How To Stand Out As A Real Estate Agent To Sell More Homes In Less Time

You’re new to real estate, and you’re wondering how to stand out as a real estate agent — when there are so many great agents out there. In real estate, much more than in other professions, your brand is everything.

But there are a lot of agents out there — especially if you’re in a competitive market. How do you make sure you stand out?

I believe there are a few critical factors that make agents stand out from the pack:

• Professionalism. You’re accessible. You get the job done.
• Knowledge. You know the market. You have connections.
• Personality. You mesh well with your buyers. You’re memorable.

Some of these traits are easier to develop than others. But they’re all achievable.

Let’s dig deeper into how to stand out as a real estate agent and find more clients.

Develop a personal brand and stick to it

How would you describe yourself to a potential client? Are you an expert in luxury condos and design? Are you a high-powered corporate dealmaker?

Or are you just someone who loves getting families into their first homes?

The biggest mistake you can make is developing an inauthentic brand. Or just not developing a brand at all. Who you are as a person informs your branding. People can tell when you’re being authentic.

Your brand is a lot of things: The way you look, the way you talk, and the things that mean something to you. Importantly, it tells you what clients you’re going to get. When you first start, you’re not competing with the biggest brands in the world. You don’t want “any client.” You want clients that make sense for you.

Sound overwhelming? There’s a reason why so many of the most successful real estate professionals hire a branding consultant.

Stay up-to-date with the latest industry trends

I overheard a conversation the other day between a young professional and his real estate agent. He said, “I want to buy, but the interest rates are so high. Do you think they’ll go down?”

The agent said, “4% is still historically low. You’ll be fine.”

The rates have been above 6% for weeks now.

There are a lot of part-time agents out there — and there’s nothing wrong with that. As long as you can back up the services you’re providing with current knowledge. To be a successful real estate agent, you should make a good-faith effort to be current in the real estate industry and to give your clients insights into the real estate business.

You don’t need to become an economics professor. And you definitely shouldn’t give financial advice — leave that to the financial professionals. But clients will forget the 99 times you were right and remember the one time that you were egregiously wrong.

Real estate is changing quickly. Just a few years ago, a real estate career wouldn’t require so much research. But the more research you do today, the better you’ll be able to serve a potential buyer or seller.

Build meaningful relationships with your clients

The other day, a colleague told me: “Every time I go to the stylist, she asks about my cats. I always wondered, how does she remember I have cats? Finally, I asked her. She said, I cheat! I keep a little book of facts.”

Building a relationship with your client means remembering things about them — like how many children they have, whether they have pets, and what they do for a living. Not only does it help you foster relationships, but it helps you figure out what they’re looking for.

For some people, this comes naturally. For others — well, you might need to cheat. The bottom line? Remember things about people. Take a genuine interest. Real estate is a people business, through and through.

The most powerful real estate marketing will always be word-of-mouth advertising. Conveniently, it’s also the cheapest. When you remember what people need and work to get them what they want, they don’t just remember — they tell other people.

Use new technology to your advantage

You need a website. You need social media. The first thing someone does when they want to buy a home today is search for “real estate agents in my city” or (more perilously) “homes for sale in my city.”

Many agents have signed up for Zillow, Redfin, etc, for referrals. The world is changing. It’s becoming more streamlined. If you don’t use technology to your advantage, you will be left behind.

The reality is that you now need to compete with the internet and all its bells and whistles. People can go online, and they can purchase a home through Facebook Marketplace. They shouldn’t, but they can.

As the economy constricts, people will look for faster, easier… and cheaper ways to do things. By using technology, you position yourself to be able to do things more efficiently — whether those things are finding buyers or finding houses.

If you’re not currently great at email newsletters, social media, or creating a real estate website, there are affordable services that can help.

Be a problem solver, not just a salesperson

What does this mean? Everyone has a blocker in their life. To really stand out, you need to figure out what it is.

Watch a cheesy HGTV show. She’s a seamstress and needs a place for a 20-foot loom. He’s a high-powered attorney and needs to be in the city. If you sell them a house, you need to solve this problem.

People come into real estate with misconceptions. They will tell you they want a condo, and then two weeks in, you’ll find out they never wanted a condo — they just don’t want to deal with a big yard. Dig deeper into what people want and need rather than just trying to sell something.

It helps them — and it helps you, too. Maybe that high-powered attorney doesn’t even need to be in the city, he just doesn’t want a lengthy commute and needs high-speed internet. Instead of trying to find them a $3 million condo with enough space for a 20-foot loom, you could just be finding them a nearby suburb with great fiber connectivity.

Conclusion: How to stand out as a real estate agent

So, that’s how to stand out as a real estate agent. But, really, you’re here because you want to sell more homes.

Real estate is a business of quantity vs. quality. The “Pareto principle,” or the 80/20 rule, states that 80% of your business will come from 20% of your clients. Many real estate agents discover that there are “big fish” clients who will keep coming back and who will keep referring friends and family.

So, sometimes it’s not about “more.” It’s about finding the clients that want to do business with you — the clients that will build your career not just now but into the future.

And that involves developing your brand. It involves building out your online presence. And it involves being a little creative. Above all, it requires tenacity and consistency.

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