To win listings and secure their position as area specialists, agents need to know everything about their patch, from that neighbour’s squeaky gate to planned council developments.
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An agent's role in the industry has undergone major changes in recent years, brought about by automation, social media, and tax reforms, yet the fundamentals remain key to success.
Speaking at REB’s New Agent Academy in Brisbane, Elder’s NSW state manager, Roylene Reilly, said that despite the shifting landscape professionals face day to day, the core of the job has always been the same.
She said that when she started in the industry over 30 years ago, she focused on knowing every detail in her farming areas and engaging in conversations.
“It’s not rocket science; if you speak to enough people, you will get the deals,” Reilly said.
“That’s what gets you the business, making the call and connections. You need to form relationships, talk to people and have something to offer.”
Elder’s state manager for residential real estate, Queensland and the Northern Territory, Jason Rose, said the ability to build connections with vendors was paramount to success in the industry.
“We’re in a relationship-based business at the end of the day. It’s all about giving people the confidence to want to do business with you,” Rose said.
To enhance their confidence in their own abilities, Rose said that new agents should seek to learn from more experienced professionals around them.
“Part of that’s around having someone to go to and ask questions to give you confidence, because in sales, we have to provide confidence and energy to the clients we’re dealing with to help them make some big decisions,” he said.
“You would want to know that person has confidence in their ability to do the job and knows their business.”
Rose said it was important for less experienced professionals to develop their communication skills with their peers so they would be more comfortable when it came to the real thing.
“We used to call it role-playing, but the big thing is we don’t practice on the live ones.”
Additionally, Reilly said a significant way agents could increase consumer confidence in their ability to handle a listing was to develop expertise in their “patch,” where they do business.
She said that new agents who became well-known in their community would give themselves the best chance of securing listings.
“If there is one piece of advice I can give you, pick a small area and know everything about it,” she said.
Whether it was a squeaky gate or a new park being built, Reilly said that those who could convey that they really understood the area could really differentiate themselves from their competitors.
She said that by positioning herself as an expert in the suburb, she had secured several listing opportunities without competing, because vendors already trusted her.
“Why? Because I knew exactly what I was talking about, and I had built rapport.”
According to Reilly, by having a deep understanding of the area, agents could demonstrate that they were in tune with the community and make vendors feel more comfortable listing their property with them.
She said that while door-knocking and letterbox drops were simple ways for agents to increase their exposure in an area, it was vital that they could provide potential vendors with specific information.
“If you knock on the door and tell me that you have listed number ten and I live down at number 16, I’m going to have questions like ‘how much is it going to sell for?” she said.
“Now you are of interest to me, because you have information that I don’t have.”
Similarly, Rose said it was important that agents were proactively out in the community and ensured clients felt they were ahead of the rest of the market.
“You have to be the news before the people already know the news,” Rose concluded.
Interested in becoming a real estate or buyer’s agent? Join REB’s New Agent Academy
One of the industry’s key education and networking events, it connects early-career agents with some of Australia’s top performers, offering real-world insights to help fast-track your success.
Whether you’re breaking into the industry, building momentum in your first few years, or looking to sharpen your edge in a competitive market, the academy is designed to give you the tools to get ahead.
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The REB New Agent Academy will be held in Melbourne on 5 June and Sydney on 12 June.
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