The Fred Factor in Real Life

One of my favorite books about outstanding service and making your customers enjoy a great experience is The Fred Factor by Mark Sanborn. The subtitle of this book is "How passion in your work and life can turn the ordinary into the extraordinary."

Have you read it?

It's worth going out to Amazon.com or your local bookstore or library and checking it out. It's a quick fun read and has many tangible concepts that will be useful to you in whatever field you're in but certainly those of us in a "people business" like sales.

Have you ever experienced a "Fred" in real life?

I have experienced a "Fred" many times and they always seem to jump off the page like a character in one of those children's pop-up books. As someone who makes a great effort to be a "Fred" myself, I get excited when I run into a "Fred" in the real world. It's even more amazing when they actually are named "Fred."

I returned to Columbus late Tuesday evening from a few days away with some good friends. It was a great 48 hours of "building relationships, solving problems and having fun." When I travel, I park my car at the Thrifty Car Park just outside of Port Columbus International Airport. I've been a Thrifty Perks member there for a few years and they do a great job.

For those of you who aren't familiar with this "valet" service, you swing through the Thrifty parking lot and pick up a driver on your way out of town. They ride with you to the airport and then take your car back to Thrifty while you're away on vacation or business. Upon your return, you catch a shuttle from the terminal and they drive you to your waiting car back at the lot.

It's usually a pretty benign drive from the airport to the Thrifty lot. You grab your luggage, trod out to the shuttle pick up lot and maybe send a quick text home to let your loved ones know you're on your way. The driver arrives, tosses your luggage onto the rack and you head out to get your car.

The Fred Factor in Real Life

Something different happened the last two times I've been picked up and it was all Fred's fault. The shuttle driver's name was Fred Rohe. He pulled in to the waiting areas and opened the doors with a big smile and said "Welcome Home, folks!" He hustled down the steps and grabbed the waiting passengers luggage and ushered us on board. After confirming we had all called in our claim ticket to insure that our cars would be waiting for us upon arrival, he did something different then all the other "average shuttle drivers." He offered all his passengers a choice of candy.

Really not a huge offer by any means...but when was the last time a shuttle driver offered you even a smile let alone of choice of free, sweet, chocolaty goodness?

As we quickly pulled away from the terminal, he asked us how our trips were, filled us in on the days weather here in Columbus and provided us all with a quick forecast for what to expect with the next day's weather. I even joked with Fred that it's amazing he has time to drive a shuttle after a full day on the Columbus Chamber of Commerce. He was really excited to share his positive mental attitude with others.

Thanks Fred for making the short 5 minute drive to my car memorable. Plus, I got a minty fresh blast from my two mini York Peppermint Patties that gave me a much needed jolt of energy for my ride home to see the family.

May you all have a great week encountering many "Freds"...or just decide to be a "Fred" yourself.

What Realtors Can Learn from Oak Trees

Monday Morning Match is a short post - maybe a quote, inspirational story or idea - intended to spark some motivation inside of each of you so your week gets off to a fantastic start on Monday morning.

Do you stand out? Are you unique? When God created you, did they "break the mold"?

Or...

Is what you do, done the way you do it, also done by others? When you look up 'status quo' in the dictionary could there be a picture of you? Will your next creative idea be your first?

There are over 1 million members of the National Association of Realtors in the United States. Those people can rightfully call themselves REALTORS®. It's been estimated that close to another 500,000+ people have a real estate license (but just are not members of NAR). And who's to say how many of the 300+ million people living in America have held a real estate license at some point in their life?

So is it any wonder that the general public might not see any difference from one practitioner to the next if we don't go out of our way to show how we're different?

No Joke, Learn from the Oak

“The strongest oak tree of the forest is not the one that is protected from the storm and hidden from the sun. It’s the one that stands in the open where it is compelled to struggle for its existence against the winds and rain and scorching sun.”

- Napoleon Hill

I challenge you to discover ways this week that you can be different from your fellow Realtor. I'm not talking about changing the color of your yard sign (there may be state licensing issues) but what can you do to deliver your services in a way that will make those you interact with say "Wow! That was different...and I really liked it. I liked it enough to talk about it and tell others."?

• Have you stopped by that recently expired listing or the new FSBO in your neighborhood to introduce yourself or did you do what the majority of agents did - nothing?
• Do you deliver a pre-listing packet with homework to each and every potential Seller client you meet with?
• Do you hand deliver thank you gifts to your clients after a successful closing to show them your appreciation or do you just quickly cash the commission check and move on to the next client?
• How do you handle personal referrals? Are they accepted as part of the job or do you show those people who trust you enough to refer family, friends and co-workers your gratitude with a hand written thank you note?
• Are you spending your Sundays hiding from the opportunities that might be out there or do you hold open houses and maximize your opportunities for traffic by inviting neighbors, past clients, and co-op agents?

This week, try to be more like the oak tree and get out where the winds blow, the rain falls and the sunshine scorches.

That's where the growth will happen.

Get out there and build relationships, solve problems and have fun.

Need a Lift?

Monday Morning Match is a short post - maybe a quote, inspirational story or idea - intended to spark some motivation inside of each of you so your week gets off to a fantastic start on Monday morning

“Those who abandon their dreams will discourage yours”

Sure, lots of people think they know better. Many of the 300+ million people in the United States have had a real estate license in the past or know someone who has. That doesn't mean they know what your goals and plans are. You know why you decided to get into a career in real estate (or stick with a career in real estate) so stay focused on what needs to get done to achieve your goals.

Just because someone went to a great college or took some high priced training course doesn't mean they can tell you how to live your life.

Someone attending church on a weekly basis doesn't necessarily have a better chance of success than someone who doesn't believe in a higher power.

“Those who abandon their dreams will discourage yours”

Author John Maxwell says there are two types of people in life, Lifters and Leaners. Lifters are always picking people up, staying positive and supporting people while the Leaners are always holding people back, pulling them down or impeding their progress.

Watch the video clip below from The Pursuit of Happyness. Stuggling San Francisco saleman Chris Gardner, played by actor Will Smith, starts the scene as a "Leaner" and then transitions into a "Lifter."



I hope this week, you will avoid the Leaners and look for the Lifters.

I hope this week you will be the Lifter someone needs.

It's Time to Raise Your IN-10-SITY

Days like today don't come around very often. In fact, they only come around once in a lifetime. It's October 10th, 2010. That's 10/10/10. What a great reason to come up with a list of...

Ten Things to Boost Your Business

#10. Take ten minutes to print a one-line report of your current data base of contacts. Review it from top to bottom. Eliminate any duplicate entries you may have, highlight any contacts who are incomplete and purge those names and "contacts" that you have no idea who they even are.

#9. Put ten of the incomplete data base entries on your daily to-do list and begin to acquire the missing data. Spouses names, kids names, email addresses, etc. can all be found out by a simple phone call. Repeat this until you have completely updated your data base. Done correctly, this is almost guaranteed to add leads to your business.

#8. Take ten minutes to practice the following script; "Hi (insert name of contact), it's Sean Carpenter with Coldwell Banker. I hope you're doing well. The reason for my call is I have been putting together some great information about our current real estate market and I want to get it out to the people I know. In order to do that, I've been taking some time to update my Relationship Roster and I noticed that I am missing some information from you. Do you have a minute for me?"

#7. Dial numbers on your list for ten minutes. All you need is one good contact a day who adds some information to your current data base. If you want, you could make calls for longer than ten minutes but baby steps seem to work well for most people.

#6. Take ten minutes to send a hand written thank you note to each person you speak with in person, whether they provide you with any new information or not. That personal touch will come back to you in time, trust me.

#5. Research your market statistics over the last ten months. What has happened in your local markets since January 1st, 2010? Can you create a chart, graph or general report on prices, inventory levels and pending home sales?

#4. Identify the ten top selling areas in your local MLS based on # of sales or average days on the market. These are great areas to be knowledgeable and focused on as they are turning over business and doing so quickly. If you know someone who lives in one of those areas, don't you think they'd want to know this information? If you're selecting an area to hold an open house, these might be great places to start.

#3. Schedule ten Open Houses between now and January 1, 2011. Buyers who are out looking in the 4th quarter are usually more "buyer" than they are "looker." Because there are only 11 more weekends left in the year, that means you'll probably need to double up on certain Sundays (hold shorter opens houses; 12:30 - 2pm and then maybe 3-4:30?) or choose a day that isn't a "traditional open house day" in your market. That's okay. Why not hold an open house on Thursday afternoon or Tuesday evening? Consumers today are looking for different, not status quo.

#2. Touch ten people a day on social networks like Twitter, LinkedIn or Facebook. It won't take you a lot of time but it will continue to help you build relationships, solve problems and have fun.

#1. Take ten seconds each day when you wake up to say these words to yourself, "It's going to be a great day because I choose to make it great!"

88 to Make it Great

Monday Morning Match is a short post - maybe a quote, inspirational story or idea - intended to spark some motivation inside of each of you so your week gets off to a fantastic start on Monday morning

Today is Monday, October 4, 2010. It's the 277th day of 2010. Counting today, there are 88 days left in 2010.

Have you already mailed it in and started to look ahead to the new year, hoping it will be better, easier or more fun? Or are you getting your ankles taped so you get stay in the game in the fourth quarter and play until the final gun sounds?

Win or lose, are you going to give it your all and make a game of it?

There is no doubt that it has been a challenging year in real estate but here's a simple fact -There have been Buyers and Sellers exchanging properties every business day of the year. On the majority of those deals, a Realtor was involved.

Was it you?

Have you studied the numbers for your local market? I just looked at some data from the Columbus Board of Realtors. Did you know that from January 1 through August 2010, there have been 14,082 sold listings in the Columbus MLS? That equates to 28,164 sides. (A 9.2% increase compared to 2009)

How many were you involved with?

Stop...Make a Decision

• Stop getting caught in the trap of saying that there is no business out there. If you're saying that, maybe you should add "...because I haven't been looking for it every day." Get out there and make an introduction to someone who needs you.

• Stop getting caught in the blame game of saying that lenders and appraisers are making it too hard to get deals together. Make sure you understand what is expected of your clients ahead of time.

• Stop procrastinating on your daily prospecting. There are Buyers and Sellers out there waiting to find each other. Get out there and make a connection.

“People are always blaming their circumstances for what they are. I don’t believe in circumstance. The people who get on in this world are the people who get up and look for the circumstances they want, and if they can’t find them, make them.”
- George Bernard Shaw

There are only 88 days left in 2010. Make the decision today that you will make the efforts each and every day to make building relationships, solving problems and having fun a priority.

Make it happen.

Make it a great day.

Make it start....today!