PROView - March 2008 - (Page 19)

noticed by others.” I asked her if it is efficient in turning out leads. Her answer? Absolutely. The Educational Realtor® investment, ROI, she says it’s working well for her. “30% of all business comes from my networking efforts, just by having breakfast with other professionals.” While discussing what Realtors® can do to strengthen their positions in the marketplace, Simms stresses the importance of keeping abreast of all things real estate and who better to hear it from - just look at the designations she’s earned: ABR, ACRE, ASP, ASR, CIPS, CLHMS, CNHS, CRB, CRS, CSP, e-PRO, GRI, LTG, PMN, RECS, RSPS, SRES, and TRC. “Blogging is an Steve Busse agrees: “As the market gets hot, you tend to forget what designations you have.” He agrees with Simms, stating “with a changing market, tapping into referral relationships with certain groups, with which you have an affiliation, is definitely another back to basic tactic to generate leads.” There’s no denying that the real estate industry is going through a very rough transition. In the midst of challenge, though, it was quite inspiring to speak with local real estate professionals who still remain successful. How they do it? They’re going back to basics to generate leads – efficiently. As Stange points out, “Monitor your ROI, assess the resources – time and excellent way to money – you’re spending on prospecting and reach a global network of real evaluate which activities are estate agents, buyers and sellers.” generating the highest return on your investment. Make — Sharon Simms necessary adjustments, and continue working.” Sounds easy enough? It’s not. It takes hard work and success will come to those who remain committed. Hopefully the words of these Realtors® will inspire you to reach the goals you have set out for your business. That leads me back to discussing the importance of market knowledge with Kathy Stange. “Our customers rely on us to be their resource.” Whether they need a plumber, mortgage specialist or want to be kept abreast of sales price adjustments in their neighborhoods, Stange wants them to think of her as their go-to person. Stange said she constantly takes classes, learns new tools, and, most importantly, makes sure to utilize all she’s learned. “Training is one thing – but you have to implement what you’ve learned for it to make a difference.” It’s Not Just Breakfast Are you participating in networking groups? Many have shared their reluctance as they often don’t see immediate results from their investment in time and money to attend breakfasts and other events. Stange agrees. “You shouldn’t expect immediate results,” she said. She instead stresses that first you need to establish yourself within the group as a real estate resource – and business will come. She attends a weekly breakfast with the group Network Professionals each Wednesday morning for one hour as part of her lead generation efforts. Her annual cost is $365 to participate, not including the cost for breakfast. Reminding me of the importance of always looking at her return on Our Commitment to Editorial Value You have hopefully noticed that feature stories in PROView Magazine in recent months have included commentary by PRO members and local industry professionals. We are committed to making sure our articles are relevant to the marketplace you serve and hopefully providing tips that will help grow your business. Do you find these feature articles helpful? Are they relevant to your business? What can we do to improve them? Any specific subjects you would like to read about? We want to hear from you! Please contact Mathias Bergendahl at the Pinellas REALTOR® Organization at 727-216-3034 and mbergendahl@tampabayrealtor.com PINELLAS REALTOR® ORGANIZATION March 2008 19

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of PROView - March 2008

PROView - March 2008 Contents Chairman's Notes - A Strong Force, Working on Your Behalf Feature - Going Back to Basics: Are You Generating Leads ProActive - Amendment 1 Passes: What Now? What's Next? Finance - How Your Customers Can Find Home Loans Brokerage Design - Reject the Blindfold; Enlightenment is the Way to Go Marketplace Analysis - The Opportunity Market Home Sales Report MLS Update - Changes to Rules & Regulations Now in Effect MLS Mind Your Manners Education - Don't Let Time Run Out: Complete Mandatory Code of Ethics Training Now Calendar of Events & Programs PROBiz - FREE Real Estate Websites! New PRO Members

PROView - March 2008

For optimal viewing of this digital publication, please enable JavaScript and then refresh the page. If you would like to try to load the digital publication without using Flash Player detection, please click here.