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All Forum Posts by: Mike Gunther

Mike Gunther has started 4 posts and replied 10 times.

I find that as soon as I learn a script (after 5,000 calls and 400 contacts, for instance), the script tends to stop working. My lead count gets cut in half. Same amount of contacts with 50% fewer leads.

I’ve tried sounding natural. It doesn’t work in a forced awkward situation. I’ve tried to avoid sounding like a robot, but I’ve learned that it’s way easier when you’re working with a brand new script. There is something going on telepathically or it just sounds less like a telemarketer with a new script like they’re absorbing the non-saleseyness through osmosis.

How do you guys manage your scripts when cold calling?

Talking about leads gained through cold calling expireds, absentees, etc.

5? 10? 15? 30?

I spoke to a big name brokerage in regards to a real estate agent position. 

The person that I spoke to suggested I take an agent role in the office 20 minutes east of my home. The issue is that my license will be in a state that is north of my home. I'm concerned that prospects will get confused when they see that my office address is different from my state license which of course is the state they reside/have a property. 

The office in the state I will be licensed in (and closest to them) is located 1 hour north of where my home is. The county that I will be doing business in is 15 minutes to 1 hour and 15 minutes north of my home.

I think it's confusing enough that the area code of my phone number is yet from another state. Yes, my home is in yet a third state different from the 2 offices.

Should I go with the closer office in a different state or a much further office in the state that my customers (and hopefully clients) reside (and will be closer to)?

Post: How do I choose between two brokers?

Mike GuntherPosted
  • Posts 10
  • Votes 2
Quote from @Russell Brazil:

Id honestly say neither of these 2 brokers. Both sound like small independent brokers.

Go with a large market presence that has new agent trainings. Your Keller Williams type of brokerage. Focus on big name, high productivity. Join a high producing team within that type of brokerage.

 Keller Williams was actually one of the four brokerages that I spoke with. My local Keller Williams broker manages 250 agents. How is there any learning done when there are 250 agents? If I have a question, would it ever get answered?

I suppose education isn't big in real estate and if you make a mistake, then E&O is all you need. This leads me to believe that it's just about sales and sales only. Nothing to do with dirt.

Post: How do I choose between two brokers?

Mike GuntherPosted
  • Posts 10
  • Votes 2

I flipped 1 house so I know a little bit about real estate. I’ve also worked in telemarketing for 1 year so I have experience in cold calling. My marketing plan is to cold call 8am-4pm around appointments. I’m hoping to get 1 listing contract for every 10 appointments. I have talked to 4 brokers and am trying to decide between 2.

BROKER A.

I have one broker who has a brokerage of 20 agents. He seems incredibly busy as he used to do BRRRRs and now does flips. He seems hasty about taking questions and refers agents to videos that they can watch (for instance, learning how to do an Agreement of Sale with verbiage and dates). He is looking to grow to 50 agents by the end of 2024. He has a new agent training program every Friday. They go through what you’re struggling with. He has 10 brand new agents. 

They have a transaction coordinator that you can use and it comes out of your commission. They just hired a full time videographer and they charge the agent $200 for photos.

He had a team until 6 months ago. He decided to dissolve it because it wasn’t helping agents. He believes that the team structure holds you back. He is also spending $12k/mo in leads. They have a lead pond. I probably wouldn’t take advantage of this.

He said that I can cold call for him. I’m confused because he mentioned salary and not commission, but he did mention ramping me up to eventually make $100k. He said that he is the best brokerage for cold calling. He said that I can go with him on appointments that I set.

Seemed like a very nice guy that knew a lot about cold calling.

He said that I would spend 8am-2pm on cold calling and the rest of the day on appointments which is the exact schedule that I’m looking for.

BROKER B.

The other broker doesn’t believe in cold calls and relies mainly on referrals.

He has a new realtor that has done 6 deals in 8 months. He is a former real estate trainer. He knows a ton about real estate and is not new to it. He is an associate broker with a brokerage that is growing, albeit slower than the other brokerage. They went from 200 agents to 300 agents.

He is going to give me more personalized training and will meet with me for an hour every week.

He tells me that he is going to show me all of the tips and tricks of the industry such as how to get listings from divorce attorneys, Sherriff sales, and estates.

He has done all types of deals such as land deals and commercial deals.

He does not have a transaction coordinator.

His SOI is 4,800 and is preaching to use your SOI. I’m not against marketing to an SOI, but I would much prefer building it through cold calling and collecting email addresses for an email list. He is big on email lists. So that’s a plus with his marketing strategy. He is also big with circle prospecting which is going to be my main list source.

His brokerage has a title company and mortgage company that he uses that you can get referral fees from. His title company can close in less than a week.

He said that he would help me talk to divorce attorneys to generate leads. 

MY SITUATION

Also to note. I'm doing this part-time initially. I understand just how difficult it is part-time and this may throw the weekly training from Broker A out the window. I'm currently unemployed, though, and until I find a replacement full-time job, I can do as much training as possible. Broker A said he would start me out as an inside sales rep. The problem is that I need at least $20/hour to survive and I hear that those types of jobs are very low pay, like $15/hour, but I have not discussed this with him yet. Outside of applying to jobs on Sundays and doing an interview or 2 a week, I have 6 full days that I can somehow ramp up my business such as cold calling to put people on lists (although I'm not an agent yet). I have passed the pre-licensing courses and I'm just waiting to take my exam in a week and it takes a whole month for the application to go through the state in my state.

Post: Does Cold Calling Really Work?

Mike GuntherPosted
  • Posts 10
  • Votes 2

@Mike Schorah @Braden Smith

All of us men and women, we've got to have something we're doing in life. We've got to have something we're pursuing. It's like most of the people in this world, they're working jobs, careers or businesses that don't excite them. You've got to do something with your life. Half of my clients... I'm helping them figure out the purpose of their life. In other words, what they really want to do with their lives. And the biggest reason why most people don't go for what they really want is fear. They think "I'm not smart enough. I'm not good-looking enough. I don't have enough connections. I don't have enough education. I could never do that. I'd probably fail at it." So they don't even try. So instead of going for what they really want, they choose to do something that's mediocre. I remember a girl years ago... this is back when I was waiting tables and sleeping on my dad's couch when I was trying to figure out my business model. I worked with this girl who was one of the most beautiful women I've ever met in my life. She had a lot of confidence. She really got men. And she was very charming. But she had no self-confidence. She had no belief in herself. And I remember... I think she said that she talked to her dad. She jumped around. She's had 5 or 6 jobs since then. And she's not doing what she really wants which is to be a writer. She loves writing. She loves English. Like I said, one of the most beautiful and charming women that I've ever met in my life. And she's just like the rest of the people. She's just shooting for a life that is totally less than what she's capable of living. And it's sad for me knowing what I know and seeing somebody do that and just give up on themselves. Cause I know how that's going to affect her 10, 15, 20 years down the road. She'll have gray hair. She'll have circles under her eyes. She'll marry some dude that's not the kind of guy that knocks her socks off and just live an average mediocre life and die many years before she should have. That to me is sad. That is a tragedy. And the majority of the people in the world are like that. They've already given up before they even try because they think "That's not in the cards for me. I've got to be realistic after all." A strategic planner taught me many years ago. He said "There is no such thing as a bad idea. Only bad plans." And since most people don't know how to put a plan like that together, they just try to go for what's easy. And you're never going to make yourself happy. Why settle? I've tried that when I was younger. Settling never made me happy. It made me absolutely miserable whether it was jobs, the company I was working at, or relationships I was in. Settling was what caused me to get married the first time around because everybody talked me into it and I talked myself into it and eventually I realized I felt like I was dying a slow death by living that life I was living and being in a relationship that really wasn't all that it could have been.

Braden is right. The feds are cracking down on major cold calling operations. Take a look at this following article:

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/r...

They were fined $1.6 million for making 45 million illegal robocalls. 

1.6/45 = .0356

They were fined $.0356 per call. 

I'm not advising doing something illegal here. In fact, I'm advising to DO THE COMPLETE OPPOSITE. 

But, I sympathize with someone like yourself who want to follow their passion but doesn't have the funds to do so. Let's say it took you 1,000 phone calls to get a deal...

1000*.0356 = $35

$35 is a pretty small fine to get started with your dream business. Hell, I just got a ticket in the mail for a damn red light that I don't believe I ran and it was $150. 

With a deal, you can make $10k off of it and use that to do direct mail. If you can't afford to do direct mail with $10k then bless your heart.

Once again, DO NOT DO ANYTHING ILLEGAL HERE!

Nice! Keep up the good work!

Post: Best locations to start investing

Mike GuntherPosted
  • Posts 10
  • Votes 2

How about the midwest? 

Cleveland, Cincinnati, Toledo, Columbus, Springfield...

Post: First Time Home buyer: Bay Area

Mike GuntherPosted
  • Posts 10
  • Votes 2

Can you afford it? Investing in Chicago would be much cheaper!

Personal name. An LLC does nothing.