Real Estate

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Prioritizing Your Work During the Summer

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Mark Twain said, “If it’s your job to eat a frog, it’s best to do it first thing in the morning. And if it’s your job to eat two frogs, it’s best to eat the biggest one first”. While this advice is evergreen, it’s especially important during the summer months to ensure that you are accomplishing what you need to and still have time for fun activities. Here are some things to consider as we refresh on this strategy:

🐸In the long run, this approach will help you overcome the fear of difficult tasks or stop procrastinating on them. This leads to a boost in productivity and a reduction in stress levels as you will feel more in control of your day.

🐸More challenging items require more effort, and if you leave them until the end of the day it is highly unlikely that you will be more motivated to complete them at the end of the day than the beginning. Decision fatigue is real, and knocking out your important work first will take less of a toll on you mentally throughout the day.

🐸In real estate it’s wise to leave time in your day for the almost guaranteed reactive items that come your way. If you have already completed the must-do or most challenging item, you will be in a much better mindset to tackle the whirlwind than if you are still trying to complete a project.

🐸Summer schedules, especially for those of us with school-age children, can often be challenging even though they are jam-packed with fun things. Different drop-off and pick-up times and weekly shifting schedules with camps or childcare often leave either us or people on our team feeling frazzled as a baseline. Knocking out your most challenging or important items first allows you to have more ease in the rest of the day knowing that the heavy lifting is done.

🐸Take a look at your work management system and while you are listing out everything you need to do during the day, begin to prioritize the most challenging and must-be-done-today items first. Knock those out very first thing and create a habit of doing this every day so that it carries you throughout the entire year.

🐸 More effort doesn’t always yield more results. Figuring out how to accomplish the work you need to do within working hours is important not only for your business but your mental health. Many of us believe that adding hours to our work week will help us accomplish more, but that will take a toll mentally, emotionally, and physically ultimately leading to lower production and other unwanted side effects. Rather than more hours, most of us just need a re-set to our approach to work and how we manage our time.

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🦈 What Sharks Can Teach Us About Real Estate Sales

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It was Shark Week this week on The Discovery Channel and, while there is always more to learn about the behavior and anatomy of these fascinating creatures, they also give us some examples of traits that we can emulate to help us as sales professionals. Don’t worry, I’ll try to keep the puns to a minimum.

🦈 Keep Moving Forward. Sharks need to stay in constant forward motion to breathe. If you get hung up on an unsavory encounter with a prospect or any number of challenges that happen during a real estate transaction you may also (metaphorically) be finding it hard to breathe. Overcoming challenges is the name of the game in real estate, so actively practicing ways to not get overwhelmed when the inevitable happens, will ensure that you can keep moving forward to take care of your other clients or prospect for new ones.

Ideas on how to do this: Keep a sales journal to write down what went wrong and ideas of how to prevent it moving forward. By getting it out of your brain and onto paper, you won’t weigh yourself down by holding onto that negative encounter. Practice mindfulness and establish a strong life and work balance. If you’re not teetering on the edge all the time, you won’t be so reactive as a baseline when things don’t go your way.

🦈 Know Your Role. Sharks are apex predators and are very comfortable with their position on the food chain. As a successful sales professional, you are in the apex position of your market. Figure out where your time and energy are best spent for maximum results and then use tools, the power of your team, and outsourcing to accomplish the other items. By trying to do everything, you may dilute your best strengths. Knowing your role within your organization or community will help you dig deeper on what you do best and allow others to do what they do best.

🦈 Sharks AREN’T Mindless Killers. Shark Week illustrates that there is a lot more to sharks than their earlier reputation of being just mindless biting killing machines. Sharks are curious creatures, but they aren’t just biting everything in the sea. In your prospecting and relationships exercise your curiosity about the other person, their experience, and what they want to accomplish. Avoid being the mindless “killing” machine just trying your sales pitch on anyone who will listen and dig deeper to establish a relationship where you can be the one to help them with their real estate transactions for life.

🦈 Don’t Let Fear Stop You. Yes, there are sharks in the ocean and yes, there is a very VERY slim chance that you could meet one while you’re swimming. But you shouldn’t let that small chance stop you from enjoying a day at the beach. Don’t let fear stop you from trying that new tool or prospecting strategy! Being bold will help you keep your place as the apex salesperson in your market!

🦈 Stay Sharp. Sharks have between 5-15 rows of teeth, depending on the species. This means as one tooth becomes dull or falls out, there are many more ready to slide into its place allowing the shark to always have a mouth full of tools to get its job done. You can stay sharp in your profession by carving out time to learn about new tools and strategies that are being used successfully by others in the industry. Read books, listen to podcasts, mastermind with others outside your market, take classes, and attend conferences. Continuous learning will help you to stay sharp!

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The Email Landscape Has Changed, What’s Next?

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The June 1 mark has passed and you are likely seeing changes within your inbox with how emails are delivered and facing some challenges with your attempts to reach your audience. Never fear, Dear Reader! We have the tools and strategies to help you stay informed and confident in this new territory and keep your computer out of the dumpster. Use the links and strategies below to learn more about what is going on and how to combat those ever-evolving spam filters from blocking your valuable information from reaching its destination.

  • Re-authenticate your custom domain. Yes, even if you’ve already done this! Small shifts have happened since the February calls to authenticate your custom domain and it may have altered the authentication without your knowledge. Pop back in and make sure that this is done properly, and our friends at Follow Up Boss have updated the process to make it even easier for you to do!
  • Make sure you are considering all strategies available to you to fight spam blockers. This includes reviewing your content for keywords that may be flagged and regularly reviewing your numbers to make small tweaks that improve your credibility scores. You can consult our guide here!
  • Segment your database to ensure that you are only sending messages to the right audience. This means to separate your contacts using stages, tags, custom fields, and Smart Lists so that you can better understand who is receiving your content and for what reason. We teamed up with Follow Up Boss to teach you how to do this during this video. 
  • Search and learn about implementing email authentication protocols like Sender Policy Framework (SPF) and DomainKeys Identified Mail (DKIM) which add an extra layer of security to your emails. 
  • Check your business registration within Follow Up Boss. Ensure all your information is up to date and you have a physical address listed. If that is missing it will also affect your deliverability rates. Use this link to learn more about this feature within FUB.
  • Watch our latest webinar replay: Ways to Increase Email Deliverability and Avoid Spam Blockers for a comprehensive overview on this important topic!
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My Notes from Cheplak Live Presents: 5 Steps to Lock Down Every Buyer Agreement

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I attended this webinar on June 27, 2024 and these are my notes:

The real estate industry is ever-evolving. It wasn’t too long ago that we were waiting by the fax machine for the latest listings. 

Everything new, everything that changes, is to keep you in the industry at a higher level with what the consumer and the market requires. Don’t let changes scare you into leaving the industry. Be aware of what is going on, look at it as an opportunity and not something to be fearful of.

Just focus on doing the next right thing right. The only thing you can control is getting better every day and make sure that you are always coming from a place of contribution.

Are you showing up like a pro to your buyer meetings? You should show up to a buyer meeting just like a listing meeting. 

This is going to be an environment where if you don’t own your professionalism and own your work, you are setting yourself up to fail. 

How can I make my agents feel confident in presenting themselves as buyer agents? 

If you are confident in what you are doing, you are set up much more likely to succeed.

Make efforts to understand the mind of the consumer and map out a path for your agents so that you are setting them up to be as confident as possible in their unique selling proposition. What makes you be you? 

Can you share your unique value proposition in your sleep? Does it roll off your tongue?

Create a roadmap for your agents to lead them down a favorable thought pattern. The anxiousness and nervousness of what is “about to happen” is worse than actually doing it. Start practicing and acting as though the deadlines are already in place for your area. 

Five steps to lock down every buyer agreement:

  1. Have a unique selling proposition. Create this and practice your elevator pitch. Everyone on your team will do this differently and that’s good! 
  2. Master the materials within your buyer presentation. Put together a powerful presentation, much like you would with a listing presentation in order to confidently educate your potential buyers so that they feel comfortable and confident in you to represent them.
    1. Have something to show your clients. Give them value and a resource and it will be easier to ask for a commitment from your prospective clients.
    2. They turned their four page presentation into a 26-page bound buyer book. They added pages that talk about real estate fees, competing with multiple offers, reviews and endorsements.
    3. They also have a workbook that they bring to the buyer presentation that they give to the buyer that helps them walk through the process and helps them really nail down their goals and what they want to achieve in buying a home.
    4. Make sure you’re taking notes during the meeting. Make a checklist of what your next steps are. Taking notes also shows them that you are invested and paying attention to their detailed needs.
    5. They’ve also created a digital version of their buyer presentation to show on an iPad. 
    6. The goal is to have your agents feel confident that they can comfortably represent anyone and handle any situation.

Examples of the buyer guide:

They added pictures of each agent, information about them personally – their likes, interests, pets, hobbies, etc. so these are really personal and helps them to know like and trust the agent.

Even if you’re a solo agent, talk about the people who help you and are part of your team.

Discuss competition openly as well as fees.

Discuss risk management as part of why you need to use an agent. Most people don’t know what to look out for when purchasing a home. The biggest piece of the puzzle that brings value to a client is not open a door or sending e-alerts. The biggest value is helping them to find a property AND get them to the closing table. 

When you talk about risk management, it immediately elevates your position. 

Each page should be its own resource and you can hit the pages that make sense for the type of buyer you are working with. Merely having a tool like this elevates your position with the potential client.

Add pictures of specific clients with reviews that are tailored to the agent using the buyer presentation. Use the ones that refer to you by name. Show all reviews – especially ones where you solve a problem within a transaction, not just the fluffy ones.

Don’t let the technology scale you out of the relationship part of this business. Work hard on building relationships so that they remember exactly who you are, how to reach you, and how to find you for their next transaction. You want to work with people for their lifetime.

Here’s the workbook preview:

This helps to set expectations and help the client avoid pitfalls up front. This will work for first-time buyers or experienced investors.

Lenders are going to play a big role in moving forward. Ensure that you are setting the stage for everyone to communicate and work together early on in the process: during the buyer presentation. 

Go meet with your lender partner and bring your buyers in so you can solidify that you work as a team. Discuss with your lender how to navigate the new landscape of buyer agency so that you are speaking the same language.

Final three steps to lock down every buyer agreement:

  1. You can really show your value by the way you handle the objections that are sent your way. If you are representing someone and there’s an objection, be thankful for it so you can address it now and get everyone back on the same page. “That’s a fair question, I totally understand how you feel. Thank you for bringing that up, do you feel like I’ve answered this well for you?”
    1. Don’t practice on the consumer. Practice with your colleagues, friends, your dog, whoever. Don’t practice live with the consumer. It’s good to get perspective outside of the industry and practice with someone who isn’t in the business.
  2. Accountability. Set up accountability checks and meetings with your teams.
    1. Morning huddles, accountability partners, etc.
  3. Get started NOW. Don’t wait for the deadline to come for you and your area. Start now, practice now, and start using this with your clients now. Waiting until the deadline starts will not be what sets you up for success.

It’s never been a bigger deal for you to know your industry, know your facts, so that you can be the advocate and lighthouse for your clients and community to buy and sell real estate.

Here’s the link if you want to buy the template for these presentations and workbooks, otherwise use them as inspiration to create something similar to wow your new clients! https://www.lockdownbuyers.com/buyeragentpropackage–538ba

The Listing Challenge

My Notes from Tom Ferry’s Listing Challenge Webinar Series: Part One

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This webinar was presented on June 21, 2024, and here are my notes.

Hosts: Tom Ferry, Jimmy Mackin, and David Childers

This is a skills, marketing, and follow-up market. A lot of agents weren’t ready for the shift into this environment.

When 2024 started, we were a little rosy about how things are going to be. The market hasn’t changed that drastically from where we started at the end of the year and we are now in a political cycle making the existing market even more challenging.

The commitment we are going to make is going to be now for the next 12 months. They will help us with the mindset and the marketing that we need to get through this market. 1M+ agents in the first four months of this year took zero listings according to his experts reporting. Their goal is to help us avoid this.

Go to TheListingChallenge.com to download their app named In Here to get live roleplays, marketing and more for free!

David Childers explains his take on the market. You can find all his slides on The Listing Challenge.com. The #1 question he’s getting is about what’s ahead for the second half of the year.

4.8M homes were sold in the US in the last year. Many people are wondering if the market is going to crash. Lack of housing inventory is what is keeping the prices up right now. A crash is unlikely due to a tremendous amount of demand for homes in the US.

88% of the mortgages in this country are below 6%. 88%. Not everyone will make a decision based on having a low mortgage rate, but people are going to do everything they can to stay with those low rates.

Be the knowledge broker in your local market.

Use this line for prospective sellers: “If the only thing you love about your home is your interest rate, we should talk.”

We saw unhealthy price appreciation in 2021 and 2022, but we will see a more normal path of appreciation in this period.

It’s unlikely that we will see 5% rates this year. There will probably be 1 rate cut this year. Overhwelmingly the banks are saying this will likely happen in September of this year.

We will probably see one rate cut this year, but not many more, and there will not be a big tsunami of things shifting.

Jimmy Mackin on marketing for listings. They’ve learned that getting busy isn’t the hard part, it’s staying busy. You need to be on offense and taking action all the time.

Today’s Agenda:

  • Generate Buyers
  • Leverage Buyers for Listings
  • Sell your Success

The order of operations matters in this. First, you generate high-quality buyers that you can leverage as an asset. Create the right hook or offer to get buyers excited to work with us.

(He’s using this thing where his body is over the screen, so don’t mind those smudges, it’s Jimmy’s shirt, etc.)

Focus on the parts of the market that are the hottest. Fewest DOM and most demand within your farm.

If something works in one channel, extend that strategy to another channel. Take a screenshot of the map of the area you’re focusing on and make a story post that looks like this.

Use the responses that you get to build a relationship with these people.

Step two: Leverage these new buyers to send this letter to.

This letter is very specific about what the buyers are looking for and the timing. It’s low pressure calls to action that has been proven to work.

Qualify these buyers and turn them into letters that you send to your farm.

Look for people who have owned their house for 5+ years and have 40% or more of equity, and find the most desirable neighborhoods. If you don’t know where to find this information, ask your Title rep to help you.

Marketing is all about stacking the layers of campaigns. This is how you drive results within the business. Hit the phones and circle dialing the area that you sent the letter to.

This is a great way to get the conversation started and get your foot in the door.

Send the email campaign, post on social media, get your list together of people you want to target, send your letters, and then start using the above script to create the conversations that generate action.

This helps you find off-market listings and generate inventory.

Show your sweat. Talk about what you are doing to generate this action for your clients. Sellers don’t want to sell because they are locked into a super low interest rate. By showing them that you are capable of helping them find somewhere to go, even if they can’t see it right now.

Use this letter to send after you’ve helped someone do this.

Putting all of this together, you have a cohesive strategy to generate action from your database and create some momentum with your listings.

Go to ListingChallenge.com and register for these slides within the app.

They will do this on the third Friday of every month. This market is one of the most challenging that they have ever seen and they want to challenge us to step up and take action. Get outside of your comfort zone and give this a shot.

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🎙️ The Power of Podcasting in Real Estate + Free Guide

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Staying ahead of the competition requires innovation and adaptation. While traditional marketing strategies like flyers, open houses, and networking events still hold value, the digital age demands more dynamic approaches. One is podcasting, and there are a surprising number of benefits to this creative marketing.

🎙️Podcasting has seen a meteoric rise in popularity over the past decade. According to Edison Research and Triton Digital’s Infinite Dial 2023 report, over 60% of the U.S. population (approximately 212 million people) have listened to a podcast at least once. Moreover, 41% (approximately 144 million people) listen to podcasts monthly, and 28% (around 98 million people) are weekly podcast listeners.

🎙️ One of the key benefits of starting a podcast is the opportunity to establish yourself as an authority in the industry. By sharing insights, market trends, and expert advice, you position yourself as a knowledgeable and trustworthy professional. This can significantly enhance your reputation and make you the go-to expert for clients seeking reliable information and guidance.

🎙️ Podcasts allow for deep dives into topics that are important to your audience. Whether it’s discussing the intricacies of buying a first home, the latest market trends, or investment strategies, you can provide valuable content that educates and informs. This not only helps build trust but also keeps your audience coming back for more.

🎙️ Unlike written content, podcasts offer a unique opportunity to create a personal connection with your audience. The human voice conveys emotion and personality in ways that text alone cannot. This personal connection is crucial. Buying or selling a home is a significant decision, and clients want to work with someone they feel comfortable with and can trust. A podcast can humanize your brand, allowing potential clients to get to know you on a more personal level before they even meet you.

🎙️ Podcasts are easily accessible and can be consumed on the go, whether listeners are commuting, working out, or relaxing at home. This convenience factor means your content can reach a wider audience than traditional marketing methods. Additionally, podcasts can be distributed across multiple platforms such as Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, and your own website, maximizing your reach and visibility.

🎙️ Podcast episodes can be repurposed into other content forms such as blog posts, social media snippets, and email newsletters. This not only saves time but also ensures a consistent message across all your marketing channels.

🎙️ Podcasts can be a powerful lead-generation tool. By consistently providing valuable content, you can attract potential clients who are interested in your expertise. Incorporate calls to action within your episodes, such as inviting listeners to visit your website, sign up for a newsletter, or contact you for more information. This can drive traffic to your digital platforms and convert listeners into leads.

🎙️ Podcasts can open doors to new business opportunities. Interviewing industry experts, local business owners, or satisfied clients can create networking opportunities and partnerships that can further enhance your business.

Click here to get our free guide to starting a podcast
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The Paradox of Productivity

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From client meetings and property tours to strategy sessions and team management, leading in the real estate industry requires you to wear a lot of hats and use a lot of energy each and every day. The instinct might be to cram every minute of your calendar with activities, believing that a fuller schedule equates to higher productivity. But what if I told you that scheduling less could make you more productive?

Consider the concept of “time blocking” – while it’s effective to a point, overusing it can lead to burnout and reduced efficiency. The key is not just to manage time but to manage energy and focus. By reducing the number of scheduled tasks, you allow yourself more mental space to tackle unexpected issues and capitalize on new opportunities.

Research shows that our brains need downtime to function optimally. Studies have found that periods of rest are crucial for memory consolidation and creative thinking. For real estate leaders, creativity is essential, whether it’s in negotiating deals, designing marketing strategies, or solving complex client problems.

By scheduling less and allowing for breaks, you give your brain the necessary space to process information and generate innovative ideas. This “mental whitespace” can lead to better decision-making and problem-solving abilities.

In real estate, the quality of interactions often trumps quantity. Instead of trying to meet with as many clients as possible in a day, focus on deepening relationships with a few key clients. This approach builds stronger, more meaningful connections, but also leads to higher client satisfaction and loyalty.

When you schedule fewer, more intentional meetings, you’re able to prepare thoroughly and engage more effectively. This leads to more productive conversations and better outcomes for your business.

When you’re constantly moving from one meeting to the next, it’s challenging to maintain focus and productivity. Multitasking can lead to errors and omissions, which are costly in real estate. By scheduling less, you reduce the need to multitask and can dedicate your full attention to each task at hand.

Consider adopting the “80/20 rule,” or Pareto Principle, which suggests that 80% of results come from 20% of activities. Identify the tasks and meetings that truly drive your business forward and prioritize them. Eliminate or delegate non-essential activities to free up your schedule and enhance your productivity.

Working long hours and sacrificing personal time for professional obligations is an unfortunate habit many of us have fallen into in an effort to build our businesses and show our potential clients what great service we can provide. However, a well-balanced life is crucial for sustained productivity and well-being. By scheduling less, you create more opportunities for personal activities and self-care, which in turn improves your overall performance.

Remember that your health and happiness directly impact your effectiveness as a leader. Taking time for yourself can lead to increased motivation, better work-life balance, and a more positive outlook.


Still aren’t convinced? See what Warren Buffett and Bill Gates have to say about this concept.


When you’re ready to start scheduling less and boosting your productivity, here’s how you start:

  1. Evaluate Your Current Schedule: Review your calendar and identify non-essential meetings and tasks that can be eliminated or delegated.
  2. Prioritize High-Impact Activities: Focus on the tasks that contribute most to your business goals. Schedule fewer, but more significant, activities.
  3. Incorporate Buffer Time: Allow for buffer periods between meetings to handle unexpected issues and recharge.
  4. Schedule Downtime: Intentionally block out time for rest, reflection, and personal activities.
  5. Embrace Flexibility: Be open to adjusting your schedule as needed to accommodate new opportunities and challenges.

Scheduling less isn’t about doing less—it’s about doing more of what truly matters. By focusing on high-impact activities, allowing for downtime, and maintaining a balanced life, you can enhance your productivity and effectiveness as a leader in real estate. Embrace the power of less, and watch your success grow.

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