Life Is Like a Box Of Chocolates...

Free Training During Real Estate Week on BlitzTime!

 

Why for Free?  What’s the Catch?

I was talking with some of my training and coaching friends and we realized that there are a lot of agents out there who really desperately need training, but who can’t currently afford it.  Yes, we make our livings by selling this amazingly useful knowledge, but we wanted to give something back to the community that supports us, so from April 20-24, 2009 we’ve decided to offer up a whole week of training and coaching for free.  That’s it – no catch.

 

Why BlitzTime?

We’re going to use the BlitzTime platform (a speed networking site on the web – think speed dating for business) because it allows us to get a chance to speak one-on-one with some of you and to have you guys talk to each other (and hopefully form some referral and support relationships). 

 

What You Need To Do To Attend

 

1. Sign up with a free profile on BlitzTime (follow the link to the left).  Make sure you fill in your profile as completely as possible so that the people who are talking to you know who you are and upload a picture so they can see you. Also, make sure you link to your website pages so people can find you later – and a little extra SEO couldn’t hurt, right?
2. Sign up for the Real Estate Week Free Training group because I’m getting more of my trainer and coach friends involved every day, so we’ll be posting new events and being a member of the group is the best way to get notice that an event has been added!
3. Register for the Real Estate Week events that you want to attend.  Hint:  all of the events can be found from the Real Estate Training and Coaching for Agents group page above. 

 

Here’s a Sampling of the Events Going On

 

April 21

Selling Real Estate is Not a Numbers Game... or at least it doesn't have to be

Jennifer Allan, Author of Selling With Soul

Most real estate agent training programs insist that Selling Real Estate is a Numbers Game.  We’ve all heard the mass-marketer’s philosophy – you have to contact X number of people to get a lead and you have to have Y number of leads to get a client and you have to have Z number of clients to get a paycheck…blah, blah, blah.  I don't much like the idea of being treated like a number and I'll bet most of our clients and prospects don't either. Yes, you can succeed selling real estate using a quality over quantity prospecting approach... and I'll show you how!  More About the Event                     About the Presenter

April 21

Agents That Breathe Success

Kim Ades, MBA, Creator of Frame of Mind Coaching

When Kim coaches people, something magical happens. Over and over again people are shocked at how much they learn as a result of a short conversation with Kim. Just by asking the right questions she gets to the root of people’s thinking patterns and helps them to move in the direction of reaching their goals. But that’s not all. When Kim coaches people, she provides the most profound coaching experience that allows people to truly explore the root of what is holding them back from great success. Please join Kim for her coaching session on Tuesday April 21^st from 12:00 to 1:15 PM Eastern. This is an opportunity for you to get your frame of mind back in the game and on the road to success.           More About The Event           More About The Presenter

 

April 21

Seasoned but Stuck: Three Best Methods to 'Get your Groove Back' and Hit High Performance Again

Carla Cross, Real Estate Speaker/Coach; Author of Up and Running in 30 Days

In this fast-paced presentation, you'll hear the three methods that will work to motivate and inspire you to get into those trenches and succeed at a higher level. You'll hear the 3 most common mistakes seasoned agents are making--and how to 'cure' them. You'll get solid, concrete, specific performance tips from Carla--whose background (besides real estate) is as a peak performer (she's a pianist and flutist).  Managers: Carla will offer you tips to get your agents back on track, too. Bonus: Support materials to put these ideas right to work after this invaluable session. Get ready to be informed, entertained, and inspired!     More About The Event           More About The Presenter

 

April 22

Prospecting Using Social Media

Kelle Sparta, Speaker and Coach, Author of The Consultative Real Estate Agent

In this program we'll look at ways to improve your prospecting using social media. We'll explore the dos and don'ts of blogging, micro-blogging (Twitter and status updates), Facebook, and LinkedIn. This quick overview will give you tips to avoid breaching social media etiquette and tools to help you Tweet when you're on the street. Chock-full of tools, links, and more information than you can shake a stick at - you'd better be prepared to take notes for this one. We'll even be sharing links to additional free resources to get you even further along the road.  More About The Event               About The Presenter

 

Don’t Miss Out! 

This is going to be the talk of the office.  We know that if you’re not successful, we’re not successful, so we want to help. (Sure, we’d love it if you joined our mailing lists and checked out our products and services, but this is all about you.)  Get the help you need TODAY to get your business on track and producing better than ever!

 

Sign Up To Participate Today!

 

I know this isn't about real estate, but it was too important not to share. Please take a moment to watch and learn the warning signs and reblog this post liberally so we can get the word out to as many people as possible.

I am in Florida with my boyfriend helping the family deal with the disposition of his grandfather's estate after his death this past weekend.  As part of this process, I needed to get a quick idea of who the likely buyer would be for the property his grandfather had owned so that we knew whether we had to clean the place out completely (first time buyer) or we could leave stuff in the house for the contractor to clean out. 

I started with my mailing list - surely I'd find someone with the ability to quickly tell me what I needed to know.  No such luck.  Out of the four people who had listed Tampa as their area, only two provided phone numbers.  The first call yielded someone picking up the phone, holding their hand over it and then hanging up on me.  When I called back, I got the answering machine.  The second person went straight to voice mail.  Then I did a Google search on the other two people and couldn't find them anywhere on the net.  Not good.  I searched my LinkedIn group and no one was from Tampa.  I was running out of time for ordering the dumpster, so I finally gave up on giving the business to someone who knew me and went with a straight Google search for Realtor, Tampa, FL.  It took four phone calls, from the top of the list to get a human on the phone.  Funny thing - within one transfer, I ended up with the #1 agent in the market I was in.  Does anyone wonder why that is?  I don't. 

Not one of the agents I called will know that they missed out on the business.  I didn't leave a message.  But all of them did lose out on a listing that will be priced right and sell quickly with the minimum amount of fuss and muss.

Here's my question for you today.  What experience does a prospect have when they call you?  Are they greeted by a live human?  Or are they relegated to an answering message that gives no idea of the time frame for a call-back?  Or, worse yet, do people in your office pick up the phone by accident and then hang up on them?

If someone is trying to find you on the web and they type in your name and city, will they find you? 

It only takes a few minutes to put on the shoes of a prospect and see if they are getting the loving care they deserve when they try to get in touch with you.  You really should try it out today.  You never know what business you're missing out on - just like the agents I called today.

 

Free Training During Real Estate Week on BlitzTime!

 

Why for Free?  What’s the Catch?

I was talking with some of my training and coaching friends and we realized that there are a lot of agents out there who really desperately need training, but who can’t currently afford it.  Yes, we make our livings by selling this amazingly useful knowledge, but we wanted to give something back to the community that supports us, so from April 20-24, 2009 we’ve decided to offer up a whole week of training and coaching for free.  That’s it – no catch.

 

Why BlitzTime?

We’re going to use the BlitzTime platform (a speed networking site on the web – think speed dating for business) because it allows us to get a chance to speak one-on-one with some of you and to have you guys talk to each other (and hopefully form some referral and support relationships). 

 

What You Need To Do To Attend

 

1. Sign up with a free profile on BlitzTime (follow the link to the left).  Make sure you fill in your profile as completely as possible so that the people who are talking to you know who you are and upload a picture so they can see you. Also, make sure you link to your website pages so people can find you later – and a little extra SEO couldn’t hurt, right?
2. Sign up for the Real Estate Week Free Training group because I’m getting more of my trainer and coach friends involved every day, so we’ll be posting new events and being a member of the group is the best way to get notice that an event has been added!
3. Register for the Real Estate Week events that you want to attend.  Hint:  all of the events can be found from the Real Estate Training and Coaching for Agents group page above. 

 

Here’s a Sampling of the Events Going On

 

April 21

Selling Real Estate is Not a Numbers Game... or at least it doesn't have to be

Jennifer Allan, Author of Selling With Soul

Most real estate agent training programs insist that Selling Real Estate is a Numbers Game.  We’ve all heard the mass-marketer’s philosophy – you have to contact X number of people to get a lead and you have to have Y number of leads to get a client and you have to have Z number of clients to get a paycheck…blah, blah, blah.  I don't much like the idea of being treated like a number and I'll bet most of our clients and prospects don't either. Yes, you can succeed selling real estate using a quality over quantity prospecting approach... and I'll show you how!  More About the Event                     About the Presenter

April 21

Agents That Breathe Success

Kim Ades, MBA, Creator of Frame of Mind Coaching

When Kim coaches people, something magical happens. Over and over again people are shocked at how much they learn as a result of a short conversation with Kim. Just by asking the right questions she gets to the root of people’s thinking patterns and helps them to move in the direction of reaching their goals. But that’s not all. When Kim coaches people, she provides the most profound coaching experience that allows people to truly explore the root of what is holding them back from great success. Please join Kim for her coaching session on Tuesday April 21^st from 12:00 to 1:15 PM Eastern. This is an opportunity for you to get your frame of mind back in the game and on the road to success.           More About The Event           More About The Presenter

 

April 21

Seasoned but Stuck: Three Best Methods to 'Get your Groove Back' and Hit High Performance Again

Carla Cross, Real Estate Speaker/Coach; Author of Up and Running in 30 Days

In this fast-paced presentation, you'll hear the three methods that will work to motivate and inspire you to get into those trenches and succeed at a higher level. You'll hear the 3 most common mistakes seasoned agents are making--and how to 'cure' them. You'll get solid, concrete, specific performance tips from Carla--whose background (besides real estate) is as a peak performer (she's a pianist and flutist).  Managers: Carla will offer you tips to get your agents back on track, too. Bonus: Support materials to put these ideas right to work after this invaluable session. Get ready to be informed, entertained, and inspired!     More About The Event           More About The Presenter

 

April 22

Prospecting Using Social Media

Kelle Sparta, Speaker and Coach, Author of The Consultative Real Estate Agent

In this program we'll look at ways to improve your prospecting using social media. We'll explore the dos and don'ts of blogging, micro-blogging (Twitter and status updates), Facebook, and LinkedIn. This quick overview will give you tips to avoid breaching social media etiquette and tools to help you Tweet when you're on the street. Chock-full of tools, links, and more information than you can shake a stick at - you'd better be prepared to take notes for this one. We'll even be sharing links to additional free resources to get you even further along the road.  More About The Event               About The Presenter

 

Don’t Miss Out! 

This is going to be the talk of the office.  We know that if you’re not successful, we’re not successful, so we want to help. (Sure, we’d love it if you joined our mailing lists and checked out our products and services, but this is all about you.)  Get the help you need TODAY to get your business on track and producing better than ever!

 

Sign Up To Participate Today!

 

Convert Facebook Leads Faster
There's a new tool out for Facebook called ChatToText and it's changing the way we communicate.  OK - it's not changing it, but it's integrating it very nicely.  You see, what it does is take your IMs from Facebook and turns them into text messages on your cell phone and vice versa.  So if a prospect finds you on Facebook, they can IM you and you'll get the message no matter where you are and you'll be able to respond immediately - drastically increasing your chances of converting that lead. 

Cheap To Use
Not only do you get the ability to respond quickly to your Facebook inquiries which, if you're using Facebook effectively should easily net you one more transaction per year.  (If you're not using Facebook effectively, check out this free whitepaper from C.C. Chapman at The Advance Guard to find out how to effectively get on the Facebook bandwagon.)  ChatToText is cheap too.  It's only $6/mo.  So that's $36/year to get an extra $4-$25K in your pocket - talk about a great return on investment!

Get Paid To Share
What's even better still is that if you share this idea with your friends, you can get paid commissions for sharing it.  You'll get $2 per month for each person you sponsor directly and $0.25 for each one they do.

Check It Out 

 

Get Rid of Your Credit Card Debt and Help a Friend

And while I'm on the subject of budgeting, I'd like you to think about this.  You're paying 13%-29.99% interest on your credit cards.  Investors without faith in the stock market are sitting on their cash, making 1-3% in their money market accounts.  Who do you know who could loan you the balance of your credit cards at a 6% or 7% interest rate (double what they are making now and less than half of what you are paying), take the same monthly payment you've been making, and allow you to pay off your cards faster?  Here's an example.

18,000 credit card debt

14.99% interest rate

Current Minimum payment $400

Refinanced with a friend at 6% for 48 months, your minimum payment would be $422.73.  And you'd be done paying it off in 4 years.  Know how long it will take you to pay it off on the card?  Breathe deep - this is going to hurt:  30 years and 4 months.  Now, miss two payments at any time during that 67 months and your interest rate skyrockets to 29.99% - meaning that your minimum payment will also skyrocket because that $400/mo. you were paying is no longer enough to EVER pay off that credit card debt. (Source CNN Money Debt Reduction Planner)

 

Win-Win-Lose is Good for Everyone!

So borrow the money from your friend to pay off the credit card debt.  Pay them double the interest they are currently earning (and half of what you are paying).  Get your debt paid off in only 4 years with the same payments that would take you 30+ years to pay off with the credit card company.  You win, your friend wins (assuming you're good for the cash - don't take the loan if you aren't) and the credit companies lose.  Which they well should for being such greedy SOBs in the first place.

 

 

So I've been doing some online research to determine who I want to interview for some upcoming programs that I'm creating and I was checking out Dave Ramsey's website.  Turns out that he has some budgeting tools online and when I looked, miracle of miracles, there was information on there about budgeting for people with irregular incomes (that would be us).  I thought you guys might be interested in it, so I'm putting the link out there.

Here's the main page on budgeting:

http://www.daveramsey.com/fpu/home/index.cfm?fuseaction=dspJustContent&intContentId=3006

And here's the information about the budgeting

• Quickie Budget
• Monthly Cash Flow Planning
• Irregular Income Budget

 

Yep, that's right, Sparta Success Systems is five years old this month.  Founded on April Fool's day in 2004 (which I didn't realize when I set that as my start date - the joke was clearly on me), we've rounded the bend to the big five mark.  It's been a long road and I've refocused the business several times over the years.

Much like you, I've had the experience of testing ideas that worked, and testing others that didn't.  But through it all, I've stuck to my guns on the values that the company has been based on:  high quality, good value for the money, high integrity interactions with clients, and being in relationship with my peeps (that's you, in case you were wondering). 

I've partnered with companies to good and neutral effect.  I've run a training center and I've run an online business.  I've talked to people live and I've run a podcast.  It's been a really interesting journey.  I went from knowing next to nothing about the internet, to being pretty proficient at it.  What a difference five years makes.

As a celebration of this landmark event, I'm offering up a special deal for the month.  (You see, I'd love to make this my best month ever for sales, so I'm going to make it easier on you.)  If you buy any item (yes, anything - including the online training programs for only $10) this month from us, I'll give you a free copy of my Negotiate Like the Pros audio training program.  It's my way of helping you make your goals, while I make mine.  Check out the many options to grow your business now.

Thanks for celebrating with me!  Whee!

 

 

On my LinkedIN group for real estate coaches and trainers today, Brendan Cunningham posted a question about the sins of omission that agents make when servicing their clients.  I wrote a response that I thought I would share with you today.  Here it is...

There are several omissions that most agents make when servicing their clients.

Missing the Big Picture.
Many agents overlook that the real estate transaction is just one small part of what is usually a larger shift in the person's life. People don't buy and sell houses for no reason, there's usually a marriage, divorce, birth, death, job change, etc. associated. And not taking those items into account means that you're only looking at half the picture. Agents need to go deeper with their clients to address these underlying issues as well as the transaction itself.

Avoiding confrontation.
Because most agents are people-pleasers, we never want to know when someone is upset with us. So agents will duck calls and avoid conversations with the person who is upset - which only makes that person more upset. If agents would face the confrontation head-on in the moment it becomes a problem, they would come out the other side much happier and less stressed.

Lack of Communication.
In today's world of instant gratification via emails, text messages, and IMs, it is more important than ever to have good communication with your clients. Existing clients often fall off the radar as we go out shopping for new ones. It takes on a couple hours a week to keep those we already have on the hook in the loop and feeling cared for.

 

 

I was doing some research today for an article I'm writing about buying real estate in your IRA (more on that later) and I came across this great map.  I thought you might be able to use it as a reference in your blog posts this week.  (Hint, click on the map - it will take you to the federal reserve website where I found it.)  It has information about the mortgage delinquency rates and the credit delinquency rates by county across the nation.  If you really want to be fun with it, do what I did and use SnagIt to grab the picture and add it to your blog.