13 Essential Real Estate Success Strategies

To be a successful real estate agent or broker, set measurable and achievable goals. Select the best sponsoring brokerage, develop marketing and lead generation strategies, handle your funds, and cultivate partnerships. Utilize technology solutions such as marketing, document management, and customer relationship management (CRM) software to help you locate potential leads and handle clients efficiently. Continue reading for more practical advice on how to succeed in real estate.

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1. Define What Success Means for You & Create a Business Plan

Success means different things to different real estate agents and brokers. It may be reaching monetary goals, completing a certain number of deals each year, creating connections with a variety of clients, or participating in community events. It also could be a combination of several of these goals.

Regardless of your end goal, define what a successful real estate career means to you by setting measurable and achievable goals to gauge your success over time.

When you begin your real estate career, and as you continue building upon your business from year to year, you must create a real estate business plan to outline where your business will improve and grow as well as how you will measure your success. Your real estate business plan should include the following elements:

• Write your mission statement
• Conduct a strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT) analysis
• Set specific and measurable goals
• Plan your marketing and lead generation strategy
• Calculate your income goal
• Set times to revisit your business plan

By outlining these elements and determining the most important goals, you will be able to define what a successful real estate career looks like and carry out an established plan to achieve it.

2. Choose a Brokerage That Fits Your Needs & Leverage Its Reputation

The brokerage you choose is a big determining factor in how successful you will be. This is especially true if you’re a new real estate agent with no experience, but it also is important for experienced agents. Your brokerage is responsible for your initial reputation in the real estate industry. When you align yourself with a brokerage firm, you adopt their reputation as part of your own. When prospective clients research you, you will be associated with your sponsoring brokerage.

If your brokerage has a great reputation, it will reflect highly on you. However, if your brokerage has negative reviews, poor online presence, and a generally bad reputation, these will also reflect on you. In addition, your brokerage should provide you with tools to aid your success like lead generation systems, client relationship management (CRM) platforms, training, marketing materials, mentorship, and income. Although they may not offer all of these or may charge a fee for some items, you should ask about these elements when interviewing potential firms to join as they are helpful in being successful in real estate.

3. Evaluate & Keep Track of Your Finances

Many real estate agents don’t close a transaction for several months after getting their license, so it’s essential to evaluate your financial situation before entering the profession. It’s best to have a cushion of funds to fall back on as you begin, so you can still live comfortably while pursuing your new career. Also, consider the initial costs to become an agent, like prelicensing education, licensing fees, and board dues, to determine whether you’re financially ready to enter the real estate industry.

As a licensed agent, you are an independent contractor fully responsible for recording income and deducting taxes and insurances. And as you learn how to become successful in real estate and your business grows, expenses will increase as well. Agents and brokers need to take account of business expenses that will impact profits like:

• Marketing materials
• Brokerage desk fees
• Multiple listing services fees
• Client meals
• Lead generation
• Marketing and advertising
• Client relationship management platform
• Vehicle and mileage expenses

All agents should carefully track their expenses in a spreadsheet or use accounting software like QuickBooks. For $12 a month, QuickBooks Self-Employed can help agents manage their expenses, track mileage, calculate tax deductions, and generate reports. It also has an easy-to-use mobile app to keep expenses categorized with the touch of a finger. You can even create custom reports that organize your spending to allocate money where it needs to go in your business.

4. Find a Mentor

A real estate mentor is a valuable resource for both a brand-new and experienced agent who wants to continue growing. A mentor can teach you how to navigate the ever-changing real estate market, work through different types of real estate transactions, find unique ways to make money in real estate, employ marketing and lead generation strategies, and interact with clients. Learning how to become a successful real estate agent through their experiences will improve your business and is a priceless source of information.

Many real estate brokerages offer a mentorship program as part of their onboarding, which agents can take advantage of. However, if they do not offer this opportunity, you can find a mentor in other ways. Introduce yourself to senior members of the firm and ask if you can shadow them throughout the day on showings, phone calls, or administrative tasks.

Consider joining a real estate team, so you can lean on other team members while learning the ropes of the real estate industry. Team members often share leads, marketing, and listings, so it’s a great way to get a jump-start on working with clients and bringing in your first deal and paycheck.

5. Select a Farm Area & Become an Expert in That Market

You cannot be a success in real estate without knowing the specifics of the market you are serving. This includes general information about the U.S. as a whole as well as your state, county, and city or town. Read real estate publications, research and visit properties in the area, and do a deep dive into real estate statistics surrounding interest rates, price points, inventory, and days on market. Knowing these details ensures you have a firm grasp on the market and are able to speak to and inform clients.

Once you have an understanding of current market trends, decide on a real estate farm area where you can focus your business efforts. This will guarantee that you are targeting the right audience of buyers and sellers with marketing materials like farming postcards that are suited specifically to their needs. This will help you successfully generate leads for your real estate business and create a recognized brand in your area.

6. Target a Specific Niche & Establish Your Marketing Strategy

Along with choosing a farm area, real estate professionals often choose a specialized niche to target clientele even further as a strategy to become successful in real estate. This could be buyers or sellers, property types, foreclosures, rental properties, or properties based on certain interior or exterior amenities. While it may seem counterintuitive to narrow your focus, it is a way to differentiate yourself from the competition and work with clients who share your passions and interests.

It will also make marketing to this audience even easier because you will be able to showcase your expertise and experience in your specific field. All real estate professionals should create a real estate marketing plan that encompasses all the ideas and resources you’ll need to execute your materials and build your brand. A few examples of marketing materials you should prepare are:

• Direct mailers like postcards, flyers, and brochures
• Business cards
• Real estate signs
• Advertisements

Real estate professionals can also work with a marketing company to get their plans up and running. Market Leader is an all-in-one system with real estate-specific marketing and lead generation tools to help agents succeed in the industry. Its marketing tools include both digital and print options that can be automated to save agents time and effort. Market Leader also provides exclusive leads if agents are interested in paid lead generation opportunities.

7. Inject Your Personality into Your Business with Branding

While clients want to work with a knowledgeable and organized agent, they also want to work with a real estate agent with a personality and enthusiasm for their clients and job. A successful real estate agent displays all these qualities through personal branding—attracting leads and building a client base.

When creating your marketing materials, think about the materials that can convey your personality and message the most, like your agent bio and headshot. After all, these two items are typically the first impression you’ll make on your audience.

Your biography should be a short story about you, your accomplishments, professional experience, and what you can bring to the table as a real estate expert. When people read it, it should instill confidence in your skills while also being personable. Similarly, your headshot should welcome and encourage the viewer to reach out to you for your services.

8. Create an Engaging & Search Engine Optimized Online Presence

Creating an engaging and consistent online presence helps clients find you across platforms and establishes you as the go-to, successful real estate professional. Clients follow and interact with online realtors, look at their listings, and contact them through various social media outlets—remember this as you post photos, videos, and content.

Create your online presence through websites and landing pages, as well as social media marketing platforms like:

• Facebook
• Instagram
• LinkedIn
• TikTok
• YouTube

While your online presence should be dispersed throughout multiple platforms, it is not necessary to use every single website and social media channel in existence to be recognized. In addition to your website, choose two to three social media options, and commit to post and comment consistently.

Here are some additional tips on how to be a successful real estate agent through your online presence:

1. Use the Same Handle Across Platforms

2. Post Relevant & Interesting Content  

3. Gain & Interact with Followers

9. Utilize Lead Generation Tools to Boost Marketing Efforts

While leads can be generated organically through websites, social media, and word of mouth, many real estate professionals choose to purchase leads to supplement their business. This is an effective method of lead generation that is profitable and affordable, with prices ranging from about $10 to $60 per lead, depending on the provider you choose. Combining organic and paid lead generation tactics will ensure a constant flow of clients to your real estate business.

Many lead generation websites combine generation tactics along with marketing, brand building, CRM, and listing capabilities. Agents and brokerages should review each software to determine the best for their particular needs.

10. Organize & Nurture Your Client Base With a CRM

In addition to generating leads, real estate agents and brokers need a way to organize their leads, current clients, and past clients as a method of how to succeed in real estate. To do this in the most time-efficient manner, invest in a client relationship management (CRM) system.

CRM software not only organizes and prioritizes contacts in a database, but also has automation like task reminders, lead tracking, listing management, and marketing services. This allows agents to spend more time working with their clients—helping them be more successful overall. There are free and paid CRM options, so agents should evaluate their budget and business needs before deciding which platform works best for them.

11. Network with Like-minded Real Estate Professionals

Networking with other real estate professionals is essential to building a positive reputation in a highly competitive industry. Speak with other members of your real estate brokerage, attend networking events, and join associations to meet other like-minded real estate agents and brokers. A relationship with other agents can lead to real estate referrals, increasing the success of your real estate business.

It’s also beneficial to befriend other real estate-related professionals like home inspectors, appraisers, mortgage officers, contractors, and attorneys. Reach out to them for advice about transactions and recommend them to clients for their services, which they can do as well. Having a mutually beneficial relationship with other professionals will make your clients feel like they are getting the red-carpet treatment.

12. Always Continue Learning & Improving

In any profession, especially in the ever-changing landscape of real estate, it’s crucial that agents always continue learning. As a state requirement, all real estate agents and brokers must renew their licenses every one to two years by completing continuing education (CE) hours. These hours will cover any new laws and regulations in your state, as well as allow you to take elective real estate courses based on your interests.

In addition to the required education, real estate professionals should also seek further knowledge in their niche fields. For instance, if you work primarily with buyers, getting a certificate as an Accredited Buyer Representative will establish your credentials to potential clients. Or, if you specialize in buying and selling environmentally friendly homes, getting a designation as a “Green” Realtor will make you highly desirable.

Taking on opportunities to improve your knowledge and enhance your status and credibility in the real estate industry will benefit you and your clients.  

13. Use Apps & Business Tools to Manage Your Operations

When agents are busy working with clients, showing properties, and marketing their services, it’s easy to forget the back-office components essential in managing and running a successful real estate business. Luckily, software tools like phone apps and databases keep agents organized, so they can spend more time working with clients and less time organizing behind the scenes.

Bottom Line

Learning how to be successful in the real estate business is not just about closing deals, but also entails using technology to streamline efficiency, networking, and lead generation. Incorporate the 13 tips above on how to be successful in real estate to get started on the right track to building a lucrative career in the industry.

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