Take action! Intel Real Estate Inman Connect
Wow. It has been a year since our very first virtual event, and the recent Inman Connect event in June had a sense of optimism mixed with a sense of greater industry responsibility. Such an important change!
As Ferris Bueller would say: “Real estate is changing rapidly. If you don’t take a minute to look around, you might miss it.
Connect was that moment to look around. I’m still catching up on reruns, but I came out of this event feeling a opportunity to understand that we are in a period of rapid growth.
In short, the riches are in the niches. Let’s break down my three day experience.
The “New Normal” in Leadership, Marketing and Profitability
In leadership:
Brad Inman said it best on day 1: We cannot let housing become a luxury good.
If you are a real estate professional, you are participating in an in-depth conversation about housing affordability and best practices in standards, ethics, diversity, equality and accountability.
As organizations such as NAR, RESO, MLS and vendors seek to change the status quo to create a better, more transparent, and connected industry for consumers – with agents and brokers believing that change must learn to let go of the old. and embrace progress and opportunity.
It’s all around us. New business models, real estate partnerships with iBuyer companies and ancillary janitorial services add new opportunities to create and develop brokerage houses and teams, add new training programs and expand consumer knowledge.
Empowering diversity among brokerage houses creates space for conversation, celebration and alliance that expands far beyond the brand walls into a diverse world that welcomes buyers and sellers and works hard to eliminate discriminatory practices.
Every agent, broker and salesperson is a representative of this leadership. It’s time to work together and own it. Cooperation is back.
In marketing:
From Clubhouse lead generation, to Instagram branding, better marketing messaging, and brokerage farming – out-of-the-box strategies that work came out of every session!
Some takeaways:
- Mailings are still working: Even more now.
- Email is a 360-degree strategy: Social media is a hello; email is a embrace!
- Brokers need to automate for their agents: Be a one stop shop for agent marketing.
- Become an integrated services brokerage: Expand your ancillary services and help agents increase their price to increase profitability and improve brand marketing messages for recruiting and retention.
- Before deploying a tool: Is it expensive? Does it increase profits or income? Does this solve a problem?
- What’s in it? Conversion, do not hype.
In profitability:
It has been a year of big sales, rapidly changing inventories and a hazy work-life balance.
Wendy Papasan session on profitability and knowing your numbers was like taking a crash course in real estate finance, but it was impactful!
You might be feeling yourself seen, but take out was achievable, and let’s be honest, we don’t talk enough about personal financial well-being in real estate.
- Get your income statement setup. Watch it weekly to get started. Then every month. Have one for yourself and one for your business.
- Track your net worth, not just your income.
- Run on half of what you earn. Many agents go bankrupt simply because they don’t set aside self-employment taxes properly or take hidden expenses into account.
- Managing expenses is more important than generating income.
- When you make a purchase, make sure you get at least twice the return on your investment.
- Reduce lead generation expenses that are do not convert.
- Increase your selling price, sell yourself for a higher price, change your brand, or cultivate a new neighborhood with a higher price. These activities dramatically increase your bottom line.
What a week! Conversations are again event. Inman Connect is the perfect place to take a minute and take a look around.
Until next time, who’s at Log in now, July 20! Hope to see you there! To pursue @InmanConnect on Instagram for the latest updates, behind the scenes photos and trivia!