Being an Agent-Centric Business Partner

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3 Takeaways:

• Audit your top producers to determine what they're doing compared to everyone else.
• Help agents establish and commit to their “why.”
• Create measures around maintaining culture and agent connection.

The real estate brokerage business has been through some amazing and challenging times. The COVID-19 pandemic propelled us forward exponentially when it comes to the use of technology. It opened the doors to a new age of conducting business while being more operationally efficient. The key to moving forward and building market momentum is for brokers (and their family of agents) to evolve, be agile, and have a platform and business model built that exceed consumer and industry expectations.

The “why” for the successful brokerage today, and into the future, is the agent-centric model rather than a company-first approach. That’s been a common theme for us, and it’s something we've aligned on in our business for a long time.

One thing that we've taken a deeper dive into is auditing our top producers to determine what they're doing compared to everyone else at the firm. They all possess different personalities with different backgrounds and leverage different tactics to drive growth. What they all have in common—and what guides them to be successful—is their personal “why” and their commitment to it. If an agent isn’t committed to their “why,” the very first time they hit a bump, they’re going to stop. Our job as their business partner is to help them realize that and help them figure out exactly what their “why” is. That is our commitment as brokers and as business partners.

Once an agent establishes and commits to their “why,” they will be successful. If they're successful, the brokerage is successful. This approach has been big for us and it's something we live by every single day.

Now, be aware that the biggest hurdle for most agents to get there is patience. Many agents come up with their “why,” start putting in the work, say they're committed to hitting that goal, but they pick arbitrary timelines to get there. These arbitrary timelines are not necessary, and they create stress that ultimately pushes them off the path that they need to be on.

We found another common trait that holds agents back from hitting their next level—romanticizing what got them there. They've fallen in love with the method and not the problem. Our role as brokers is to get agents to stop focusing on the solution and focus on the problem. If you focus on the problem, you're going to be willing to try a million different solutions. Shifting that mindset is what gets results.

Essentially, our brokerage is an incubator. We provide a controlled environment, both online and offline, for the care and growth of our agents. To get them to their “why” and to close more deals, brokers should first have the infrastructure in place—from a training, coaching, and development perspective. Second, they need measures and thought processes around maintaining culture and agent connection. Third, they must believe in the agent-centric process. If you believe this is the way the industry is headed, and that it's the right thing to do for the agent, then do it.

There are any number of stresses put on a broker today, from recruitment and retention to bottom line pressures on profitability. The real estate brokerage business is dynamic and is constantly changing. It’s evolving into an agent-centric business model and developing a partnership with your agents is key to moving forward, building market momentum, and exceeding the needs and the expectations of agents and the consumers they partner with each day.