We all know the adage 'when the going gets tough, the tough get going' - and that's never been more true than today. In this series, we showcase the Five Best Practices among Top Producers for staying motivated, helping clients navigate the marketplace, and thriving in these uncertain times."

PART 2 - COMMUNICATE, INFORM, and COMMUNICATE SOME MORE

In Part 1, we discussed having confidence in your expertise. The 2nd most important thing that REALTORS do to thrive in uncertain times is to communicate with clients. Help keep them informed of the market and how to conduct business.

Professional real estate agents must never forget that they are not ‘normal people’ in the eyes of the public. They are professional advisors, leading their clients through the often complex and confusing home sale/purchase process. Professional agents carry with them the expectation of competence.

When the world came under the grip of a global pandemic, the standard complexity of the real estate transaction went through a rapid change (a period of weeks!). Suddenly, there were major changes in mortgage qualification rules, complexity around buyer qualification while furloughed, remote showings, new rules for entering properties, quarantines of out-of-state visitors and sight-unseen transactions, to name a few. As REALTORS, we learned these things in real-time and, in most cases, we became the teachers for the clients. The public looked to us—the essential workers in real estate—for guidance on how to proceed.

Communication becomes supremely important during a crisis. From the authorities to the broker owners to the office managers to the agents, and to clients, the flow of information and new practices connects skilled professionals to people in need of their services.

The agents who have thrived in 2020 are the ones who learned the new rules and procedures and were able to communicate their abilities to a public that wanted to transact sales but were unsure how. The best agents have been able to adapt their practices as well as their communication skills to maintain their value in an unstable real estate sales environment.

Here are some examples of how top agents provided critical communication during the COVID-19 crisis:

• Reaching out to the people in the spheres to check in on their health & welfare
• Contacting clients to keep them informed as closing requirements and dates changed
• Utilizing purposeful marketing demonstrating how they, as professionals, were staying ahead of changing conditions and providing safe practices for conducting business

Here are some interesting resources on communication and providing support during a crisis:

• How Good Leaders Make You Feel Safe – Simon Sinek
• TMG Careers COVID-19 Resource page with information on FAQs for conducting business as well as best practices and video resources
• Communications Techniques, Stanford Graduate School of Business

A word from our ME Director of Career Advancement, Sarah Kelley Ford on Part 1 of this series.

https://www.linkedin.com/embed/feed/update/urn:li:ugcPost:6735960848197533696

A word from our NH Director of Career Advancement, Karen Kulberg on Part 1 of this series.

https://www.linkedin.com/embed/feed/update/urn:li:ugcPost:6735965271011418112

Contact:

Sarah Kelley Ford

Director of Career Advancement

Cell: 781-724-8583

sarahkelleyford@masiello.com

Karen Kulberg

Director of Career Advancement

Office: 603-926-4466

Cell: 603-502-0241

karenkulberg@masiello.com

Next up in our 5-part series - PART 3 - LEVERAGE YOUR COMPANY'S AGENT BENEFITS