Is this a good time to Move ? Offices I mean...

We all know as the year ends, we take stock on how our 2008 plans/goals materialized or didn't. We begin thinking of what the stumbling blocks were. We like to blame our broker managers, or office but some of us look inward for the lack of success. Did we not stick to the plan in terms of prospecting, did we let our lack of business drag us down? Was the plan flawed right from the start?. Maybe the plan was good but it simply was not effectively implemented.

Whatever 2008 looks like for you, if you're planning on staying in the business, you're about to re-energize your future. It usually starts with taking a hard look at the 2008 plan. Maybe the plan was unrealistic, maybe it wasn't consistently executed, or maybe the tools were not there to assist you.

Often a change in location - a change from one office to another will energize your efforts. If you do decide to take that route, don't expect that the impressive toolset presented at your interview with the new office will do the trick for your 2009. So many of us jump from office to office hoping the next will be THE place where our business will take off, but not changing the way we work or holding ourselves accountable.

I say - look inward. In order to achieve success, good tools and good support is critical. You should make sure you align yourself with a company that has a technology vision, provides planning support and consistent coaching. But if YOU don't take responsibility for where you are now and where you want to go, it really doesn't matter what toolsets a brokerage provides for you.
Use this end of year time to assess your efforts in 2008. Be realistic, set achievable and trackable goals. Look at that plan and measure yourself DAILY - I guarantee you'll be proud of your efforts this time next year! And you WILL achieve success!

I've Hit the Jackpot with something surprising - A Complaint!

My agents are trained to set up a communications plan with our clients which include at least once a week phone updates and monthly face to face updates while a home is being marketed. Last week as a team member and I prepared for a monthly update with our client, we were feeling very good that we had covered all bases and that this client was VERY satisfied with our services thus far. How did we know that before the meeting? Well, this client is a vendor for us so we're constantly seeing her and giving her "snipets" of updates almost on a daily basis. She seems happy with the progress and once in a while expresses a concern that we nip in the bud.
So why have a monthly meeting to discuss status with someone we know and communicate so well? Well, because it's our policy. We expected it to go quickly and then check off that task as completed.

Not so fast! In the process of the meeting we found out -

1) The client was exhausted from the many showings and tired of running home to put on lights / shut off lights - and give the home a final check before a new showing occurred.
2) She absolutely HATED the picture of ONE of the 10 rooms featured in MLS
3) She receives feedback directly from buyers' agents thru an email service we offer to sellers and although we would follow up with additional discussions with all interested parties, She wanted to know why we didn't follow up on those who showed no interest or seemed not to like the property - As she said, we could learn more from them and
4)She HATED the canned questions asked in the feedback form that our service provider used. First question "Did your client like the property?" which came back once or twice as "Not at all" - provided no valuable information but only incensed the sellers.

How did we miss all these complaints?

We simply hadn't really given her a focused forum for putting them on the table. She came in prepared to this meeting , knew it was a time to review progress and wanted answers to the above. Had we not set that meeting up, it's possible that all or many of the above - easily fixable problems - would have simmered with her.

What do we need to keep in mind?

Studies show us that over 60% of consumers in real estate will NOT complain to you about a problem they're having - unless you ASK ! Ask that hard question. How am I doing? What is working and not working for you. If they don't tell you when they have a complaint, they WILL be telling all their friends and losing business for you. ENCOURAGE COMPLAINTS - they are the JACKPOTS to your business!
My team member and I had an action plan for each of the complaints above which were all resolved within hours after the discussion. Our seller clearly appreciated our expeditious response and our efforts to make the marketing of her home less stressful to her.
So Remember...

The Unhappy Client Has Options

Keep Quiet
Report you to management or the Local Board if the issue is large enough
Give you word-of-mouth advertising that you do not want – thus causing you to lose business

Or they can complain to you directly

And when they do – It’s your JACKPOT –

Fix the problem and you will not only keep their business but your business will grow because of them.

Why move to Medway,Ma ~ A great MetroWest Boston Town

Why live in Medway, MA

I moved to Medway in 1988 when my children were 3 and 5. I had never heard of Medway prior to our decision to move even though I lived in Boston and suburbs all my life. My husband found this town because of an easier commute for him. I was focusing on the North Shore of Boston as my family had settled there but my husband’s commute would be disastrous as he worked in Newton (and still does) so MetroWest seemed to make more sense.
We did the things you all do when you consider a town for your children to grow up in. We looked at the schools, made an appointment with the principal of the primary school they would attend. We looked at the data (pre – internet – so that wasn’t easy) we could get our hands on about the town and all its amenities. We visited the parks and surrounding communities. We just had a sense this would work out well for our entire family.
Take a look at the town (click here) and I think you’ll get a feel for what appealed to us.
It was a major decision for us – much like moving out of state. Certainly my family thought it was as they too had no idea where Medway was. But when we looked at it more closely, we knew the work commute for my husband would be much better than if we had lived on the North Shore. We seemed to get more home for the price in Medway over the North Shore (which is still the case) . And Medway had (and still has ) so much charm. This town still has a small school system, one that has won awards, but small enough that the teachers remember your children, years after they’ve attended school. There’s something nice about meeting a teacher now who will ask about how my two sons are doing years after they’ve graduated. You feel connected.
My sons now 22 and 25 are also connected to the town. Now out of college, one is still living at home (an interim solution as he plans for graduate school) and recently attended a high school graduation for a sister of an old friend. They share stories about teachers, play tennis at the middle school, use instant messaging to see who is home (Medway) from school or work for the weekend to get together.
I think this may change in the next few years, but they have stayed connected with their school friends here. Sometimes those connections now take them quite far away from here. My younger son was doing a semester in Spain when he decided to take a side trip to Germany to meet up with another Medway long time friend from BC who was also doing a semester in Germany. While in the library of the college this friend was attending, my son stumbled upon a young lady who was also a Medway high school alumni . He covered her eyes from behind and asked "Guess Who"? She recognized his voice. Here they were half way around the globe – she not knowing he was stopping off to visit – As I say it’s a small connected community – And yet its residents (certainly this generation) are very mobile and very cosmopolitan. My older son is now in LA doing an internship with Toyota Corporate . The first week was a bit of an adjustment and he was lonely but when I called him the second week, he said he and Alex were out a few times. Alex, I asked? Yes, said he, you know, Mom, Alex from Medway… Yes I do and I’m thrilled he’s met up with him. Turns out Alex settled in LA after graduating college and is doing quite well in his new career. I’m glad they made another connect out there.
Clearly making a decision about where you are going to raise your family is a major one. For some, they may raise their family in two – three – maybe four different places. But for many when you’re settling in with your children, you may be settling in for a generation as we did. Medway was such a good choice for us, for so many reasons. Stay tuned for my next blog which will tell you why Medway should be on your list when considering a move to MetroWest.