The start of a new year is the perfect time to review your business plan, which all REALTORS® must have if they want to be successful. Because, to be successful, you need to figure out your current position, where you ultimately would like to be, and how you will get there.
Consider the business plan as a road map (or GPS, for the technically savvy). Without it, you may wander off the road or remain stuck.
If you don’t have a business plan, it’s time to create one. There are four steps to developing a personalized business plan: assess your income needs, convert income needs to sales goals, translate prospecting initiatives to sales goals, and create an action plan.
Step 1: Assess your income needs
Make a list of your living and business expenses to determine how much income you will need to generate annually. Living expenses include items such as housing (rent/mortgage, heating, hydro, water), food, clothing, and medical/health coverage. Business expenses include items such as registration/continuing education fees, transportation, advertising/self-promotion, professional development courses, and income taxes.
Step 2: Convert income needs to sales goals
Estimate how many properties you will need to sell in one year to meet your financial goal. If you are new to the profession, this could be tricky. Therefore, you may want to confer with colleagues and your office manager. Be sure your goal is realistic.
Step 3: Translate prospecting initiatives into sales goals
Determine what prospecting methods you will use to locate potential buyers and sellers. Select a method that works for you. Also determine what level of activity or work initiative will result in a sale.
Step 4: Create an action plan
Create a detailed list of items you must do every day, and do them. Keep track of your activities so you will be able to compare what you have done with what you planned to do. Keeping track of activities will allow to analyze what worked and did not work and to make the necessary revisions. Consider the following when creating your action plan:
• how many prospecting calls you will make per day
• how many leads/referrals you will obtain per week
• how many listing and buyer representation agreements you will obtain per month
• how many transactions you will attempt to complete for the year
It’s time for review
If you do have a business plan, then you may want to review it to ensure you are still on the right path. Consider the following when reviewing your business plan:
• Do you need to re-assess your income needs for the upcoming year because of increased living expenses?
• Is the number of properties you need to sell in one year to meet your financial goal realistic?
• Do you enjoy doing the prospecting methods you selected? Are you good at them? Are they working for you?
• Are you sticking to your action plan or are you straying? For example, are you making the prospecting calls you said you would make every day?
For More Information
For more information on business plans and how to successfully transition to the world of real estate trading from the classroom, please consult our A Mentoring Kit for New Salespeople: Training For Success at http://bit.ly/1dNXPXt. This is a valuable resource for both brokers and salespeople.
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Tell us about your career plan, specifically what works and what you had to change. Such information is invaluable to your colleagues, especially a new salesperson.
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