A Conversation with Tom Ferry, the #1 Educator in Real Estate 7-25-17

Yasamin Beitollahi, Contributor Realtor® at The Smith Group, Marketing Strategist, Women In Marketing Advisor

A Conversation with Tom Ferry, the #1 Educator in Real Estate

07/25/2017 12:56 pm ET

I spoke with Tom Ferry, one of the nation’s most sought-after coaches by real estate agents, best-selling author and founder of the Tom Ferry Show about the evolving role of digital media in the consumer home search process, his upcoming Success Summit in Las Vegas, and his best advice to realtors on the importance of adapting quickly to marketing trends to take greater advantage of the current market.

Ferry is the CEO of Tom Ferry International, the industry’s most respected real estate coaching and training company. Tom holds the ranking of #1 coach in real estate for four consecutive years for his charismatic style of coaching and innovative marketing and business strategies. Tom is a renowned speaker who has influenced well over half a million real estate professionals to increase their inner and outer wealth by learning how to build and maintain scalable and repeatable businesses. Tom is the best-selling author of Life! By Design, and his widely popular YouTube series, the #TomFerryShow, has benefited countless real estate professionals throughout the world, providing tips and techniques that have proven invaluable for building a successful real estate business.

The players in the world of buying and selling homes have come a long way in embracing new tech amid delays and flubbed opportunities. Some trends stand out as profoundly influential on both real estate professionals and consumers. What marketing trends have been the most disruptive forces for change?

I would say philosophically, it’s power to the people. For the 29 years that I’ve been in the industry, up until Realtor.dom, Zillow, Trulia, Redfin and companies like that, there was a time in real estate when a consumer was basically running blind without a real estate professional. The challenge with that is sometimes the real estate professional was equally blind and didn’t know what was going on or enough about what was going on with the community, taxes, trends, pricing, etc. So, you really had the blind leading the blind. With this power to the people philosophy and with Zillow and Trulia being the most dominant players in the space today, they are empowering the customer with every ounce of information they need. If you look at the trends on Millennials, they don’t do anything without consulting their phone, their friends, reviews, gathering all the information before they take action. So, it’s really the perfect storm right now between what these incredible online solutions are providing and what the customer wants. For the Boomers, it’s the same thing. They want to know how do I get the highest price for my home? How do I do it with the most trusted advisor. Who’s got the best reviews? Most insights, if you will. All of this is creating a more beautiful real estate experience. So, I would say the biggest disruptive trend has been information. So many things had to happen to make that available for the average consumer today to just grab their phone and say, “How much is that home worth? Let me look real fast.” The information is so available that it’s speeding up the process for Millennials and I think it’s creating more ease for Boomers to be empowered to make good decisions. The buyer no longer calls asking about the neighborhoods or the schools, they’ve already done all their research. They’re saying, “We like this community. Now, what houses are available?” The agent’s always going to play a role, but the consumer is just so much more intelligent today.

The players in the world of buying and selling homes have come a long way in embracing new tech amid delays and flubbed opportunities. Some trends stand out as profoundly influential on both real estate professionals and consumers. What marketing trends have been the most disruptive forces for change?

I would say philosophically, it’s power to the people. For the 29 years that I’ve been in the industry, up until Realtor.dom, Zillow, Trulia, Redfin and companies like that, there was a time in real estate when a consumer was basically running blind without a real estate professional. The challenge with that is sometimes the real estate professional was equally blind and didn’t know what was going on or enough about what was going on with the community, taxes, trends, pricing, etc. So, you really had the blind leading the blind. With this power to the people philosophy and with Zillow and Trulia being the most dominant players in the space today, they are empowering the customer with every ounce of information they need. If you look at the trends on Millennials, they don’t do anything without consulting their phone, their friends, reviews, gathering all the information before they take action. So, it’s really the perfect storm right now between what these incredible online solutions are providing and what the customer wants. For the Boomers, it’s the same thing. They want to know how do I get the highest price for my home? How do I do it with the most trusted advisor. Who’s got the best reviews? Most insights, if you will. All of this is creating a more beautiful real estate experience. So, I would say the biggest disruptive trend has been information. So many things had to happen to make that available for the average consumer today to just grab their phone and say, “How much is that home worth? Let me look real fast.” The information is so available that it’s speeding up the process for Millennials and I think it’s creating more ease for Boomers to be empowered to make good decisions. The buyer no longer calls asking about the neighborhoods or the schools, they’ve already done all their research. They’re saying, “We like this community. Now, what houses are available?” The agent’s always going to play a role, but the consumer is just so much more intelligent today.

How are some of the top agents embracing digital as a source of communication with clients and for online branding. What are some trends and best practices?

It’s very cliché, but it’s the rich and the rest. Real estate has always been that way. My grandmother sold homes in 1950 in Huntington Beach and it was the same. There was the top and everybody else. But, the difference today is that the rich aren’t just selling the most houses. They’re also rich in content, rich in teams, rich in service, in their delivery, their reviews, referrals – it’s the whole gamut. Today, what sets the very best people apart is video. That is going to be the great disruptor. If you’re educating me or talking about the neighborhood and explaining what’s going on in the community, you become my trusted resource and my trusted advisor. Someone else may sell more homes than you, but I’m going to gravitate towards the videos, whether I’m a Boomer or a Millennial. Google is saying that by 2019, 80% of the world’s content will be consumed through video. The savvy agent today is not underestimating the power of video.

The U.S. real estate market is in the middle of two massive demographic waves that will power demand for at least the next 10 years. Millennials and Baby Boomers – the two largest generations in history – are both approaching life stages that typically motivate people to buy a home: marriage, having children, retirement, and becoming empty nesters. In what ways should realtors change their approach to satisfy the real estate needs of these two generations?

I would say it’s more likely to be two to three decades. It’s old school marketing, right? Niche to riche. So the challenge is, if you have just one message: “I help my clients buy and sell real estate.” That’s going to resonate with a percentage of the marketplace. But if I’m going to target Boomers specifically, then everything – from my branding to the photography that I use, the messaging – everything is going to be about selling your home and doing what’s next in your life. Giving them the freedom and the choice that their home became the greatest asset that they’ve had and now, what do they want to do with it? Do you want to sell, move, be closer to your grandchildren? For Millennials, it’s about getting started. [As an agent], I would back up from there and ask yourself: “Who is your audience and where can you deliver the most value, authentically?”

You are hosting what industry leaders refer to as the ultimate real estate training experience in Las Vegas in August. What can real estate professionals expect from this 4-day summit?

So, there’s three parts to the event. First part is kind of a TED-style experience where we will showcase 8-10 extraordinary agents, teaching you something in a TED-style 20-minute talk. The first year we launched it people said, “Tom don’t take this personally, but I got so much value out of that, I could left the event and I was completely full.” And, of course that’s what I want. Now, stay the next three days and feel amazing. So that happens on the first day. We have a few guest experts that will hit the stage in addition to all of these agents that will share how they closed 500 deals last year. The third part of it is being in the company of about 5,000 real estate professionals. When you put that many like-minded people in the room, I have believed my entire life that anything is possible.  

What’s next for you?

I am committed to one thing: People and digital are the future. Our role is, how do we help the people of the future in the real estate industry be the best that they can be. We serve a community of committed, coachable, business-oriented group of real estate professionals. That’s what we’re all about. I have been on that mission for 29 years. I also have two more books coming out. One will be launched at Summit in Vegas. We took the 100 best episodes from the Tom Ferry Show and compiled it into a book to make it digestible for people who want to read it because I’m always talking so fast. Let me know what you think!

For more updates from Tom Ferry, follow him on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter and watch his YouTube series.

Yasamin Beitollahi is a Realtor® at The Smith Group, Marketing Strategist and HuffPost Contributor. Connect with her on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.

Source Link:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/a-conversation-with-tom-ferry-the-1-educator-in-real_us_59765769e4b0c6616f7ce451