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Monday, March 8, 2021

    Last year at this time, Americans were just getting to know COVID-19. In fact, the World Health Organization declared the disease a pandemic on March 11, 2020.

    A week later, the Las Vegas Strip shut down, some businesses became more “essential” than others and #StayHome became our way of life.

    The giant question for real estate agents was about how they would perform the many in-person exchanges required in a typical transaction?

    From listing presentations to open houses, inspections, appraisals and showings to closing, just about evert aspect of the real estate business was upended. The real estate industry responded swiftly, showing amazing resiliency.

    Your business became virtual, with nary a hiccup.

    If you’re a new agent, the list of must-have tools is far different than it was in the past. Seasoned agents now seek guidance online about items once considered “luxury.”

    We’ve queried agents across the country to determine which listing agent tech tools are a must as we enter the second year of the pandemic. Today, we share with you the most popular responses.

    Virtual Marketing Series, Click Here
    1. Video conferencing software

    The social distancing mandate put the kibosh on the traditional listing presentation. Today, the dining room table has pretty much met the fate of the closing table.

    Both have been replaced, however. While you may not be sitting across the dining room table with a potential listing client, you can achieve the same end result via video conferencing software for real estate agents.

    Who says there’s no such thing as an overnight sensation? Not the folks at Zoom, that’s for sure. Undeniably the most popular video conferencing software among the real estate agents we spoke with, Zoom offers video tutorials, live training and webinars to bring you up to speed.

    Prices range from free to $19.99 per host, per month.

    What do agents like about it? Reliability, support for those new to video conferencing and screen sharing capabilities.

    Not all is well, though, at least among agents. “… I don’t love it … the launch process gets confusing because of multiple window prompts, even after you’ve downloaded it,” according to Craig C. Rowe at inman.com.

    He adds, by the way, some good news for budget-minded agents: “Free accounts can have up to 100 people for 40 minutes and unlimited one-on-one meetings.”

    If you’re new to the software, eliteagents.com offers a walkthrough.

    Already use Zoom? Check out these hacks at techhelpline.com.

    2. Floor plan software

    Listings with accompanying floor plans receive 52% more clicks than those without floor plans, according to the folks at rightmove.com.

    Additionally, one in 10 of the buyers interviewed by the property portal said that they wouldn’t view a home for sale in person without seeing a floor plan first.

    Finally, NAR finds that a floor plan is the third most valuable aspect of a real estate agent’s website, right behind photos and the listing description.

    Floor plans aren’t expensive. Sure, you can go with a company that offers all the bells and whistles, but there are also those who offer the service for a reasonable price. Here are some that the agents we spoke with recommend:

    3. Virtual tours

    One listing agent we spoke with represents an older woman who is down-sizing. Because she suffers from lung disease, she is extremely fearful of catching COVID-19. The thought of random people touring her home led her to believe that selling to an investor was her only solution.

    Luckily, she met a creative listing agent with a number of solutions, one of which was to restrict showings to virtual tours only. In-person showings were reserved for those buyers who submitted offers.

    Her listing agent chose a Matterport virtual tour, which can be slow to create and, if you carry a lot of listings, it can get expensive. It remains, however, the gold standard of the real estate industry.

    For alternatives, check out this piece from Mandy Ellis at NAR’s magazine.realtor.

    RIGHT NOW! RENTER Scheduled Campaigns are on SALE 10% OFF!
    Renter Scheduled Campaign, shown above, learn more HERE

    TO LAUNCH A RENTER SCHEDULED CAMPAIGN:

    Click the “GO NOW” link, below (from a desktop or laptop computer).

    And, remember, YOU DON’T PAY until each mailing goes out (cancel or change up until the night before mailing).

    GO NOW.

    Please reach out to our support team at 866.405.3638 with questions or if there is anything we can do to help you with your success.

    PLUS: When you have time…here are some helpful resources we’ve made available to support your success.

    1. The Free 12 Month Done-For-You Strategic Marketing Plan

    The Real Estate Marketing Planner is a powerful 12-Month-Guide that strategically defines what marketing to do when. Four key market segments are included, Niche Marketing, Get More Listings, Geographic Farming, and Sphere of Influence. –Click Here

    2. The Free Interactive Real Estate Business Plan

    The Free Interactive Real Estate Business Plan allows you to enter your business goals for this year and get a breakdown of how many prospects, listings, closing, and so on are needed to reach your goals.  – Click Here

    3. Become a Neighborhood Brand

    Become branded in a specific neighborhood with a 12X15 marketing piece sent automatically each month to an exclusive carrier route. Watch this video to learn more or Click Here.

    4. The Free Real Estate Mailing List Guide

    This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is Real-Estate-Mailing-List-Guide2-3-D-999x1024.jpg

    The Real Estate Mailing List Guide outlines the top tools for generating targeted prospecting lists including Baby Boomers, Empty Nesters, Investors, Lifestyle Interests, High-Income Renters, Move-Up Markets, and more. The Guide also defines done-for-you marketing campaigns to match these markets. –Click Here

    5. Become a Listing Legend Free eBook 

    This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is Become-A-Listing-Legend-3D-Book-White-274x300.jpg

    Ready to take a vertical leap in your real estate career? If you’re looking for inspiration…and the tools and methods to dominate a market and go to the top in real estate…you’ll find them in this free book. – Click Here

    6. The Free Online ROI Calculator

    This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is ROI-calculator-b-233x300.jpg

    Consistency and automation are the keys to success. Discover how effective direct mail marketing can dramatically increase your bottom line. Enter your statistics in our Free online ROI Calculator and click the ‘CALCULATE MY ROI’ button to see your results instantly! –Click Here

    7. The Free Real Estate Marketing Guide “CRUSH IT” 

    This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is CRUSH-IT-Guide-3-d-298x300.jpg

    The “Crush It” Guide includes easy steps to launching an effective direct mail marketing campaign, how to create a targeted prospect list, the perfect way to layout marketing materials for success, seven opportunities available to target in your area right now. –Click Here

      In January, nearly a quarter of working Americans worked from home, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).

      While there are many positives to working remotely, real estate agents with families to care for have learned the hard way that remaining productive is often their biggest challenge.

      Work-at-home-agents (WAHAs) we’ve spoken with list several productivity challenges. Let’s see if we can help you out with those.

      Dealing with distractions

      From last night’s Netflix movie that you fell asleep in the middle of to the overflowing laundry hamper, distractions beckon during the workday.

      Even when you do manage to sit down at the computer to do some work, there are far too many shiny objects tempting you to do otherwise.

      The solution? Ensure that your home office is away from the main traffic areas of the home and that it’s set up as an office, not a catch-all room. This will serve as a reminder to yourself that you’re working.

      If the internet is the temptress, check out Cold Turkey, a website blocker that “… will be there for you when your willpower isn’t.”

      Nancy Reagan was right

      It is always open-season on the self-employed who work from home. For some reason, too many people have this notion that you’re not really working. Thus, the phone calls from friends and neighbors asking the WAHA if she can run an errand or two.

      By the way, interestingly, none of the male agents we spoke with have had this experience, while most of the females have. From delivering a neighbor’s kid to dance lessons to running other errands, female agents are imposed on far more often.

      First Lady Nancy Reagan nailed the solution when she uttered three famous words: “Just Say No.”

      Don’t give in to the requests. Set your boundaries, protect your time and productivity. Just say no. If you’re a people pleaser, “no” may not be in your vocabulary. So, try this one:

      “I’d love to help you, but I’ll be working then.”

      It’s a bit harder to say no to family members in the home. One agent we spoke with told his family that when his office door is closed, he is unavailable for anything but emergencies. If the door is open, they’re welcome to enter.

      Avoid the urge to over-work

      Agents who live alone face the danger of becoming workaholics, especially if they’re following the pandemic specialists’ cautions that we should socially isolate.

      As you know, in a real estate business there is always more work to do. But it can wait. Now more than ever it’s important to take care of yourself and your spirit.

      Take a real lunch break, even if it’s just to get outside for a walk. Quit when the normal work day is over. Turn off the laptop, turn off the lights and close the office door.

      Only you can protect your productivity during the workday, only you can protect your psyche.

      RIGHT NOW! RENTER Scheduled Campaigns are on SALE 10% OFF!
      Renter Scheduled Campaign, shown above, learn more HERE

      TO LAUNCH AN RENTER SCHEDULED CAMPAIGN:

      Click the “GO NOW” link, below (from a desktop or laptop computer).

      And, remember, YOU DON’T PAY until each mailing goes out (cancel or change up until the night before mailing).

      GO NOW

      Please reach out to our support team at 866.405.3638 with questions or if there is anything we can do to help you with your success.

      PLUS: When you have time…here are some helpful resources we’ve made available to support your success.

      1. The Free 12 Month Done-For-You Strategic Marketing Plan

      The Real Estate Marketing Planner is a powerful 12-Month-Guide that strategically defines what marketing to do when. Four key market segments are included, Niche Marketing, Get More Listings, Geographic Farming, and Sphere of Influence. –Click Here

      2. The Free Interactive Real Estate Business Plan

      The Free Interactive Real Estate Business Plan allows you to enter your business goals for this year and get a breakdown of how many prospects, listings, closing, and so on are needed to reach your goals.  – Click Here

      3. Become a Neighborhood Brand

      Become branded in a specific neighborhood with a 12X15 marketing piece sent automatically each month to an exclusive carrier route. Watch this video to learn more or Click Here.

      4. The Free Real Estate Mailing List Guide

      This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is Real-Estate-Mailing-List-Guide2-3-D-999x1024.jpg

      The Real Estate Mailing List Guide outlines the top tools for generating targeted prospecting lists including Baby Boomers, Empty Nesters, Investors, Lifestyle Interests, High-Income Renters, Move-Up Markets, and more. The Guide also defines done-for-you marketing campaigns to match these markets. –Click Here

      5. Become a Listing Legend Free eBook 

      This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is Become-A-Listing-Legend-3D-Book-White-274x300.jpg

      Ready to take a vertical leap in your real estate career? If you’re looking for inspiration…and the tools and methods to dominate a market and go to the top in real estate…you’ll find them in this free book. – Click Here

      6. The Free Online ROI Calculator

      This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is ROI-calculator-b-233x300.jpg

      Consistency and automation are the keys to success. Discover how effective direct mail marketing can dramatically increase your bottom line. Enter your statistics in our Free online ROI Calculator and click the ‘CALCULATE MY ROI’ button to see your results instantly! –Click Here

      7. The Free Real Estate Marketing Guide “CRUSH IT” 

      This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is CRUSH-IT-Guide-3-d-298x300.jpg

      The “Crush It” Guide includes easy steps to launching an effective direct mail marketing campaign, how to create a targeted prospect list, the perfect way to layout marketing materials for success, seven opportunities available to target in your area right now. –Click Here

        Shown above: Just Sold/Just Listed postcards like those Patricia Taylor sent out recently.

        Patricia, you’re the winner of this week’s $120 Gift Card

        Patricia had the following words to say about her success using ProspectsPLUS! marketing materials as part of her strategic marketing plan to get more clients,

        “I have been using ProspectsPLUS! for print marketing for several years. I am one HAPPY customer. Their customer service is absolutely THE BEST. Whenever I have had to contact them with a question, they are timely and helpful. They want to make sure that I am pleased and getting the best value for my marketing dollars. I frequently use the luxury brochure to leave on-site at listings and to pass out to prospects. These brochures make a striking impression and my clients love them. When it comes to order processing, nobody can beat ProspectsPLUS!. The turnaround time on printing is phenomenal. I highly recommend ProspectsPLUS!”

        Thank You, Patricia!
        NEW CONTEST: Get the FIRST MONTH of a Get More Listings Scheduled Campaign FOR FREE! ($120 value)
        Farm Scheduled Campaign shown above
        Enter this week’s contest for a chance to win a $120 gift card covering the first month of a Get More Listing Scheduled Campaign.

        The scheduled campaign includes 150 jumbo-sized postcards, sent standard postage (excluding data and tax).

        HOW TO ENTER: Just leave a review regarding how using marketing from ProspectsPLUS! has impacted your business, and you’re automatically entered into our next contest.

        Mention a “scheduled campaign you’ve launched” in your review and your entry into the contest is doubled.

        Leave a review on Google, HERE.
        Leave a review on Facebook, HERE.

        Don’t forget to watch out for next Friday’s email announcing the weekly winner!

        Ready to Schedule an SOI, Farm, Get More Listing, or Absentee Owner Campaign?
        Farm Scheduled Campaign shown above
        Launch a Scheduled Campaign today and save time on your marketing by automating it!

        You Can Launch a Scheduled Campaign to any of the following Markets in Just Minutes:

        Sphere of Influence
        Geographic Farm
        Renters
        Absentee Owners
        Expireds
        FSBOs
        Fence Sitters*
        Get More Listings*
        Empty Nesters*
        Move-Up Market*
        (*Located under Farm Campaigns)

        And, remember, with Scheduled Campaigns, YOU DON’T PAY until the mailing goes out (cancel or change up until the night before mailing).

        TO GET STARTED:

        STEP 1: Create your prospect list using our mailing list tools, HERE.

        STEP 2: Then, once you have your list, choose your Campaign, select your start date, and add your list, HERE or hit “Launch a Scheduled Campaign”, below.
        Launch a Scheduled Campaign now, CLICK HERE!

        Please reach out to our support team at 866.405.3638 with questions or if there is anything we can do to help you in your success.

          There’s a funny thing about oft-repeated truisms: many of them aren’t actually true.

          Take this one for instance: “10% of all real estate agents perform 90% of all transactions.”

          No-one is ever given credit for this statistic; no study has been published proving it to be true. Yet, it’s repeated over and over.

          Sure, it’s true that some agents make tons more money than others. RealTrends annual rankings of agents and teams, “The Thousand,” prove that. Sort of.

          Take a look at the top 10% of these agents and you’ll notice that they all sling luxury property. Naturally, the more expensive an agent’s inventory is, the more money she’ll earn.

          This status may have nothing at all to do with talent, expertise or any other quality than to have made a wise decision early on in a career.

          The first lesson is simple: if you truly want a sales volume of $761,653,743 a year, sell luxury property.

          In reality, to make the big bucks requires patience, tenacity, self-discipline and the understanding that it takes money to make money. Stop taking the cheapest route. Demand quality for you and for your clients.

          Related: Learn from the Master of real estate success, Floyd Wickman. Watch his latest guest appearance on our podcast (below).

          There are few overnight successes

          Tony Robbins, über-successful personal development coach, often tells the story of how, at age 19, he lived in a studio apartment, cooked on a hotplate, and washed dishes in his bathtub.

          He considers this period his “rock-bottom” and tells audiences how it compelled him to begin to create goals. “The timeline I gave myself for achieving these goals was any time from tomorrow to the next twenty years,” Robbins says in “Awaken the Giant Within.”

          Robbins claims that he hit his first goal, to make one million dollars, five years later.

          We’ve all read or heard similar stories, those rags-to-riches tales that inspire us to do likewise. The one thing that so many of us miss, however, is that there is no magic formula. No cute little fairy will land on our shoulders and “poof” us into success.

          These people struggled, often for years, to reach their goals. They worked long and hard, they enlisted help and they never stopped learning and trying new things.

          Just as you know that nurturing leads and prospects takes time and persistence, so does nurturing your business.

           Check your attitude

          “A positive attitude makes success easy; a negative one makes success pointless,” according to Geoffrey James, author and contributing editor for Inc.com.

          Sure, it’s challenging to feel positive during a worldwide pandemic, when the way you do business has been turned upside-down.

          James suggests that you can change your attitude in a number of ways. One of these is to surround yourself with positive people and “… and shun those who are excessively negative.”

          Find the rest of his tips on how to improve your attitude at Inc.com.

          Mimic the successful agent

          If you’re new to the real estate industry or ready to take your game to the next level, it’s well worth your time to find a mentor. At the very least, approach one of the most successful agents in your office and request a shadowing opportunity.

          A week or two following this agent around, observing his or her attitude, habits and approach is time you will never regret spending.

          RIGHT NOW! ABSENTEE OWNER Scheduled Campaigns are on SALE 10% OFF!
          Absentee Owner Scheduled Campaign, Get More Listings Series, HERE

          TO LAUNCH AN ABSENTEE OWNER SCHEDULED CAMPAIGN:

          Click the “GO NOW” button, below (from a desktop or laptop computer).

          And, remember, YOU DON’T PAY until each mailing goes out (cancel or change up until the night before mailing).

          GO NOW

          Please reach out to our support team at 866.405.3638 with questions or if there is anything we can do to help you with your success.

          PLUS: When you have time…here are some helpful resources we’ve made available to support your success.

          1. The Free 12 Month Done-For-You Strategic Marketing Plan

          The Real Estate Marketing Planner is a powerful 12-Month-Guide that strategically defines what marketing to do when. Four key market segments are included, Niche Marketing, Get More Listings, Geographic Farming, and Sphere of Influence. –Click Here

          2. The Free Interactive Real Estate Business Plan

          The Free Interactive Real Estate Business Plan allows you to enter your business goals for this year and get a breakdown of how many prospects, listings, closing, and so on are needed to reach your goals.  – Click Here

          3. Become a Neighborhood Brand

          Become branded in a specific neighborhood with a 12X15 marketing piece sent automatically each month to an exclusive carrier route. Watch this video to learn more or Click Here.

          4. The Free Real Estate Mailing List Guide

          This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is Real-Estate-Mailing-List-Guide2-3-D-999x1024.jpg

          The Real Estate Mailing List Guide outlines the top tools for generating targeted prospecting lists including Baby Boomers, Empty Nesters, Investors, Lifestyle Interests, High-Income Renters, Move-Up Markets, and more. The Guide also defines done-for-you marketing campaigns to match these markets. –Click Here

          5. Become a Listing Legend Free eBook 

          This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is Become-A-Listing-Legend-3D-Book-White-274x300.jpg

          Ready to take a vertical leap in your real estate career? If you’re looking for inspiration…and the tools and methods to dominate a market and go to the top in real estate…you’ll find them in this free book. – Click Here

          6. The Free Online ROI Calculator

          This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is ROI-calculator-b-233x300.jpg

          Consistency and automation are the keys to success. Discover how effective direct mail marketing can dramatically increase your bottom line. Enter your statistics in our Free online ROI Calculator and click the ‘CALCULATE MY ROI’ button to see your results instantly! –Click Here

          7. The Free Real Estate Marketing Guide “CRUSH IT” 

          This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is CRUSH-IT-Guide-3-d-298x300.jpg

          The “Crush It” Guide includes easy steps to launching an effective direct mail marketing campaign, how to create a targeted prospect list, the perfect way to layout marketing materials for success, seven opportunities available to target in your area right now. –Click Here

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