Should you be worried about the future of the real estate industry and the mortgage industry?

It’s a great question.

Now, I don’t think the word is “worry”. I think the word is “prepare”. Should agents and lenders prepare for a change in the industry? Of course.

In this article:

• Real Estate Commissions Under Attack
• Your Real Identity Isn’t Just Being an Agent or Lender
• The Shift That Will Change Everything
• Build Your Tribe
• Provide Value Outside The Transaction
• The Referral Reminder Postcard
• Are You Prepared For The Disruption of The Real Estate Industry?

Real Estate Commissions Under Attack

Right now in our industry, our commissions are being attacked. It’s been happening since the beginning of time. It’s not new. Discount brokers have always been around. They’ve been in every town; usually small little companies like Help-U-Sell and things like that. And many of them just come and they go. But what’s different today is the internet, and the amount of money that is being poured in by venture capitalists to attempt to disrupt our industry.

The internet is changing everything. But what is being disrupted is not the industry, what’s being disrupted is how much money we make per transaction. Perhaps the agent of the future, who makes $100,000 a year doing 20 transactions, they’ll need to do 40 transactions to make the same $100,000.

Your Real Identity Isn’t Just Being an Agent or Lender

Now, these are just my thoughts of course. No one can predict the future with 100% certainty, but here’s the reinvention that I’m asking agents that I coach to make, and that is in their identity. You see yourself as a real estate agent. What I’d like to suggest, you make a shift in identity to be an entrepreneur who is currently selling real estate or doing loans.

The Shift That Will Change Everything

You see, an entrepreneur is a person who creates value for people through products, services, and experiences. And currently, you are doing that as an agent or lender. If you start to see yourself as an entrepreneur, you bring value in different ways than an agent or lender does.

Build Your Tribe

The first thing you do is get busy keeping your relationships with the people in your life deeper and more connected. I like to use the word tribe. At By Referral Only, we have this vision that you have 150 people in your tribe, and they’re receiving so much value from you that each person refers at least one or more people at year to you. Now, that’s entrepreneurial thinking.

Provide Value Outside The Transaction

Now, here’s the key: The value that you provide is outside the real estate transaction. Here’s a great example of one of the tools that we’re using to help create value outside the real estate transaction. It’s a simple postcard.

The Referral Reminder Postcard

We just sent this out to all of our clients’ clients. It goes like this.

The headline is, “Is there anything that you’re looking for that I can help you find?” (That’s a great headline.)
As a real estate agent, I’m constantly helping people move into a new home, on a new street, with a new neighborhood, which often means I’m helping people fit into a new community. At first, I’m their local resource for almost everything they need. Over time, I’ve accumulated sort of a little black book that contains the best people, products, and experiences in town.

Sometimes, people are looking for a business to take your pets, like groomers, pet sitters, dog walkers, and veterinarians. And other times, they may need a business that takes care of their cars, like a detailer, or an oil change, or a skilled mechanic. You get the idea.

I’m the local resource for everything they need, and it occurred to me that I can also share my little black book with you and the people you care about.

The next time you’re talking with someone and they mention that they’re looking for the best products, the best people, and the best experiences in an area, think of me because I make it my business to know the best things in town.

You can be a part of this too. If you know a business that exceeds expectations, treats you with respect and exhibits high standards, I would love you to introduce them to me. I will take the time to get to know them and find out if they are committed to providing the best help in town. Then, I’ll add them to my little black book.
That’s what we call is a referral reminder postcard, and we send one out every month for all of our clients that we coach in By Referral Only. What we’re focusing on is bringing value to them way outside the real estate transaction in a creative entrepreneurial way.

Are You Prepared For The Disruption of The Real Estate Industry?

Is the industry going to change? Yeah, the industry’s going to change quite a bit. What’s going to change is the way that we get paid. What I want to do is help you build a tribe of 150 people sp that that regardless of whatever happens in the industry, you always get the call. Will you get the same commission structure in the future? I don’t know and I can’t say it will or it won’t, but you will stay in the business because you’ve built a tribe.

Check out By Referral Only. See how we can help you survive and thrive through the eventual disruption of our industry and of our commission structures.