Five Mistakes Real Estate Professionals Make

Working in the real estate industry isn't easy! Every sale is a complex situation of laws and financials and unique client preferences. And sadly, there is a lot of "churn" in the industry as worn-out professionals leave the industry while new ones replace them. Successful professionals have staying power, but those who are less-than-successful learn expensive lessons before moving on to something else.

If you are a new to the real estate industry and want to start strong, or you are a seasoned professional and want to become even more successful, here are 5 mistakes that you'll want to avoid:

MISTAKE #1: SKIPPING THE REFERRAL

You spend a lot of money, time, and effort to win prospects and convert them into happy customers. You advertise until someone calls you. You help them find a house. You seal the deal to turn that house into a home. Then you move on, searching for the next customer.

Unfortunately, this is costly. Referrals are a fantastic way to reduce your marketing expenses while increasing your revenue. That's because your happy customers have friends and family who might also be looking for a home. And your customer's positive statement about you may be enough to spur their friends and family to call you.

To make it happen, you need to get them thinking about who else they know and then give them an incentive. Either give them a small incentive for each name they give you or give them a large incentive for each referral who buys. While your customers are still beaming about their new home, invite them to give you the names of two or three of their friends who might be interested in a home.

MISTAKE #2: DOING THE SAME OLD THING

You likely have well established processes that you use for every step of your business from filling your pipeline with prospective clients to finding the right house for the right family. These have served you well in the past and you expect them to continue to serve you well into the future.

Unfortunately, that is not always the case. Best practices are good for a while but then get old. Good habits are success-drivers for a while then become tired habits. If you're doing the same thing today that you have been doing for 6 months, a year, or more, maybe it's time for a change.

Feel free to make mistakes (just be careful that they aren't all expensive mistakes) and strive for innovation in your routines. A simple change here or there can yield tremendous results that may surprise even the most skeptical real estate professional.

MISTAKE #3: IGNORING THE INTERNET

The internet has been around for a while. It's not so new anymore. Many businesses have robust websites and draw in many, many clients. It's an inexpensive but in-demand marketing tool.

Unfortunately, the web is not effectively used by real estate professionals. For some reason, real estate professionals are largely "offline" or have an inadequate web presence. This may have to do with how busy they are, or it may be related to the mistaken notion that the internet is an international medium while professionals need to focus on the local market.

Real estate professionals need a better web presence. Something as simple as a carefully planned blog, or a few regular articles, can be enough to fix your stake in the world of the web in order to grow your business. Well-planned websites do not have to be expensive, nor do they have to be a lot of work. The secret is in finding the right professional or professionals who can help turn your marketing vision into a business-building reality.

MISTAKE #4: FORGETTING THE ECONOMIC WAVE

If you want to know what the economy is like, just go to the beach. Watch the tide come in and then go out. Watch the boats rise and fall. The economy is sometimes strong and sometimes weak and real estate professionals who remember that and are prepared for it will do just fine.

Unfortunately, many professionals "make hay when the sun shines" by selling a lot of homes when the economy is good but then they suffer when things slump. It's a planning issue, and a marketing issue.

If you're selling - no matter what economy you're selling in - you need to be aware that the economy could become better or it could become worse. Set aside a small nest-egg for yourself (just remember that the average recession lasts 11 months). And, keep two kinds of marketing at your fingertips: marketing for when times are good and marketing for when times are tough. You know there is a difference in why people buy and sell during these times, now it's time to implement it into your marketing!

MISTAKE #5: TRYING TO BE ALL THINGS TO ALL PEOPLE

This is a mistake that many businesses make, particularly fledgling businesses. They start out hoping that "everyone" will be their customer. But that is never the case. Obviously, there is no single product that all 6 billion (or more) people in the world want to own. Limits of geography, language, finances, and accessibility necessitate that only a select few could ever own a given product.

Unfortunately, real estate professionals try to cast their net too wide. Instead of focusing on one core segment of the populace, or on one area of a city or state, they spread themselves thin and focus on as much as possible. It's expensive and ineffective.

Instead, choose one or two areas where you excel and drive that message home again and again and again. Focus on a certain group of people or on a certain area of a city or on a type of real estate. Become known for that thing. In an ironic twist, it's often these specialists who limit themselves to a tiny target market that become exceedingly successful compared with those who try for a wider audience.