure out this. And you did. So tell us a little bit about how you got that first sale, which by the way, was $1.1 million, which I’m so so impressed by Andres Bustamante 13:37I was I’m sitting in my dorm room cafeteria. And I remember this perfectly. I just ordered something that resembled the pizza from you know, other dorm cafeterias are like the worst. And I get a call. And I’m listening to the guy. And I mean, you ever gotten one of those calls where it seems like a scam? Because it’s too true. You’re like, Dude, wait, what is that? He’s telling me his budget. He’s like, my budget is 1 million to 5,000,001 of my friends referred me to you that you helped lease. And I’m sitting with my, with my roommates and in the cafeteria. Yeah, I like my expression changes and I get up. And I’m still with my phone. And I legit told the guy, dude, you’re I’m sure you’re saying renting. So with a budget of 1005 1000 you can rent anything you want. And it’s like, you know, you know that rich, velvety voice. It’s like, you just know this guy is like super rich. So he’s like, No, dude. I’m looking to buy it’s 1 million of 5 million. And I’m like, okay, I can help you. I hang up and in that moment, I’m like, regretting that I said yes. Because I’m like, how am I going to figure this out? Sure. That was the moment when he called me that’s how it went. And I was just like, What is going on? D.J. Paris 14:51Yeah, so So what what did you do at that point? So you hung up and now you’re like, Okay, now I gotta put something together for this guy had Andres Bustamante 14:58a Oh my gosh, I had a week, I learned all the lingo. Like I didn’t even know what a nature way was. And I yeah, I had only done leasing and these were students. Yeah, the first ever tour. This guy is like very straight up, you’ll say what he means no filter. It was hilarious. Now he’s a really good friend. And we go to the first meeting and they’re barely building this, this condo, it’s the Austin proper downtown, beautiful building. And we walk in, and oh my gosh, that guy is just walking with me. He looks at the building inside the showroom. He sees the model in the middle. And in Spanish, she says no, megusta that means I don’t like it. Yeah, no good. And this sales rep was coming towards us, my client walks out. And I’m left alone with the sales rep. So I’m like, that was my first ever experience. And I said, Dude, I don’t know if this is common or anything. But then we ended up closing on a $1.1 million condo at the independent, which was incredible, that all those thoughts were going through my head during the whole transaction, like I’m too young, this is gonna happen. Crazy thing is, though, it was a lease referral. And that client is a really good friend of mine now. So it’s just crazy how it all happened. D.J. Paris 16:15It is and it didn’t, you know, it didn’t just happen, right, you had done an exceptionally good job for the tenant that referred to you. Although you know, and so you know, it’s, it’s, there’s some degree of luck in the sense of you happen to have done a great job for somebody that had somebody to refer to you. But you made that luck yourself, right. And so this is this is can happen to anybody at any age. And it did happen to you at an early age, you were able to convert it, you took it seriously, at 19, I wouldn’t have had the emotional maturity to even know what to do. So I am very impressed. Andres Bustamante 16:54One thing I always say leasing is so underrated. If you’re barely starting house, I always say look, find the top brokers top teams, and offer the value of look, you know what I understand that you’re extremely busy and your priorities are probably buying and selling. What do you have for lease that I can help you out with? And if you’re looking to join a team, that’s probably the best way to join a team offer value for free. And those leasing clients they might buy, but it’s always about who do they know that might buy as well, because I know a ton of people. D.J. Paris 17:27I couldn’t agree with you more here in Chicago, I talk about that a lot. When agents will come to me and say I’m thinking about joining a team, what companies do you recommend for teams, and obviously, there’s a lot of them. And I say, you know, there’s plenty of teams, you can join, I’m like, that’s not really a problem. But I said if you can bring value to a team, you have more, more, more leverage. And you can ask for more things. And if you can come and say, Hey, I noticed your team does a lot of sales. But I noticed you aren’t doing a lot of rentals. And for me, I think that you know, we can feed the sales beast by working with these people as renters today, stay in touch with them, educate them, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, when rates come down, maybe we’ll be able to convert them over to buyers. I think that’s an amazing strategy. I’m not not that not every market supports that. Right? If you’re in rural Idaho or something, maybe there just isn’t a rental market that could support you. But if you’re in a you know, some sort of metropolitan area Austin obviously being one Chicago where I am, guys, there’s so much business here and so much and and also most Realtors tend to ignore the renters, they tend to move away from those. So there’s not as much competition as well. So that is that is amazing to me. Now you joined a team, which I think was a very smart move pretty early on. Was that was that your role on the team was to be? Would it be the leasing guy? Andres Bustamante 18:54Not necessarily. And I joined the team kind of not really looking for it. But my company, the first company I joined housing scout was like, only leasing. Sure they never did sales. And it was funny when I would call people hey, there’s some that is from housing scout. I’m looking to buy a one month our condo, people like housing. Scott, what is that? So it was more so look, I don’t want to be doing leasing as much I want to transition into the sales. And my mentor. I heard him on bigger podcasts, bigger pockets podcast, the Oh Korzo. And I reached out to him because he was in Austin. And I’m like, Dude, I loved your podcast, I need to be on your team. I really want to get lunch and I kind of provided some value. And he was like, I’m busy right now and call me next week, calm next week. I set the lunch. Thankfully, this is like November 2019. And he’s like, Dude, I really like what you’re doing. I want you to join our team. So that’s how I joined the team. It was like me listening to podcast to get as much knowledge and a guy says I’m in Austin. So I said I need to join this guy’s team. And they weren’t looking for any team. They only had two agents. D.J. Paris 19:57Wow. I didn’t encourage everyone to do this right? Find the superstars in your local area. And you’d be shocked at how few how rarely, they actually get reached out to by newer agents. Yeah, and you might have to bug them a few times because they’re busy, right? And, but I know people that I’ve interviewed people on this show who go, if somebody emails me and wants to join my team, I typically ignore the first couple times they reach out. And, or I’ll just give them kind of a little bit of a brush off. But if they keep coming back, if they keep showing up, you know, maybe it’ll take a year of, you know, pestering me, but eventually, they sort of wear me down. And I’m like, okay, this person is serious. So it doesn’t mean you have to, you know, be a pest. But But I think this idea of being persistent and also helping a team solve a problem, right? So so instead of just saying, Hey, guys, I don’t really have a lot of leads, I’m kind of want to join a team, so you can help me, you know, generate more business. Maybe, maybe you could find somebody that’ll help you do that. But if you come in and say, Hey, tell me about your team, where are you guys having problems? What’s stopping you guys from growing? Here’s what I can bring, why you’re gonna have a lot Andres Bustamante 21:10of success. Yes. And like I said, they weren’t looking to grow a team, they were only two agents. So I became the third agent. And I wasn’t really handed down any leads, because it was the first time they ever Well, I wasn’t handed any leads. It was the first time they ever made the team. But I knew I wanted to join these guys, because they knew their stuff. So any new agents, the best recommendation I can make is, look, the brokerage that’s important, but who’s your team? For me, that’s always been the most important your mentors. That’s like a cheat code. And anything you can do, D.J. Paris 21:41yeah. agreed and could not agree with you more. And I love the fact that you said I didn’t get any leads at all. Because I think that also is a misperception sometimes when when I will have younger, younger, or newer agents like yourself, who have had this incredible success early on. And I think the inclination is to think somebody probably helped to help them out. And it’s not that they people didn’t help you. But you you source, your own leads, you source your own business, you get support, and mentorship and coaching from from from your, I mean, I guess it’s a team, you know, it’s technically a couple of people working together. But it’s we’re not talking about a team of 30 people we’re talking about. Andres Bustamante 22:23Now, we’re eight amazing transaction managers. So it’s good for you in quantity, for sure. D.J. Paris 22:29It’s unbelievable. And so as as somebody who’s settling into your business, you know, you’re now in what year three or four, basically full time? Yeah. So you’ve had an amazing run, let’s I just want to go over these numbers again. So So year one, you know, you basically did 21 sales, which is almost two a month. That’s amazing, in and of itself, you know, 7 million total in production. Year two, you went from 21 sales to 37 sales. So now we’re at what about three plus a month? Unbelievable. And then also last year, another 37 sales and for almost 20 million? So So you’re doing three, three plus transactions a month in your third year? This is this is just incredible. It really is. Tell us how you’re doing? How are you finding your clients? And and are they coming from referrals? Are they coming from? Are you purchasing leads? Where are you finding your clients, Andres Bustamante 23:31I have never purchased leads, the biggest thing that I say as helped is fear of influence referrals and social media. And one thing I want to say that’s so important as a real estate agent is that we’re we’re storytellers, we have to know how to tell a story. And I remember perfectly when I was telling clients look, buying a house is a great, this is a great thing to do. That I was really starting off and I didn’t have my house. So I said, You know what, if I’m telling people to buy a house, why am I doing it? And also kind of like, that’s probably my biggest expense. So I looked at my expense sheet one day, and I’m like, Yeah, housing is about 1000 to 1300 a month. I need to eliminate that expense. How can I do that house hacking. So I bought a house that was four beds, three and a half baths, lived in one room, rented out the other three. And while I was living there, I was living there for free and making $300 of cash flow. But the biggest thing about this what’s most important, the reason I’m saying this story is because I knew my target audience, I knew that I wanted people that have a big misconception, or 20% down. That’s always that’s such a big misconception. And we’re also educators so we we should teach people that then also oh my gosh, I have a lease that ends around this time and this and that. Oh, I just graduated college and I can’t afford this. Yeah, so I got that misconception and I made a post when I bought my house. Hey guys, I’m 23 years old, and I had a big risk misconception I thought I had to put 20% down. I had just graduated graduated college and everyone told me this was a bad idea and this and that. But you know what I did it. And now I’m living for free. And when I told that story, all my friends that could relate to undress, did it, he was doing what I did, I just graduated, they all reached out because of the relatability of a story, as opposed to me saying, Hey, I just bought this house. I just sold this, like, dude, what’s the story behind it? What did you help achieve? And that’s when you make it relatable to your peer group. And that’s when people reach out because they can feel it. Like it’s them, you know? D.J. Paris 25:31Yeah, boy, I am. So there’s a lot that you just said there that I’m processing because it’s also perfect. I think I am. Yeah, I’m a little I’m a little, you’ve actually flummoxed me a little bit, because I’m so used to hearing very, very similar, very similar stories. And this one is more more unique. But this idea of story selling it, you said a lot of things. Number one, first buying your own property at such a young age and house hacking and saying, Hey, here’s an opportunity where I can actually live rent free. And not only do I live rent free, I make a few 100 bucks a month on top of that, which is awesome. And I get all the depreciation from being an investment in investment. Yeah. So So Oh, Andres Bustamante 26:18my God. Yeah. There’s there’s so much there that I can talk about for sure. D.J. Paris 26:23It’s, yeah, your accountant is probably very happy with you with with, with advice, and you actually, you have more than one property now how to tell tell us Wow, that’s evolved. Andres Bustamante 26:33So this is I love talking about this. So I talk a lot I harp a lot about new builds, why new builds? Okay, resell you might close within 30 to 45 days. What if someone is telling you dude, my lease is in 10 months, but I really liked this price. Well, US problem solvers, storytellers, educators, that’s our job to find his problem a solution to the problem. So a lot of people told me Oh, 10 months from now. Oh, create what I would tell him. Okay, great. What if there’s an opportunity where you can lock the price, and within 10 months, the home is built? People were like, Oh, my gosh, let’s do it. So we wouldn’t go under contract for new builds for a low deposit, like 1003 1000. And people walk in on no joke, 100,000 plus inequity. This was when the market was starting 2020 2022 Sure. So the new build strategy was insane. And I bought another house, even though I hadn’t fulfilled that one year requirement as an owner occupant. So a lot of people know you need three, you can do three to 5% down with a conventional if you live in it for a year. But I wanted my my next house because I was so excited, I got the bug. And I found a builder that they did not finish the house until like 10 months from then. So I put this house under contract two to three months after getting my first house. And I locked the price, when I closed on that house a year later, was selling for 100,000 more. So what I did was get a home equity line of credit on that house 80% of the equity. And now I’m a hard money lender to some of my clients. So I know crazy with the you look, I lend money to people I have 120,000 line of credit. D.J. Paris 28:13It’s it’s it’s incredible. And I think all of this is mentorship, right and coaching and having people that know this stuff. And and you have the ability to now be a really an educator, I think, and you’re like, Hey guys, this this is I think living the experience, like you were saying is is really compelling. And it does. Obviously social media is all about shared experience. And so you have the ability to explain these processes in a way that, you know, educates and entertains and really inspires. And I imagine what percent I’m curious what percentage of your clients have come from, you know, social media now that people have been sharing your stories. And Andres Bustamante 29:05I would say about 25 to 30%. Wow. And the big thing here that a lot of people don’t understand is look, you meet new people don’t ask for obviously, no one’s gonna ask for an email. That’d be way too weird, but it’s like, Hey, dude, I had a great time be intentional, firstly, but I had a great time. What’s your social media, your Instagram, you get them on social media. The big thing here is you need to show people what you do. It’s not like, they’re just magically going to guess. So I put like two to three stories of what I do and not just real estate related, but I go to the gym, people want to relate with you on a on a level of not just real estate or real estate stuff. And when people start seeing that a lot, they’re gonna be like, Oh, in my head on that is real estate. I’ll relate both of them. So putting stories on social media has been something that is crucial. And anytime I meet someone new, I get them on social media so that they can start getting the seed planted on that it’s real estate. I keep seeing him You must be doing great. His team did 98 million in volume, which is what we did this past year. Oh my gosh, the relatability. That’s so important. D.J. Paris 30:09So yeah, you’re talking about branding or so. So this idea of creating content on social media that reminds people what you do what you think about, I was thinking about this. The other day, I was yesterday, I was driving home, or here back to Chicago from my parents home. And I was going a different way. And I noticed a big McDonald sign out in the distance where it was attached to a gas station. And I thought, you know, you drive by, you know, on highways, you drive by all sorts of fast food places, and I went, I wonder how important it is for McDonald’s to have that sign there. And because what it does is it just reminds me about McDonald’s, right? We’re talking about branding, and we need to be constant constantly reminding people what we do in a way that isn’t pushy. And so I think stories and reels, and the video clips on social media is really a great way to do that. Because you can do these little short clips of like, here I am at the gym. Oh, here I am with a at a showing here I am, you know making dinner, whatever it might be. How come? Were you doing two to three of those a day? Are you doing two or three of those a week? What is your social media calendar look like? Andres Bustamante 31:27Honestly, anything that I’m doing? I might do like, yeah, I would say two to five nowadays. Today, I am big on morning routine. That’s one of the reasons that I’ve had the success that I’ve had, I do the Miracle Morning. And I went to the gym 520 In the morning, and then I did sound after and I posted like a little picture. Hey, who else to Sona? Or what do you guys think? Cole cold plunge or sauna to get people engaged. And then before the podcast, I was like, Oh, I’m excited for this podcast, a little story made people start seeing that, like, Oh, this guy’s on a podcast. Oh my gosh, he must be doing great things. So I had my team meeting today I have my team meeting every Monday at 930. And then I made a video on Tiktok asking my agents like, what’s the best way to get leads? It’s the best way to get each one. So it’s how my social media is. You just take like, five seconds on a story. It’s so easy to do, you know? D.J. Paris 32:23Yeah, yeah. And I think people can do this too, if you know with their existing sphere of influence. So in social media, you’re you were saying when you meet somebody who’s you know, a civilian, somebody who might be a potential client. I’m not a realtor, you’re you know, maybe you’ll get their email if you if you’re lucky. But most important thing is social media. Because not only will will you be able to brand yourself to them, you’ll also now know what they’re into what they’re all about, right? When you’re scrolling through, and you see that they just went on a vacation or that they have, you know, some major life event, it gives you an opportunity to want to then reach out and say, Hey, I noticed you just did XY and Z. So do you use do you use it for like a little bit of research and development as well? So you know what? Andres Bustamante 33:06Oh, for sure. For sure. Like anytime I do it for research and development, but I’m never like the guy hey, let’s like send me an email. I’m very intentional about it. Like the stories and whatnot. And I’ve had a lot of people reach out. Hey, dude, I didn’t know you were doing real estate. That’s great. When I see him again. They’re like, Dude, you’re doing so much in real estate. Like I’ve joined soccer teams, I’ve Toastmasters. Probably the best thing anyone can join. Toastmasters is a public speaking group. And it’s worldwide. That’s probably the best thing I’ve joined. And now I’m Vice President of membership. So all the new members are the one that talks to me. So art, it’s it’s been amazing. And every, every month, we get like 20 Plus members 20 plus new people that I get to meet. So, ya know, that’s been great. All the groups have joined in being intentional about that. D.J. Paris 33:55Yeah, it is, it is so much this, your net worth is directly connected to your network, right? Like, we know that it says expression, it’s said, your network and your net worth are kind of connected. And it’s like yeah, and now you have to think about how to how to remind your net work, what you do without holding your hand out all the time saying, are you ready to buy and you’re ready to buy? Are you ready to sell right? In the way that you can do that is by sharing your experiences of daily life? And it’s Yeah, go ahead. Andres Bustamante 34:29And and one one other thing that I would say that that I do with my business partner, we host meetups once a month, to also be like, Oh, this guy’s like doing meetups and bringing these type of guests. You know, it’s all perception is so important. And last week, we had a meetup we had 60 plus people and I got three new potential buyers. So that was incredible. And then I hosted a home buying seminar and I got four potential buyers. I’m pretty sure two of them are for sure gonna buy this last week. So that’s already Six potential buyers. D.J. Paris 35:01Let’s back up. So how do you get six? So 60 people showed up to what was it a house hacking seminar, it was Andres Bustamante 35:07awesome. Now I don’t really do that house hacking seminars anymore. If I do, I do it via zoom. But it’s more so we every month, and I’ll send you some pictures about it. Every month, we have like a guest speaker. And this guest speaker was David toop. And a good friend of mine. He’s a big apartment. syndicator, 27 years old, this guy’s killing it. And it was all through posting on social media. And I put it up on Eventbrite. So that then anyone that signs up, I get their email. Yeah, so I have 60 plus, but I mean, 80 people signed up 60 came. So after all the emails, I got a photographer for that event, I made a Facebook group for it. So people start joining. It’s insane. And I recommend any Realtors do that, like hosting a meetup and getting people to see that getting a photographer, you know, the connection there? Oh, it’s been huge. That has helped a lot as well. D.J. Paris 36:00Yeah, you know, it’s, gosh, you’ve got my head spinning in in a couple different directions, because I am now inspired to do some more of that on the recruiting side. So, boy, you, you, you’re inspiring me. So this idea of doing you what we’re really talking about is providing value. So you know, you’re you’re big about you’re big into branding, which we’ve talked about making sure the people in your sphere know what you’re doing. And sort of unconsciously reminding them that oh, by the way, I’m a realtor. And then we’re talking about education, you know, making sure that we’re giving back to, you know, these people who might not know about, you know, for example, the 20% myth, right, the 20% downpayment myth, you know, is I know, that was always a major one for me, was like, Well, if I want to buy a $400,000, home, I don’t have 80,000 in cash, just waiting, you know, to put down so I just always assumed that that was out of reach for me when I was a young, younger person. Nobody sat down with me and said, Well, there’s actually some other ways you can do this. And I didn’t know what I didn’t know. So I think there’s this huge opportunity. And it’s not like, once somebody gets to a certain age, they all of a sudden start understanding well, how how how home lending works. I mean, some people never ever really get it until they have to make that decision. And then they learn on the fly. I mean, that’s how it worked. For me, it was like, one day I went, I wonder if I could afford a home? And then I Googled it, you know, and then I was like, Oh, yeah. It was such, it would be such a great opportunity for somebody in my life, to say, Hey, you don’t have to google that I know this stuff, I’m going to sit down with you and go through it. So you either learn it by Googling, or they’re gonna go to somebody, and eventually they’re gonna go to somebody to buy the home anyway. But this is an opportunity to sort of establish yourself as the knowledge source. And by the way, these events that you’re doing, I’m assuming you’re getting other people to to pay for the events, or maybe you’re paying for oh, yeah, Andres Bustamante 38:07yeah, it’s do it. It’s all about how smart you can be. I have my title and lender, people paid for everything, everything. So it’s like, look, you can promote yourself right here. And we have a really good relationship. We’re gonna have 60 plus people, like, Dude, we’re game. So they paid for the full venue. It was amazing. Like, yeah, we had such a good turnout. D.J. Paris 38:29I love that. What would you recommend? So so this year, okay, so let’s talk about 2023. Because we are in a high higher interest rate environment than we were two years ago. We’re in a lower? Well, we’re in a low inventory environment, like we were two years ago. So there’s a lot of realtors out there. So now I want to I do want to talk about mindset for just a moment. Because it’s easy to get a little bummed out this year, I think it’s easy to take in and absorb a lot of the media, sort of the stories about the housing shortages, and the rates being obviously higher than than a lot of buyers would prefer. What are you doing? And and if we have sorry, and, you know, we’re looking at what economists are saying are going to happen this year, pretty much across the board. Economists are saying this is going to be a tough year. So I don’t want to pretend that it isn’t. That doesn’t mean that there aren’t amazing opportunities this year. And I’m curious because I know mindset is everything for you. What are you doing to stay motivated and stay productive despite some of these, you know, challenges in the market that you just obviously can’t control? Andres Bustamante 39:44For me? And this is like straight up I don’t believe in motivation. I think that’s like me neither here here. Yeah. Yeah, that’s for me. That’s BS. So one thing and I know a lot of people are gonna say like, oh my gosh, the morning or Seen, it’s just so important. Like, I don’t do my morning routine one day and I feel so different. And it goes a little something like this, I’ll wake up at 5:20am I’ll do my bed because those little wins are crucial. I’ll get to the gym around 530 to one hour that I take a cold shower. That has helped me a lot. Because whenever you are induced into stressful situations, you kind of get used to it, because I hate cold showers. I don’t like them. But it’s like it’s a stressful situation that it’s like, do you get used to it first thing in the morning. Let’s go. And D.J. Paris 40:31I want to pause for a second let’s talk about the benefit of a cold shower. So this is important because I’ve done this I did this for about six months straight. And and it’s debatable whether it’s healthier for you. So we’re not going to talk about the healthiness of it. As far as physically what but here’s what I will, I will tell you what I’m curious to undress to get your thoughts. If you can endure, so the reason to do a cold shower, forget it, it’s actually healthier for you, I don’t care, here’s why you want to do it. Even if it’s bad for your body, here’s why you should do it. Because it’s one of the hardest things that you can do every single day. That’s physical. And I hate it too. And I need to get back into it. i If you tomorrow, I encourage everyone who’s listening, try to survive 10 seconds, just 10 seconds, all the way cold shower, if you can survive 10 seconds, then, you know, tomorrow, try 15 seconds and then that 20 seconds, eventually you’ll be able to to survive. And it it is still it at least my experience every day it was it never really got easy. It was always brutal. But when I was done, which you know, you end up taking a one and a half minute shower because you just get through it. Yeah, let’s go. But once when I would step out of that shower, and I don’t know what the magic is over the endorphins that are firing, but it feels like you just ran a marathon and you won. So do you feel that same way when you step out of the Andres Bustamante 41:59shower? Yeah, I feel so amazing. But every day I dread it. I’m like, Just go into it. It’s the five second roll like everything in life did don’t think about it. Don’t think just do. You go into it, even though what we’re really D.J. Paris 42:13talking about is tolerating discomfort. Because anytime you want to grow in life, whether it’s your physical body, if you want to get stronger, obviously, you got to lift heavy weights, which is going to be painful. I just gave him the gym. It’s brutal. And you came from the gym as well today. And also when you want to improve your business, you’re going to have to get uncomfortable, you’re going to have to learn how to tolerate failures, discomfort challenge, and it’s something as simple as a cold shower. It sounds like it’s not connected. I am telling you doing it will put you in a mindset of I just did something really crazy hard first thing in the morning. Is that is that sort of how you feel? Andres Bustamante 42:55Yes, definitely. That God that’s perfectly well said that cold shower helps a lot with D.J. Paris 43:02it sounds silly, but it’s actually really, really important. So okay, so you start your morning, you go to the gym, you take a cold shower, what else do you do in the morning? Andres Bustamante 43:10Then I do meditation, transcendental meditation, which is great. I got it before that. Yes, exactly. TM, I gotta teach it for that. I just finished that those classes recently. Then I do affirmations, visualizing, and scribing scribing is like writing things down. And funny enough, I want to show you this. Sure. I do my top three tasks that I’m going to do for the day that the night prior. So I know at least what my routine is going to be. And then I don’t know if you can see it. But I amazing podcast is right here. And I checked that box. Because I want to put myself in the mindset that I’m going to have an amazing podcast. So it’s already done for me like before the podcast, I said, I’m going to have an amazing podcast. And I checked about that box to kind of get myself into that headspace of it’s already been amazing. D.J. Paris 43:57Yeah, I love that. I think that’s really smart. And this idea of setting your up your day, not just with your to dues but here are my here are my three big wins. These are the three big things I need to get accomplished there. Here’s what I need to focus on today. If you can do that, at the beginning of the day, then when other things come at you because things come at you all day, you’re able to filter a little bit better because you’re easily you’re more easily able to say okay, something just came at me. It seems urgent, is it actually important? Or Or oh, it’s not that urgent. It’s not that important cuz now as opposed to being just reactive, something comes in and then I want to take care of it right away. There’s an inclination to want to do that. But what I like about you is you you’ve prioritized your sort of lists per day, you know, the three big things you want to accomplish and you do it the night before again, this all sounds like you know life 101 But it’s really really important and a lot of people don’t do it did it last night? Wait You know, before I went to bed list the three things I need It’s due today. I didn’t, I should have. Because then when I got to work today, I was like, Oh God, now I have to make a list of what I’m going to do today. So, so let’s give another shout out to the Miracle Morning. And you know, it’s not a coincidence that after five years on this podcast, and 450 plus episodes, the number one most recommended book, but the two most recommended books are Millionaire Real Estate Agent from our guests, which is Gary Keller, famous, famous book about how to build a real estate business. And then number two for mindset, and just setting up your day for habits, habits, habits, habits. Miracle Morning is right up there lol rod. You tell me about how the Miracle Morning has really changed your life. Andres Bustamante 45:44Yeah, we’re going on on the base of motivation. Like, like we said, motivation, don’t really believe in it. It’s more so discipline. So it’s really look, okay, I’m feeling top of mind, top of mind, so that I can best help my clients. Because in order to best serve my clients, I need to feel my best. And whenever I do my morning, I feel my best. But it also goes back to what are my goals? And by looking at my goals that have helped me stay disciplined when motivation is not there, because it’s i 100% assure you, motivation will not always be there. So once you develop that discipline, boom, it’s great. And one of the best ways to develop that discipline is doing a program called 75. Hard. D.J. Paris 46:26I do that tell me about I don’t I don’t know this. Tell me about it. Andres Bustamante 46:28Oh, perfect. And I do it every year since I started in real estate 75 hard by Andy for Sella. Major Gee, that guy’s amazing. And it’s only five days, no alcohol, strict diet, you also have to read 10 pages of a book, you have to work out twice and have those two days, I mean, of those two times one has to be outdoors. So minimum is 45 minutes. So you do your workout, maybe in the morning, and then you do your other workout whenever you can. But the thing is, so two works out two workouts a day. Yeah, two workouts per day. They can’t be like after each other, and they have to be 35 minutes. So the big thing here is, whenever you say I can’t do this, what you’re essentially saying is I’m not making this a priority. Sherwood 75 hard if you don’t do one of those tests every day, you have to start all over. So two workouts per day, drink a gallon of water 10 pages of book diet, no alcohol and take a progress pic. And there’s an app for that. It’s amazing. But the big thing here is like, Dude, I have a lot going on. And I have to schedule time for my workouts. I just D.J. Paris 47:39don’t have time to do that. And so Exactly, yeah. Andres Bustamante 47:43But then the big. The big thing here is you develop that discipline to where it’s like, I know what my priorities are because I’m doing this program as well. And I have to work around the schedule that can make it work because I’ve had times no joke. I’m at a conference. It’s 11pm. And we’re going like, everyone’s going out for drinks. I’m drinking water. And it’s like, oh my gosh, dude, I forgot I had do my workout. So I’ve legit told my friends guys, I’m gonna walk around the city for 45 minutes. You guys just wait here. I’ve done that so many times. And it’s actually hilarious. D.J. Paris 48:14But it his life is so much about habits and discipline and motivation. As much as I love when motivation does hit it is a rare thing for me. Discipline is what wins the game. Motivation is just when you have a lucky day. Yes, this this is all just just great stuff. I really encourage everybody out there as we’re wrapping up to think about, you know, what are the habits that you could cultivate this year that would help you move the needle in your business? You know, is it a lack of follow up? Is it a lack of meeting people? Is it a lack of you maybe your social media isn’t very strong or maybe you’re not doing enough out, reach to your sphere of influence, or whatever it is as different skill you want to develop? Maybe you don’t know anything about investors and you want to start learning about House hacking or first time homebuyers or any of that you can put a plan together and get a community around you as well and get involved and then really start to hold each other accountable. It’s all about habits and discipline. Andres I am so excited to continue to watch your progress you have provided incredible value. Because again, I think in this conversation, you know we we really talked a lot about mindset. We talked about habits discipline, and working smart and you gave some incredible advice find a team, get a mentor. You know read The Miracle Morning come up with with you know your day before the next day. Make sure you know what you’re doing. And then it just and and also, you know, staying in good physical shape, I think not enough is said about the benefits of being in strong physical condition. This is a physical job that requires a ton of energy. And energy is important. And if you want to be a great Realtor you need, you’re going to have to have a lot of energy. And I think, you know, get your physical body in order, this is the year where you can get your physical body and in shape, you know, partner up with other realtors, like everything counts, so you can get together and and you know, and by the way, that’s another opportunity. If you want to do a meet up, you could find an accountability group of exercise people, that’s another way to meet people, right? So you’re involved in Toastmasters, you’re involved in all these other things. And by the way, at Toastmasters, you’re probably you know, the 20 new members every month, you probably like, Hey, by the way, what do you do, and they’re gonna ask you what you do, Andres Bustamante 50:59always. And last thing I do want to say, because referrals is a big part of my business. Whenever I do a buyer consultation, big thing, I asked for people’s birthdays, if they have kids, if they have dogs, if they have favorite wine, whatever. And then for my follow up, or whatever, it’s like, I send them stuff for their birthdays, I send them. So it’s just top of mind, because they’re always no people, but that’s at the buyer consultation so that I’m not asking it like around other things and all but just get a list of questions. And you get all that stuff. And that’s just, you know, is your reason D.J. Paris 51:33to reach out? Yeah, exactly. Yeah. Because a lot of times I know, agents will say, Well, I don’t know, you know, I don’t really want to call my friends, I don’t really, it’s like, well, if you do you know their anniversary, do you know their birthdays, you know, their kids birthdays, if you know those events, then you do have a reason to pick up the phone. And you don’t have to talk real estate. But you do have to demonstrate that you care. And I think have getting all of this information in your database in your CRM, about birthdays, anniversaries, major life events, allow you to then pick up the phone and say, Hey, I know it’s your kid’s birthday today just wanted to wish so and so happy birthday, like that, in and of itself is massive. Huge. All right, well, we’re gonna we’re gonna cap this one off here, this episode here because I could talk to you all day and I’d love to have you back in the future. Your future is going to be so impressive, I’m sure. But Andres really, really appreciate on behalf of the audience your time today on our show. You know if anyone out there is interested in maybe you’re a realtor in the Austin area and you’re looking to maybe partner up or maybe you’d be a good good benefit to to Andres his team you can reach out to him he’s with Keller Williams, the Nino team. Or if you’re a realtor, maybe in another area of the country and you have clients that are moving to Texas or or the Austin area and you’re looking to refer business to another realtor Andres would love the opportunity to work with you. But if anyone wants to reach out to you Andres or maybe somebody’s just looking for a realtor in the Austin area, a buyer seller, investor etc. What’s the best way they should reach out to you? Andres Bustamante 53:12Instagram for sure it’s add on that as BUSA Tx and Drs. B USDA, TX. D.J. Paris 53:18Awesome. And on behalf of Andre and myself, we want to thank our audience for continuing to listen and support our show support our sponsors support Andres, check out his Instagram checkout is Tiktok Andres booster Tx and also send him your referrals. He’s a great agent, he’s he’s killing it as a as a young man growing getting in this business I I’m making a prediction live that you will be one of the National Association of REALTORS 30 under 30 within the next three years. So this is a this is a young man to watch. And we’re excited. And we will see. We’re going to ask everybody just one quick thing before you leave the episode. Please tell a friend think of one other realtor that could benefit from hearing from Andres and send them a link to this episode. Keeping it real pod.com They can stream every episode we’ve ever done. Or just go to any podcast app search for keeping it real. Hit that like and subscribe button. We would appreciate it Andres thank you so much for being on the show. Man I’m so proud of you. You’re You’re crushing it and excited to watch your your ascent as you continue to climb the mountain. So keep it up. Yeah, I Andres Bustamante 54:25really appreciate that. D.J. Paris 54:27All right, thanks. We’ll see everybody on the next episode. Thank you

In our February episode of Monday Market Minute, Carrie McCormick from @properties discusses how realtors become lifestyle consultants and how important it is to have a conversation about client’s lifestyle too. Carrie also talks about the importance of negotiation as an educational tip. Last, Carrie shares three tips to use during negotiations with a client. If you’d prefer to watch this interview, click here to view on YouTube! Carrie can be reached at carrie@atproperties.com or by phone at 312.961.4612. Please follow Carrie on Instagram by clicking here. This episode is brought to you by Real Geeks. Transcript D.J. Paris 0:00What if you consider yourself more of a lifestyle consultant than someone that only helps people buy or sell homes? How would that change your business? Well, we’re going to talk about that today. Stay tuned. This episode of Keeping it real is brought to you by real geeks. How many homes are you going to sell this year? Do you have the right tools? Is your website turning soft leads and interested buyers? Are you spending money on leads that aren’t converting? Well real geeks is your solution. Find out why agents across the country choose real geeks as their technology partner. Real geeks was created by an agent for agents. They pride themselves on delivering a sales and marketing solution so that you can easily generate more business. There agent websites are fast and built for lead conversion with a smooth search experience for your visitors. Real geeks also includes an easy to use agent CRM. So once a lead signs up on your website, you can track their interest and have great follow up conversations. Real geeks is loaded with a ton of marketing tools to nurture your leads and increase brand awareness visit real geeks.com forward slash keeping it real pod and find out why Realtors come to real geeks to generate more business again, visit real geeks.com forward slash keeping it real pod and now on to our show. Welcome to keeping it real, the largest podcast made by real estate agents and for real estate agents. My name is DJ Parris. I’m your guide and host through the show today on the show is our monthly series called The Monday market minute with Carrie McCormick from the Carey McCormick Real Estate Group with at properties here in Chicago. Carrie is a top 1% producer here in Chicago with over 20 years of experience helping buyers sellers and investors in fact, past 12 months out of number up now up to 40 Almost 47,000 realtors in our in our area. Carrie is routinely in the top 15 of highest producers and rising not 15% Literally the top 15 out of 47,000 producers so she is a true superstar and an expert in everything from first time homebuyers, veteran investors, and luxury properties. She also works with a lot of developers and is often chosen to represent these high end developments, please visit Carrie at our website, which is Carrie McCormick r e.com. Also, please please please follow her on Instagram I she has she routinely gets awards for having one of the very best realtor IG accounts. So please, let’s all check out and you can get inspiration from some of the posts that she makes. Her Instagram is as at Kerry McCormick. That’s MCC o r m IC K real estate. I’ll have a link to that in the show notes. You don’t have to type it in. But Carrie, welcome once again to the show. Carrie McCormick 3:00Thank you so much. I’m actually impressed that you remember how to spell my name. There’s a lot of CS in there. There’s a lot of there’s there’s a lot. So thank you. D.J. Paris 3:10I just recently did an episode and I don’t think it’s released yet. But by the time this one releases, it’ll it’ll be released. And I literally got to the end of the interview, which was over an hour. And I realized I had called the person the wrong first name. And I said, Did I do that throughout the interview and he’s like, Yeah, budget. So I try to now be a little bit more aware of people’s names, but it has happened. So I am just glad to to remember you’re not that I would ever forget your name. But it is funny. Sometimes it happens. So Carrie and I are actually before we have a different topic that we want to go over today, which I think is going to be a great one around negotiation. But before that I was we were actually I was actually asking Carrie about our business. And she was telling me a scenario about a client that was interested possibly in moving and selling their existing home. But they were locked in at a very, very low rate with you know, a lot of us refinanced in the last several years, or we bought properties at you know, 3% rates, or 4%, or whatever it was at the time. And obviously that makes it sometimes more challenging when somebody today then wants to sell and is now going to maybe get a five and a half percent rate or a 6% rate or, you know, whatever it might be today. So, So Carrie, let’s talk about that. Because I think this is happening to a lot of agents where they’re just their clients are like, I don’t want to give up my rate. Yeah, and Carrie McCormick 4:33it’s it’s a real scenario. And I met with a client that asked me to come to their home. Obviously they wanted to sell their home or they’re thinking about selling their home and we just got into the nitty gritty of what they were looking to do. And he kind of barked back at me and he said, Well, you know, I’ve got a 1.875% rate interest rate 30 year fixed on this house. which was mind blowing, which I’ve never seen that before. But he said, he looked at me said, Well, why should I sell my house, it does not make financial sense for me to sell my house. And he went through, he was a financial guy. And he went through like all of his scenarios, and the cost to carry and appreciation and all of this stuff. And I’m just looking at him. And you know, as when he got done talking about his scenario, I just looked back at him. And I said, you asked me to come to your house. You know, you, you invited me here to talk about selling your home. So put the interest rate aside, right? That’s something I can’t change, or, I mean, it’s it’s real, is why do you want to move? Why are you thinking of moving, and then we started in this conversation about, you know, what their next steps are in life and why they’re moving kids are out of the house, obviously, the house is too big for them, they want to travel more, they want a lifestyle, where they can just lock the door and walk away and someone’s handling their packages, they don’t have to wear it worry about the roof, or, you know, water leaks, etc. So then we started in that conversation, which is the real reason that they want to move, right. And I said to them, and this is where as you know, realtors, we become consultants to our clients, you know, and it’s kind of like a lifestyle consultant, you know, of, okay, well, you have a choice, you can either keep the big house with your 1.875% interest rate, you can rent it out, right, then that comes with a whole slew of issues and problems, etc. Or you can stay in this house and travel and, you know, have a house manager and worry about your leaks and your roof, etc. Or you give up that interest rate, and you start living the life that you want. And you know that, you know, 6% interest rates aren’t going to be around forever, will he ever get that 1% Whatever he had absolutely not. But that’s a trade off. Right. And that became a discussion, which was kind of like a therapy session for them. And they have not decided yet what they’re going to do that was just the other day, but that’s what made me think of that is, you know, it’s it’s having these, you know, conversations with our clients of, of their lifestyle and what they want in their life. And I think that’s become more important to buyers and sellers. These days. It’s not just a house, I mean, it really is a home that old saying, and it’s how you’re going to live your life and, um, and what’s important to you. D.J. Paris 7:30Yeah, and there is sort of a, a, I don’t want to say it a reckoning but but a decision that ultimately they have to make where they have to just be willing to either give up the rate or not. And and that can seem like a big decision. And it can seem like Well, that just doesn’t make sense, we’ll just stay. And then you have to sort of suss out the other reasons, like you were doing about why they may still want to consider doing that. Because it’s not necessarily a bad financial decision, it just doesn’t feel good to go from one rate to another, but also to it’s, it’s like, people don’t, especially for the agent, sorry, especially for the buyers that in the last few years, wanted that that had these these rates that they were pre approved for and didn’t get the homes that they wanted. They I could even see that being an issue to where somebody’s like, well, now I can’t afford as much as I could two years ago when the rates were at 3%. And but then the other thing is like, well, they don’t maybe think that or they just wouldn’t know that people who did get homes at that time oftentimes overpaid. And so maybe kind of washes itself out a little bit. If the interest if they buy something today and the interest rates higher, and then in two years, maybe they refinance. Do you do you end up having a lot of those conversations too, with people like Well, Carrie McCormick 8:49yeah, all the time. Yeah, it’s, and that’s why it’s important for us as brokers to do our homework to and just coming up with solutions and having these conversations with our clients. And that’s goes into also one of my I’ll go through my negotiation tips. But, you know, there’s a lot of egos too, right. And you know, with clients either who didn’t win the House want to win the house didn’t get the interest rate, whatever, you know, everyone wants to feel like they won and, you know, boils down to their ego. So it’s understanding your, what moves your clients, what drives your clients, what’s important to them, and having those conversations around there. So I may take a therapy class of how to or psychology class of how to, you know, talk with people a little bit more about this, but it’s, it’s educational, it’s, it’s fun. D.J. Paris 9:39Well, yeah, let’s talk about negotiation. So you obviously negotiate more than just about any realtor I know because of your production, and you do it all yourself, which is even more impressive. So I would love to know what how you think about negotiations, how you sort of play nicely with other realtors but still fighting for your clients and also how you Manage your clients expectations? Carrie McCormick 10:01Yeah, you know, it’s it’s really interesting, it’s become a hot topic. You know, it’s it’s time to write, when you get to the point where you’re in negotiations, it’s all about time with your clients, and everyone’s you know, got valuable time. And this goes back to the ego to negotiations can be emotional for everybody involved. So first and foremost, I always like to say, as real estate brokers, we are a fiduciary to our clients. And you know, some people don’t even know what that really means. And what that does mean is we’re obligated by law, to act in our clients best interest, rather than operating out of our own self interest. You know, and I think, too, with negotiations, when you’ve got two brokers involved, sometimes it does, you know, get ego gets in the way to everyone wants to win. But we’ve got to put that aside. Can you hear that cat in the background? D.J. Paris 10:56I do. I hear I hear a very noisy cat. It’s totally okay, keep going. Carrie McCormick 11:01So nicely, cats not going to come over here. But we’ll see. But obviously, negotiations, I forgot where I left off. But negotiations are very important to closing every deal. In some agents go in with guns blazing, they’re ready to fight, you know, they start throwing out recent comps, and, you know, this house closed 10 years ago with this. And, you know, they start very negative, I think, and they start talking negatively about the client’s property. But I think once we get to the point of negotiations, we have a buyer, we have a seller, let’s look at this, instead of a fight, let’s look at this negotiation as an opportunity to reach an agreement. And that’s all it is, it’s you know, we don’t need to swing back and forth. So I put together three, what I think steps good steps are to start a negotiation. And I’ve learned this throughout the years. And the first one is, this is kind of common, but do do your research, obviously, do your research on the property, do your research on the market, and also do research on your clients personality. Because I think it’s important to understand the psychology of where your clients are coming from in negotiations. And that also goes to the seller side. So you can actually very quickly go on to Google, find out, you know, hopefully, you know what your client does for a living, but kind of dig deeper into what they do. Dig deep into what the what your opposing side does, as well, that’s going to give you some traits on their personality, and how they’re going to react to the negotiations, you know, whether someone’s analytical or someone is, wants to fight, you know, you can, you can kind of tell by some of their online profiles, D.J. Paris 12:49I see. So you would be looking at maybe their social media. Also, maybe any, like videos they may have put on YouTube, or things like that, or articles they may have written or just anything about them online is that absolutely, Carrie McCormick 13:01because if they’re in the profession, either they’ve attended conferences, or they’ve written speeches, or they’ve spoken, or they give their opinion, on certain things, you really can, you know, get an idea whether someone wants to be a fighter in situations, whether they want to be the winner in it, or if, you know, again, they’re more data driven, and they need to have that data in front of them. It’s just a really good small step to take to understand their personality. Right. I also think, you know, it’s important to know, the other side’s client as well. So again, you’re not just doing this just on your side, you’re understanding the other side. For example, I’ve got agents that will call and say like, Okay, here’s the offer, this is our best and final, we want to we want an answer by 6pm. Tonight, you know, like, right, my client doesn’t like that, you know, my client wants to go back and forth a little bit. So when you are in the showings, I think that’s a great time to get a read with the other agent. And sometimes I’ll ask, you know, agent, Joe, you know, tell me a little bit about your seller, what’s important to them? You know, when do they need to move, so I’m kind of trying to qualify what’s important to the seller. So when it comes to negotiations, I have a little bit of information and know how to propose this. You know, there’s some, again, some people like to ping pong back and forth. Some people like to cut to the chase. So it’s important to understand that so we have a successful outcome. And again, a lot of it is just asking questions, listening, which sometimes we don’t as agents, listen, but listen to what people are telling you. So you know how to strategize it correctly. I just had a scenario actually, while we’re on this podcast, I may get the answer to this. But for example, this is a real life scenario. We’ve been negotiating back and forth on a deal for three weeks. And we’ve had interior designers in this space, we’ve had contractors in this space, I’m on the seller side, we’ve had the buyer has brought in all of these and we’ve accommodated all of this, we are $25,000 apart on this deal. In the big picture, it’s not that much and not that I want to give away anyone’s money or I don’t want someone to overspend. But in the big picture, it’s not that much, we got to a point where the buyer said, Here’s my best and final offer you have this was literally you have six hours to make a decision, if you don’t respond in six hours are offers off the table. Okay, I couldn’t get ahold of my seller. Six hours came and went, it was the seventh hour, the buyer said, we’re done. Wow. So I thought, you know, again, that’s kind of where the ego comes into play. You know, we’ve been negotiating this for three weeks, you know, both sides are mad at each other. Now, they don’t even know each other, but they’re mad at each other. So the broker and I are trying to bring this back together, we kind of let everyone’s egos, you know, cool down for a little bit. So actually, you know, I communicated with the other broker this morning, she’s going to talk to her client, I talked to my client, I said, you know, this is kind of crazy to, you know, to multimillion dollar deal to end this over a six hour period, you know, we couldn’t respond you anyways. She said, she’s going to talk to her client and get back to me. So we’ll see what happens. Stay tuned, we’ll see if this deal comes together. D.J. Paris 16:38Like, hang on, hang on to see if I see if you get an answer here in the next few minutes. Carrie McCormick 16:42But again, that’s part of our job is understanding each side of it and understanding the client. So that’s I know, that was a long winded Tip of the day, but I’ve got one more is what was my last tip, now I went into that story. Oh, it’s just understanding like that each and every personality types, yeah, personality types in there. So we’ve also had clients where, you know, the, the mom will come in, or the dad will come in and is part of the decision maker will have the kids that are involved in making a decision. So not only understanding the the one that signing the contract, but there’s also other people in their lives, that are helping them make the decision. And if you don’t involve them, or you don’t understand that aspect of the deal. Sometimes your deal could go sideways. And you know, again, we’ve got parents involved with the kids buying, we’ve got, you know, grandparents that are lending money to people, you know, there’s all different parts of the deal that we need to understand. And all of that is discovered through getting to know your client, and asking the right questions that will set you up for success when it comes to the negotiation. D.J. Paris 17:59I love all of that makes makes perfect sense. And it’s just, you know, you said something really interesting that I wouldn’t have thought of which was the idea of going and sort of doing some research on your own client, seeing if you can determine personality traits based on not necessarily you asking them, because sometimes when you ask people questions, they’ll give you what they think is the answer that either you want to hear or that they feel comfortable saying what maybe isn’t actually the truth. It’s kind of like, we have 700 realtors in our company and your company have like three or 4000. And if an email went out to every agent saying, hey, just curious, would you like more training, less training or no training? Everyone’s gonna say I want more training. And then when it actually comes to putting a training program together, maybe 20 agents out of 3000 Show up or in our case, 10 agents out of seminar. And so we’re like, Well, everyone says they want more training, and then when we actually Institute so so I think what you said is actually quite smart. Because if somebody says, like, oh, during negotiations, I absolutely love the back and forth. But and you know that or maybe they don’t say that, but you can kind of get a sense through their social media, that they’re they’re fighters or they’re aggressive or, you know, there may be used to being in charge. That’s maybe another part of it is like you probably deal a lot with Well, I know you deal with a lot with C suite level, you know, enterprise level people who are, you know, used to getting their own way used to maybe snapping their fingers and having people underneath them do certain things. And so you probably treat those people differently, or have different you you probably approach them differently than you would people who don’t have, you know, a whole team that they’re always managing and controlling. Carrie McCormick 19:43Right? No, it is and I’ve got a client who runs a company and you know, he’s exhausted of making decisions all day and he knows his business and he looks at me and says, What would you suggest and I give my opinions like let’s do it. D.J. Paris 19:59That’s kind of client If I Carrie McCormick 20:01was good this deal ever, but you know, mean, but that was it, you know, like he, he trusted me enough to make the decisions. And of course, you know that it was great. But again, you know, that doesn’t work for for another client, right? So you do you have to understand what moves motivates your clients and you know, the internet such a good tool out there for everybody. D.J. Paris 20:26Yeah, it’s a great place to get a better sense of what your clients are actually like, when they’re not in front of you. I think that’s a great, great point. You know, it’s funny, I was I was watching a video, it wasn’t a video you made, it was another top producer here in Chicago. And I was sort of surprised this, he he even made this video because he had a tip for agents who are dealing with multiple offers. And to me, this is the most obvious thing. But he clearly felt the need to do it. Because he probably sees that most agents don’t do this. In fact, he gave examples. So here, I wanted to throw this your way and get your reaction. So he was saying, if you’re in a multiple offer situation, if you’re on the buyer side, and you know, you’re dealing with multiple offers, he’s like, the moment you send over, or as soon as you send over the offer, he’s like, you know, you got to follow up with a phone call. It doesn’t have to be that second, but you have to follow up with a phone call text, like, especially if it’s multiple offer. And I was like, Well, I just I was watching the video. I’m like, doesn’t everybody do that? And then he goes, he goes, the reason I’m making this video is I have three properties. Right now they’re in a multiple offer situations were getting like 10 offers per per place, or whatever the number was, it was more than one. And he said not one agent. Not one has called me to be like, Hey, did you get the offer? How did it look to you? He goes, they all just emailed it over. And he’s like, he’s like, I’m just making this video for the good of, of realtors. So, um, Does that shock you to hear that? I mean, you must deal with that all the time, too. Carrie McCormick 21:54Yeah, I think even to take that a step further. Sometimes, you know, people use dot loop or they use DocuSign Sure, they will literally just for the sign DocuSign over where so the email looks like it’s coming from Docusign. D.J. Paris 22:06So you don’t even necessarily know that it’s an offer? Yeah, Carrie McCormick 22:09I don’t even know it’s an offer. I don’t know who the agent is, unless I go through it. And that is bewildering to me that that people just literally forward something. And you’re right, it’s but again, you know, everyone is does their business differently. And I just I think they’re doing a disservice to their client by just forwarding an email, but nothing shocks me anymore. Everyone does something different. But kudos to whoever that was that made the video I think that was hopefully a good people paid attention and, and listened and learn from that. D.J. Paris 22:45So for everyone out there, please call the other agent after you submit an offer. And even just to politely say, hey, just want to make sure you got it. If you have any questions, read through it. You know, you want to play play nice and really say I just want to, you know, like, what do you do when you send an offer? Carrie McCormick 23:00Well, 100%, call the agent and give them. I mean, that’s like 100% call the agent. And you know, like I’m advocating for my buyers, right? So I tell them a little bit about them. I think what’s important for sellers to know, too. And this is kind of my tip is like, if I’m representing a buyer, I’m the buyer’s team, right. So we’ve got the buyer, we have the buyer’s broker, we have the buyer’s attorney, we have the buyer’s inspector. Right. So we’re a team. And that’s important for the seller to know who’s on the other side advising this buyer, not only are they picking the buyer and the buyer’s terms, the seller wants to make sure that buyers can get across the finish line. And how is that buyer going to do that by having a good team, the attorney is important. The inspectors important, the mortgage lender is hugely important. And the brokers important. So there’s four people on our side of the buyers table that a seller should be concerned about. So that’s what I like to highlight is Mr. Mrs. seller, or sellers in general, look to see who the buying team is. They’re the ones that didn’t get that buyer across the finish line. So I think that’s important to highlight as well. D.J. Paris 24:15Yeah, that’s a great, great suggestion. So I for my marketing tip of the week, just to pivot over, I wanted to get your idea about this isn’t a new idea. And I sort of I’m reluctant to even say it because I feel like I say it every single time I do an episode. So I apologize to our listeners if you’ve heard this before. But I also think I’ve been here, you know, I’ve been hearing to work out all of my life. And I didn’t actually take action till a few years ago and I finally started working out. So even though you may have heard this before, I think it’s still a good thing to hear again, but I want to get your take on it. And if you you might disagree that this isn’t a good idea. So I was thinking for anyone out there whose business is down and let’s face it, this is probably going to be a down year. For most agents, at least, most brokerages seem to be projecting that economists are projecting that for realtors, so we know this is going to be a tricky year to to have high high production numbers. But if I was practicing, and I didn’t have any clients right now, I was thinking of an idea of what would I do. And of course, this is where you come in, because I want to get your thoughts, but if it was me, I am always thinking as an homeowner, I always want to know what my home is worth. I mean, I don’t, I’m not looking to sell and I’m not looking to move. But it’s kind of like getting that credit score report every month, where just gives you your number, like, I don’t do anything with my credit, really, but I’m just kind of glad that I can see it every month. And it’s like, you know, thankfully, I have a good credit score. But it’s kind of just a little bit of a sort of checks and balances of my life going okay, my credit, okay, my credits, okay, nobody opened up 10 Credit cards in my name last month and spent a bunch of money. So I always think knowing some knowing your home value is kind of in that same category of like, Mmm, I probably won’t do anything with the information. But it’s good to know. So if it was me, I would call every single person I know who owns a home, whether I was their realtor or not when they bought it. And I would say, Hey, I you know, look, if you know they already have a realtor like Hey, I know you already have an agent, but I was just practicing running some CMAs. Or rather, I run CMAs for everybody I know you don’t have to say you’re practicing. And I wanted to send you what I think your home is actually worth because what I found is that a lot of times, you know, people who are homeowners will go maybe just to Zillow, look at the Zestimate we know that this is where the public goes. So they don’t go really anywhere else. They go to Zillow. So we know that’s where they go, we know they look at the Zestimate as realtors, all of us, you know, have certain feelings about Zestimate like it or hate it. Regardless, it’s not totally always going to be perfectly accurate, even though Zillow says it’s within about three percentage points of accuracy, which may or may not be true, I don’t know. But if people are only using that metric, and then you can come along and say hey, by the way, I actually disagree a little bit with Zillow, I think your home is worth X, lower, higher, whatever that is providing value. So if it was me, I would be just constantly sending out CMAs to my people. I know, what do you think about that you feel free to disagree? I’m just curious to what Carrie McCormick 27:24I like it. I you know, I think it’s a great tip. And I think it depends on how many clients you have. The one thing that I’ve done just to kind of ease it was not a CMA, it was just a general market report in their neighborhood. Yeah. And maybe that’s kind of what you’re talking about, because I feel like, and this is again, just my opinion that if I tell them where I think their value of their home is, and I don’t know, maybe they’ve done updates to it and they get offended, you know, by what, oh, D.J. Paris 27:53good point good, Carrie McCormick 27:55or, you know, it’s completely off. And then I look like I don’t know what I’m talking about so D.J. Paris 28:00or they disagree with it for whatever reason, and then you have to defend. Carrie McCormick 28:03So what I did actually is I sent out just like if it’s Linkin Park, I’ll send out a Linkin Park report of you know, in the last quarter house single family homes have been doing. And you know, if you want to know where yours falls in, because you know, there’s always the charts and what’s selling what’s not selling, you know, if you want more to drill down on your home and get an accurate, you know, CMA on your home, I’d love to come over and chat with you. So I kind of leave it open to that. D.J. Paris 28:29That’s a better way to do it. I actually like that better. So so just to recap that idea. So instead of Kerry sending out a sort of a blind CMA, and maybe having the person go, well, this doesn’t make sense. I made all these upgrades, or she’s got it wrong, she doesn’t, you know, you’re right, it unless the number is significantly higher than what they expect, they’re probably going to have questions or maybe feel like yeah, Carrie didn’t really maybe she didn’t miss something or so. So I love that idea. So instead of saying that, you could say, hey, in the surrounding areas, I’ve noticed the homes in your area are actually up, you know, 20%, or whatever the number is, if you want to sort of do a deeper dive into your property, I can figure that out for you. Yeah, that’s a much safer way to do it. I love that. Carrie McCormick 29:16And again, everyone’s got their way of doing it. It’s just it’s, it’s easier. And it’s allows, again, my goal is to provide value, or our goal is to provide value, but more importantly, I want to talk to them. I want them to pick up the phone or they want them to invite me to come over so. D.J. Paris 29:32So okay, so let’s I just want to drill a little bit deeper into this. So so let’s say I changed my approach. I’m not going to just automatically run the CMA I’m going to do a market report for their neighborhood, their suburbs or wherever. And I’m going to say hey, I noticed that homes are up or whatever the data is. I’d love to do a deeper dive with you. How do you so then are you going to email that to somebody? Are you going to call them what works best for you? What do you have that kind of information? Do you want to give it to them? Carrie McCormick 30:01So I feel like with email, people just delete it. Yeah, personally, you know, I think there’s like market report or you know, your neighborhood update or whatever, yeah, nobody cares. That gets deleted personally. But I would do it two ways I, I always print it shouldn’t say always, I print it, and I put it in an envelope, and I mail it to them. And I hand address it, just because if it’s a label, they’re gonna, they might throw it away. So I think there’s a better chance that they’re going to open up the mail. And then I will the net following week, I will follow up with an email with a subject line, did you get the envelope with the Market Report? And that way, you know, it’s, it’s a follow up, you know, and then I do have a hyperlink to that report. So if they did accidentally throw that envelope away, they can get it online. D.J. Paris 30:57Smart. And you get a pretty good response to those. Carrie McCormick 31:00I do. I do, or I’ve just gotten like a client of mine. Sam, he sent me an email you said, Thanks for the updated Market Report. Yeah, that’s fine. I mean, that’s, it’s an acknowledgment of it. And it’s it’s a touch point. And granite, he just bought his place a year ago. But you know, he was a touch point. So yeah, I think I get good response from that. D.J. Paris 31:20I love that. Well, I think that’s a great idea. So for anyone out there who is in between clients, or maybe wanting to provide some value in between deals, this is an opportunity to do some neighborhood reports and Mark reports, send it to everybody, you know, and then offer them to do a, you know, a more specific example with their own property. If they’re interested. I love that that’s really smart. Well, let’s, I think that’s a great place to wrap up for today. For everyone who is listening, I want you to think a couple of things. Number one, if you if you’re not here in the local Chicago market, and 99% of our audience, I think isn’t. So for everyone out there who is working in a different area here in US, Canada, wherever you might be listening from. If you have clients that are moving to Chicago, Carrie would love the opportunity to chat with them. She works. I mean, she’s a top producer, she works with a lot of relocation people. And anyway, anyone who’s moving here, she would love the opportunity to connect with you if you have clients in moving into the area. So please consider her for that. And then also, like I said, at the beginning of the episode, please follow her on Instagram, in particular, she does all her own Instagram herself. It’s amazing. And it’s a great example of how you can and what’s really cool about Instagram too, is you can actually, for the most part, look at people’s engagement. And you can actually look at other people’s engagement to get a better sense of where you might want your engagement to land as far as likes, comments, etc. video views. So please follow her on Instagram, which is at Carey McCormick real estate. Carrie. Oh, and one last thing, please everyone, the best way you can help us as a podcast is by telling a friend think of one other realtor realtor that could benefit from hearing this episode with Carrie today, which was awesome. And send them a link to our website. If they’re not like a normal podcast listener and they don’t normally, you know, subscribe to shows, she can send them over to keeping it real pod.com Every episode we’ve ever produced can be streamed right from the browser, or if they are podcast listeners, they can just do a search for keeping it real and hit that subscribe button. So please tell a friend that just helps us continue to reach more people. And we can do more episodes. And everybody wins. So carry on behalf of the audience that we thank you. You’ve been with us for years and years. You’re an amazing guest on our show and a contributor and we don’t feel like we could do the same show without you. So I’m so glad you’re still with us. And on behalf of Karen and myself. We also want to thank all of our listeners and our viewers for continuing to support our show. So again, tell a friend follow Carrie on Instagram at Carey McCormick art, our real estate which by the way is linked to the Instagram and her website Carrie McCormack art e.com is in our show notes. So please visit both of those. And yeah, let’s keep the train rolling. Carrie, great to see you. And we thanks again. We’ll see you next time. Carrie McCormick 34:14Awesome. Thank you guys.

Ivan Chorney with Ivan&Mike Team at Compass talks about his own life journey and his transition from a bartender to moving to Miami from LA as a developer. Ivan discusses the importance of networking and communication as keys to a successful relationship with his own team and clients. He also emphasized a quote he repeats to his team ”How you do anything is how you do everything“, because that will determine how they will be as an agent. Last, Ivan talks about delegating work and how important it is to have a good relationship with clients and not feel neglected. If you’d prefer to watch this interview, click here to view on YouTube! Ivan Chorney can be reached at 786-863-5900 and ivan.chorney@compass.com. This episode is brought to you by Real Geeks. Transcript D.J. Paris 0:00What is the secret recipe for being chosen by developers to represent their new construction? Or we’re going to talk about that today? Stay tuned. This episode of Keeping it real is brought to you by real geeks. How many homes are you going to sell this year? Do you have the right tools? Is your website turning soft leads in interested buyers? Are you spending money on leads that aren’t converting? Well real geeks is your solution. Find out why agents across the country choose real geeks as their technology partner. Real geeks was created by an agent for agents. They pride themselves on delivering a sales and marketing solution so that you can easily generate more business. There agent websites are fast and built for lead conversion with a smooth search experience for your visitors. Real geeks also includes an easy to use agent CRM. So once a lead signs up on your website, you can track their interest and have great follow up conversations. Real geeks is loaded with a ton of marketing tools to nurture your leads and increase brand awareness visit real geeks.com forward slash keeping it real pod and find out why Realtors come to real geeks to generate more business again, visit real geeks.com forward slash keeping it real pod and now on to our show Hello, and welcome to another episode of Keeping it real the largest podcast made by real estate agents and for real estate agents. My name is DJ Paris. I am your guide and host through the show and in just a moment we’re going to be speaking with Top Producer IVAN Seany. But before we get to Ivan first just wanted to say thank you we are closing in now on we’re coming up on 500 episodes and we are we’ll probably hit that later this year. And we are so honored and grateful for all of our listeners and viewers. We now also stream live our episodes while at least the interview portion then we go back and produce it but while we’re interviewing our guests we actually stream live to YouTube, Facebook and LinkedIn simultaneously so check find us on social media and you can actually watch us as we record our episodes you don’t have to wait for us to produce the episodes if you wish. So we just upgraded our equipment and we’re now streaming live to those three sources. So anyway enough about all that let’s get to the main event my conversation with Ivan shorty. Okay, today on the show we have Ivan shorty with the Ivan and Mike team with compass in Miami. Let me tell you more about Ivan. Ivan. Tony leads the number one new construction real estate team in southeast Florida with Michael Mark Mara. Sorry, Mark. I’m gonna start that when Ivan Chorney 3:03it’s March arena, D.J. Paris 3:04March arena. Oh, yeah. Okay, take two. Gosh, what a day. All right, take two. Hey, today on the show we have Ivan Shawnee with the Ivan and Mike team with compass in Miami. Now I’ve been leads the number one new construction real estate team in southeast Florida with Michael Mark Torino. The Ivan and my team at Compass specializes in ultra luxury homes and new development sales. The team transacted listen to this guy’s to over 282 million in close transactions last year known for exceptional service. Charney is a property matchmaker sought out for his savvy negotiation style with a friendly down to earth demeanor. His real estate career began as a developer if you’re if you’re just listening, Mike’s making some some funny gestures in the back which is why I’m I’m laughing during his bio, so I apologize that I’m not that unprofessional. But he is he’s really making this fun. So let me get back to his his bio because it’s so great. His real estate career began as a developer sales rep selling pre construction projects in Miami and Miami Beach tourney is a trusted resource for reliable information to help his clients make accurate and informed investment decisions. He is entrenched in the Miami Beach community serving as a big brother with Big Brothers Big Sisters. Please visit Ivan and mike.com IV a n a n d mi ke.com to learn all things Ivan and Mike and also follow them on Instagram which is only miami luxury. Ivan I’m so happy to have you on the show. Welcome Ivan Chorney 4:41Hey man, thanks so much for having me. That was like the warmest toasty as welcome I like my glow and over here that’s that’s why I was making you laugh in the background. D.J. Paris 4:52Yeah, no, it is it people do it all the time. And because it’s it can be you know, it’s like not always something that people are used to Hearing is all their credits kind of at one side. I know it would make me very uncomfortable if someone are reading mine. So I definitely I definitely understand the urge to sort of have fun with it. And also it was just it was just that just your personality. I think that’s great. Yeah, let’s so I always love to start at the beginning of the story. So I’m curious of how you got into, well, first how you just got into real estate. So I know you started as as a as a sales rep for a developer. But how did you how did that come about? Ivan Chorney 5:33So I actually, I moved to Miami in 2005. I had been in LA for four and a half years. And I was, you know, kind of doing odd jobs in Miami to fill up the time and also, you know, make a little bit of money. I was also I was bartending for a staffing company. And one of the assignments was to bartend at the launch party for a new development called called Canyon Ranch in Miami Beach. So and you know, so I’m bartending this party, and it’s a launch and it’s just glamorous, and like, just gray look, and people dressed to the nines. Sure. And I’m like, I’m like, this is cool. Like, this is cool. All these people are cool. And they’re having they’re having an awesome time. And like, I’m like, this is this is what I think I need to do. Yeah. And I had already been working on my license, because I was like, alright, yeah, no, maybe I’ll use my money to invest. I was like, talking to my buddy in St. Petersburg. D.J. Paris 6:42Well, and it’s like, it’s like, every third person in Florida has a license, you might as well get one anyway. So Ivan Chorney 6:47yeah, right. Might as well I might as well jump in. And so while I was there, I spoke to the broker, who’s like, just the coolest dude, he had, like, you know, the frosted blonde tips were which were back. Really, they were really in back then. I even had them, like, a few years before that. So I can’t judge. But I was like, you know, so I just told him, I was like, I want to hang my license for you. I want to work on new on new construction. I’m like, what’s it going to take? He’s like, Well, you know, how many people in our database? I’m like, What’s the database? And like, and he’s like, how much experience you have in sales. And I’m like, Well, I was a personal trainer, and like, I sold memberships, that sales, sales, it was something. And anyway, you know, you’d like me, I was obviously, you know, somewhat personable. And he said, Listen, you know, come Come meet with my office manager. And we’ll figure something out. So I went met with the office manager, they, you know, they let me be a sales associate on, you know, in their brokerage, which, you know, basically, it didn’t cost them anything, I just was there. And I just made a point of like, going in every day to the office, going to every sales meeting, you know, which were often held at these new construction projects, and constantly asking, like, when was there going to be a project for me? I was like, you know, I was like, if you’ve, if you’ve seen Shawshank Redemption, they talk about like him sending the letters to get the library. Yeah. And they finally just gave him well, that was like me, I was like, What am I gonna get project? What am I gonna get project? So I ended up getting getting on a project in Miami Beach, which was like, it was not the most high end project that they had, but it was kind of like, alright, well, we’ll try you out here. And I was put on it with two very seasoned agents. And I quickly outsold them, and I was the I was the star sales agent on that team. D.J. Paris 8:39Wow, what? That’s an amazing story. Because number one, you were, you know, approach somebody at an event where, you know, you were the hired help. And then also, of course, working on your license at the same time, but just having the confidence to say to a, you know, to someone, they’re like, I want to work with you. In some ways, I think that’s like, every employers like fantasies situation where somebody’s like that motivated. Were even in a scenario where it’s not a real estate, specific sort of meeting for you and him, you’re still having the confidence to go like, I want this. And I. And so it’s, I’d love to say like, oh, I’m surprised that they would take a chance on you, because of not having that particular background. But now that I think about it, it actually makes perfect sense, because it wasn’t a time where they would expect for somebody to come up who isn’t yet in the industry and be like, I want to work with you. Yeah, I wonder, I wonder how much of that just played in, you know, Ivan Chorney 9:38yeah, I mean, you know, and even now, you know, years laters 17 years later, and, you know, having this this great team and everything. What agents are constantly approaching us to come work with us? I mean, you know, we just brought on a guy a couple months ago, he was on me for a year to join the team. Yeah, I was like, Nah, sorry, wrong time. We’re not looking for any already, he was relentless. And I finally was like Mike, I’m like, gotta give this guy a shot. I’m like, I liked this guy. He was he was an athlete, he keeps keeps checking in with me, he wants to take me out for coffee. I’m like, I’m like, we need this kind of tenacity, in, in the work, you know, in the agent side of things, and it’s a quote, I repeat to my team, all the time is how you do anything, is how you do everything. So we know that that will correlate to how they will be as an agent. D.J. Paris 10:28I was trying to think I know a bunch of college athletes that have become realtors, I mean, some of them I’ve had on the show who are now top of the mountain realtors. But even just people who are newer to the industry who have that, that background, where they played some some level of college sports, they always succeed at in real estate. And it’s, it’s like I’ve yet to meet somebody who I know for sure played some sort of sport and then failed at real estate. I haven’t met those. I’m sure they exist. But boy, there’s something about that discipline, and that just hard work and tenacity, where they’re kinda like, yeah, I just gonna, I’m just gonna do the same effort I put into, you know, my sport into this. And I mean, you know, as well as I do, anyone who puts that kind of commitment in is guaranteed, almost guaranteed to be successful. Ivan Chorney 11:12Yeah, no, totally, that’s, that’s spot on. And even, you know, just having a tolerance for discomfort, you know, whether that, whether that’s just being in like, uncomfortable positions, you know, just like, having to grind and, you know, like, and sometimes do things that you don’t want to do, like, all that stuff, just, you know, keeps building character, and that, that ends up like, you know, being the building blocks for, you know, at least for me, those are the building blocks, building blocks of my success. D.J. Paris 11:40Yeah, mine to this idea of learning how to tolerate discomfort. I mean, it’s like, you’re a personal trainer, I just actually came from the personal trainer just before for this. And it’s, it’s, I won’t, but I’m to make just embarrassed to do that. But but it is, it is wild, because I’m almost three years in, and I never had that level of commitment to working out, I just didn’t my whole life. And so I’m like, I gotta get a trainer. And, and I will tell you that it’s no, it’s still not fun, because it’s pain. I mean, it’s, it’s painful. But it is, it is it is look taught me how to tolerate discomfort physically, that that physical discomfort of like, this is going to be painful, and there’s a huge benefit to doing it. And if I can just go well, the benefit is going to outweigh whatever the short term pain is. And that’s it doesn’t mean everyone needs to start like lifting heavy weights, but the idea of getting comfortable with whatever was the physical discomfort or mental discomfort or whatever it is, is so critical for being successful, because this is a business that really can knock you down pretty fast. And, and pretty hard. I mean, all it takes is, you know, you find out your, your best friend went with a different realtor, or you just you lose a deal for whatever reason. It’s not your fault. Yeah, it’s, it’s, Ivan Chorney 13:02and we all do. We all do. There’s all kinds of all kinds of roadblocks, you know, year near big deals, that just didn’t happen. And, and, you know, it’s it’s really tough at the time, especially when you, you haven’t kind of crossed over that, that kind of luxury or that that level of success, and you’re just trying to find your way to climb through and you miss those deals, and it’s tough, but it does build character. And that’s a you know, that’s the stuff I lean on now, in my success. D.J. Paris 13:34Yeah, it’s I think resiliency is just like the name of the game with this one. It’s just you’re gonna get knocked down constantly. And and just this idea of like, it’s all going to work out, I’m just going to keep at it. And, and it usually, usually is a lot of that it’s yes, or where it says, you know, so so I’m probably speaking for the audience here, because and they I think they understand the that your story starts with, with you sort of having this this opportunity, in a sense that you jumped on when you were not not in the industry at that moment. But for anyone that is in the industry right now. And I think I think I’d have an idea of what you’re going to say, but I don’t want to say it for you. Because I might be wrong. But I’m curious. And if anyone listening is going I want to be to be chosen to be to you know, work some any kind of developer does. Maybe it’s luxury, maybe it isn’t. But I would like to be chosen to represent a developer in some of these transactions. I know here in Chicago that is like, you know, it is and there’s pros and cons to being chosen to I know it’s not all Wine and Roses, but it is certainly something that people aspire to at least the option of being chosen. So I’m curious what you would suggest to somebody who wants to start taking steps to get the I have of developers. Ivan Chorney 14:52You know that there is a little bit of a difference from when I started in you know basically 2006 to now Oh, you know, when I got into the business there were there were agents that literally did nothing but work on developments. Sure, you know, like, and I had a friend who worked on a project with me. And he, he basically said it this way you have, you have house cats, and you have street cats. And he’s like, he’s like, I’m a housecat. He’s like, I’m never going to be street, that Street guy. And, and obviously, I wasn’t housecat at the time. Now, I’m a street cat, but it’s like, you know, the two, they were two very distinct groups, now, we’ve got these indoor outdoor cats. And we find that, you know, I find that a lot of the best developers, the top developments, they want seasoned agents that are actually out there in the street, you know, mixing and mingling with top clients, you know, from sure and around the world, and also, you know, socializing with all the other top agents so that they can mix with those agents and have those agents bring their, their clients and so it’s an even more coveted and harder spot to get. But I would say, two, I would say, two ways. One, find like an entry entry level kind of project, it might even be, you know, working for like culture homes, you know, you have some sales experience, you got your license, like, be willing to sell way out in the burbs, and just like, you know, like sound selling just a box of homes, you know, or, or some kind of real estate, that would be kind of like one way, and then you just work your way up, be she the absolute best in every one of those situations. And you’ll plot the plot, you’re on course, the other one is, you know, is the team route. And I would say get yourself on a team, you know, because I say the three keys to mastery are immersion, modeling, and repetition. So if you’re in a team, and you’re now immerse immersing immersing yourself and there should be other stuff with that, but you’re doing that you’ve got the leaders, the other, the other people on the team, you know, you’re modeling after and then you just keep repeating, repeating repeating, then that’s going to build a backbone of kind of the substance that developers are going to look for. And and then you’ll start having some of the, you know, the sales experience, you’ll start having some of the, you’ll know some of the talk, you can talk the talk. And I think you’ll you’ll you’ll have put together a database and all those kinds of variables that developers look for, and you might get a little bit of a leg up and be able to skip over Kolter homes and go right into work in a lower Miami Project. D.J. Paris 17:37Yeah, that makes that really makes perfect sense. Yeah, I think I agree with all of that. And I also think, too, like, I don’t want to minimize how hard it is for you to do that even today. Because it’s not like once you’re in you’re in because you have to perform and deliver every single time and the stakes are really high for you. Because there’s a line of agents cash a mile long that would love to take your spot on some of those development deals. And you’re in an ultra competitive market. In fact, you could argue Miami might be the number one real estate market in the in the world or the country, as far as was amount of dollars that sort of exchanged hands and, Ivan Chorney 18:20and and the most resilient to I must say, Yeah, D.J. Paris 18:24well, it is it is. Yeah, it’s like this time of year. I always think, Hmm, Florida has it. There’s there’s a lot of benefits to tax. It’s Ivan Chorney 18:35a lot. There’s a lot going for Miami, Miami is is just transforming so rapidly. It just keeps getting better and better. D.J. Paris 18:43Yeah, I was I was there. About two years ago, I hadn’t been to to Miami, and that that time and the staff staying down on South Beach and just just just love what what’s been done down there. So that’s, I think that’s really helpful advice. It’s, it’s, you know, it’s all the same things that I think we’ve heard, I’ve heard from other agents on the show, but I don’t think that means it’s, you know, repetition is, as you said, one of the three components, it’s the mother of skill, it’s, it’s doing the same thing, mother of mastery. Yeah, it is, I think, is this idea of just putting the blinders on and going for it and, you know, developing skills I think it’s you’re right, when you play at that level, the skill is really, really important. And a skills can be honed and sharpened. Right. So it’s this idea of just working on it. Let’s talk about the relationships because you you have a really when you work with developers, like that’s a really difficult thing because you’re serving many masters really, you’re obviously keeping the developers happy trying to sell at the rate that they want with the pricing that they want. Also dealing with other realtors dealing with buyers, and you know all sorts of factors. So You know, I know there’s it does not mean that it’s an easy job at all working on developments or with developers. But I’m curious on sort of, as your team has continued to grow, where do you find the most joy? Do you like working with, you know, the, you know, with developers with with the public with both, you know, I’m curious on what’s like, your favorite thing? Ivan Chorney 20:24Yeah. I mean, you know, as I said, I was, I was a house cat, and then I, you know, moved out onto the street, and I’m, I’m actually happier being a street cat. I like being out there in the world. I like mixing and mingling. And I don’t like being kind of just like, to not say stuck, but just like, you know, just too focused on one project. Because, you know, Miami is so, so dynamic and so versatile. And there’s so many great real estate opportunities, and I love selling everything, you know, so. So, you know, right now my, like, what I prefer to do, I want to work with, I want to work with people, I love to work, I just love working with great people. You know, like, when I first started in membership sales in, you know, for a gym. That was it was it was different kinds of sales, it was like using techniques chosing techniques, you know, and I remember the first time I used that closing technique to close somebody, and they bought a membership, and then I realized that they weren’t coming in. And like that I basically sold them, like, I didn’t like it, I didn’t feel good about it. What I what I what I do now is is relationships house like, first, I’m selling me, like, do you want to work with me? Like, here’s all the reasons why because it’d be your trusted resource, I’m a property matchmaker, I’m gonna put you with the most amazing property. But, you know, I want to become their friend, I want to I mean, because I truly, deeply care about them. And that’s what gives me the satisfaction because I know, in the end, I’ve helped put them in their family in a place where they’re just, they’re going to have the best lifestyle, like the best lifestyle that’s going to match their needs. So, so that’s what really like, you know, turns my crank so to speak. D.J. Paris 22:17Yeah, that’s your why you like you, like giving you there’s a lot of satisfaction in that. And so I’m curious, because you’re talking about wanting to become, you know, friends and envelop the sort of intimate relationships with with clients or, and really deepen, continue to deepen them so that, you know, they continue to, you know, obviously be part of your life. I’m curious, I’m always curious on what what are you doing? Or what do you recommend doing in between sales with a client so that you know, you just sold somebody a home they moved in? It’s their dream home, it might be their forever home? Or at least their for a while home? What are you doing so that to make sure that they don’t forget about you? One year, two years, three years, and just, I always think, you know, this is a huge opportunity, and probably something that a lot of agents struggle with, it’s like, okay, transaction over, I know, I should stay in touch. I’m not exactly sure how often and what and what to do. Ivan Chorney 23:15Yeah. Great point. That’s, I think that’s vital. Because you don’t you know, you don’t want to be a one pump chump. You want you not only it’s just do you want that repeat business, but you want them to tell their you know, their friends and their family. And and you want, and you just don’t know, for me, I just I want to know, how they’re doing down the road. So I think I think it’s, you know, part systems like you got to have systems in place. That’s, you know, your CRM, you got to have your CRM working. For me delegating, like, when I started really delegating and spending money on delegating. That was that was hugely transformative, you know, having assistants helping you do stuff, and they help us with follow up in a major way, whether it’s emails, text messages, sending gifts, sending letters, you know, so that’s kind of the whole kit and caboodle is that like, you know, we’re sending them gifts on their birthday, we’re sending them cards, we’re calling them, we’re checking in, you know, every every couple of weeks, you know, just saying hello, you know, how are they enjoying their place? They hear about this thing that’s going on, we send them articles, oh, the top 10 restaurants in Miami. We texted over to them where we have our assistance text over dome. So we’re just you know, cuz constantly trying to be say we’re trying to be like an internal resource as well. D.J. Paris 24:43Because that is such a you know, it’s so funny. This top 10 This top restaurants thing. It sounds so simple. And yet in all of the interviews I’ve had over all of the years, I don’t think anyone specifically gave that particular tip and I just realized as you were saying it, what a brilliant tip it is because you You can just make it neighborhood specific to wherever they live. And this is really an endless amount of content. I mean, you could say, you could do restaurant of the week, or you could do top three restaurants, or whatever, however you want to do it. But that is such an easy way to create content that’s actually valuable to the people that live in those communities. And in a way, that’s not, hey, I’m looking for another sale or, you know, send me the names of some of your friends, which of course, I’m not criticizing people who do it that way, either. Yeah, different way. Yeah. It’s not my particular approach. But But I understand that some people are better for people that are like, I don’t want to bug I don’t really want to bother people, it’s like, well, then send them things of value. And that is a great example, or something that, and you could do it with your sphere of influence. You could I mean, it’s, it’s not that much work. It’s about it. Boy, I would love I would love it. If every week, I received an email in the neighborhood I live, which is Wicker Park, and which is got hundreds of restaurants. I mean, we just have so many restaurants, and it can be overwhelming. And I live in the middle of it. And I’m like, God, I would love for somebody to be like, this is the place you should go this weekend. And I mean, I really would Ivan Chorney 26:10get that on a Friday. You’re like, Oh, I’m gonna go out tonight or tomorrow night like, oh, top 10 Like, this place, let’s say, oh, that’s the food I want. Boom. D.J. Paris 26:17I know. It’s it sounds silly. And it but it is like, again, that’s as an I’m guys. I’m not a practicing agent. I’m licensed, I don’t practice. So like I am somebody who is might be in your database. I’m like a person that is like in your database. There’s a lot of people like me, they want to know, you know, and they don’t always necessarily, you know, I think people who own homes are always interested in what my home’s worth. But aside from that, I think most a lot of the communication can just be like, Hey, how’s it going? What are you up to? What are you? And I imagine you do a lot about Ivan Chorney 26:48it? Totally. Yeah. All the time. I mean, I’m, I gorge, I gorge on all things Miami, like I’m just, you know, you can tell I light up when I talk about the city. It’s the city is my second love, you know, so I love sharing things about the city. And when I learned about, you know, oh, this, this new rooftop restaurant is coming to Coconut Grove. You know, I’m like, taking the link and I’m texting it out to all my clients who bought in Coconut Grove, you know, like, and it’s just, it’s really like a natural thing for me. And it obviously, it perpetuates the relationship, you know, for for years to come. D.J. Paris 27:26Let’s let’s I want to talk about delegating, because you mentioned that that was really a game changer for you when you started investing in hiring, you know, or just getting getting some of the things off your plate that maybe weren’t the things you really prefer to do. Or maybe they weren’t business building things but things that needed to get done. So I’m curious on on, you know, for there’s a lot of people out there listening who are going I would love to delegate some of my work, how do you figure out what you want to delegate and what you want to keep for yourself? Ivan Chorney 27:57I think it’s pretty easy. What do you what do you tend to procrastinate on? What do you what do you avoid doing? Delegate that shit, man, don’t do it. I mean, you know, Mike and I joined join partners, we became partners and and, you know, first years like, you’re not closing like crazy amounts of deals. And, you know, money’s a little bit tighter. And it’s like, you know, we were at that point where we were kind of like, overflowing, you know, like, trying to be Jack of all trades, writing contracts, doing follow up writing listings, like chasing our commissions. I mean, it was fucking hard. I’m sorry, I’m D.J. Paris 28:37sure. No, you can swear. Ivan Chorney 28:40It was hard. It was hard and overwhelming. And it took away from my ability to perform at what I’m best at, which is working with people and closing deals. Like, I love working with people. I love selling the best of the best real estate in Miami. I love going into the projects, you know, talking to the agents talking to developers. I don’t love working on contracts. I don’t love the minutiae of like, you know, the, you know, scheduling the inspections and being there the inspection like I don’t want to do that stuff. So once once I realized that for myself, Mike and I had a good conversation, he was on board and we decided like, let’s spend some money and hire somebody to do this shit. And let me tell you that was that’s a game changer. If you have not hired somebody to take the load off of you stuff you don’t like doing or don’t have the time to go out and hire somebody. Start with start with a virtual admin if you you know if you don’t have the budget to go full time somebody you know in person, get a virtual admin like it will be a huge game changer for people D.J. Paris 29:53and and command really affordable. I mean, you can you know, depending on the skill level, I mean, you can Find people as low as you know, I don’t know, $5 an hour, maybe even less. Now, obviously, it’s not so much about wanting to spend the least amount of money. But if that’s your budget, you can find people that will do it. And so you know, places like upwork.com are great resources where you can go post and add people from all over the world will vie for your business. And you know, you’ll have to figure out, you know, who you want to hire. But, but yeah, I that’s a great option. So for anyone out there that’s like, I can’t afford to have, you know, a full time assistant. Maybe you Ivan Chorney 30:31can’t afford not to. Yeah, well, you’re right afford not to I’m telling you can change. D.J. Paris 30:38And, and we should also honor the fact that probably when you guys were ready to make that financial commitment initially, was that an uncomfortable moment? Like, oh, my gosh, we was at a time where you were like, Oh, it wasn’t, it was easy for Ivan Chorney 30:51it. No, no, no, it was totally, it was hard to start spending, like, our own money that we were getting, and like, you know, as a real estate agent, you’re like, you’d never really know exactly when the next shark is comment or maybe know when the next one is, but not the one after that. And so that’s, that’s, that’s uncomfortable and brutal. But it’s, it’s necessary. And so now, D.J. Paris 31:14it’s again, it’s this idea of betting on yourself and going like no, this will work out, it might be uncomfortable for a while because I’m spending money. And yeah, there’s going to be times of like, I gotta train and build systems and all of those things. Yes. So you just got to push through that discomfort and realize, like, oh, top agents aren’t doing everything. They’re just doing, what they are, what they love and what they’re best at? And what’s what’s on Cornerstone activities. Yeah. So, we’re back to relationships for a moment. So, you know, you just gave a lot of great examples of providing value, you know, in between transactions, you know, staying in touch with clients, giving them something that they can use on a regular basis, making sure they don’t feel neglected, you know, whether it’s just reaching out and how’s it going, you know, saw you went on vacation, tell me about it kind of thing versus, you know, hey, here’s like some cool real estate info, or here’s some, you know, community info. How important is it to be really immersed in the community first. So we all know, real estate is usually hyperlocal. For most agents work, you know, locally, how important is it to be known in the community, not so much to be like a public figure, but just somebody that’s in the community and and supportive of the community? I imagine you guys are for sure. Ivan Chorney 32:35Yeah. I mean, you know, I guess there’s two folds that twofold. Answer, one, like, you know, I know, agents that have picked up and left one market plop themselves into another market and found found immediate success. You know, so there are there are ways to do that. And they clearly were not immersed in, you know, the, in the world, so to speak sure of that city yet. It’s, it’s, it’s clearly beneficial for us to be immersed in, you know, all the things Miami, I mean, and in volunteering. You know, like, as you mentioned, like, I’m a big brother, in Big Brothers, Big Sisters. We also we do a lot of donations to some of the, you know, the various big charities in Miami. Lois house is one that we we did it we we got a table for we invited people and we mix and mingle. So, you know, it’s good for people to see that, you know, it’s, we’re not just about the money, you know, we’re also about the community. And we get out and about, and we go to the chamber every now and again, and all that stuff. I you know, I think it’s important. It also, you know, it also kind of depends on who your your upline faces. You know, for people that, you know, like, if someone on my team was, you know, focused on getting single family home listings in X community, I’d be like, You need to start living in that community. You know, like, you need to start, you need to start going to, you know, the weekly mom’s events or or you need to see, like, start getting plugged into the schools and go into the art fair, like, you got to start digging yourself into that. And, and, you know, like Mike and I, we, we deal with mostly, I would say northeasterners is a big is a big portion of our clientele. northeasterners people, people from Chicago, California, a lot, a lot, a lot of tax flights and some Canadian insurance, some some Europeans and some South Americans. We actually came in, I specifically don’t have a huge amount of like local clients. So, you know, for us, it’s almost more important for us to be out and about in the world, you know, so we’re traveling to Europe in the summer, you know, trying to go to the head Hamptons are going into New York City a lot I hit. Well, that makes sense. I’m from Connecticut. So I go home to Connecticut a couple times a year. So that’s, that’s that’s kind of how we kind of get out into the bigger community, so to speak. That’s so D.J. Paris 35:15interesting. So you travel to where the potential customers are and where they are today. And and where they might be, obviously, in the future is is Miami that way that makes perfect sense. I’ve yet to hear anybody talk about that specifically about leaving geographically so that you can get in front of potential buyers or Ivan Chorney 35:35sides. I mean, I had a I had a prospect that I had been in touch with over the phone only, and he was from Atlanta, the compass ended up having the compass retreat in Atlanta. So I looked them up, and I said, Hey, what are you doing? I’d love to, you know, take you out for coffee. He said, No, come over my house. So he invited me over his house was this freaking giant mansion, in like one of the most, you know, wealthy areas of Atlanta, and we just, like, totally hit it off. And him it brought his wife over, they started pouring me whiskey, I was like, Oh my god. So you know, but it was great. Because like, you know, I know, as soon as they come to Miami, we’re going out and I’ve segmented that relationship. D.J. Paris 36:16In the same vein, I’d love to hear your perspective of the importance of building strong relationships with other realtors, whether they’re in your local market, and the people, you know, will be on, you know, maybe one side of a deal with against the other, working together to close it or even Realtors from other markets who might be referring clients in? How critical is it for you to have strong relationships with other agents? Ivan Chorney 36:45Yeah, I mean, it’s, it’s, it’s super critical, I think, really, for every agent. You know, I know some agents that 75% of their business is referrals from other agents. That’s not us. But it’s actually something we’re working on growing. We actually have, you know, we’ve kind of put the structure in place to to really work on growing our referral network. We’re looking for great partners out there. But but you know, that’s why we went to buy we went to Atlanta. Jessica bade us who runs our team, she’s going to Boston this weekend to meet with agents, she was in New York meet with agents. Mike was in New York meeting with agents, Haydar Michael on our team was meeting with agents in New York. So this is really like a big initiative of ours to to get out there and meet lots of agents from the various feeder markets around the country, but you know, really, even around the world, because Toronto, London, you know, there’s, there’s other feeder markets, but even even just, you know, within Miami, it’s very, it’s very important, I think, to, to be well liked, you know, to be thought of as somebody who’s likable and easy to work with, you know, because I know from like my side, when, when I’m going to show listings, and I’m like looking at who the who the agents are, like, there’s occasionally going to be an agent where I go, like, D.J. Paris 38:11you never want to be on that end of it. You don’t want to be on that or somebody looks at you and want to know, Ivan Chorney 38:18like, I’m like this this person, you know, they do this they do that, like, you know, ex tried to steal my client ones, they’re a problem or they’re just, they just don’t they just don’t shut up. They just talk talk, talk talk talk to clients, like overwhelmed. I’m like, there’s there’s a few of them out there and my advice is don’t be that person. D.J. Paris 38:40i There’s a there’s a way Adam Carolla used to talk about he goes you never want to be as like a life advice thing and he was saying you never want to be the guy that when your name comes up on the caller ID to someone else they go oh, god bless told us that is a good point. Ivan Chorney 38:58Yeah, I mean, like I get calls from other agents that just asked him for like help like, Hey, I saw you closed this unit in this building. I have a client who’s thinking about buying the same unit two floors up can you give me some insight? And I’m like Absolutely. Like I want to be helpful because you know, when the shoe was on the other foot like maybe I’ll need them and the vast majority of agents not see me the vast majority a lot of agents can’t be bothered. You know, they even a lot of them have just just bad etiquette. They don’t answer the phone. I’m like Miami, it for as glamorous and wealthy as a city as it is. I really don’t think it’s the hardest city to become successful in because you just have to do this much more to set yourself above the people that are doing the bare minimum. D.J. Paris 39:47You know, I agree and you just said something very powerful that I want to make kind of like step on a little bit because it’s so you just said something actually quite quite brilliant I think which was if you are selling this protect really applies to condo sales. You know, this idea that if you’re about to list a condo, in a building that you haven’t listed in before, take a look at the closed listings and not just for the data, but actually go, Hey, maybe I’ll reach out to a couple agents that just closed the deal here and be like, hey, is there anything I need to know, I’m, I know, You’ve had success in this building, I would, I’m sorry to bug you. But I’d really love to get any advice that you might have. And first of all, that’s super flattering to get Ivan Chorney 40:26super flattering, like I was I, it just happened to me last week. And I was like, um, it was just like, more than kind of blown away or that somebody weren’t happy? Yeah. Because I was like, oh, you know, like, this guy’s like, looking up to me. And he’s, you know, he’s leaning on me for help. And I was like, this is this is this, and I was completely transparent about the deal. And he was like, beyond thankful, because like, he didn’t know that the deal included the boat slip, and what that equated to on a on a on $1 level. So it was it was great. Yeah, D.J. Paris 40:57this this idea of I mean, it is it, you know, I know, you guys weren’t on opposite ends of the transaction. But even when that happens, it’s still a cooperative commission, right? It’s still supposed to be cooperative. And so I think agents sometimes forget about that, when it’s when it’s just a random agent, and at a different, you know, maybe they closed the deal a week before, and you’re like, I don’t want to bother them. They don’t they don’t know me, I don’t know them. It’s, you know, I think that’s it, if they don’t call you back, it’s no big deal. But at least you made the effort. And, and again, I think that that idea of, you know, agents who are successful and my experience, and of course, there’s exceptions to this, but almost all the time that I’ve dealt with agents who are top producers, they tend to be super generous, and super friendly, and they get it, everyone’s got to start somewhere, they remember what it was like, and it’s appreciative when, when you when when somebody calls them and says, Hey, I’d love to get some advice. Ivan Chorney 41:50Totally, I, besides all this other stuff, and, you know, seeing this seeing my clients happy, like the other thing, I get tremendous satisfaction out of helping other people, and like helping other people to avoid some of the pitfalls and hurdles that I had to go through. And I’ll say to my team members, like, if, if your experience on my team through my, your experience on my team, you don’t end up being becoming a better person than you were when you got here, then I’m a fan, I fail, you know, so like, I really, you know, hold myself up to make to be a contribution to everybody and to, you know, make sure that they leave a better person or better professional than when they got here. D.J. Paris 42:34I wonder how many of our listeners right now having just heard you say that are thinking, I would love it, if my team lead or my managing broker, or whoever is sort of in charge of me, as an agent said, I want everybody here to become a better human being. And my job is to help you become a better human being not just become successful real estate, I want to help. You know, that is, that is a really powerful thing that you said. And I want to honor that. Because I don’t know that every team lead or managing broker has that same philosophy, it’s certainly a tremendous responsibility that you’re taking on, and one that you take very seriously. And so I think it’s a great place to mention that if somebody is a realtor in the Miami, sort of Miami Dade area, and you’re looking to maybe see what other options exist, and you think you might be a fit for the Ivan and Mike team. And again, remember, it might take some time because these guys want to see a level of commitment and dedication. But you got to start somewhere. If if somebody was wanting to consider working on your team, with your team providing some value to your team, tell me like what are you looking for in an agent? And and how could they get in touch with you? Ivan Chorney 43:46Yeah, well, I mean, we’re not looking for green agents, green as inexperience. That doesn’t mean it’s an absolute no, nothing is ever an absolute no. You know, that this last gentleman we brought on he was green. And that’s why it was it was it was a no for now, which is also you know, people should be taking notes as far as sales go. No, it was only know for now. But it wasn’t know at the time, it became a it became a yes, because he was tenacious enough. But right right out of the gates, we’re looking for people that are a little bit more seasoned, you know, listing specialists, you know, somebody that can go out there and get single family home listings that can go out there and, you know, kind of kill their own prey, not just that they’re not just going to sit back and wait for us to just feeding off of, you know, that’s that we’re not looking for that, you know, but we’re looking for people that that that want to be part of a team and want to be part of a special team, a team that’s more about it’s not just about the numbers and just about you know, Gucci Gucci belts and parties on you know, on South Beach on Friday like we Really, we’re about personal development, we’re about giving back to our community. And we really, you know, feel like, like we’re a family, you know? So if you’re if you’re about that jam, cool, if that’s not your game, and that’s cool, too. Just, we’re not the fit for you. D.J. Paris 45:16Like, yeah, no, I think that’s very fair. And if people if they want to, if anyone out there wants to reach out to the Ivan and Mike team, go to Ivan and mike.com, we’ll have a link to that in the show notes or hit them up on Instagram or Facebook, on Instagram. They’re only miami luxury. I have one last question for you, because and it’s kind of a funny thing, I get a little nervous asking it because I’m always afraid somebody’s going to chastise me for bringing up something that might be a bit negative. No, no, it’s I think it’s realistic. And I’m just curious to get your take. I think 2023 is going to be a really tough year for agents. I don’t I don’t think I’m going on a limb by saying that I think but there’s some people that just like to see the positive side of everything. And they’re like, it’s gonna be fine. i We have almost eight that’s major. Well, that’s good. No, that’s good. Because I want to hear that perspective. Because for me, we have about 800 agents here at our company. And I’m terrified because I’m like, Oh, my God, rates are up, inventories down, this is going to be tough. What are you doing to stay positive? And also stay productive, despite the fact that there are definitely challenges right now, that didn’t maybe exist a couple years ago. Ivan Chorney 46:24Okay, so where attention goes energy flows, right. So if you’re constantly focused on the, the sensationalism that’s out there about, you know, fuck, sorry, housing bubble, it’s Bubble, Bubble, Bubble, Bubble, bubble, collapse, you know, the housing market is blah, blah, is this and I’m like, You know what noise, it’s just noise. I’m, I’m always reading between the lines, I’m looking at the market, I’m I got my boots on the ground here, Miami, we’re very low inventory. So you know what I’m like, I’m focused on the fact that, like, I know what the reality is. And I’m focused on the fact that there are still great opportunities out there. So I truly believe there are opportunities out there for people and I truly believe there are great, great products out there for people to buy. And that’s why I just did 25 million this past weekend. And three deals. Unbelievable. Three, three deals, I was out of the country, I did 25 million. I’m not trying to like say I’m like, you know this, D.J. Paris 47:31no, you’re not. You’re just reporting you’re, like, Ivan Chorney 47:34i i Stay positive. I listen, I get up in the morning, I listened to, to meditation, I have affirmations like I am started standing gate at the car, I’m standing guard at the gate of my mind. That’s and I just can’t let the crap come in. That’s just noise. D.J. Paris 47:54Yeah, it’s but Well, you said something very important. You said I know the reality. It’s not like I’m Pollyanna. I’m not paying attention. I don’t actually know what’s going on. No, I know what’s going on. Which is why I’m choosing to focus my energy in things that will actually help drive my business because you can’t control inventory or rates, but you can find opportunity within within those things. It but if you’re right, if your mind is being entertained by information that isn’t particularly helpful to actually creating a plan, then it becomes like just consumerism, I’m just taking in information and it’s gonna bum me out because of course it is. And it’s not like you’re not strong enough to push it away. It’s just human nature to when you absorb things to sort of react to them. And so, you said something really important. It’s like, you can pay attention, and you can not pay too much attention so that you’re immobilized. Yeah, exactly. Ivan Chorney 48:48It’s like, you know, you’re not trying to be like a car salesman. Nobody wants that, like, you know, and, you know, all of our, all of our buyers are sophisticated, right? They’re, they’re seeing all the headlines out there, and I can’t be like, you know, don’t read those. Don’t listen, any of that. It’s all fucking crap. You know? Like, there’s, there’s some truth in that, too. It’s just like, you know, let me let me understand you, and what what your needs are what what fits your lifestyle. Let me present some options, and then let me go to work and negotiate. You will. Frickin hell of a deal. D.J. Paris 49:23Yeah, I love it. I think I think again, my mindset, we’re talking about focusing our energy in a way that is actually going to help us continue in our business, despite whatever challenges are before us because there’s always challenges even and let’s remember to everyone, low interest rate environment, the 3% days. That was not a lot of fun. If you were working with buyers, it was it was a lot of fun if you had a lot of listings, but if you were working with buyers, all my like let’s not forget that your buyers who got homes were thrilled. There’s a lot of unhappy people though that didn’t get one But they wanted or who paid, you know, X amount over what they probably should have, because that was the condition. So Ivan Chorney 50:06I’m so glad that days of multiple offers are like, almost over like that stuff was. That was stressful. D.J. Paris 50:13Yeah, yeah. So So that’s I love that I love that you said all this because that just reminded me that yes, things are different now but not necessarily worse or better, just different. And so within different you have Ivan Chorney 50:26to be chameleon. Yeah, to be a chameleon that’s in real estate, you real estate is is moving, whether it’s a down market, an up market, a middle market, that there’s there’s stuff being transacted. So just just be able to kind of take the ebbs and the flows, you know, don’t get don’t get don’t get pulled into the weeds. D.J. Paris 50:47Well, I think this is a great place to wrap up. Because for anyone listening who thinks, gosh, you know, I would like to have a connection, maybe down to the Miami area, or you know, somebody that I could possibly refer business to as well in the future, because, of course, lots of people retire or move to Florida or buy second, third, you know, plus properties. You know, you obviously deal with people with multiple, multiple properties. And, you know, you’re looking for to build those relationships, so that you when you do have those opportunities, and by the way, I haven’t find those opportunities on the flip side to where those people who are buying an $8 million home, probably not their only home, they probably have other properties, he’s going to probably need to refer those people out in case they’re moving somewhere where they don’t know an agent. So this is a great reciprocal relationship, possibly. So even everyone out there, if you’re like, Well, you know, gosh, I don’t know if I’d be of any value. You know, think about it. And if you think you could provide value to Ivan or vice versa, you know, reach out and say, Hey, I’d love to be part of your network. And here’s why. And here’s what I do. That’s how relationships get get started and found it so and by the way, too, for anyone out there who’s a buyer seller investor or renter who is looking to find a property or sell a property in the Miami area. You know, Ivan and Mike are the guys so I’ve been in like.com they’re gonna take awesome care of you. I mean, the amount of transactions you guys are sorry, the production level that you did last year, I was trying to think because I don’t have our Chicago numbers pulled up for the entire metro or the entire area. But I would say that would put you as one of the if not the top team, maybe one two or three out of 47,000 agents. So I’ve been in like our big big producers and they are very, very, very good at what they do. So you should consider working with them. Whether you’re an agent, you know, or whether you’re somebody looking to work with a realtor, buy sell, rent, invest, etc. Those guys these guys are the best so everyone go out and visit Ivan and mike.com also follow them on Instagram, which is miami luxury sales. Sorry, no, it isn’t. Ivan Chorney 52:50Any miami luxury. D.J. Paris 52:52Sorry about that. Only miami luxury on Instagram. By the way guys don’t have to worry about that. There’s a link to it in our show notes. Just click on it. Subscribe and follow them. Mike it sir Mike. Ivan, your partner’s Mike. Well, Ivan Chorney 53:05he’s cool. He’s alright. D.J. Paris 53:08I guess when I when I expect to talk to an Ivan. And this is like, probably something that isn’t politically correct. But I expect like a thick heavy accent from like an Eastern European accent WOULD YOU DO NOT? Dawn? Yeah, that’s there we go. No, I’m talking to Ivan. No, Ivan, it was it was a pleasure. By the way just to ask you. Where are you from in Connecticut? Ivan Chorney 53:29A little town called Madison. It’s 20 minutes east of New Haven on the shoreline. D.J. Paris 53:34So is that near Old lime. Ivan Chorney 53:37It’s very close. It’s about 2025 minutes from O line O line. We just keep going a little bit further, like 10 More exits off at 95. D.J. Paris 53:44I’ve been to old line. That’s probably the closest I’ve been but anyway. All right. On behalf of our audience, guys, we all need to thank Ivan for coming on our show talking about how he built his business. We’re so grateful that he said spend an hour with us. So on behalf of everyone Ivan, we say thanks. And if I called you Mike at any other time during this I think now thinking just wanted to do it once just Okay, sorry about that. That’s my it’s a tough day. But on behalf of Ivan and myself, we want to say thank you to the audience for making it all the way through guys get in touch with Ivan, you know, reach out to them see if you can and we’re so grateful we just ask one thing of everyone who listens is just tell one friend about the show one other realtor that might be struggling right now that’s worried about this year that stressed a lot of agents are send them a link to this episode. This is going to turn their day around and hopefully provide them a little bit of a little bit of kindness and you know strategy for how to move through the year. So tell a friend send him over to our website keeping it real pod.com Every episode can be streamed through a browser or if there are podcast listeners, just pull up to a search for keeping it real. Hit that subscribe button. We appreciate it. All right, Ivan. It was a real pleasure. Sure And next time I’ll have Mike on the show because I won’t screw up. Ivan Chorney 55:04You gotta call him Ivan. D.J. Paris 55:06That’s true that maybe he’s got a thick accent then I’ll get confused again. Anyway, it was a pleasure. Thanks so much. We will see everybody on the next episode. Awesome.