The Personal Marketer

I’ve been working with REALTORS^® for roughly five years, and I’ve enjoyed the opportunity to talk to quite a few who are very successful in their careers. When I speak with them, I’ve noticed they all seem to have a shared and unique outlook on the real estate business and their role in it. Here are three statements these successful sales professional never say:

1. “It’s always someone else’s fault.” One trait all successful people have in common is their willingness to be held accountable for their own failures. While less successful individuals might try to blame business partners or events outside of their control, successful ones are willing to admit to their mistakes and to learn from them, as well. They tend not to be worried about casting blame.
   
   
2. “I’m too busy, if only I had more time.” The bottom line is that successful salespeople don’t have any more time than unsuccessful people. We all have 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. What’s different is how we manage our time. Successful people don’t allow work to fill the time allotted; they get work done as fast and effectively as possible … and then move on to the next challenge.
   
   
3. “I simply don’t get any opportunity.” No one is given opportunities, they are earned. If you want to be successful in your career, then you can’t afford to be passive. Take the steps necessary to go out and seize opportunities by being a visible member of your community.

I have a confession to make...

Less than 1 percent of all salespeople who contact me for an appointment actually get one. I find this amazing because, if you know my formula, I’m the easiest guy in the world to get an appointment with.

But, you’ve got to know my formula – and it’s a closely guarded secret that a brilliant lady taught me more than 30 years ago.

This lady, who had been described to me as being one of the toughest “sells” on the face of the earth, became a prospect for me when I was still making cold calls. She was the proverbial whale, a woman who controlled a huge amount of print and marketing business, and so I set my sights on landing this big fish.

Just one small problem, she didn’t see salespeople … period! But, that didn’t stop me. I mailed her a package and called for an appointment … but got no response. Next, I dropped off samples, then mailed and called. Still no response.

Finally, I decided to make a personal call even though her office was 200 miles away. So I sent a note saying that I was going to be in town and mentioned that I’d just drop by around 9:00 one morning for a quick meeting. When she didn’t respond, I just figured: GAME ON.

At promptly 9:00 on the given morning, I arrived — only to be told that she was “out” for the day. I left my card. I also left MAD. And then, I decided that I was going to make getting an appointment with her my mission in sales.

I regularly drove the 200 miles once a month to ask for an appointment, only to be told she was either busy or out. Finally, several years into this mission, when I walked in on my regular day, the receptionist said, “Hold on a minute, she can see you.” After all these trips, I was going to meet the BIG FISH at last.

The door finally opened and this 5-foot, 1-inch woman walked out and asked, “When are you going to quit coming to see me?”

Blown away by the diminutive size of this whale, I said, “That depends.”

She asked, “On what?”

I said, “On which of us dies first!”

She stepped back, gulped and then completely cracked up … laughing until her eyes filled with tears. She invited me in for coffee and asked why this call made so much difference to me.

I explained my mission, and then asked why she was so difficult to see. She said that she had developed a “formula” that kept her from having to meet most of the salespeople who called on her.

Her formula? The salesperson had to find four ways to contact her, to suffer through one appointment cancellation and one time of being “stood up,” and STILL keep coming back.

I asked why the four different contacts didn’t work for me. She told me frankly that she didn’t see the need for anything that I was selling. It did take me a few more years to sell her anything, but by the time of her retirement, she was buying an annual $3.5 million dollars’ worth of my products that she originally thought she didn’t need.

So, the next time you think that you can’t get through to a prospect, remember my client’s formula and try one more time – because persistence pays off.

And, if you want to have a proven, no-nonsense mailing program that has brought salespeople success for

36 years, let me know and I’ll also give you my unique insights into a real estate prospect’s behavior. Email me at johnw@tpmco.com

Now, practice persistence, go out there and have a TERRIFIC day … you deserve it.