Since few firms will have the resources to take advantage of every opportunity. A big part of the challenge will be to select which of the opportunities are most conducive to the firm’s human, financial and innovative resources. The following opportunities should be considered during your annual business plan review for 2005:
• The Internet will continue to expand and enhance its influence over real estate transactions as more consumers use the net to identify inventory, select a firm or agent and identify the property they will purchase. Firms can take advantage of this opportunity by building and promoting sixth generation Web sites that present the unique experience that the firm will then deliver.
• Winning firms will have opportunities to expand their influence within the marketplace by being where and what the consumer wants them to be. While those firms ignoring the Internet as the first point of contact will miss these opportunities.
• The industry’s recently acquired understanding of benchmarking and the importance of performance-based metrics will allow winning firms to use these ‘weapons systems’ to create clear competitive advantages. Non-competitive firms continue to rely on empirical data to set their management agendas. Winning firms will couple software programs such as Terra Datum with readily available market and competitive data to create winning strategies and tactics.
• Market dominant firms across the country will continue to change the rules of market competition. Listing management, phased cooperation, market responsive compensation and private inventory management will all contribute to creating a new market edge. Winning firms will carefully monitor these actions and will make their own competitive decisions relative to where they want to be in the new market order.
• The industry’s knowledge of the Internet-generated, or virtual lead exploded in 2004. Winning firms are now managing lead operations based upon information and expertise that didn’t exist or wasn’t accessed 12 months ago. Winning firms will make accessing this knowledge and creating the appropriate strategic relationships necessary to harvest Internet leads a key priority for the year ahead.
• Millions of dollars will be invested in every aspect of lead generation and management and the 2005 lead harvest will be greater than ever. Winning firms will carefully monitor these developments and will reevaluate prior decisions relative to playing in this space.
• While some firms will follow the national trend of pulling out of existing MLS operations in favor of “broker-owned” operations, others will note the remarkable lack of success being experienced by the new generation MLS and will move to affect change and leadership within the existing MLS operation. Winning firms will move to be more powerful and influential.
• The arrival during the past year of thousands of new generation “X” agents will create a huge opportunity for firms that understand how these new participants differ from their “boomer” predecessors. Winning firms that establish “boomer-free” work spaces that respect and encourage the unique values of these new agents and allow them to operate free of boomer “tainting” will discover just how many miracles can be performed when the firm and its agents are working on the same team with the same objectives.
• Winning firms will recruit management candidates from other service industries and will use performance metrics systems to bring them up to speed relative to the real estate industry. At the same time these firms will connect their new managers with their new “X’er” agents through creative arrangements that maximize productivity, professional satisfaction and most importantly, profitability.
• Transactional Standards developed in 2004 will be implemented by many in the industry. Winning firms will recognize that standards are the key to profitability and long-term customer relationships. For the winning firm there exists a significant opportunity to use these standards to create more productive and profitable relationships with customers, agents and other firms.
The true test of success in 2005 will not be measured in production numbers but rather profitability objectives. Total agent count will cease to be relevant in favor of participating agent totals.
The winning firm will not be focused upon following the traditional track but rather by taking advantage of the new opportunities. The business plans of winning firms will be distinguished by the level of new ideas, creative interruptions and innovative directions.
For everyone in the industry, 2005 will be a year of promise, potential and new knowledge. Don’t miss the joy, set your course today.
