COVER FEATURE: The List Issue 2007

 "Management is doing things right; leadership is doing the right things."
— Peter F. Drucker

FOR BROKERS

• 5 new business ideas . . . and how they can impact your brokerage
• 5 ideas for managing cash flow
• 3 tips for effective signage
• Boost referrals to ancillary services
• Stay out of court
• 5 fascinating facts about real estate
• Improve your company’s image
• 8 ways to dress up your brokerage’s curb appeal
• Training on a budget: 6 ideas
• Fostering intergenerational esprit de corps
• Ways to assist employees and associates on military leave
  

• Illuminated awning. Storefront stays bright at night and on overcast days; helps your customers find their way in the dark. Side benefit: discourages thieves.
• Electronic message center. Signs that come with a large screen for which you program customized messages let you display useful information like time, temperature, or road conditions. Those messages attract attention to your business. They also make you part of the community if you promote a civic event or cheer on your local sports team.
• Monument sign. A potential alternative to the widely used pylon signs (signs on poles, typically in the parking lot or near the street) if your locality restricts pylon signs for aesthetic reasons, as a growing number are doing. With monument signs, your logo is etched into concrete or stone that sits on the ground.
  
  2. Make sure your sign has conspicuity. Whatever sign type you choose, it must be easily and quickly readable, including at night. So conspicuity could mean giving your sign a reflective surface.
  
  3.Add some street furniture emblazoned with your company name if there are no benches or bollards (posts that block traffic, such as from sidewalks) outside your office already and city regulators allow it. Benches are the most common type of street furniture; bollards are becoming more popular. Either one might provide an extra branding opportunity for your brokerage.
  
  Sources: U.S. Small Business Administration (www.sba.gov); Rainier Industries (www.rainier.com), Tukwila, Wash.; Spectrum Corp. (www.specorp.com), Houston; International Sign Assoc. (www.isa.com), Alexandria, Va.
  
  Return to top
  
  Boost referrals to ancillary services
  
  Your in-house mortgage, title, and insurance services are as competitive as any in your market, you believe. Yet, it’s like pulling teeth to get your sales associates to recommend them, along with all the other options available in the market, to their clients.
  
  To ramp up referrals at her office, Patricia Savani, associate broker of Champion Realty in Annapolis, Md., launched what she calls “at bat.” The program asks her associates to give her brokerage’s ancillary services an “at bat” a chance with their clients. Then she thanks the associates publicly, such as during meetings, for that opportunity, whether or not the clients actually used the services. Savani says the approach has made a difference. “All else being equal, just saying ‘thank you’ and acknowledging their referrals change their feelings toward your services,” she says. Here’s how you can get salespeople talking about your services:
  
  1. At a minimum, be sure your services are at least as good as those of the competition in your market in terms of price, speed, flexibility, and accuracy.
  
  2. Make ancillary services convenient to use. All else being equal, your associates will be attracted to the convenience of having a loan, title, or insurance representative right there in your office. If you can’t make space for them, have representatives of the ancillary businesses come in at least once a week, such as to attend your sales meetings. That will help keep them in front of associates regularly.
  
  3. Post “at bat” messages around the office. At Champion, those notices are illustrated with a cartoon character reminding associates to give the company an “at bat” when they’re ready to make a mortgage, title, or insurance referral.
  
  4. Help consumers understand your services. Savani’s company has published a 27 page home buying guide for associates to hand out, detailing what customers can expect from their salesperson and the in house officers of the loan, title, and insurance businesses. The What to Expect guide is an understated way to introduce consumers to the idea of using the company’s services as a single package.
  
  Whenever associates introduce a client to one of your in-house services (and the company’s relationship with the services is disclosed in compliance with the federal Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act), send a note to everyone in the office thanking the associates for giving the company an “at bat” and congratulating them on their transaction. Not only do associates feel good about being publicly thanked, but the notes are also a subtle way to publicize that the associates chalked up another transaction.
  
  Whatever you do, it’s key to know the rules of RESPA, which requires disclosure of affiliated business arrangements and also prohibits the exchange of anything of value for referrals of settlement services.
  
  Return to top
  
  Stay out of court
  
  Good human resource practices pay off from a legal standpoint. Whether you’re a small or large brokerage, you can adopt a “pound of prevention”:
  
  1. Adopt a “mediate” rather than a “litigate” mind set. Keep the lines of communication fluid with an open-door policy that allows associates and employees to bring issues to your attention without fear of retribution. If the problem can’t be solved, make mediation or arbitration the next step.
  
  2. Know the law. Arm yourself with a basic knowledge of business law, particularly on discrimination and sexual harassment. Community colleges are a great place to start. Get your attorney’s opinion on documents, such as employee policies, you’ve drafted before you put them into practice.
  
  3. Communicate your policies clearly. Explaining your policy at a sales meeting or in a memo lessens the potential for conflict based on misunderstandings. And dispute resolution programs work best when employees and associates are aware of the rules.
  
  4. Write it down. Keep good notes on mistakes made by your associates and employees. Document your own actions and the reasons behind your decisions.
  
  5. Hire carefully. Look for associates with a strong work ethic and values that match the company’s. Stay away from those who feel life owes them something, says the SCORE Association, a small business counseling group.
  
  Source:SCORE Association (www.score.org)
  
  Return to top
  
  5 fascinating facts about real estate
  
  Like the customers they serve, real estate brokerage companies are changing. Here are a few interesting facts taken from the 2006 NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® Profile of Real Estate Firms: An Industry Overview. (Survey information was mailed in March 2006.)
  
  1. A boom spawns new companies. Some 11 percent of residential real estate companies have been in business one year or less, and another 11 percent have been in business three years or less. In 2004 only 7 percent had been in business one year or less.
  
  2. Consolidation gains momentum. In the 2004 Profile, 93 percent of residential real estate companies had one office. In the 2006 Profile, the percentage dropped to 76 percent.
  
  3. Good times don’t help turnover. In the 2004 Profile, 45 percent of residential brokerages reported no salespeople had left the company in the past year. In the 2006 Profile, 80 percent of brokerages had no turnover.
  
  4. Smaller offices grow more in relative terms. Companies with one or two offices increased their number of salespeople per office by approximately 60 percent between the 2004 and 2006 surveys. On the other hand, companies with four or more offices saw the number of salespeople per office decline by 48 percent.
  
  5. More salespeople chose franchises. Although the number of brokerage companies affiliated with franchises has grown very little since the 1999 survey, the number of salespeople affiliated with a franchise has grown to 55 percent in 2006 from 38 percent in 1999.
  
  Return to top
  
  Improve your company’s image
  
  After growing into a 150 associate brokerage in the Tampa Bay, Fla., area over 37 years, Smith & Associates Real Estate unveiled a brand revamp in late 2006. The reason: to sharpen its image as a luxury home specialist in an increasingly crowded field. In its new incarnation, its luxury real estate focus is tied to hip, slightly edgy imagery that appeals to baby boomers. Gone is its more classical look.
  
  On the basis of the process that Smith & Associates went through, here’s what you would do to change your company image:
  
• Conduct a brand audit. The company hired a branding consultant, who, among other things, conducted consumer perception research.
  
• Identify your company persona. Several findings came from the research, including that the company associates were regarded as successful, friendly, and progressive. Also, customers said their relationship was with the associates, not the company.
  
• Create your persona. Out of the findings relating to consumers’ perception of its brand and associates, the company developed a philosophy for itself around the premise that its customers would have a pleasurable, rewarding experience working with its knowledgeable and passionate associates.
  
• Capture the persona in your brand imagery. The company developed a cheerful palette for its logo and signature colors. It highlighted its associates in its marketing by depicting them in confident yet lighthearted poses in settings of affluence that showcased their individuality. One associate, for example, is shown admiring art; another, taking her dog for a ride in her golf cart.
  
  Return to top
  
  8 ways to dress up your brokerage’s curb appeal
  
  Breathing new life into your office’s exterior doesn’t have to take a lot of money, and it just might help you catch the attention of a few passersby who might otherwise have walked or driven right by. Here’s how you might do it for just a small outlay:
  
  1. Talk to a color consultant. An hour long consultation with a professional designer is typically all you need to get ideas on turning your office exterior into an eye grabber. Most full service paint stores in your area keep a color consultant on staff. Start with that person. Such consultants also make great networking partners, because they often find out while working on residential consultations when people are planning to put their house up for sale.
  
  2. Keep a few color rules in mind. If you forgo the color consultant, following a few simple rules could keep you from making matters worse if the existing color of your building is hard to work with, such as old brown tile. Instead of trying to draw attention away from the tile (by, say, painting window trim red), use swatches to find colors that work well with it. You want something that makes the brown recede and calm down.
  
  3. Stay away from paint on a brick exterior. In some cases painting brick is OK, but you tend to be safer leaving brick alone. Paint doesn’t allow brick to breathe, which could hasten your need for tuck pointing. Instead, add color in different ways, such as by installing window awnings.
  
  4. Add inviting visual elements. In addition to giving your building a splash of color, window awnings draw people to your office by giving the eye a focal point. Flower boxes, sandwich boards, and potted trees or plants can also create a friendly look.
  
  5. Create a people place. A bench out in the front serves as a nice visual touch and doubles as an invitation for people to come and sit. If you’re in a sunny or rainy area, add a table and umbrella. A cozy corner like that reinforces the idea that you’re community focused. It also helps provide a visual transition if the asphalt parking lot at your building comes right up to your door.
  
  6. Add movement. The sway of a flag or banner is well known for attracting the attention of passersby. Choose bright colors for your flag or, better yet, the colors of your company. A banner that hangs down the side can have your company logo or name.
  
  7. Showcase your interior. Any part of the interior you can see from the outside should be designed with an eye toward passersby. Track or recess lighting directed at your walls, especially if they’re a dark color, can create a dramatic effect. The lighting can also focus attention on listings you want to showcase.
  
  8. Show off listings in black frames. If your associates stage or use stagers, showcase before and after pictures of your clients’ homes. They’re a nice visual element and also get people thinking about whether they want to remodel or start fresh by looking for a new house.
  
  Source:Angelisse Karol (www.angelissekarolcolor.com), color and design consultant, Oakland, Calif.
  
  Return to top
  
  Online Exclusive List
  Training on a budget: 6 ideas
  
  You know you have to offer your associates top notch training to help them stay competitive in these challenging post boom days, but how can you do that without breaking the bank? Here are a few ideas:
  
  1. Form a training co-op. Team up with other companies to offer courses or to bring in a trainer for a day. Not only will you share the costs, but you’ll also create a dynamic environment to inspire learning and generate new ideas.
  
  2. Don’t overlook homegrown talent. All the makings of a great companywide training collaborative might already be sitting in your office. Look for associates who are technology experts, masters at converting FSBOs, marketing gurus, photographers, or videographers to share their knowledge.
  
  3. Train one associate; train them all. If your budget allows for only one person to attend a special event or course, choose someone to send and then have that person share what was discussed.
  
  4. Explore local options. From community colleges to graduate programs, a wealth of educational opportunities already exists. Not to be overlooked: adult education courses.
  
  5. Look to the industry. Take advantage of offerings from local and state REALTOR® associations. Some of the industry’s hottest topics and potential liabilities are regularly addressed by your professional associations. Encourage your associates to participate.
  
  6. Take advantage of training offered by manufacturers of equipment and software you buy. Have training included in the purchase agreement. Lots of vendors offer free training to go along with purchases. For example, Microsoft offers an array of free training on office products and operating systems. Courses can be found on the vendors’ Web sites.
  
  Source:American Society for Training and Development (www.astd.org)
  
  Return to top
  
  Online Exclusive List
  Fostering intergenerational esprit de corps
  
  With the Millennial generation (born since 1980) now entering the workforce, it’ll grow increasingly common in your brokerage for those young people to be selling side by side with Gen Xers (1964–80), boomers (1946–63), and veterans (before 1946). Play to the similarities and the differences of the generations so that they work together like a well-oiled machine.
  
  Be a leader. Leadership is important to them all, but how you exercise that leadership determines its effectiveness, given generational differences. Neither boomers nor Gen Xers like to be micromanaged, so give them goals and let them choose their path. Veterans and Millennials are more comfortable with structure, so you can lead more by showing.
  
  Be location agnostic. If Gen Xers and Millennials seem to spend more time in cafés than they do in the office, don’t assume they’re shirking work; they’re comfortable melding work with a mobile lifestyle. Veterans and boomers are more used to working in offices, so expect them to be around more.
  
  Be civic-minded. Affiliating with a brokerage that gives back to the community is important to them all. Evoking civic duty, and even patriotism, is OK with veterans and Millennials (for whom Sept. 11, 2001, is a defining event). But that sense of duty plays less well with Gen Xers and boomers; their civic motivation comes from a personal sense of right and wrong.
  
  Be tactical in your praise. Millennials come into the workforce conditioned by their doting parents, who were quick to praise. So if they’re doing a good job, you withhold praise at your peril. Gen Xers are more interested in receiving recognition for working smart, not hard. Just the opposite is true of boomers, whose self-image is of someone who loves to work. Veterans see themselves as duty bound, so they welcome praise for stepping up to the plate.
  
  Sources:Peggy Morrow, Peggy Morrow & Assoc. (www.peggymorrow.com), Houston; Claire Raines, Claire Raines Associates (www.generationsatwork.com), Wichita Falls, Texas; Learning Information Service (www.alis.gov.ab.ca), Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
  
  Return to top
  
  Online Exclusive List
  Ways to assist employees and associates on military leave
  
  You’re subject to certain employment laws when employees your administrative assistants, marketing people, tech support are called up. Those employment laws don’t apply to your independent contractors, but you still face hardship because you can’t stand in the way of the person’s military obligation.
  
  For employees:
  
• Follow USERRA. The Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 applies even if you have only one employee. So if any of your employees are members of the armed services, including the National Guard and Reserves, you must comply. That means, for example, that if those employees are scheduled for pay raises over a predetermined time, you must give them the raises even if they’re serving their duty at that time.
  
• Work it out. Employee leave is guaranteed by law, and employees are required to inform you verbally or in writing that they’ve been called to duty. You can request that they use some of their vacation time, personal days, or sick leave during their service, but you can’t require them to do so.
  
  For independent contractors:
  
• Tap resources. Look to your broker colleagues and your local association for ideas on coping with the associate’s extended absence. You might offer a company-paid personal assistant to handle administrative tasks for the associate, for example, or get commitments from other associates in the office to manage unfinished deals. Work out a fee structure so that if the associate gets new business while away, other associates can handle the deals, but the absent associate retains a referral or other fee.
  
  For all your people:
• Provide your support. Remember, your team members are performing a priceless service to the country. How you respond sets an example. Encourage companywide support and cooperation.
  
  Source:SCORE (www.score.org); U.S. Department of Labor
  
  Return to top