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The “E” Word – It might be costing you business!

“I had a bad year because of the market.” “My company didn’t support me enough.” “There’s too much competition in the area I work.” “I’m too new in the business to make a lot of money.” ENOUGH! Do you have “Excusitis”? It’s a rampant disorder in the business world, characterized by frequent and habitual use […]

Watching for the Perfect Real Estate Storm

Sometimes an area has both incredible buying and selling opportunities –  a very rare occurrence.  I call these occurrences the perfect investing storm. Many areas have just come into that storm.  Is yours one of them? This perfect storm of opportunity occurs when inventory declines rapidly in a market where many homes have been sitting […]

The Price is…Wrong?

If your listing isn’t selling and the days-on-market numbers are ticking upward, you need to look beyond your CMA to find out the cause. While most agents rely strongly on their CMA, it often doesn’t give a big picture account of what is currently happening in the market. Recently I had two clients ask me […]

Getting Comfortable with the Truth

Real estate is a people business and can therefore be very unpredictable at times. Clients don’t always do what you think they will do and often they change their minds at a moment’s notice. Real estate requires strong communication skills and the ability to deliver the truth in a factual and practical manner. Most agents […]

This November: Are You Winding-Down When You Should Be Winding-Up?

Every year in mid-November I hear the same comment from agents: “Denise, the market is slowing down. I think I’ll just wind things down, assume nothing else is going to happen, and then wind up next year.” Think again! If you aren’t ready to close your books on your business for the year, it is […]

Getting Comfortable with the Truth

Posted by Denise Lones on November 7th, 2019

Real estate is a people business and can therefore be very unpredictable at times. Clients don’t always do what you think they will do and often they change their minds at a moment’s notice. Real estate requires strong communication skills and the ability to deliver the truth in a factual and practical manner.

Most agents have experienced a moment in which they know the truth, but their lips couldn’t express it. But when you can get comfortable allowing the truth to come out, you will be amazed at not only how much time and energy you save, it will increase your confidence and your clients’ confidence in you. Read more »

Branding Spotlight: Korey Staley

Posted by Denise Lones on November 7th, 2019

In honor of Veteran’s Day, we’re featuring the brand of 22-year army vet Korey Staley from Spokane, Washington.

The target audience: Korey handles real estate of all shapes and sizes on a daily basis, but for a special project, he chose to leverage his personal experience to help other veterans and those on active duty. During his time in Mastery, we created a Military Real Estate Services brochure to help him better serve this niche. Read more »

Ask Denise: New Business Card Blues

Posted by Denise Lones on November 7th, 2019

Q: “Denise, your team developed my brand last year and I absolutely love it! I use it on everything. But a month ago I changed brokerages and there it is a requirement that I use their company business card. It is hideous! Should I just use my branded business card anyway?”

A: Some brokerages are sticklers when it comes to business cards and signage. Read more »

November’s Club Call: The Needle in the Haystack

Posted by Denise Lones on November 6th, 2019
Club Zebra club call announcement

Club Zebra Pro members are invited to our next coaching call this November 19th at 9:00am Pacific for The Needle in the Haystack. Our November call is about clients with peculiar needs. They may not be unrealistic about price, but they may be a buyer looking for a type of property that just doesn’t come on the market that often. They could be a seller whose very unique property isn’t off-putting, but is just plain weird. How do you put your marketing or reverse-marketing hat on to work with clients and properties like this and what can you do when it is time to for the appraisal? Signed-into your Club Zebra Pro account and visit the event calendar for details.

This November: Are You Winding-Down When You Should Be Winding-Up?

Posted by Denise Lones on October 31st, 2019

Every year in mid-November I hear the same comment from agents:

“Denise, the market is slowing down. I think I’ll just wind things down, assume nothing else is going to happen, and then wind up next year.”

Think again!

If you aren’t ready to close your books on your business for the year, it is not advantageous to slow your business down to a crawl just because we’ve entered the holiday season. Read more »

Branding Spotlight: Barbara Clark

Posted by Denise Lones on October 31st, 2019

The starting point: After ten years using her well-known brown and gold brand, Barbara Clark decided she was ready for a brand refresh.

The target audience: She specializes in luxury and waterfront properties, and has a reputation for her impeccable taste in interior design and staging. On top of that, she always provides 5-star service to all her clients.

The strategy: We wanted to preserve her established brand equity by keeping the calligraphic swirls, original signature font, and linear layout. Read more »

Ask Denise: “I have a Buyer” Letter Campaign

Posted by Denise Lones on October 31st, 2019

Q: “Denise, I have buyers who missed out on buying a property a few months ago (multiple offer situation). They are specific in the building they want to buy in. When they first missed out a few months ago, I sent a letter to the homeowners indicating that I had a bona fide buyer. But I didn’t get any bites. My buyers still want to buy. Should I send another letter?” Read more »

Lead Generation: Does it Cost You Time? Money? Or Time AND Money?

Posted by Denise Lones on October 24th, 2019

Many of you know the story of my importing 10,000 teddy bears after I went on a trip to Seoul Korea with a flight attendant friend of mine. This was many years ago prior to me starting my real estate career and what I learned from this experience changed me for the better forever.

I imported the bears from Korea because I got an amazing deal on them. However, they arrived without proper tagging, I was unable to sell them to retailers, and essentially was stuck with a stock of teddy bears that I had no idea what I was going to do with. I had also borrowed the money to buy these bears and I was freaking out about how I would ever sell the bears, pay back the money I had borrowed and get out of this horrible mess I had created. Read more »

Branding Spotlight: Sara Fish

Posted by Denise Lones on October 24th, 2019

The starting point: Sara wanted her Semi-Custom Pro brand to reflect her positive outlook and her tagline, “ Motivate – Positive – Change.”  She was drawn to a striking red and charcoal palette, and wanted to incorporate her existing logo that showcased her last name, Fish.

The target audience: As the managing broker of her office, Sara has both knowledge and experience in her toolkit. She wanted her brand to appeal to her diverse clientele and her referral-based business. Read more »

Ask Denise: Holiday Gift Ideas

Posted by Denise Lones on October 24th, 2019

Q: “Denise, I want to do something special for my past clients this year for the holidays. I already do an annual property report in January and don’t want to do a client appreciation event. I am thinking of something like a gift. What ideas do you have for a great client gift?”

A: That is a good question! You didn’t name a budget but I am assuming you don’t mean that you intend to fly everyone to Paris for the holidays. Below are some suggestions for several different client gift ideas in multiple categories and for varying budgets: Read more »

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