Three Ways to get an Unfair Advantage Over Your Competition

REAL ESTATE COACH AND trainer Tom Panos is well known for teaching agents how to attract business and not just chase it. His podcast with John McGrath “Million Dollar Agent” has drawn an enormous following online. Here are some of the top tips from the podcast this year.

1. 1. KNOWLEDGE IS NOT POWER
      Knowledge used to be power, but Google is now knowledge. Anything you want can be found on Google. If you’ve got a computer, if you’ve got broadband, you’re as smart as the CEO of Microsoft. You could be picking up garbage, you could be collecting stamps, you could be a kitchen hand; the bottom line is you can go onto Google and find exactly what you want.For me it’s not what you know, it’s what you do that counts. Knowing and not doing is the same as not knowing. I like to let people know ‘Never let perfect get in the way of better’. In fact, 80 per cent of winning is just beginning, so just get started. Get momentum, and just worry about the next action.
   2. GIVE YOURSELF A DAILY THREE-HOUR ADVANTAGE OVER THE COMPETITION
      The 5 AM Club: OK, so not so new anymore and people expect this from me. But what a buzzword! What does really it mean? For a start, the 5 AM club is the secret weapon that gives certain human beings on the planet a three-hour advantage over everyone else. Here are some reasons why I think you should actually make the 5 AM Club a ritual and part of your success routine:It’s a chance to plan. It’s a chance to create a day of design versus a day of accident. It’s also a wonderful opportunity for you to exercise, because there is nothing more powerful than starting your day loaded with endorphins. You’ll feel energetic coming to work knowing that you’ve sweated, that you’ve had an opportunity to think through your day, and most importantly, you’ve got rid of the stuff that sometimes is put off and never gets done in the end.

      It’s an opportunity to get smart. The hand that picks up a book is never the same hand that puts it back down, and being part of the 5 AM Club gives you that time, whether it’s half an hour of listening to an audiobook, a podcast, or reading something inspiring. It’s an opportunity to have that silent time, that quiet time to elevate your thinking.

      Don’t expect it to be easy; it’s not! The 5 AM Club as a ritual for many of you is going to be daunting. For many of you who are thinking, ‘I wake up at 7:00 or I wake up at 7:30 and it’s all too hard’, well yes, the first 30 days are going to be hard. I’m going to make that clear. Don’t expect that you’re going to start waking up at 5:00 and saying ‘This is excellent!’

      You’re going to get tired, but after the first 30 days you’re going to notice a different feeling. Then you survive 60 days. You’ve created a world-class ritual that is going to give you an incredible advantage for the rest of your life. But don’t forget, if you’re a 5 AM Club person you must be at least a 10 PM sleeper!

   3. SCRIPTS, DIALOGUES, WORDS: THEY CHANGE LIVES
      I’ve learned from a young kid that the things you say and the way you say them can actually change the story someone has or their belief about a particular topic. I’m going to share with you some really good listing presentation dialogue.Dialogue to get you in, to talk about your strategy and marketing. ‘Mr and Mrs Vendor, it’s the process, not the promise of a price, that will have your home sold for top dollar. Can we discuss that process?’

      Dialogue to discuss value. ‘Mr and Mrs Vendor, your home’s value is dependent on four things: location, presentation, agent, and the strategy you use in marketing. The good news is that three of the four are things you can control.’

      Starting the marketing discussion. ‘Mr and Mrs Vendor, if I could show you how to swap $5,000 to make $50,000 would you be interested?’

      Overcoming a listing objection based on price. ‘Mr and Mrs Vendor, will you be selecting the agent on the things the agent can control, like marketing and their solve strategy, or things the agent can’t control, like the price they give you at the listing?’

      Finally, a good piece of dialogue to help your vendors understand that theirs is not the only home on the market. ‘Mr and Mrs Vendor, your home is on the market in competition, not in isolation.’

Finally, let me just say that when scripts and dialogues are internalised, when you know them so well that you sound like you’re having a conversation with a friend at a café, when your intentions are right, and authenticity and care come through, they’re no longer scripts and dialogue, they are a con.