I have attended more meetings and events than I can count over the past 25 years in the real estate franchise industry. Trust me, I get it… we all have days when we can come up with a number of reasons why we don’t have the time to attend a meeting or an event. I remain convinced, however, that the broker or agent who invests the time to attend company meetings has an advantage since they always seem to have the ability to remain focused, even in the most challenging markets. These individuals are on top of their game, knowledgeable about what tools are available and, most importantly, which ones to implement into their business. They reap the benefits of establishing rapport with their fellow brokers and agents and capitalize on the business opportunities that occur as a result.
But something’s different now. Where past trade group meetings were broker focused, they are now open to agents. I have been to three different trade group meetings over the past two weeks and have found that agents were astounded at the value the meetings brought to them. I saw many who began to immediately make changes in how and where they invest their marketing dollars, saving money while expanding their market exposure.
The trade group meetings have been designed to bring time-sensitive, valuable information and education to you. Find out the date and location of your next local area trade group meeting and schedule your calendar to attend. You won’t be disappointed!
Terri Adamo
Franchise Sales Director
Terri.Adamo@rwnc.net
Let’s face it… EVERYTHING seems to be changing constantly and rapidly these days. From a real estate industry perspective, this means that most of what we thought we knew in terms of real estate brokerages, brokerage business models, vendor services, mortgage lenders, mortgage products and guidelines, disclosures, technology, marketing, franchise affiliations, etc., is perhaps markedly different then it was from only six months ago.
If an individual takes a 2 x 4 that is ten feet long and lays it on the floor with the 4 inch side facing up, it takes nothing to per se ‘walk the plank.’ I would venture to say that the reason it is so easy to walk the 2 x 4 is more the fact that it is on the floor which many interpret as ‘being safe.’ Confidence in our abilities, knowledge, and attitude allows us to see beyond the challenge.
Viktor Manrique and Richard White opened Realty World – Regency in Hercules on April 1st, but are making it official with a celebratory ribbon cutting ceremony scheduled for Friday, May 15th. 
One of the things I love most about my job is the time I spend discussing strategy, solutions, and plans for the future with our technical team. We are all proud of the fact that our members have a strong realization of value and we endeavor to exceed your expectations in technology that directly benefit your bank accounts, among other things.
Too often, the opportunity of meeting, greeting and building rapport with a customer is short lived due to the fact that there may be apprehension caused by fear of handling objections. Courses have been designed, scripts developed, and umpteen coaching programs offered to ease this kind of fear. The most effective way to ease around the ‘objection’ quandary is have a better understanding of exactly what you want to say. In other words, rather than asking a customer “Are there any objections?” or stating, “If there are no further objections…”, one could merely ask, “Are there any concerns you have?” This is obviously a small change in what we could say, but by using the word ‘concerns,’ the conversation moves from a negative “salesy” perception in peoples’ minds to a feeling of comfort and sincerity about the things that are important to them which can be positively addressed by the real estate professional.
Undoubtedly, you’re wondering about the future of real estate these days. What daily activities are you going to change that will afford you more opportunities to ‘rock on the porch’ with more customers? Certainly, the sales and marketing experiences of the past four years won’t get you very far, and on top of that, you commanded to lower your operating expenses to meet new times.
You’ve just bought your tub of buttered popcorn and the $10 half gallon family size soda. You’ve nestled into a squeaky reclining chair and you are patiently waiting in the dimly lit theater for the coming attractions, a sign that your movie will soon begin. The lights soon fade into darkness, the screen becomes alive with sound and light, and as you senselessly shovel handfuls of popcorn into your mouth you’ll notice something a bit different before the movie trailers start… a greeting from the Federal Reserve.
Franchise contracts, in most industries, range from five to ten years. On occasion, a franchisor may offer early renewal incentives. This is typically done to provide additional services and benefits to their existing franchisees. In addition, early renewal allows the franchisor to position itself to more aggressively develop member resources as well as to expand market share. When market share is expanded, franchisees and franchisors secure increased business opportunities and profit potential. Therefore, early renewals can be advantageous to both parties.