Fiddlenet is "In Focus"!

When a Friend calls, what will you do?

Have you ever received a call from someone you haven't heard from in a while? Seems like whenever it happens to me it's never a good time to talk, you know what I mean?

But never again. Go ahead, call me, I'll make the time for you. Here's why.

Recently a friend did call and we talked. Early in the conversation they mentioned something that caused me to really pay attention. I put my pen down and walked away from my computer so they would have my full attention. It turns out they were going through a tough stretch. They didn't ask for anything but I sensed they needed someone to pick up their spirits.

I spent the next few minutes thanking them for all they had done for me. I also mentioned that I knew how much they had done for others as well. You could almost feel their smile through the phone. It was a call that simply reminded them that they are important; that they are special.

You see the thing is, I've made that call...more than once. I've been in their spot and needed help. So, if you are having a tough time, call a friend or two. Let them pick up your spirits so you can do what you were meant to do.

Just remember someone may call you too!  Will you help them?

How can you become more recognizable in 2011?

Companies spend billions upon billions of dollars developing a brand knowing that you will pay extra for it. They package it as "quality" but is it? Or, might it be familiarity?

Is it possible that we pay extra for things simply because we recognize the name? Has your child ever said to you they must have the "special brand sneaker" because a particular athlete said those sneakers are the best? You may or may not be someone who has paid extra for a brand name. However, many people do pay extra every day.

So, what's the point? Someone once said that perception is reality. So, when the public "perceives" that you are the local brand, it will be true.

When will you start creating that perception?

 

Why is money such a problem?

What a great thought. What would it do for you if money were not the problem? Would it remove the stress, the pressure, the worry? Many people would say yes, but that begs the question; then why don't we do it?

 Why don't we do whatever needs doing in order to remove the pressure?

If money were not the problem.....What would you do? Where would you go? Who would you visit?

Are the answers to those questions important enough for you to change?

Or, maybe you are happy with what you have. Here's a thought. Are those you love "happy" with what you have, or what you've done? Is it putting more pressure on them?

A good friend sent me a thought that might be of help to you.

He said if you had no choice but to double your income this year, what would you do "more of, better, and differently" to make that happen?

What IF you did? What could it do for you? What could it do for those you love?

 

Maybe it's not really such a bad market?

In 1988 when I began my real estate career the bottom started to fall out of the market. I truly thought it was my fault!

However, I soon realized (thanks to Floyd Wickman) that the market has a tendency of going up and down. It always has, and it always will. Of course that doesn't mean it's a bad market.

Think about it this way. If every house was selling and for a great price, is it a great market? Really? If you were buying a house, how would you feel? On the other hand if nothing was selling at market price, is it a bad market? Really, if you were buying wouldn't you feel this might be a great opportunity?

You see the truth is that the market simply IS the market. It's not bad, or good, it just IS. I have never visited a town clerk's office and have them tell me nothing sold today.

Something is always selling. Somebody always has to move....move in, or move out, it doesn't matter.

So, what's the point? Well to me it's simple. In today's market we need to diversify. If all of our listings are in the same price range, or the same subdivision and that slows down, we're in trouble. If all we do is work buyers and they slow down, we're in trouble. If all we do is work "high end" listings and they slow down, we're in trouble. If all we do is work distressed properties and they slow down (and they eventually will), we're in trouble.

Everything changes. The only constant is change. If you want to survive, you MUST diversify.

 

Have you tried "Reverse Marketing"?

Recently I have noticed a trend. Now it's not a measurable trend yet. However, many agents seem to be working a lot of buyers.

So, why not try "Reverse Marketing"?  Example:

NEEDED: 3 bedroom home with garage on quiet street located in Happy Hollow. Have pre-approved buyer ready to close at your convenience. Call me at 555-1212.

Remember that the more information you put in the ad, the fewer calls you will receive so keep it simple.

Some of your callers will be sellers already on the market so you'll need to weed them out. If you are a Floyd Wickman graduate, you'll know what to do when they call. If they are not on the market, you might use the Buy/Sell Analysis to schedule a listing appointment.

This probably won't work....most of the time. However it might help you to STAND OUT as someone different in your market area. You can demonstrate to a seller that the buyer of their home might just be a seller of a home not currently on the market and this is one way you have of finding them. Many agents simply put a house on the market and WAIT for buyers...but not you!

So although it's not a new idea, it might work...some of the time. So, why not consider it simply as another tool of yours.

 

Maybe the best gas price is NOT the best gas price?

Do you shop around for the best gas price? Do you know where you can usually find the best price? 

I live in a very small town. There’s only one gas station and because it’s the only one, gas is usually priced higher than if you drive to a bigger city. Recently I noticed the gas price had dropped significantly. I thought prices had dropped all over, but it hadn’t. Only my small town gas station had dropped their price so I decided to stop.  The first thing I noticed was it was under new management and they had replaced the pumps. The new pumps did not allow you to pay for your gas outside, you had to go inside. Now the price difference was substantial so it was worth the small inconvenience. That’s when it hit me. This was a great marketing idea.

 You see what they were trying to do was to draw you “inside” their store. They were willing to make a smaller profit on the gas in order to get you to buy things “inside” their store.

Now I am not saying you should lower your commission and use some kind of bait and switch tactic.

 However, what I am thinking is “What’s inside YOUR store?”  In other words, what reason would someone have to want to visit YOUR store? The gas station needed to draw people in and lowered their outside price to do it.  If you don’t want to lower your price (commission), what OTHER ways might you use to draw them to you?

I think you have two choices to survive in today’s market. You can lower your price to get noticed. Or, you can GET noticed by doing things people notice. Ok, so maybe there’s a third choice. You could do nothing and “hope” things change. 

Problems are a Gift

Years ago I remember Les Brown (the speaker, not the band leader!) saying something that has stuck with me for a long time. I'm paraphrasing, but it went something like this; you're either in a problem, you just got out of one, or you're heading toward one.

How many times have you heard someone complain about a problem? Maybe that someone is another agent, a buyer, a seller, a spouse? Here's a thought. Next time it happens, smile because someone is handing you a gift.

Solving problems is what we do! 

Remember that if they didn't have a problem, they wouldn't need YOU! So develop that skill. Develop the skill of finding people with problems and then help them to solve it.

Have you met Jeffrey? You should!

A few days ago I had to fly to an Event. The Flight Attendant's name was Jeffrey. I had flown with him before and he makes the flight a very good experience for all.

The next day I was supposed to return but my flight was canceled and I was re-routed using a connection in Charlotte. It had not been such a great day, until I boarded my flight and there was Jeffrey waiting to greet me. "Hi Mike, welcome back" he said cheerfully. He remembered my name, I know a little thing, but it was special to me.

I took some extra time to really watch him on this flight. He started by telling everyone his name and that his goal was to give us such great service that when we landed in Charlotte we would NOT want to get off the plane! Wow, that was different....some might even say "risky".

He had the same drinks and snacks as every other Flight Attendant. Of course most Flight Attendants simply hand out their drinks and snacks and sit down and wait until landing. Not Jeffrey. He walked up and down the aisle and if you needed a drink, you didn't have to ask, he was there.

One woman must have fallen asleep, because I noticed Jeffrey turn off her light....I know, just a little thing.

Before we landed Jeffrey went to each person, shook hands and said "thank you, hope to see you again soon". I felt like I should have thanked him and I did.

As I boarded my connection home I was still smiling and my new Flight Attendant noticed. When she asked how I was doing I told her I just experienced a great flight with a terrific Flight Attendant. She said, "well, I'm not so bad either". She was good, very good. But, she was no Jeffrey.

That's when I thought of you.

Are you the good....I mean really good agent in your area? Do you do all the right things, say all the right things, make people feel good?

Or, are you the "Jeffrey" in your market?

Maybe we have too much time in a day?

Have you ever seen someone who always seems to be on their cell phone? Or, they are always texting someone? Ever heard someone say "there's just not enough time in the day"?

Yet there are people who make a lot of money and seem to handle "time" better than others, don't you agree?

Here's a thought. What would you do if you had LESS time?

What if, from the time you woke up this morning you only had 4 hours to work. However you MUST accomplish your daily goal, period, no excuses. What might you have done diffently? What would you have delegated to someone else. What might you have eliminated all together.

4  hours a day.....hmmmm.....nah, it'd never work, would it?.....or would it!

 

One activity that may just guarantee your success

"Don't Mistake Activity With Achievement" - John Wooden.  What a GREAT thought!  Now before you say something like "but you need to do the activities in order to see the achievements", let's think about it.

How many times have you heard "practice makes perfect"? Is that true? Probably not. I mean if you practice something wrong, you'll just get real good at doing it wrong, no matter how often you practice.

In one of the Indian Jones movies Harrison Fords character must choose from which cup to drink. The character before him chooses poorly and dies. Now he must choose. If he chooses poorly, he will die.

Our daily choices may not be so dramatic as Indiana Jones, but maybe we should look more carefully.

What if we looked at John Wooden's quote and started out each day by choosing the toughest activity on our to-do list. Do you think if you accomplished your toughest activity on the list that your achievements would increase?