If we look at the engine of your business, it's your sphere of influence.

Statistically, for every 10 people in your sphere, you'll average one closed sale.

But that's only if you stay in touch with them 20 to 50 times a year and have a good relationship with them. So let's go back to January 1st. Do you know how many people were in your sphere at that time?

If you don't, you don't have control of your business.

Now, fast forward to today. Have you grown your sphere of influence in the past six months? If not, your business may not be growing and could even be shrinking due to market challenges.

We can't escape market conditions by focusing on other things and neglecting our sphere. The key to changing your business's trajectory is to quickly increase your sphere of influence. You may be wondering how to do that. Well, here's a magic number to keep in mind:

The average American has 27 conversations a day. As REALTORS, we should have even more. With that many conversa...

Can you relate to this?

You meet someone at a party or an event, and you have an amazing conversation. You really connect and feel like you could become friends. But then they disappear, and you never hear from them again.

As REALTORS, we often miss the chance to expand our spheres of influence and grow our business by nurturing these relationships. Plus, we could gain some friends along the way.

But here's the secret sauce: The Ford Plus One technique.

You might be familiar with the Ford technique, which stands for Family, Occupation, Recreation, and Dreams and goals. Whenever you're talking to someone and struggling to keep the conversation flowing, think about these topics.

Ask about their family, their occupation, what they enjoy doing for fun, and their dreams and goals. But as good as that is, I want to add a plus one to this technique.

Why?

I want to find a way to add value to the conversation even after it ends.

So, I actively listen for opportunities to ...

Hey guys, let me share an inspiring story with you:

Years ago, I met Wan Foran, a REALTOR who faced incredible challenges on his journey to success. Wan graduated from real estate school on September 11, 2001, as a Muslim immigrant in a small town. Despite the odds stacked against him, Wan achieved remarkable success. I asked him, "How did you overcome these obstacles?"

His answer changed my perspective, and it can change yours too.

Wan knew he needed to expand beyond his local market to thrive. So he adopted a unique approach to farming...

Instead of targeting specific demographics or niches, he focused on feeder markets—areas surrounding his town that contributed potential clients. Wan identified the top 10% of REALTORS in each feeder market and initiated contact through postcards, calls, and emails. He introduced himself as a hardworking REALTOR and offered an enticing proposition:

If they referred clients to him, he would pay them a higher commission than the stan...

Human resource directors, why should you care about them?

Well, if you're seeking a new lead generation strategy, consider focusing on HR directors.

Here's why:

In most markets, companies with over 25 employees have an HR person responsible for hiring, evaluations, and more. Part of their job involves recruiting, primarily focusing on the company's benefits.

But what if you could assist them in selling not only the company's benefits but also the benefits of living in the area?

Here's how you can approach HR directors:

Start by obtaining a list from the Chamber of Commerce and target larger businesses in your market. Introduce yourself as [Your Name] from ABC Real Estate, a relocation specialist.

Let them know you understand their role in human resources and offer your assistance as a REALTOR in promoting the market area. Emphasize that your services are free to the company, and you only earn a commission if an employee buys or rents a property through you.

To k...

Did you know that one in seven US home investors lost money on their investment in March?

While I don't feel too bad for them, it's worth noting that profits are down for flippers and investors in the marketplace. And the reason for this is simple: holding costs are higher, interest rates have increased, and there's less inventory to choose from. So when a property that meets their criteria does come on the market, there's higher competition for it.

But as a REALTOR, you can help investors and be the person they turn to.

Let me share my personal experience:

Twice this week, I had different agents representing buyers call me. Their approach was interesting. They said, "Hey Jim, I noticed you recently purchased some real estate investment property. I have an investor myself who's looking to buy something. Do you have anything that you're holding that you'd be willing to sell now that you've bought some other things?"

I thought this was a great strategy - they just id...

Do you have a hospitality mindset?

I heard two stories that really brought this home.

The first story is about a restaurateur in New York City who overheard a group of four customers talking about how they had never had a hotdog in New York City, despite just having a $500 lunch at his high-end restaurant. The owner of the restaurant went to a hotdog vendor across the street, bought four hotdogs, had the chef cut them up and arrange them elegantly on a plate with all the condiments the customers wanted, and had the maitre d' bring it out to the customers. They were amazed, even though they had just eaten a five-star meal.

The second story is about Steve Wynn, who owns the Wynn Casinos in Las Vegas and all over the world. He implemented a process where all managers have a daily brainstorming session before every shift, and one of the things they discuss is positive experiences they've had with guests.

One of the stories that came out of this process was about a bellman ...

Hey guys, what's the best way to make your real estate marketing really pop, to come to life and generate more buyers and seller calls and emails and texts?

Well, the secret is using the AIDA approach, which stands for:

Attention
Interest
Desire
Action

I want you to go back and measure all your marketing against this standard. It's simple and easy to understand.

It starts with Attention.

Is the marketing you're doing grabbing people's attention, shaking them and saying, Hey, you gotta look at me?When you look at marketing in magazines, on television, or on the internet, it has to break through the other 5,000 advertising messages the average American sees every day. So how do we break through? A lot of times, it's by asking a question, using photography, or creating visuals that are funny, ironic, or shocking. If it's the same old boring photos and headshots that you see with most realtors, it won't do that. We have to get outside the box.

The second thing is Interest.

We...

How many referrals did you send out last week to your favorite vendors in your market area? If the answer for most of you is a big fat goose egg, here's the problem:

The problem is you gotta put into place the power of reciprocity.

You start pushing out what you want to receive. Give, give, give, and eventually things will start coming back to you. It's just a natural thought, reciprocity.

We give because we want to be grateful and generous, and we know eventually good things will come back. But when you're not in that mindset of having abundance and you're closed up, you're not ready for opportunity. You have to open yourself up to opportunity by being the person that provides opportunity to others.

When you're out in the market, you're listening for opportunities to help people in your sphere of influence, people that you can help with their small businesses and what they're trying to get done in their lives. When you do this, your world will turn on its head. It w...

If you're looking for a way to quickly ramp up your business—if you're having a little bit of a slow time, or even if you're not—and you want to lead generate in a simple, easy, and organic way, let me give you the 20 messages a day strategy.

The 20 messages a day strategy is very, very simple.

I'm gonna use my social media account. You can pick your one: Instagram, Facebook, wherever. I'm gonna go to my friend's list of my following, my group, my audience, and I'm just gonna pick 20 people. And I'm generally just gonna start at the A's and work my way down. Or start a Z's and work my way up.

But I'm gonna click on each individual profile of those 20 different people. I'm gonna find something interesting, something they've posted that really catches my interest. Maybe they went to a restaurant, they went on vacation, they went to a certain business that you frequent, they bought something super cool, whatever it happens to be.

Then, I'm gonna send them a message rela...

Hey guys, some new interesting information from NAR regarding how far people move when they buy a new home.

For decades, the number was about 10 to 15 miles from where they were moving to where they were going to.

Now that shot up dramatically last year to 50 miles—an unheard of number. And where are people heading?

1. Small towns: up 9% from last year.

2. Rural areas: up 7% from last year.

So people are wanting to exit urban areas, kind of that urban exodus we've talked about for a long time. And why are they doing it? Well, they have remote working, they have a remote school, and they want to get out of the urban jungle. And affordability is a big issue. They can buy a much bigger house, much nicer house by going out to these rural and small town areas.

So what about your market? Are you starting to see this in your market?

Maybe you're on the flip side where you live in a rural market like I do and you're benefiting from people coming to you. And on the other side, maybe y...