How many remember the movie Back to the Future? I always liked the play on words in that title and I am liking it even more lately. Why? Because as agents that is exactly what we are doing: going back to the future. I believe the marketing theme for 2009 is going to be “old school.” Going back to the “old school” ways of marketing… done with the tools of the future: back to the future. (Caveat: the future for me has a very Mr. Magoo aspect to it. I appreciate the high-tech agents among us keeping the laughter down to a mild snicker.) Chris Johnson understands “old school”, he was bleeding it here and here. Jeff Brown understands old school – actually, Jeff probably learned this stuff when it was just “school”…
- Touching your sphere of influence on a consistent basis is “old school” – using emails, webinars and blogging to do it is the future.
- Tracking your marketing, your prospecting and your ROI from both is “old school” – using powerful software to do so is the future.
- Picking up the phone and calling past clients or mailing something personal every day is “old school” – knowing there is no substitute for getting belly-to-belly is the future.
And WE are the future. Those of us still here. Our profession lost a lot of people last year. Our profession needed to… Many of us suffered just to make it this far and some of us are suffering still (although some flourished… think about that). But the point is, we are here. We stuck it out because this “real estate thing” isn’t something we do on the side or because it’s easy money. We are her because this is our profession. We now reap all the opportunities of 2009… AND the responsibilities. It is our charge to bring integrity and passion to everything we do. You, all of you, are the heroes and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. You help people find their way, now more so than ever before, through a giant minefield of potentially devastating mistakes on their way to buying or selling what is probably the largest financial investment of their lives. Pretty heady stuff.
I say Congratulations to each and every one of you. When you lay your head down at the end of the day, remember this: you are the walking, talking, living proof of this truth: “Tough times don’t last, tough people do.”
Filed under: LIFE THAT POPs, REALTORS , Agents, Success
