So how’s your profitability doing? If it’s not where you’d like it to be, maybe it’s time for a good old fashioned BarBQ!
More than ever, both real estate agents AND real estate companies need to protect their profit...
Every dollar counts...and profitability has always been a product of two factors, not one!
First of all, you must make every effort to increase revenue by taking saleable listings, working with qualified buyers and ultimately putting those commission checks in the bank!
Secondly, you must consider your business costs. CUT THE FAT AND NOT THE STATS, by eliminating wasteful costs of doing business while protecting those costs that are helping you create business!
So just what does this have to do with a BARBQ? Well, when analyzing your business costs, you might have some “Sacred Cows” that have gotta go.
And NO, we are not talking about real cows! A “sacred cow”, so to speak, is something you protect for all the wrong reasons! In real estate, it could be something or someone that is no longer profitable and possibly never was!
Here’s some things to think about:
First of all let’s talk about People: Are you keeping someone on your team or in your office that you KNOW is not the right person in the right seat on the bus? I hate to tell you, but that person is a SACRED COW! And remember, just because they’re a family member does not automatically make them the right person for the job.
Next, how about your marketing efforts? Is print advertising still a major part of your plan regardless of its ability to generate business? I had a very successful agent share this business philosophy: He doesn’t spend any money on any marketing just to APPEASE a Seller. He’s replaced 90% of print advertising with technology exposure, keeping his Seller’s happy AND reducing his costs. Now I’m not saying that all print advertising is ineffective. I am saying that you shouldn’t be doing any type of advertising JUST BECAUSE it’s always been done this way in the past! IF you have a method for TRACKING your marketing, including print advertising, it may still be an effective lead generation opportunity. Use of an IVR, 1-800 and/or text tracking program/system could be the answer.
How about your products? Does it make sense to continue spending money, for example, on an age old website that is not creating any business? Regardless of what you’ve already spent, throwing good money after bad has never been an effective business strategy. Many new products are in the marketplace... do some research and consider replacing that Sacred Cow! And systems...do you have something in place that has lost its’ effectiveness? What about an old data base management program?
Is staying the same easier in your mind than the work it would take to make a change? Keep in mind that an updated system may come with better programs that would improve your contact with past clients and your referral base. That could lead to more sales and more income!
And this leads us to the last, but certainly not the least of the Sacred Cows....
A mind set that causes you to focus on the cost of something vs. its’ potential to create profit. If you feel you’re a candidate for this one, are you willing to give up this “penny wise but pound foolish” way of thinking? Remember, If you all do what you’ve always done, you’ll always get what you’ve always gotten! (If you’re questioning the grammar implications of this one, you’re missing the point!) Remember, in today’s real estate world, more than ever, every dollar counts. If you don’t do something about those Sacred Cows, sooner or later they’ll eat up your field of green!
