Any real estate agent with an enduring and successful career knows that they haven’t done it alone. They’ve reached the pinnacle of success by building up an immense personal and professional network – a group of professionals and colleagues who lean on each other for mutual referrals from their affluent client base.
Building up this network takes time and skill and effort. It doesn’t just happen – an agent needs to recognise its value and is prepared to put in the effort to grow it. Years of putting yourself out there, meeting people, and making connections.
Once you have your network established though, it becomes the cornerstone of your real estate business, provided you use it strategically.
Henry Wong has been operating in the southside of Brisbane for many years now and has built up a formidable network in the process. It’s a network not just limited to the local area – his connections stretch interstate and overseas, with strong links to affluent buyers in the Asian community. This is a network that knows Henry and trusts him, they enjoy dealing with him and they’re happy to refer him to their own network.
Therein lies the key to gaining traction when selling houses. Having a network you can utilise to exponentially spread your marketing and put your listing in front of interested parties who already feel connected and comfortable with you.
BX Networking
Henry is the Member Xperience Officer for BX Networking Reimagined in South Brisbane. BX is the fastest growing business networking community in Australia and New Zealand, and an important source of referrals and connections for all its members.
Since joining the South Brisbane chapter, Henry has helped turn it into one of the fastest growing chapters in the country. This article is based on a presentation he made to BX Networking Reimagined, entitled ‘The Subtle Art of Referring’.
The Strategy Behind the Referring
Let’s look at an example, one that didn’t necessarily happen but will give you the basic idea:
Henry has gotten to know an elderly lady, Betty, over a number of years. He visits her regularly, keeping in touch and helping her out where he can. In that time, he’s got to know her family too, becoming involved in their lives. They’ve struck up a friendship.
How? When her daughter had an idea she wanted to trademark, Henry was able to refer her to an Intellectual Property lawyer who could help her out. Then there was Betty’s grandson who ran a successful cafe in the city. When he wanted to sell up and move interstate, Henry referred him to a reliable and successful commercial property agent. Betty also has a son, who ran into marriage trouble with his wife. Henry could guide them towards a marriage counsellor, and when they amicably decided to split up he recommended a divorce lawyer.
One day Betty came to Henry and said she couldn’t take care of her 2,000-square-metre block of land in Indooroopilly anymore. Her knees aren’t great and the gardening was just too much for her. Henry referred her to Harry, who has a landscaping company that tends to the gardens of most of the massive riverside properties. He started helping her out and now her property always looked great.
With all he’s done for them over the years, when it comes time to sell her property, who do you think Betty would choose? It would only ever be Henry.
By working on this relationship and using his network over the years, Henry has gotten himself a good listing and sent referrals to his network members. He’s become more than a real estate agent… he is connecting dots and solving problems. Henry’s network is strengthened and even expanded to include anyone else involved in the transaction.
How to Get Someone’s Attention
If you want to get someone’s attention, someone you’d really like in your network, there are a threeways to go about it:
– Pay for their services.
– Send them referring clients.
– Find out what they value the most.
For a lot of people, they value doors being opened in their business world. If you can connect them to people in your network who can open doors for them, you’re going to catch their attention. Then they become part of your network!
Just like that, your network grows bigger and stronger. Remember, it’s about who knows you as much as it is about who you know!
Let Henry Leverage His Network for You
Having been in the real estate industry for a number of years now, Henry hasn’t just built up a huge network, he’s figured out the best ways to use it strategically. Him and his team would love to leverage it to help get your property sold. He can tap into wealthy buyers from Australia to Asia, and looks forward to presenting your property to them. Contact him now.
