Client Care or Client Development?  Important Distinctions when Choosing a Real Estate Broker.

I tend to be forward-thinking in terms of business models, technology, and innovation; however, I am very “old school” when it comes to obtaining more clients for a real estate brokerage, a practice commonly referred to as business or client development. I heed the advice of my father, owner of a real estate brokerage for 40+ years in Maryland.

#1 – Be honest.

#2 – Do a good job.

#3 – Collect referrals.

In my opinion, too many large real estate brokerages are hyper-focused on client development rather than client care. When a brokerage forces its agents to focus on client development, the agents become over-extended. These agents cannot possibly give their existing clients the time and care necessary to help them make good decisions. Clearly, this is not good for clients, nor the agents associated with the brokerage. Existing clients receive lackluster service, and agents whose attention is diverted in this way hurt their prospects for obtaining good referrals. Poor service should never equate to a good referral. Sadly, sometimes it does, but probably not for those of you reading this real estate blog.I must get 10+ emails per day from companies and other brokerages trying to sell me “real estate training”, and I opt out of as many of these emails as possible. I’ve never attended any of these training sessions, but from what I can gather, they all promise similar benefits. Here is one from my junk email today:

The market is amazing - are your commissions? Learn more to earn more - join our upcoming event to learn what your broker isn't teaching you, and what your competition doesn't want you to know! Quit living paycheck to paycheck and have the real estate career of your dreams.The time for action is now. Register now for this free upcoming training event, where we'll be joining some of the nation's top agents to discuss real, practical solutions that every agent can implement to grow their business in any price range and in any market conditions:

 Buyer & Seller Lead Generation: Learn how to generate qualified leads with proven lead-generation strategies to create a wealth of no-cost buyer & listing leads.

 Increasing Your Sales Production: Learn the proven business planning strategies of the top-producers and how to develop your personal real estate success strategy.

 Building A Top-Producing Team: Learn to inexpensively build a top-notch real estate team to help you to grow your business into a thriving local market leader.

We're looking forward to seeing you on the call. Remember, this is your year to achieve unlimited real estate success - make the most of it!

In my opinion, the best way to procure more business is to do a great job for existing clients, a practice I refer to as client care. Nothing works better than providing quality service and compelling your clients to give an organic, trusted, and meaningful recommendation to a friend, colleague, or acquaintance. Spending more time with clients and nurturing those relationships is ultimately more beneficial than spending money on billboard ads, radio ads, email-blasts, or direct mail, which are costly measures that are typically less effective at obtaining quality business leads. Instead, focus on taking care of your existing clients. The rest will follow.

So when it’s time….Buy Smart. Live Well.