June 14, 2016
BY John Paul Narowski IN Referrals, Sales and Marketing
When you first start out in the real estate business, you won’t have any clients. You might not even have any leads. You need to build your pipeline with business opportunities quickly – but doing so can seem like a daunting task, especially if you are new to the sales profession. These challenges are behind the statistic that says 87% of real estate agents will last less than five years in the business. Simply put, there is only so long you can stay in business when you are not closing business and depositing commission checks. To beat these odds, you … Continue reading 9 Creative Ways to Jumpstart Your Referral LeadGen Engine →
June 8, 2016
BY John Paul Narowski IN Sales and Marketing
It’s no secret that 20% of agents pull in 80% of the revenue. Being a realtor isn’t a hobby, it’s a business, and requires focus, determination, and strategy. By developing a good plan and committing to its execution, you’ll put yourself ahead of the fly-by-their-pants pack of realtors who treat real estate sales like a hobby, not a business. Read on if you’re looking for ways to take your real estate business to the next level. Get organized Becoming a top performer is unlike any other profession; you’re selling a product, but you’re also selling yourself, your skills, and your … Continue reading Keys to Becoming a Successful Real Estate Agent →
June 1, 2016
BY John Paul Narowski IN CRM Software, Sales and Marketing
We talked in our previous article Referral leads not closing? Here’s how you can increase your referral lead quality. about how important it is for real estate agents to leverage your database to maximize referrals. Today, we’re going to talk about why Customer Relationship Management (CRM) applications are such an effective tool for doing that. Many agents still use Excel spreadsheets or a simple contact manager (like the one in Outlook or Gmail) to manage their database. They simply think of their database as a list of names and numbers. They are missing out on the power of automating the … Continue reading 10 Reasons to Use CRM to Manage Your Real Estate Database →
May 26, 2016
BY John Paul Narowski IN Sales and Marketing
In businesses – like real estate – where people typically work by referral, many agents focus on bringing in a high quantity of referral leads. The idea is that if you have more referrals, you’ll automatically be doing more business, right? Not necessarily. You have to close those leads – turn them into loyal clients first. To do that, you need the right kind of leads: serious buyers and sellers who are eager to work with you. According to Seattle area real estate broker and business coach with The Success Perspective Nicole Mangina, quality matters just as much as quantity. … Continue reading Referral leads not closing? Here’s how you can increase your referral lead quality →
May 19, 2016
BY John Paul Narowski IN Sales and Marketing
Have you ever been to one of those zoo exhibits – ahem – I mean networking events? People lurk about, conducting drive-by glances at your nametag. Before it’s too late, you have Jerry Spinklestien vigorously shaking your hand and pleading for referrals. For the love of monkeys, do you know anyone that needs [insert-service-here]? This tactless, shotgun approach is the wrong way to get referrals. No trust is built. You don’t even know if Jerry is a good dude. He certainly hasn’t added any value to your life, so why should you dig deep into your network coffers to help … Continue reading The Best Time to Ask For Referrals →
May 12, 2016
BY John Paul Narowski IN Sales and Marketing
Can you guess the #1 source of business for real estate agents? Check out these stats for a hint: 65% of new business comes from referrals – New York Times 92% of respondents trusted referrals from people they knew – Nielsen People are 4 times more likely to buy when referred by a friend – Nielsen As you probably already knew, referrals are king not only for real estate agents, but small businesses and other professional service businesses. Even though it’s no surprise to us that referrals are the lifeblood of our lead generation engine, many of us just aren’t … Continue reading Generating Referral Sales Starts with Doing Great Business →
May 4, 2016
BY John Paul Narowski IN CRM Software
I’m about to say the unthinkable – that a primitive, cell-toting spreadsheet can be just as effective as any million-dollar-a-month CRM. “WHAT?” you say? “Aren’t you the founder of a CRM company? Blasphemy!“ It really doesn’t matter if you use a spreadsheet, a Rolodex, or a complex CRM; without the right strategy, you won’t make it far. It’s the development of this overall strategy that most people miss. If you rush this journey by jump right into picking a CRM, you’ll end up with a lack of clarity that usually spirals into angry salespeople, unused products, and general chaos in … Continue reading The One Thing Everyone Gets Wrong about CRM →
February 23, 2016
BY John Paul Narowski IN karmaCRM News and Updates
2016 is the year of selling through relationships. KarmaCRM has decided to focus on making our CRM software less about high volume transactions and more about high value relationships. This bucket feature is the first of many that will help you maintain richer relationships, better leverage your existing network, and more easily identify the places to add value. What are Buckets? Buckets are a simple way to organize your CRM to make it easy (and automated) to followup with your contacts. By creating a bucket and giving it a followup date, when that date is hit karmaCRM will automatically notify … Continue reading New Feature – Announcing Buckets! →
February 5, 2016
BY John Paul Narowski IN CRM Software, Sales and Marketing
We’ve all been there. Stuck in a room of 500 other professionals going from circle to circle, attempting to forge the beginnings of a meaningful relationship out of a business card and a cocktail. For many, these events only end with dozens of business cards to which you could hardly match the name with the face of its owner. I know this struggle. I was the epitome of this struggle. That is, until I stopped networking, and started actually building REAL relationships. The amazing crew at DC Nightowls holds co-working events at local DC co-working spaces every couple weeks, which are … Continue reading How to Start Meaningful, Professional Relationships in a Room Full of 500 People →
January 28, 2016
BY John Paul Narowski IN Sales and Marketing
Most sales reps, entrepreneurs, coaches, and other professionals don’t ask clients for referrals. It’s not because it’s not effective and it’s not because clients are unwilling to give referrals. The fact is that asking for referrals is a task that makes even the toughest sales reps squeamish because it often feels and comes off as a pushy, overly aggressive, and selfish ask. Here at karmaCRM, we’ve been working with our existing clients to generate warm leads via referrals and have seen some great results. Referrals can be a great lead source for business consultants, freelancers, solopreneurs, coaches, startups, and most SMB’s, … Continue reading Maximize your referrals in 2016 by asking at the right time →
