What is Real Estate by Relationship?
My entire career I’ve had a focus on relational sales.
Some say it’s working by referral, but I think it’s much more. Many agents say they work by referral, or relationships, yet when I ask them how they do that they can’t tell me. That’s because they have a “word of mouth” business. Word of mouth isn’t a bad thing…..it means you are good at what you do, and your client had enough confidence in you to tell others. The only problem with that is it is not reliable. That’s where relational sales are different. Real Estate by Relationship™ is a systematic approach to ensuring that you can rely on a steady stream of repeat and referral business just as I have for the last 18 years.
The real key to Real Estate by Relationship™ is Real Trust and Real Relationships that lead to clients connecting you to their family and friends who need to conduct real estate now or in the future. We all know that people want to do business with people that they know, like and trust. The key being TRUST! What are you doing systematically to create an environment where your friends, family, neighbors, past clients, acquaintances can begin to trust you?
Turn your contacts into advocates.
Think of it as how you recommend restaurants to a family or friend. Where do you suggest your friends and family try? It’s usually a place you know and trust will give them a great experience. You may know the chefs, the waiters, the management, and you trust them to provide your friend with a quality meal and quality service. You share your confidence that they will have a great experience and they trust your opinion as much as you trust the restaurant. That’s the exact same way your real estate business can work.
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To really understand this concept let's talk about the differences between a relational agent and a transactional one.
There are plenty of differences between working transactionally and working relationally. A transactional agent is focused on their commission check -- they may be there for the beginning of a transaction and then push their clients off to a transaction coordinator or an assistant to finish the transaction. Transactional agents are typically focused on the number of transactions they are doing each month or year, and not enough attention paid to how they are actually taking care of their client. Working transactionally isn’t about establishing relationships, it’s about how many transactions you can complete in a year.
Being a relational agent means you care more about the relationship than the transaction. You go above and beyond for your client and exceed their expectations. You build connections with them and learn about them, their families, their pets, their hobbies and interests. You take care of them at such a deep level so that they will refer their friends to you and duplicate themselves. Good people know good people. Relational agent’s care less about the commission and more about replicating relationships with their friends and family. Your goal in relational business is to create advocates so they become walking, talking billboards for your business.
No matter what kind of market we are in, relationships will stand the test of time. At the end of the day, you build relationships because of what it means to you -- the secondary result is business.