Are you looking to become a luxury real estate agent and want to know what makes an agent successful at closing high-dollar deals? I’ve put together a list of 6 tips for becoming a successful real estate agent in the luxury market. You’ll notice quickly that most of these tips will apply to any niche of real estate, but are simply catered to luxury real estate. Nonetheless, these are still good ideas that will help guide you in the right direction and inspire you to pursue being successful as a luxury real estate agent.
Set Real Estate Business Goals
It’s easy to become a real estate agent, but just like with anything, if you don’t have any goals in mind, chances of you being very successful are quite slim. You want to know what you’re working towards. For example, it could be being a top producer under your broker, reaching a certain dollar amount in sales closed, listing a certain amount of properties, closing a certain number of transactions, or earning a specific amount of year-end profit. There are a variety of thoughts on how to go about setting goals, but ultimately you’ll want to have them written down and set out in front of you as a reminder.
- Think about what you want 5 years from now. It’s okay if this is a “pie-in-the-sky” dream goal. You may find this goal needs to be adjusted and that’s okay too. Sometimes it’s hard to know if it’s realistic until you start working towards it.
- I personally like to focus on goals a year in advance because these can easily be broken down into actional steps by seasons, months, weeks, and days. This brings me to my next tip…
Have a Real Estate Marketing Plan
Now that you have your goals established, you’ll want to start working on a plan to achieve these goals. There are several ways to strategize your marketing plan. You can do a couple of these ideas or all of them. Yes, it can get overwhelming, but you don’t have to do it all yourself. Some of these actions may be best to hire out. Consider each recommendation and see how you can implement it to help you achieve your goals.
Remember: People won’t know you’re a luxury real estate agent unless you tell them.
- Decide where you will market. To do this, you’ll have to think about the type of people you want to be helping. Where do people buying luxury real estate go, what types of hobbies do they do, etc. For example: if you were selling to a first-time homebuyer, you’d probably mail flyers to apartments or place an ad in a coupon book. Since you’re targeting people buying or selling luxury real estate, you may place an ad in a school sport’s program at a school that services a luxury real estate area, join a Junior League or participate/become a sponsor in a golf tournament.
- Create and maintain a social media presence. There are several strategies and platforms you can use, and for the most part, you can advertise for free. Depending on your strategy, it can be a good thing to pay for advertising on social media. I strongly advise you have a well-researched plan in place with a specific goal in mind before you invest money on a platform though. If you don’t know what you’re doing you can accidentally throw money away, but if done correctly this can be an effective strategy.
- Have your own website. Not one through your broker, but your very own website you can customize to fit your specific niche and brand. It may seem daunting, but if you want to be taken seriously, having a hub on the internet where people can find you is key. With this website, you can establish yourself as a local expert and share about the different neighbourhoods, explain what makes you the luxury real estate professional to use, and even use plugins like, Showcase IDX, to show listings just like a major real estate search engine!
Sure, you can have pages or handles on social media platforms, but those websites are owned by other people and they can be gone overnight. If you have your own website, regardless of what happens elsewhere, people can always find you.
Become a Luxury Real Estate Expert
If you want to become a trusted real estate agent in the luxury market, there are steps you can take towards becoming an expert in your niche before you sell your first luxury property.
- Become certified through the Luxury Homes Certification (LHC) course offered by the National Association of Realtors (NAR). When you complete a course, especially if it’s backed by NAR, this shows you are a specialist in the luxury market, which can give you more credibility. Besides, you’re wanting to learn everything you can about selling luxury real estate and this will help you do just that.
- Find a mentor. You won’t learn everything from a course though. Some things you learn from experience, or from someone who’s done what you’re wanting to do. It’s ideal to find a mentor who works within the same brokerage as you. On that same note, it would be a good idea to find a brokerage that caters to the luxury market as a whole. This will help with finding a mentor and help your personal brand as a luxury real estate agent. In relation to that, using a service like Calculated Leads can teach you how to get more leads generated for your business.
- Pro-Tip: When you find a mentor, make sure to show them how much you appreciate their willingness to help you grow as an agent. For example: you can show them by bringing them a coffee whenever you meet and telling them thank you for taking the time to help you learn and grow as an agent.
Build Relationships and Networking
Building relationships is for an agent in the luxury market is essential if you want to be a trusted luxury real estate agent.
- Client Relationships. As your business grows you will want to keep in touch with former clients. Just because you’ve worked with them once, doesn’t mean they won’t need you to help them sell their luxury property a few years later and help them buy a new one. On the same note that you have to tell people, you’re a luxury real estate agent, you’ll need to remind them. Yes, even if they are a former client of yours. For example: you could send them a card on their birthday, a holiday, or anniversary.
- Vendor Relationships. Think of all the professionals you will encounter when selling real estate. Lenders, title companies, and contractors are all good contacts to keep in touch with. To take it a step further think outside the real estate box. What other professionals might have the same clientele as you? Financial advisors, lawyers are a couple of ideas. In the luxury real estate niche, it’s very common to gain a new client through referrals from other professionals. Cultivating these relationships is just as imperative as client relationships.
Remember: People need to know you care about them and aren’t just using them to make bank. Though your goal is to make money, you want your relationships to be genuine. Don’t expect anything to transpire overnight. Consider relationships a marketing strategy for the long haul.
Gain Experience in the Luxury Market
Oftentimes, a trusted agent is an experienced agent. Especially in the luxury market. Luxury real estate owners know what they have and want someone they can rely on to represent them in their transactions. So how do you gain experience without having experience?
- Co-list. This can help you gain experience and build your portfolio. Not all agents will be on board with this, but it’s not uncommon to find established agents that are open to co-listing. After all, you both will make money from the transaction.
- Pro-tip: When looking for a mentor to help you become an expert, check to see if they will be open to co-listing with you. Chances are, if they’re willing to mentor you, they’ll be willing to work alongside you in a transaction.
Implement Small Business Strategies
By now I hope you feel inspired by the ideas presented above, but I imagine you’re also feeling a bit overwhelmed too. That’s okay! There’s a lot to do to become a successful real estate agent in the luxury market. You’ll need a plan to execute these ideas. To do this, you’ll want to implement small business strategies.
- Optimize where you can. Is there something you can automate? Perhaps you send emails to new leads. You can automate a welcome series so you aren’t physically sending emails every time a new lead comes your way.
- Maybe creating marketing materials is not your strong suit. You can hire this out to save you time and headache.
- Ultimately, you will want a way to be organized and this may take time to figure out what works best for you. Are you old school and prefer paper and pen? Does a digital planner work best for you? There is no wrong way to get organized if it helps you keep your business streamlined so you can keep your business moving forward.
