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There are many theories on how to build a real estate business. The key to success is cutting through the noise and focusing on what really works. In this article, we’ll show you 7 no-BS steps to grow your business this year.
1. Get noticed
The quickest way to become richer is to increase your influence, and influence comes from people who know who you are. Simply put, the more people know your agent, the more business you have.
The important thing is to find a path that is true to yourself. By focusing on showing your authentic self, you will be recognized as the agent of choice in your local market.
There are multiple paths to recognition. You can do this by being active in your community and consistently sending direct mail campaigns that highlight your services through your social media presence and YouTube video content. The key is to find something that suits your personality and allows you to reach as many people as possible.
The more attention you get, the more business you’ll get.
2. Tell a story you can relate to
It’s not about you. Gone are the days of marketing promoting whether you’re the best agent or number one in the office. The best marketing tells a story that prospects can relate to and feel a part of. This type of marketing answers the biggest question your prospects have: “What’s in it for me?”
Tell us about how you helped a family purchase a home when they needed to sell their existing home to finance their next purchase. Tell us about how you helped a renter realize his dream of owning a home when he wasn’t sure if it was possible. Talk about how you helped your son overcome the emotions of selling the family home he grew up in after his mother passed away.
Relatable stories that center people and their processes are the secret to success in 2025.
3. Steal ideas from other agents and make them your own
We live in a time where it’s easy to see how agents across the country are marketing their businesses on social media, YouTube, or through podcast interviews where they share their success stories. You’ll always need to put your own spin on ideas for your local market, but the framework for success is readily available.
One way to find inspiration is to follow and study the work of agents in other markets whose businesses you want to emulate. If you want to know how to send effective weekly emails to your database, ask agents in other markets to include you on their email lists. If you want to model your Instagram account after a few different agents, follow them on social media and interact with their pages.
No need to recreate the wheel. All you need to do is find a model or framework that you can build on and develop your personal marketing. Be creative and start with inspiration from others.
4. Focus on database growth
The first step mentioned in this article is to take a look. Expanding your database to ensure you have a group of people who can continually add value and keep you in the spotlight is critical to growth. If you show me someone’s database, I can tell you what their business will look like in a year based on the quantity and quality of new leads coming into the database.
Growth comes from buying leads, exploring your circle, and adding people you meet through open houses and marketing efforts. The key is to take a systematic approach so that new leads come in every day. As your database grows, so will your business.
5. Set up systematic outbound communication
Without consistent and valuable outbound communication, a database is just a list. You’ve done the hard work of building your database, but how can you maximize the opportunities it presents?
Tom Ferry reportedly said that around 8% of people in real estate databases are likely to buy or sell each year. This means that if you have a database of 500 prospects, approximately 50 real estate deals are available from that group each year. By systematizing your communications, you can maximize these opportunities.
I like to do this through two main approaches. The first is to send automated property update emails to all prospects. For buyers, this includes homes that are on the market and homes that have had price reductions that match the prospective buyer’s personal criteria.
For homeowners, it is set up to send emails to owners when homes in their neighborhood go on the market, go under contract, or are sold. Most CRMs have this functionality, but it can also be accomplished through an MLS.
The second systematic strategy is this week’s trades, which are sent to the entire database. This is a strategy developed by Sharran Srivatsaa and is a weekly text-based email. Srivatsaa teaches that the subject line should be the same every week. [Your City] This week’s sale
Srivatsaa said more than 1 million split tests on these emails showed that the emails that generated the highest engagement did not include an address, a link to details, or a photo. This is an example of the recommended email format.
This week’s pick is a Santa Rosa Beach home with stunning bay and lake views and unparalleled outdoor living space.
Main highlights
4 bedrooms, 4.5 bathrooms. 2,218 sqft on a large lot in gated Calypso Point. Private pool and fenced backyard with gas heater. Wraparound balcony, open layout, dual primary suites, Tesla charger. Close to Gulf Place, you’ll enjoy dining, art, live music, and more. $1,225,000 (many new interest rate options!)
If you are interested, please reply and I will give you the details.
all the best,
If you want to press a simple button, ChatGPT has a free custom GPT designed by Srivatsaa that, when you provide basic raw data about your home, will email you the week’s transactions for any property. That tool can be found here.
6. Identify and reward your MVPs
Every successful business has a core group of repeat customers and referral partners who account for the bulk of the business’s growth. What we appreciate and recognize will always expand, so making plans to deepen these relationships will create more business opportunities. This can be achieved in a few different ways, but the key is to be clear about your objectives.
Handwritten thank you notes, small pop-buys, and customer appreciation parties can all be effective, but for real impact, hosting a small dinner is the best way to build deeper, longer-lasting relationships. This is one of the effective methods.
Jana Bruce, a highly successful luxury goods agent in Houston, Texas, does this by hosting a small group of eight to 10 people for dinner at her home each month. She invites her best clients, friends, prospects, and people who refer her business to a dinner party at her private home.
This group varies from month to month, and she strives to include people who she feels can connect with not only her, but each other. This creates a community, and happy, connected people will always refer more business.
She prepares and caters meals depending on the month’s occasion or theme. She hires a caterer to serve the meals and allows her to really engage with her guests. Bruce is driven by building relationships, and these dinners drive her continued flow of referrals and repeat customers.
7. Be your best self
Your business cannot grow faster than your personal growth. Yes, there will come a season of business growth that will outpace personal growth. However, this type of growth usually stalls at some point and you wait for your personal growth to catch up before continuing. If your business has stagnated or may have declined over the past few years, ask yourself if it has grown during that time.
Are you learning and trying new strategies? Are you developing new systems or improving existing ones to make your business more efficient? Are you studying the market more than ever? Training sessions How long has it been since you attended or met a coach or mentor?The bottom line is that if you want your business to grow, the growth you want must first start with personal growth and development.
Will this year be a year of growth for you? The canvas is blank and ready to create the year you want. Everything in the past has prepared you for this year. Let’s make a plan. Please take action. May this year be the year you and your business reach its full potential.
Jimmy Burgess is a real estate agent and national team builder with Real Brokerage in Northwest Florida, serving the 30A, Destin, and Panama City Beach markets. Connect with him on Instagram and LinkedIn.
