A Reason for the Season? The 12 Touches of Christmas

This isn't about "five golden rings" or "seven swans a swimming."

Today, we're not talking about "lords a leapin'" or "maids a milking."

I want to talk about some realistic, doable reasons to contact your clients, customers or friends and family. This doesn't need to start on the 12th of December. Heck, it could start the 6 days before Christmas and then conclude the 6 days after Christmas. In fact, that might give it more legs...

Day 1 - Call to wish your contacts "Happy Holidays." - No designation or religious implication. Just a great phone call to let them know you were thinking about them heading into this festive season.

Day 2 - See Day 1, just add the next 10 people on your list. Same message, same emotion.

Day 3-6 - Admit it...if you just made this simple, yet easy, call (possible a 15 second message at most) to your last 50 clients or personal "bullseye" people in your database, you'd have more personal contact and valuable conversations in these six days leading up to one of our biggest holidays than at any other time of the year.

How long could 10 calls a day take you? Even if you still have shopping to complete, take your list of contacts with you. 2 calls between stores means you can "shop and service" at the same time.

Sample dialogue: "Greetings ________________, I was just out doing some last minute shopping and I was thinking about you today. I just wanted to call and say hello and wish you and the family "Happy Holidays." How's the new house? Is it all decorated for Christmas?  (or "Do you have your tree set up yet"...or "Does your new neighborhood do lots of decorations outside?")

Christmas Day - No prospecting allowed. Spend the day with family and friends and count your blessings. Turn off your "sales instincts" for this one day.

Day 7 - Touch base with some of your "sphere of influence" and invite them out for coffee, lunch, cocktails or an evening out. Any night between now and New Years. This is a typical "dead time" for many people so it just might be the ideal time to meet up for breakfast, lunch or a holiday beverage and talk about life, family and who knows?...Maybe people they know who might be looking to buy or sell in 2012. Maybe their own familial "life change" that could include a new house?

Day 8 - See who might be celebrating a birthday in late December or January.

What's that? You don't know who has a birthday in December or January? What a great reason to call then, no?

 "Hey Mr. ________, I am updating my database for 2012 and I'm trying to make a point of calling all of my friends because I want to have a reason to stay in touch in the new year. Can I get you and your family member's birthdays so I have a reason to keep in touch? Would it be okay if I stayed in touch with you in 2012?" (Let me know how many people tell you "No, we'd rather you drop off the face of the earth and forget about us)

(Trust me...if this is said with a mix of passion and genuine honesty, it will be a great call. - If you have to fake the honesty, please save you and the client the time and skip the call. The insincerity will show through your voice)

Day 9 - See who might be celebrating an anniversary in late December or January. What's that? You don't know who has an anniversary in December or January? What a great reason to call.

"Hey Mr. ________, I am updating my database for 2012 and I'm trying to make a point of calling all of my friends because I want to have a reason to stay in touch in the new year. Can I get you and your wife/husband's anniversary so I have a reason to keep in touch in the years to come?"

(Trust me - see Day 8)

Day 10 - "You know, over the holidays, I have run in to a lot of people who have asked me about the real estate market. So I've decided to put together a real estate newsletter/update/blog letting people know about what is happening in our city/community/neighborhood. Is that something that you would be interested in?

[yes]

"Great. What's the best email address to send this to? I'll make sure you get the newest one immediately.

"By the way, who do you think will be the next person to need real estate help in 2012?"

Day 11 - "Happy New Year to you (and your family)" - This is a perfect dialogue for those clients of yours that you just don't have that great relationship with but still would like to maintain contact with. There's a good chance that they won't want to have much dialogue with you either.

It's not that they don't like or respect you. It's just that they aren't very social people...and you are. So make the call, be polite and friendly, maximize the chances that they add your name and brand to the top of their mind...and move on to the next call.

Day 12 - "Happy New Year. I am just making some early calls today to wish you a safe celebration and to wish your ____________ (insert favorite college or pro football team, college basketball team or hockey team) good luck in their game this weekend.

"I am trying to grow my reach on social media in 2012. What is your Twitter handle? I'll make sure to follow you and will try to tweet you during the action this weekend."

Maybe you meet up to catch a bowl game, a playoff game or just to grab a few Christmas beers at the local pub to catch up. Whatever you do, it's gonna be better than sitting there and waiting for the phone to ring, right?

So what are you going to do? Will you actually put into action these ideas or will you just sit back and wait for 2012 to arrive?

Just like the gifts you'll be receiving in the next few weeks, some will "fit you" perfectly while others will not work so well. That's the same thing with business development ideas. Not all ideas are "one size fits all."

What ideas will you be using to build your business? Are there any other "reasons to call" your clients that I didn't mention? Drop them in the comments box below. Maybe we can all learn some new "hangover remedy" to start the New Year.

Until then, if you do nothing else over these next few "days of Christmas," find a way to build relationships, solve problems and have fun.

Those are the gifts that everyone will love and size, color or flavor doesn't matter.

Why "No" Can Be a Very Good Word to Hear

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

"Would you like me to give you a formula for success? It's quite simple, really. Double your rate of failure."

~ Thomas J. Watson, Founder of IBM

What's on your agenda for business development activities this week? Do you have some time penciled in to proactively build your business?
 
Seriously. As you're reading this on your desktop, mobile device or tablet, what are you planning this week to grow your business ON PURPOSE?
 
If you don't already have at least two appointments scheduled with prospects to potentially secure new business or if you're not meeting with clients of yours to generate referral business, you might not be spending your time wisely.
 
Change Your Focus
 
Instead of picking up the phone or knocking on doors expecting or searching for someone to say "yes" to you, I suggest you change what type of answer you're looking for.
 
Start looking for the "no's."
 
Why? Because I'm positive that you'll have more success finding "no's" than you ever will finding the "yeses."
 
It's been said that it takes about 9 "no's" to get to one "yes," so there's going to be a lot more failure than victory unless you are looking to get nine people to say "no" to you each day. When you are seeking a positive response it can get discouraging to constantly hear "no" or "not now." If you start aiming for the negative replies to your inquiries you will get on a roll and the only thing that could derail your efforts is if someone actually says..."yes?"
 
Can you imagine actually being upset by a prospect having interest in meeting with you to discuss the purchase or sale of a home!!! The nerve of some people. (sarcasm intended)
 
"Hey Mrs. Manager. I have had a horrible day. I came in today to make calls until I heard nine people say "no" to my inquiry. I figured I could knock those nine calls out in less than 30 minutes.
 
"You know what happened? 3 of my first 6 calls actually were glad I called. I had some great conversations with them and I even was able to set up 2 appointments. The other is heading out of town but said we should get together when they get back because they might want to look at some investment opportunities to take advantage of these great interest rates they have been reading about.


"I sure do hope the next few people I call just tell me "no." I've got things to do!"


Change Your Results


Are you willing to keep making calls to hit your quota of "no's" you were looking for. How bad would your luck be if you kept reaching people who have a need instead of just rejecting you so you can go on with your day?
 
Not a bad problem to have, huh?
 
 
Find some people to build relationships, solve problems and have fun with. Or find people who don't want to do any of those three things.
 
Either way, you're going to win.
 
 
 
 

Setting Sail for Success on Columbus Day

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


In honor of Columbus Day, I felt a quote from the man credited with discovering America would be fitting.

"Riches don't make a man rich, they only make him busier."

- Christopher Columbus

I have yet to meet someone in the real estate industry who told me their primary reason they were in the business was to make large sums of money. Of course, it is a great aspect of this career that you can make a very comfortable income, but usually that is not people's number one motivation for becoming a Realtor.

If you had to sit down today and list the top five reasons why you entered this business or perhaps why you stay in it, what would they be? Where does income rank next to helping people realize the American Dream? If everyone was in it solely for the money there would be a lot more agents focused on business development activities every minute of every day and there would be no such thing as a "discounted fee."

Think of your best year to date. Maybe it was decades ago or maybe it will be this year. As you consider the year you banked the highest income, ask yourself this: "Was I busy that year?" My guess is you'll answer "yes."

It's great to become busier and if the payoff at the end of all the hard work is income (and hopefully profit), that could be very rewarding for those involved. First comes the fiduciary duties, ethical approach and truly remarkable service expected to be delivered. Then and only then can the personal referrals and commission checks be earned. You can't achieve the latter without the former.

Christopher Columbus set sail in three ships - The Nina, the Pinta and the Santa Maria. The three vessels for you to reach your destination are named "Building Relationships," "Solving Problems" and "Having Fun."

Get on board Captain! There's a whole new world out there. Hoist the sails and get ready for a great adventure.

Bon Voyage!

Bring Home a Winner

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

Are You Ready for the Big Finish?

In a long season, game, event or fiscal year, the actions and results that occur early mean just as much as those that happen later. It's just that when the finish line is within reach, it seems that every step feels that much more important.

Last Wednesday we saw what many are calling the "greatest day of action in baseball history" as four teams played in do-or-die games with their playoff lives in the balance. St. Louis and Atlanta were tied for the wild card spot in the National League and Boston and Tampa Bay were deadlocked in the American League for their league's wild card spot.

St. Louis cruised to a victory over the hapless Houston Astros, insuring themselves of no worse than a one-game playoff at home to attempt to secure a playoff spot. The other three games were epic in their unfolding with Atlanta losing in extra innings, Boston giving up a 1-run lead in the bottom of the 9th inning and Tampa Bay snagging the last spot in the playoffs with a dramatic 12th inning home run (after a 7-run comeback late in the game to send it to extra innings). If you stayed up and watched it all happen like I did, it's a night you're sure to remember for a while.

It should be noted that those games played Wednesday night (the 162nd game of the season for all four teams) counted the same as their games played back in April. Had they each just won one more game earlier in the season, the drama wouldn't have been near as intense...or fun.

The same is true in golf - a bogey on the first hole counts the same as a bogey on the 18th hole but if the match was on the line when you were standing on the 18th tee, it seems like a much worse score, right? You'll think about that missed putt on the last hole a lot longer than you will think of that bad drive back on the first hole. Geez...that was almost 5 hours ago, right?

When Do You Really Start to Focus?

When we make mistakes, skip business development opportunities or lose listings early in the year we may find ourselves subconsciously saying "I'll get the next one" or "there will be more as the year goes along." While that is probably true, wouldn't it be better to get every deal (closing, hit, run, touchdown, win, etc.) when you can?

When you can see the finish line you seem to heighten your awareness of your efforts. I know when I am on a long run, my legs seems to pick up energy when I am just a mile from the finish. Sometimes I even pick up speed, turning in one of my better mile times on that last mile as my mind tells my legs how good it will feel to be done.

The back nine at Augusta on Sunday feels just a little different each year at the Masters than it feels on Thursday. In fact, watch it next spring and wait for CBS's Jim Nantz to say it when the leaders finish putting on the 9th hole. "The Masters doesn't start until the back nine on Sunday."

The crowd rises to it's feet when the home team comes up to bat in the bottom of the ninth inning, trailing by one run. They know that the team must execute now or it will be too late and another loss will be entered onto the bad side of the win-loss ledger. If that happens too often there will be little chance of achieving the goals set at the beginning of the year.

It's Crunch Time

Is it time for a "Hail Mary"?

Do you want the ball in your hand for that last second shot?

Will you be ready to make the field goal in "sudden death" overtime?

It's almost closing time. Don't let the bartender's "last call" leave you thirsting for more.

The clock is ticking down but there is still time for you to call a timeout, design a plan that is sure to result in some positive results, and make something happen. Homes will be listed and homes will be sold every day between now and 2012. 

Are you ready to build some relationships, solve some problems and have some fun?

Raise your fingers. It's the fourth quarter.

The game is on the line. Go out there and bring home a winner.

Pencil Yourself In for Success

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





"There are two patron saints to whom I have tremendous devotion: a sheet of paper and a lead pencil. Mark down at least once a day everything you do and every time you do it. It will not only make you proud to see all you do; but it will humble you by showing you all you don't do."

~ William Doyle

I hate to sound like a broken record in many of these blog posts but there are two things a successful Realtor should do every day - "business development" activities and "business support" activities.

Most agents choose to spend their time on the business support activities because those things don't involve rejection, fear or conflict. Remember though that if you spend too much time on the business support activities and no time on business development, there soon will be no business to support.

Instead of getting hung up on the insignificant things, remain focused on those things that will lead to a successful transaction.

If the things you are doing this week aren't helping you build relationships, solve any problems or have more fun, it might be a good idea to find something else to do.



Photo courtesy of Chucknado via Flickr

Dive In

I enjoyed a relaxing evening at our pool last night. I had taught in the morning and then attended a class in the afternoon before driving back to Columbus, so it was a welcome respite from a long day to sit back, enjoy a cold drink and have pizza with the family and then watch the kids play in the pool and jump off the diving boards.

It was on those diving boards where I saw a little girl who inspired this blog post.

I don't know her but she seemed like a pretty cool kid. Her name was Reese and I am guessing she is about 7 or 8 years old, maybe 9. She was standing on the high dive getting ready to dive for her first time from that height.

She stretched out her arms, bent at the waist and then...straightened up and walked back to the end of the board.

She walked back to the edge, repeated the process and then...chickened out. She jumped feet first.

This process repeated itself a few times and each time, more and more people were looking on, including the lifeguard and her older brother who were each encouraging her to "just do it" with calls of "it'll be easy" and "just trust yourself, lean and fall forward."

"I'm scared," yelled Reese as she jumped feet first again. "I'll do it next time," she said at least three times.

And then, she summoned up the guts and did it. She dove off the high dive. A perfect entry with minimal splash. Even the Russian judge would have scored her well (once you factored in the degree of difficulty and her age, it was quite impressive).

Reese emerged from the depths with a smile on her face almost bigger than her cheeks could hold. She proudly swam to the ladder, climbed out of the pool and you know what she did next? She walked right back to the high dive to do it again.

Up the ladder she went. She walked... no she strutted to the end of the board, yelled to her mother at the other end of the pool to "watch me dive, Mom" and did it again. Another perfect dive.

Her fear completely vanished, Reese had determined that she was now ready to move on to a front flip. Seriously, after a few more trips up the ladder and off the board head first, she almost seemed bored with diving from the high dive and, since she realized her fear wasn't as strong as she imagined just fifteen minutes earlier, she figured she could do a front flip just like she does easily off the low board.

And she did.

I am sure by now, you know where I am going with this story, don't you?

What are you afraid of when it comes to your business? Have you done anything today that involves business development activities or are you staying in the shallow end of the pool focused on the easier, safer business support activities? Working with those first time buyers might be in your comfort zone but trying to break in to the high end market of $500K and higher seems a bit "above your level" of confidence, huh? Making that tough call to a Seller who needs a drastic repositioning of his asking price in order to generate some buyer traffic isn't going to be easy so perhaps you should just wait until the listing expires and blame the "tough market" as the reason the house didn't sell.

Take it from Reese. It's just the first one that seemed hard. After that, it starts getting fun.

Rest period is over. Get up there and stretch out your arms, bend at the waist.

No one is going to push you. You've just got to dive in.

Why Wait?

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

It's been a while since my last post. In fact, I didn't even make an effort last week.

Now, of course, I have an excuse. Don't we always have an excuse?You see, I really was busy with some things that we had going on at the company so I just didn't have the time to sit down and plan out a blog post in my mind.

Have you ever "been there and done that"? You have plans to do something proactive in your business but you spend the week being reactive. You allow other things to get in the way and you begin to justify why you didn't get done what needed to be done?

We don't attend a company event or training session because we "might have a buyer" that needs help that day.

We skip making calls one morning because we're waiting for a home inspector to call us about a walk through.

We cancel a coaching session with our manager so that we can prepare for a listing appointment that is a week away.

Procrastination is the friend of failure

There is an old Spanish proverb that says "Tomorrow is often the busiest day of the week," and I think it may just be true. We allow procrastination to get in our way because that's the easy thing to do.

Our exercise and health can wait until tomorrow. We'll just run more on the weekend or we can start eating healthy next week.

Our financial decisions aren't thought out the way they need to be because it's often easier to spend based on impulse instead of planning and foresight.

We fail to spend a proportional time of our week engaged in business development activities and instead we hide behind the business support activities because they are usually easier and don't involve any challenge or adversity. (Managers - are you focused on the "business development" activities that will help your office's bottom line? Recruiting, retention and agent development?) 

So what will you achieve this week. Instead of completing a "things to do" list, why not create a "make it happen" list. What can you "make happen"? Instead of saying you are "going to do" something, believe that you're going to "make something happen."

Why wait? I think now is a perfect time for you to take that next step closer to success.

Get out there now and start building relationships, solving problems and having fun.