One fine morning, when I was conducting a meeting with my negotiators, one new negotiator who had just joined my company two weeks ago, asked me how could he become one of the top 10 salespeople in 12 months? There were many who spoke and contributed different great ideas, trying to convince the newcomer how he could be one of the top 10 in 12 months. One of them said, the most important factor on how strong his sales results are will depend on his networking. I told him networking, if done correctly, can be very productive or else, it will be very disastrous.  With the right approach, real estate agents can use it to build a wealth of resources.

1. Don’t try to sell property

   Remember, whenever you attend any events, be it wedding dinners, anniversaries or rotary club meetings, do not make it a vehicle to “hit on” business people to buy your property. Networking is about developing good relationships with other professionals. Meeting people at events should be the beginning of that process, not the end of it.

2. Exchange business cards

   Exchange business cards with people you meet; this is just the beginning of networking. Make a note at the back of the name-card, date and time you first met, a brief note on topics exchanged. This will help you when you follow up later.

3. Manage your time effectively

   In this fast changing business world, everyone is busy. Proper management of your appointments can save a lot of valuable time and money. For example, if you have an appointment in the North of Kuala Lumpur, then try to meet your clients who are near the vicinity. Don’t try to meet one client at the North of Kuala Lumpur and the other at the South of Kuala Lumpur. You will end up wasting a lot of valuable time on traveling instead. If your goal is to meet a given number of people, be careful not to spend too much time with any one person.

4. Be prepared

   You must read more, understand the property you are handling with the most practical knowledge you can and know all inside-out. This includes market price, types of property, trends and so on. You must get yourself prepared before the appointments. I remember, there was once I went for the viewing of a property, I only realized that the house key was left in my other car when the prospect had already arrived at the scene. So you can guess how embarrassed I was.

5. Have strong networking tools

   Real estate business is human business. You need to socialize with everyone you meet; keep a good record of people you meet, you talked to, and most important; you must remember clearly who they are. Therefore, to build a strong networking business circle, you need the tools to do networking. These includes business cards, brochures about your real estate business, a pocket-sized business card file containing cards of other professionals who you can refer to, such as local authorities personnel, architects, bank officers and valuers as well as a portable computer with all relevant information.

6. Be a good listener

   Remember a good salesperson has two ears and one mouth, and uses them smartly and proportionately. Listen and be a good listener. Hear what they want and what they don’t want. Don’t talk so much, as if you know everything.

7. Build up your referral network

   When you are in real estate business, one of these two things must have happened. Either you called them, or they called you. Your main goal is to set up and maintain a growing network to generate referral and repeat business.