REALTOR® Magazine Online: What Top Performers Want From You

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Hiring Personnel
Advanced: What Top Performers Want From You

Assessing Personnel Needs

Advanced-Beyond Job Descriptions: Job Matching for Real Estate Sales

Recruitment Planning

Advanced: What Top Performers Want from You

Recruiting Salespeople

Advanced: Tips for Recruiting the Seasoned Professional

Recruiting Support Personnel

Advanced: The Family and Medical Leave Act

The Interviewing Process

Advanced: Behavioral Interviewing

Tips for Selecting a Psychological Test

Structuring Compensation

Advanced: Compensation Tips for Management Personnel

It's not enough that you want them. Here's what top salespeople say they look for in choosing a company.

Stability, name recognition, and market share—a company with a proven track record that will be in business for the long-haul. —Jim Crawford, RE/MAX Greater Atlanta, Roswell, Ga.

An opportunity to be autonomous. —Pat Wattam, C.J. Brown, REALTORS®, Baton Rouge, La.

Training, coaching, and education opportunities that will let you reach the next level of production. —David D'Ausilio, RE/MAX Heritage Realty, Southport, Conn.

Top salespeople—an opportunity to learn from salespeople smarter and more experienced. —Carlos Garcia, CRS® , GRI, broker associate, The Keyes Company, REALTORS®, Miami

Good people—colleagues that produce a positive, friendly atmosphere conducive to success. —Buzz O'Toole, CRS®, CRB, ABR® , RE/MAX Regency Home Office, Purcevill, Va.

Built-in referral network through the affiliation with a national brand name. —Ira Serkes, CRS® , e-Pro, RE/MAX Bay Area, Berkeley, Calif.

Brokers that encourage attendance at state and national meetings and advocate personal growth through continuing education. —Wynne Achatz, Real Estate One Westrick, Marine City, Mich.

Up-to-date technology within the office. —David D'Ausilio, RE/MAX Heritage Realty, Southport, Conn.

TIP: Ask a top performer if there is anyone else you should try to recruit to make you company more appealing. —Chris Heagerty, "Recruiting the Best," Texas REALTOR®, September/October 2000

Tips for Recruiting Materials

Many of the same techniques you used in soliciting real estate clients can be used to recruit top personnel for your company.

Personalize your correspondence. Just as you would with a prospective real estate client, use a mail-merge option to personalize the letter and, if possible, add some personal detail. For example, "I want to congratulate you on being named 'Salesperson of the Year' at your present company."

Focus your materials on what makes your company special. Avoid a laundry list of everything you have to offer—which is probably not substantially different than what the competition can provide. Instead, choose something only you have—transaction coordinators to free associates for more selling, a significant market share, or a comprehensive company Web site associates can link to.

Mail on a regular schedule. One or two solicitation letters is probably not enough to attract a top performer. Prepare a recruiting presentation—just as you would a listing presentation—emphasizing the company's strength and benefits for the candidate. —Alex Vidal, Prudential Florida WCI Realty, Plantation, Fla.

TIP: Prepare a packet of materials about your company—think prelisting package—and ask candidates to pick them up before your first meeting with them. —Suzanne Fernandez, Prudential Florida Realty-DavisIslands, Tampa, Fla.

TIP: Check out the recruiting materials of competitors who have been successful at attracting desirable associates away from your company. —Carol Johnson, The Recruiting Revolution in Real Estate, Real Estate Education Company, 1989.

Tips for Writing Recruitment Ads

Have a clear-cut goal for your ad.Are you hiring for a current opening, or just trolling the waters to see who's out there? Do you need one or two candidates, or are you trying to expand rapidly and need several salespeople?

Decide whom you want to attract with the ad. Is your target career switchers, new licensees, or experiences associates in other companies?

TIP: Your target audience will determine where you should place your ad—association newsletter for pros, newspaper classifieds for career changers and new licensees.

Emphasize the benefits , perks, and growth opportunities that set your company apart.

Appeal to recruits' emotions by pleasant surroundings and a friendly staff.

Sell your company, emphasizing your ranking in the market, the presence of a top producer, or something else that enhances your prestige.

Describe the education and experience requirements you prefer.

Don't guarantee a specific commission amount; new hires will expect it and be disappointed if they don't earn that much.

Be sure to include "equal opportunity employer" wording and avoid references to age, race, color, religion, gender, or national origin.

Be careful of seemingly innocent phrases as "great way to supplement your pension" that could be viewed as indicating an illegal preference.

Headlines to Attract Salespeople

A headline is always the most important part of any ad. Here are some effective headlines:

· Be Your Own Boss.
· Take Your Earnings to New Levels.
· Become Part of the Town's Listing Leader.
· Our Free Training Will Take You to the Top.
· Only Top Performers Need Apply.
· No Experience Necessary.
· Real Estate Is Booming.
· Want a Future?

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