Throughout the years I’ve wondered what makes a top producing agent a top producing agent. Is it the car they drive? Many people choose thier agent based on this, (not the best determining factor). Could it be that the top agents all have some common thread? Do they have a higher level of education than thier peers?
One top agent I know is a Soccer Mom, another a retired nurse. When comparing these two it’s really hard to find any similarities in personality or lifestyle, hobbies. They are both very different. What is the ingredient that these two and many other top agents share in the main dish?
After reflecting on this for quite some time, I decided to get to the bottom of it and interview and question some top agents that I’ve met throughout the years to find the common element that makes a top agent a top agent.
What I’ve found after all this time is one common thread that all agents of top producing caliber seem to share. They all seem to have focus, a plan, an actual business plan. They set production goals, and treat thier real estate career like a business, a business where they are the CEO. Most of the top agents I’ve spoken with work five days a week and take two days off, just like a real job. They set income goals and lay out detailed plans of how to get there, how many transactions they need to do. As consumers we are programmed to think that all top agents work 7 days a week and sleep with thier cell phones on, yet none of the top agents that I’ve met do this. Picturing an agent with his or her cell phone next to their bed seems kind of desparate, don’t you think? Do we really want someone so desparate for business that they sleep with their cell phone on thier night stand?
With so many agents and companies to choose from does it make sense for me to hire an agent based on the typical questions that we’ve been taught to ask during an agent interview? Hmm???
Maybe we should be asking about their goals. How many homes are you planning to sell this year? What is your goal for this quarter?… Etc…
If we’re interviewing agents for the position of marketing/listing our homes, should we be concerned about the car they drive when they visit us at our home for the interview or should we be more concerned about what car they are planning to buy next time? Perhaps the most loaded and important question of all should be, “Where do you put your cell phone when you’re sleeping?”
