Using the Web and social media to sell real estate

We have been living for a long a time in an Attendance Base Compensation society. It was enough to show up and get rewarded. While this was clearly the method of working for any white collar at a big or small company or any blue collar at a factory, it permeated thought our western culture and has become also the basic approach to life and business of more freely organized professions, like that of some salesmen and Realtors.

Realtor need change approach to selling

It was enough to show up at the brokerage office, or to show up at a house showing with a potential buyer or to show up at social events to network with other professionals and gain referrals by just exchanging business cards. Now that the ABC approach is falling apart everywhere (please read the book Linchpin: Are You Indispensable?
by Seth Godin on how and why it is falling apart – I don’t like the second half of it, with all the “Lizard Brain” discussion that doesn’t seem factual, but the first half is worth reading). We are now facing an increased majority of Realtors that just don’t know what to do to bring their income levels to a reasonable level.

We complain about the market, the financial credit crunch, the economy, the slow buyers and the unreasonable sellers. It is very true that many things have changed and doing business in real estate is much tougher than before, but just for this reason one cannot expect to continue being paid for just showing up.

People are looking for somebody and something remarkable. In real estate they are looking for someone who can truly answer ALL their questions. It is funny for example how many times I have personally ended providing sources for tax information and immigration information to my international buyers. These were central concerns that came before any discussion about the size of the house, its location ans so forth.

Their main concern is naturally to protect their investment, to be able to live or use their house in a foreign country, and to save on taxes as much as they can. And indeed many of them made the most profit in currency exchange or in tax savings other than just getting a good bargain price. And it is not just applicable to international sales. In any kind of transaction there is information and service that a salesman or Realtor can procure in oder to give the perfect or best experience to its customer that no one else would be able to replicate.

So let’s forget the ABC we have been taught for so long time and let’s start working on a new approach to our business. Let’s become artists in our field, people that are simply indispensable because what we offer cannot be found easily elsewhere. Let’s become the linchpin of our business model.

Roberto Mazzoni