YES! It really is! It really truly is all about the little things that matter when it comes to growing your business and keeping referral relationships. I work every single day with agents and I always ask them “what matters most” and 99% of the time their answer is “communication”. This week, I saved a relationship solely on the fact that our communication is better.

Here’s just a few tips, that I know you’ve heard before, to keep your relationships going. (These are real estate specific, but you can easily adjust for your specific industry, change Agent to Client) Hopefully this is a reminder, or trigger, to help you make a difference in today’s competitive industry:

1. Call With Updates; Even if there’s no update. Agents want you to know that you are working on their files, all the time. Even if you think your client is updated, make sure the agent has the same update
2. Touch Base; Just to touch base. Pick up the phone and call people. I know it sounds scary, but just do it. Tell them Happy Birthday, Happy Anniversary, Happy Hump Day, Congrats on your closing, Thank you for that referral, How was your weekend, How was your trip, I miss you.
3. Rewarding Referrals. Immediately after the referral is given, whether or not the referral does business with you. Write a handwritten note thanking them. Then keep them updated if the referral does pan out and send them another thank you when you close business with the referral.
4. Answer The Phone; Return Phone Calls. Unless you’re with someone, or at a meeting, answer your phone when they call. Stop what you are doing and give them the attention they deserve.
5. Education is Everything. Share your knowledge. Even if it’s not business specific. Maybe you learned a new facebook ad hack, or maybe you learned a new term, or maybe you have a new program you can bring to them. Show them that you are always learning and growing and willing to share.
6. Inclusion. Invite them to your events, team outings, happy hour, golf course or just grab coffee. Get to know them and their family. Make your relationship personal.
7. Most importantly, Be Genuine. Seriously. You can sniff out a fake and so can they. If you truly want a relationship with this person then show it. Be you. Be real.

 

Happy Networking!
Amy Dritley, Marketing Coordinator

Social media is a HUGE monster! There’s so much to know, manage and create. But if there’s one thing I can help you focus on, it’s the fact that Likes are Lazy. What does that mean?

The entire point of social media is to create interaction; to build relationships with people. When you can get people to interact with you on social media it opens the door for you to start conversations and make a connection with them. PLUS when someone interacts (comments) on your social media, all their friends now see it as well.

So here’s some tips for getting people to do more than just LIKE your posts:

1. Ask Questions: the #1 reason why people don’t comment on your posts is because they don’t know they can. So ask something that will spark convo; “What’s your favorite…” “Would you like this…” “How would you…” “Which on of these do you like best…”
2. Run a Contest: everyone that comments with their favorite _____ gets entered into a drawing for a free ____
3. Fill in the blank posts: Picture of a dog making a weird face… “Caption This”
4. Guess Stats: Can you guess how many visitors visit Mt Rushmore per year?
5. Tag You’re It: “Tag a friend who…”
6. Photo Contest: Comment below with a picture of your dog
7. Where’s Waldo: “Can you guess where this picture was taken”

Think outside the box. And don’t, DO NOT forget to reply to comments and interact with those taking the time to comment on your posts.

Have fun with it!

Happy Networking!
Amy Dritley
http://www.networkingwizblog.com

One thing I often hear from folks is “I don’t want to bug my friends with my business” or “I’m not one to brag about myself” however, I try to remind people daily that

Successful people want to do business with successful people.

This is why you need to share your successes. Reminding your sphere that you are good at what you do is totally acceptable. That’s probably why they are in your sphere in the first place.

Here’s some ideas of ways to brag about yourself in a successful way:

• Post a picture of your closings or completion of transactions
• Share reviews or testimonials you receive, make sure to thank the person giving the review
• Post a picture of awards or achievements you’ve received and thank those who have helped make it happen
• Share when you have completed a goal; personal or business
• Invite others to join you in hitting goals or set a mission statement into action
• “Check In” on social media when you are working on training or building your business
• Keep track of your success. How many people have you help? How quickly do you solve their problems? How much business have you been able to refer out? The SHARE those numbers!

Success is contagious, share it!

Happy Networking!
Amy Dritley, Marketing Coordinator
http://www.networkingwizblog.com

Coming from a girl that thinks she “knows her shit”, I am often reminded that I really don’t.

Here’s where I am coming from; I teach classes on marketing and social media. I consult and guide business owners on different marketing paths. I’m always networking and often get called the “Networking Queen”. I often get told “well you probably already know this but…”.

But here’s the truth: Everything is always changing. Always. We should always be learning. From one another, from the professionals, from life experiences, from your peers, from your competitors and whenever, wherever you can. This means keeping your eyes and ears open. Always catching some little difference that someone is making in their business that makes them stand out. Is it something you can implement?

This also means taking advantage of learning opportunities that come your way. Attend conferences and conventions. Meet with others in your sphere and ask questions. Watch webinars. Listen to podcasts. Even if you think you know everything about a specific topic, listen anyway, you may be surprised.

I love learning in a fun environment (I’m not much for the lecture settings) and always take lots of notes. I then go back and type up those notes, it helps me retain what I’ve already soaked in. Plus then, I have the notes handy to share with others as needed. Sharing your knowledge, is a big part of the Always be Learning circle.

Go forth. Stay humble. Soak in Life.

Happy Networking!
For more Tips visit http://www.networkingwizblog.com
Amy Dritley
Marketing Coordinator

So, today’s blog post is a two for one! I’m going too use this blog to demonstrate its purpose. Don’t get overwhelmed, I’m not that fancy. I have a great topic to talk about but by the end, I want you involved.

Today, I’m going to talk about asking for help. Some see it as a moment of weakness. Some as a failure. Some see it as a breakdown in their ability. But the truth is, we can’t do it all. I know, I know, we all think we can, but we can’t. Let’s be real with ourselves.

Sometimes getting help in your business means hiring help at home. Lawncare. Cleaning services. Laundry services. This allows you extra time in your day to focus on things that really matter, like family.

Getting help doesn’t always mean spending money on hiring someone. Sometimes asking for help can lend to open doors. If you had a business partner or referral partner taking a few extra minutes to do an introduction email to new business, how amazing would that be? And could mean less time spent cold calling.

The task at hand tho, it actually asking for that help. Or sometimes, even just accepting help others are offering. Most people are in your same, or relateable position. They’ve experienced these struggles and want to help you. You just have to ask.

And here is my ask for help. I love writing these blogs, but I need to know what you love hearing about. So I am asking you to give me networking or business growth topics that you would like to hear about. In you doing this, giving me ideas for my blog, it will save me time brainstorming and/or researching topics. So thanks in advance for your help on this.

So to sum it up, take help that has been offered. Ask for help when needed. Think outside the box and find others who you can help in mutually beneficial ways.

Good luck and Happy Networking!

**Don’t forget to leave a comment of a topic!

Amy Dritley
networkingwizblog.com

 

 

 

Click. Post. Gone! Do you have photos of your listings wandering around social media without your information on them? Do you have more you want to say than just the photo? Then the App WordSwag is for you!

Plain and Simple, WordSwag is an App for both IOS and Android that lets you place text, logos, and photos on top of current photos.

I was introduced to this app a year ago and didn’t really start using it until recently, because sometimes you don’t even know why you should be using it. So here’s MY tips on how to use this App to help your business:

• Take a photo of your listing, use WordSwag to place your logo and contact information on top of the photo
• Take a photo of a SOLD listing and place the words “SOLD” on it, show people you’re selling homes
• Take a picture of your team and place a motivational quote on top
• Easily Combine two pictures
• Place the neighborhood info or major selling point info
• Write your #hashtag on your photos
• Add open house date/times to the photo

This app runs $3.99-$5.99 and worth it….if you use it! Have fun!

Happy Networking

For more networking tips visit http://www.networkingwizblog.com

 

At this morning’s networking meeting, we all went on a little rant about respecting referrals that were being passed between ourselves and others. It seems anymore that although most people love getting referrals, they are not very good at acknowledging them. We all get busy, and want to take care of that referral right away, which is great, however I find myself referring less and less to those that don’t communicate with me when I send them a referral.

So to keep you respecting referrals, and not losing out on any, here are some tips I have:

1. Immediately following the receipt of a referral, (whether they use you or not) send a hand-written thank you to the sender. Maybe include a little $5 coffee gift card
2. Immediately after receiving the referred’s info, contact them and let them know how you received their name.
3. Communicate with your referral partner
   1. Having trouble getting a hold of the client?
   2. Was able to help them
   3. Was not able to help them
   4. They sent you a referral
4. Teach your referral partners what makes a good referral, ‘Trim Out The Fat’
5. If you have been referred to someone, communicate and let them know if it was a success, hand write a thank you if it was a great fit
6. Place referred business at the TOP of your priority list. This is the cheapest, easiest business to get, so treat it with GOLD to keep it coming.
7. Follow the basic rule: Treat Referrals How You Would Like To Be Treated
8. Refer back. This is the best way to repay the referring partner and keep more coming
9. Give before you receive.
10. Share about how awesome your referral partners are. Make it public, post on FB, write them a review on LinkedIn, send a Snap about them etc…

Referral Business is THE BEST way to grow to your business, take care of it and keep it coming!

Happy Networking

For more Networking Tips visit http://www.networkingwizblog.com

Did you know that Facebook and LinkedIN are 2 of the most searched online engines next to Google and Bing? What does that mean for you? It means that in today’s social society, if people cannot find you on LinkedIN or Facebook you do not exist. I could go on for days about optimizing your profiles, but today lets just start and make sure you have the basics down.

1. Make sure your profiles are public. Check your privacy settings. This does not mean all your posts have to be public, but make sure the ones regarding your business are. On each post you make you can use the drop down arrow and change if its public or not. (Note, if you’re posting stuff you don’t want your clients to see…should you really be posting it?)
2. List your contact information as public. Allow people to be able to reach out and contact you if they want. This includes your phone number, websites and email. Go into your About section and hover over each section, make changes to be public.
3. Have a CURRENT profile picture…of YOU! Not the dog, not your new car, not your logo. Clients want to see what you look like and want to verify they are contacting the right person.

I hope these tips help increase your online exposure this year!

For more tips visit http://www.networkingwizblog.com

To put it plain and simple, tracking our expenses is a pain in the butt! One of the hardest for me is my mileage. I’ve tried notebooks in the car to write on…then I lose them. I’ve tried recording it on my calendar and then I forget. I’ve spent years losing out on mileage write-offs.

But recently, I have discovered MileIQ. Its an app on your phone (Apple Store and Google Play) that tracks your mileage for you. And best part is… Its Simple!!!

The phone detects movement/acceleration and each time you stop, the app will pop up and ask you if your trip was for business or personal. You just swipe right or left to categorize it and Voila! You’re Done! The app will email you monthly with your totals in a downloadable spreadsheet. You can even go back in and re-categorize ones you may have missed.

It can even go into more depth and you can add expenses and notes to that trip… Its really a pretty awesome system.

The cost is also very affordable, especially when you consider how many headaches you’ll be saving! $59.99/year or $5.99/month. The free version only allows 40 trips/logs and we all know we drive way more than that! One warning I do have, is it runs constantly in the background so it will use your battery more than you may be used to, so when you’re on vacation or taking time off I suggest turning the notifications off…just don’t forget to turn them back on when you’re back at work.

I hope this helps you a little and saves you money with Uncle Sam in 2017!

Amy Dritley, Marketing Coordinator
http://www.networkingwizblog.com

Oh its the most wonderful time of the year! For most of us its a scramble of time management between handling family in town, kids out of school, crazy shopping malls and travel plans.

Its also a slower time in our business. You may think this means its a time to sit back, chill, relax and enjoy the down time. Ha! You’re wrong! Why would you stop your daily routines now? It should actually be EASIER to do the things you’re supposed to be doing now, when you’re not putting out fires. Now is the time to focus on all the relationship building and goal setting projects you’ve been doing or wanting to do this past year.

During this time, keep your routine running…maybe even kick it up a notch. This is the perfect time to engage your business partners more; set up double the amount of lunch and coffee dates than you normally do. Get out of your office and pop into others. Hand write your holiday cards with personal messages. Double or triple the amount of prospect calls you normally make. Take advantage of the “slow” time and build up your business. Everything you do today is feeding your pipeline for January and February…I’m sure you’d like a check those months, right?

Find an accountability partner and keep each other accountable! Make those calls, schedule those sit downs. Start your year off strong!

Happy Networking!

For more tips visit http://www.networkingwizblog.com