Sharpening The Saw

One of the "Seven Habits of Highly Successful People" is to "sharpen the saw." In other words to work with the tools of your business and keep them sharp through maintenance and practice. Real estate is a mature business and there's not much that's dramatically new. In my 20+ years of practice, I've stayed abreast with technology, embraced Top Producer, stayed current with laptops, printers, phones and other hardware. Looking ahead to the challenges of our economic climate, I wonder what can I do to maintain and improve my business. I don't see any new blockbuster ideas or equipment.

I think the answer is to try to better utilize what I already have. The keystone of my business is my database of contacts and past customers, so I spent time during the slow period of Dec. reviewing and revising. It's amazing how many coincidental, deceased and non-productive contacts were in there. In weeding those out, I also discovered some valuable names that had gotten into incorrect categories and were being overlooked in mailings and other contact efforts.

The new 8i version of Top Producer is a powerful tool with many features. Though a TP user and certified trainer I was using only a portion of what was available. I did my contacts and follow-ups using a combination of automated and manual procedures. This year I've gone through the TP Action Plans and revised and customized them so I can employ them on a regular basis. It was a time-consuming chore, but I expect it to pay dividends from better follow-up. For example, I now have an automated quarterly market report with color graphics that will go out to my "A" list. Every contact on that "A" list will hear from me every month via letter, post card, email or phone. These folks will have a hard time not thinking of me when real estate is mentioned.

With 20 yrs. experience, most of my business comes from referrals and past customers. I haven't aggressively prospected in years, but this year I'm going to resume doing so. I get older every year and, unfortunately, so does my contact list. Many past friends and past customers have raised their families and their housing needs probably won't change until they're well into retirement. To connect with young people, I've begun using social networking sites such as Active Rain and Facebook. Apartment prospecting is relatively easy and inexpensive with post cards and the new custom postcards in Top Producer can be sent to one or hundreds at the same cost per unit, no more than it costs to have the cards printed and mail them myself. They also use my contacts so they're completely current.

None of this is new or exciting, it's just basic "stuff." I'm a TP user but if you like something else, the same principles apply and the important thing is to increase your utilization. There may be fewer units involved, but there are going to homes sold, regardless of economic conditions. I believe that "sharpening my saw" will help me get my share of those sales and maybe somebody else's share as well.