An Interview with National Speaker Roberta Ross
By Julie Escobar
As we head into the spring season, many agents are asking us how they can “cultivate” the right habits, systems and strategies for success in this and ANY market. To help answer some of those questions I dialed up one of my favorite speakers, coaches, motivators, and ProspectsPLUS! fan, Roberta Ross who just happens to be publishing a book on the topic: The Five Biggest Mistakes Real Estate Agents Make and How to Avoid Them. Let’s take a look:
Q: Roberta, I’m thrilled for you that your new book is coming out and excited that you can share with our readers some helpful how-to solutions for steering clear of some of the biggest missteps both new and even experienced agents can make. First though, can you tell us why you chose this topic for your new book?
A: Absolutely Julie! After working with and speaking to thousands of agents over the years about marketing and lead generation, I really began to see such clear patterns emerging of the common “traps” agents often find themselves falling into.
That inspired me to create a resource that could help to spotlight those pitfalls and hopefully help some agents avoid the “pain” they can cause year after year. You know, so often you see agents get into this business and feel overwhelmed with so many aspects of becoming a good business person vying for their attention. It’s too simple to walk blindly into that “just do what everyone around you is doing” path. They get caught up in learning the legalities, contracts, marketing, and foundation building they need to ensure they don’t launch themselves into a career long rut of living commission to commission. That’s not a fun way to build a career and it certainly isn’t a great way to ensure longevity.
Q: I agree, many agents fall into that “blind leading the blind” approach of “follow Bob around for a month and do what he does” school of hard knocks. While it’s good to model yourself after talented agents, you have to be sure you’re choosing the RIGHT model! Let’s dive into some of the biggest mistakes you’ve seen agents make and how to avoid them. What tops the list?
A: I would have to say one of the biggest and most common mistakes I’ve seen is most agents have no identity. Meaning they try to appeal to everyone, which is a proven recipe for appealing to no one. You’ve seen them. Those agents that literally take on anything that flies past, from clients and customers to training or tools, without first inspecting it, and weighing out whether it’s in their best business interest.
These agents haven’t found their niche and fail to target the people that they are trying to attract business from because they haven’t clearly identified who they are. I’ll give you an example. Take that agent who chooses a farm area an hour and a half away, or takes ANY listing from that piece of vacant land, plus a single trailer, then they add a listing an hour away, but wait – they would really love to list that $500,000 property as well. See how scattered that is? Their common marketing message is simply, “I’m a REALTOR and I help buyers and sellers.” Ok – which buyers? Which sellers? Who do you serve? From a consumer’s standpoint – that agent becomes part of the blur. There’s nothing in that agent’s marketing that makes them throw their hand up and say, “That’s the agent for me!”
Instead, look at the agent who has effectively identified their niche market. Maybe it’s first time home buyers and everything from their marketing pieces to their farm area to the way they answer the phone is designed to attract that first time home buyer. So, they know, when they send their targeted message to area renters and it says something along the lines of “Still renting? Own a home for less—here’s how…” those potential buyers say, “Hey, that’s me! How do I learn more?”
Q: So, finding a niche and clearly identifying yourself as the ‘turn to’ agent for that niche is step one right? Can you give us a couple more examples of that?
A: Sure. Target niches can be traditional of course – such as FSBOs, Expireds, Luxury market properties or Condos. In fact, I’ve met agents who’ve done extraordinarily well in each of those categories. There is an agent in Manhattan whose focus was privately owned townhomes in Manhattan and who turned that “little niche”(just the top 1% of his market) into big business and put him among the top agents in his area. Another agent I know has worked nothing but FSBOs for the last fifteen years. She’s so proficient at it she can literally name EVERY FSBO objection possible and has an effective response to each of them. She can’t lose at the listing table because she knows that niche better than anyone else and she knows without a doubt how to sell to the mindset of a FSBO and provide the best service to get the job done.
Q: That’s a great point Roberta; let’s talk for a minute about the importance of selling to the mindset of a specific niche. Can you share some of your thoughts about that?
A: It’s so important to speak the same “language” as the niche you are targeting. When you really understand what that person is looking for, what they need and what’s in their best interest and you can wrap your marketing and your conversations around that, you create a connection that is unbeatable. For example, that agent that works with FSBOs – she knows that her customer base is eager to save money and get the most for their property without a lot of hassle. She can share the National Association of REALTORS’ statistic that says “homes sold using an agent sell for 16% more even with a commission than homes sold by owner.” She can also share her personal experiences and success rates for helping homeowners get their homes sold for more in less time with no headaches.
Then there are those agents who think outside the box. Take those agents who market to people going through divorce. That’s a unique niche with special sensitivities and needs involved. By focusing on one type of client, they can really reassure their prospects they’ve got the experience necessary to understand the dynamics that occur when dealing with divorce and having to buy or sell property. Because that agent is well versed in the situation, they can better protect the best interests of the client through the process. These savvy agents also tend to reach out to area divorce attorneys with marketing materials designed to let those attorneys know that their clients would be in good hands.
So you can see by creating targeted marketing messages that answer the questions in the minds of your target niche – you set yourself apart from the faceless masses that say, “I’m an agent and work with buyers and sellers,” and create opportunities for new clients to say, “That’s me! I want to work with you!”
Q: Matching your message to your market really is the key, Roberta and clearly something we’re passionate about at ProspectsPLUS! Let’s talk a little about another common mistake agents make you talk about in your workshop and in your book — and that’s ineffective branding. Can you tell us a little about what you mean by that? (more…)
