How to Outcompete Other Real Estate Agents

It’s tough to be a real estate agent in the modern era. Despite a flourishing real estate industry, the sheer amount of competition makes it hard to stand out, earn new clients, and sell homes in a prompt and professional manner. 

In fact, not long ago, there were more active real estate agents in the United States than there were listed homes for sale.

So what does it take to be better? What do you have to do to outcompete your greatest competitors?

Prioritize Your Clients

One of the most important things you’ll need to do is prioritize your clients. As a real estate agent, your clients are everything. If someone isn’t happy with your services, they’re going to leave. If they walk away thrilled, they’re going to recommend you to everyone they know. Over time, better client relationships are going to lead to a better reputation, more visibility, and of course, better results.

So what does it take to serve your clients better?

•         Improve your communication. Everything starts with better communication. It’s important to have concise, articulate conversations with your clients and respond to them as quickly as you can. If they ask you a question via email, try to get back to them with an answer within a day. If they call you, call them back as soon as possible and listen to what they have to say. These communication fundamentals may seem straightforward, but they’re the key to establishing your presence in the real estate world.
•         Focus on relationships. Similarly, it’s vital to focus on the relationships you build as a real estate agent. These aren’t just random people you’re helping to buy or sell a home; they’re your clients, and you want to take care of them. Learn about their values and perspectives and treat them as you would a friend; they’ll be much more inclined to rate you favorably and recommend you to others as a result.
•         Understand and speak to pain points. Work to understand your target demographics and speak to their pain points. What are the common problems faced by clients like yours in this area? Do you have a solution that other real estate agents don’t?
•         Remain flexible and accommodating. This should go without saying, but try to remain as flexible and accommodating as possible. Scheduling that showing may make it difficult for you to accomplish the rest of your priorities for the day, but it could be the one your clients want to buy.

Use a Variety of Marketing Channels

Marketing is a vital skill of real estate agents. You need to be prepared to both market the properties you’re listing for sale and market yourself to find new clients. To succeed, you’ll need to lean on a variety of marketing channels.

For example, one of the best ways to raise the visibility of a luxury property are just listed postcards. Combined with digital ads, email marketing, and other tactics, you can make a huge impact with almost any target audience. For yourself, social media marketing is one of the best modern strategies to improve the reach of your personal brand.

Figure Out What Makes You Unique

There are millions of real estate agents in the United States. So what makes you unique? What can you do that others can’t?

If you want to be competitive, you’ll need an answer to this question. If you’re new to the game, you’re not going to beat people based on experience or knowledge of the area. So what can you offer that’s unique to you? Spend some time figuring out your unique value proposition (UVP) and bringing it to the front of your personal marketing efforts.

Connect With Other Real Estate Agents

This may seem counterintuitive, but one of the best ways to beat your competitors is to connect to them directly. Spend time networking and getting to know the other agents in your area. You may even want to shadow them occasionally. At worst, you’ll figure out what you’re up against, so you can devise strategies to beat them. At best, you’ll learn the critical strategies and tactics you’ll need to succeed – and tap into the power of a robust support network.

Get Lots of Feedback

Finally, make sure you get as much feedback as possible. Talk to your mentors, your peers, and of course, your clients to get a better perspective on how you’re working and what you might be doing wrong.

If you’re new to being a real estate agent, don’t count on rising to the top overnight. Improving your personal brand and client relationships is a process that takes years. 

Just keep investing in yourself and tweaking your approach until you find the right niche and strategic focus.