Change is coming, change is here - Academy Article for Inside Harcourts August 2008
Change is coming
Number 1 real estate visionary Stefan Swanepoel recently toured Australasia speaking on his latest Trends Report. Stefan visited Harcourts in Brisbane to discuss what change we must prepare for ahead and the top challenges facing real estate people today.
Top 5 Challenges Facing Us Today
- Struggling to service a more informed client, who is educated online by him/herself. Knows more, is more opinionated, has to check out and confirm anything you tell them. More demanding, less likely to give you more than a few minutes of time, expects to pay less because they have already done most of the research.
- Market share going to the big franchise players
- Cold market “I’ll wait and see before I buy or sell”
- Keeping abreast of new models of RE business
- Investing in better real estate training
We can learn from America’s experiences. According to Stefan the biggest mistake the US made was to stop providing training and education in house and professional development featured strongly in the top 10 Real Estate Trends.
TREND 9 THOUGHT REFORM reveals the emerging new breed of real estate professionals.
The new DNA of an agent =
- Must become a real professional
- Must acquire business skills – know and live by a business plan
- Must be internet confident – not just aware of it
It’s about improving your skills and education especially in technology. There is a 5-6% decrease per year of newspaper marketing (it was 90%). There is a 5-6% increase per year of internet marketing (it is now 70%). With PDAs and wireless internet access, real estate consultants are more and more working from home in ‘virtual office space.’
Go into Harcourts Online and register to attend the Academy technology programme in your region.
Swanepoel Trends Report
Trend 1. TWO WORLDS ONE INDUSTRY - The evolution of online communities and networks
Trend 2. POP GOES THE WEASEL – The housing bubble tightens its grip
Trend 3. THE NEW DIGITAL CURRENCY – Livestock, land, gold, oil and now information
Trend 4. FOUR WEDDINGS and a FUNERAL – The changing borders of Multiple Listing Service
Trend 5. IN SEARCH OF PRODUCTIVITY – Growing market share on a slippery slope
Trend 6. GONE IN 60 SECONDS – Identity theft and data security runs rampant
Trend 7. THE TUG OF WAR HAS STARTED AGAIN – The evolving and changing RE business model
Trend 8. CLASH OF THE TITANS – Power brokers flex their muscles
Trend 9. THOUGHT REFORM – The DNA for a new breed of real estate professional
Trend 10. SHATTERED GLASS – Women, youth and minorities step up to leadership roles
To order online: www.RealEstateBooks.org
Change is here
Training requirements for sales registration have substantially increased. Some states of Australia have more than doubled.
New training content will see all sales registration programme content largely focused on industry legislation, legal and ethical requirements, agency risk and consumer protection.
Harcourts is well prepared for this change having predicted it much earlier and spent the last 12months developing this content online for each region.
Contact the Academy in your region to find out more about the new Academy sales registration programme coming to your region.
Adjusting through change
Changes in the workplace are inevitable for companies all over the world. You only have to think back to 1980 (if you’re old enough)… to a world without email, internet, CDs, DVDs, laptops or mobile phones to see just how much the workplace has changed. Whether it’s social, economical or technical causes, managing changes that occur is a vital step in moving our businesses forward faster and more efficiently.
Change will occur no matter what – the only thing we can control is our reaction to it. Change represents both a challenge and an opportunity for growth. Taking advantage of the opportunities will help you not only to adjust to and survive change but also provides the ideal time for good agents to improve their market share at the expense of inexperienced and uneducated agents.
Visit the Academy where we can help you to innovate and then implement! |
sharing 
industry qualifications
