You earned your real estate license, printed some fancy business cards, and RSVP to every networking event in your area. You created a business page on Facebook, told your friends and family to spread the word, and even put your face on a billboard. But still, competition is fierce and you encounter obstacles everywhere you turn. This is a common story among real estate agents, and HighNote might be exactly what you need to take your business from average to awesome.
As with any profession, real estate has a long list of challenges – but as with most obstacles, they can typically be solved with some brain power and hard work. HighNote is the perfect tool to utilize as you seek to grow your business and hit your real estate targets once and for all.
If you’re a Realtor who feels like you’re treading water while other agents are succeeding, you’ll want to keep reading! We promise you’ll feel a little better after realizing you aren’t alone (and that these problems are within your control).
Without further ado, here are eight common obstacles you might be facing as a Realtor, and how HighNote can help you overcome them.
1. You’re getting lost in a sea of other Realtors
Realtors aren’t exactly a rare breed. In fact, membership in the National Association of Realtors hit an all-time high of 1.37 million in June 2019! With so many others competing for clients and listings, it’s natural to feel like the odds are against you. But guess what? In the world of real estate, you get out what you put in. That means that if you want to truly succeed, you have to work hard to outperform the competition. It’s not rocket science, yet so many Realtors don’t put in the required effort. That’s bad news for them, but it’s great news for you!
HighNote helps you stand out from the crowd: While other Realtors try to win business through messy email attachments and phone calls that won’t get returned, you can send a beautiful package that sums up who you are and how you do business. HighNote gives you a competitive edge, whether you’re sending a pre-listing presentation or submitting an offer on behalf of a buyer.
Bay Area real estate agent Sandy Sicsko sums it up very well: “HighNote is just such a beautiful package! When the listing agent is looking at a whole bunch of offers and they see something that is just one link they can click on from their email, and it’s beautifully laid out, that’s the ‘wow factor.’”
HighNote is totally customizable, so make it your own and be prepared to impress!
2. You’re sending emails into a black hole
We’ve all been there. You carefully draft an email, make sure all the attachments are there, and press send. But then you never hear anything back. You’re left wondering whether the recipient ever opened the email, or if they’re even remotely interested in the content. Did it get lost in their inbox? Did they intentionally delete it? You’ll never know.
HighNote helps you keep track of engagement: HighNote’s analytics system allows you to see whether your HighNote presentation was opened or ignored. You can see which parts of the presentation appealed most to the recipient, and use that information to guide future communication. Imagine a world where you never have to be left in the dark ever again. It’s possible with HighNote.
Top San Francisco Realtor Eric Boyenga says it best: “HighNote lets you see what sellers are clicking on when they view your pre-listing kits, and how much they’re interacting with them. It’s a great tool to give me an idea of the feedback loop – are they interacting with us? How much are they interacting? What are they interested in? And I think that’s why HighNote is so valuable to us. It gives us a deeper understanding of what the seller’s needs are and we’re able to get in front of them quicker with more information.”
3. Your personality isn’t coming through
In the world of business, logistics often take over and personalities take a back seat. But here’s a little secret: clients want to know their real estate agent is an actual human being – not someone who’s purely concerned about earning a commission.
HighNote helps your personality shine: The beauty of HighNote is that you can make it whatever you want it to be. Do you want to include an “About Me” video to show your human side? That’s easy! Or perhaps you want to include a list of testimonials so that potential buyers and sellers can see how happy your previous clients were with your services. That’s no problem at all! You can include anything you want in a HighNote presentation and shape it to your individual style. You have a ton of character, so make sure everyone knows it!
San Francisco real estate agent Joe Borromeo explains it well: “As soon as we get an online lead, we have a HighNote presentation sent over which is tailored for buyers. It’s kind of an “about us”…it gives buyers a chance to see who we really are, rather than just agents with five stars next to our names. It’s been huge for us.”
Check out this great “About Us” video by Joe and his partner Sandy Sicsko:
4. You’re not a competitive person
Whether you like it or not, the world of real estate is competitive. But that doesn’t mean you have to disrespect other agents or take part in awkward bidding wars for new clients. It doesn’t mean you have to become a real estate shark who will stop at nothing to win a listing. Sometimes all it takes to prove you’re the best is a little bit of preparation and forward thinking.
HighNote helps you be competitive: A HighNote presentation immediately shows potential buyers and sellers that you’re dedicated to your craft and have more to offer than the competition. While other agents send a series of emails with messy downloadable attachments, a HighNote presentation shows that you’ve chosen the best and most efficient way to communicate. Everything is accessible in one place, with one click. It’s a beautiful, efficient, and impressive way to communicate with clients. This is an immediate advantage over the competition, and you’re able to send it from the comfort of your own office or home.
As Eric Boyenga says, “If you don’t have something like HighNote, you’re just going to lose out to someone who’s actually using it and leveraging it.”
5. You struggle with technology
Some real estate agents love technology. They love looking at the data and using every technological tool out there to grow their business. They think in numbers instead of neighborhoods and floor plans. But what if that’s not you? If you struggle more than the average person with technology, fear not!
HighNote makes tech simple: HighNote is so easy to use that all you have to do is input your own information into the handy template. You don’t have to make a website or write and schedule email blasts, or manage a million different social media profiles. You can create a beautiful HighNote presentation while sitting on your couch. Even though it’s quick and easy to create, clients will think you worked a lot harder on it than you actually did because it looks so good!
Here’s what #FASTAGENT Kenny Truong has to say about the efficiency of HighNote: “It’s so easy, because there are only two parts in the presentation that need to change for each seller – the CMA report and the one-page spreadsheet analyzing the property. So this lets me work really efficiently. But since it’s such a polished product, clients think we spend a ton of time making the presentation for them…If I didn’t use technology, I think I would be just like every other agent out there, an average agent doing a couple of deals a year.”
Top Bay Area condo agent Leslie Bauer agrees: “You have to convince people that you have the best listing in town and get them to come see it. And I think that’s where technology, and HighNote in particular, can really help. HighNote has absolutely supported me in winning listings.”
6. You lack organization skills
It’s a common problem that Realtors seem to struggle with. They’re bad at returning phone calls and text messages, and they forget to send important emails. If that sounds like you, there’s a solution. Imagine having every single piece of information in one place, reachable with the click of a button.
HighNote makes organization a breeze: When Mark Choey founded HighNote, he envisioned a beautiful, efficient way that Realtors could communicate. HighNote has allowed Realtors to ditch the emails and PDF attachments in favor of a one-stop shop for everything real estate related. When you send a HighNote to a client’s inbox, all they have to do is click on one link from that email. From there, everything is accessible. This is great for them, but also for you, because it saves time and energy that would have previously been spent on phone calls and sending emails back and forth!
Here’s what Sandy Sicsko has to say about HighNote’s organizational appeal: “We keep hearing again and again from listing agents that the video and how well our digital HighNote presentation is laid out are the things that show them we’re organized, and make them want to work with us.”
Her partner Joe Borromeo also recognizes the perks of HighNote: “It’s definitely given us opportunities that we wouldn’t have with a regular email presentation. When you open an email presentation, it’s in PDF form, usually multiple PDFs, and you have to download several things to even get to any content, and you’re spending time searching for the contract and other things you need. HighNote eliminates all of that because it puts everything in one place.”
7. You don’t present yourself like a top agent
If you’re a top agent, you need to act like one. That means presenting yourself in a way that’s professional and a cut above the rest. For example, imagine a potential client has read about your track record and how successful you are in your career, but then you seem scatterbrained and flaky when you start corresponding with them. That’s probably going to put them off hiring you. Having all your ducks in a row can make all the difference. Remember – first impressions are everything.
(Even if you’re not a top agent yet, you still need to act like one! So this applies to you, too!)
HighNote helps you look like a top agent: HighNote is well designed, beautifully put together, and stands out from the crowd. It’s professional and thoughtful, and represents real estate agents in a great way. It leaves a lasting impression on clients and other agents, and that’s exactly what is expected of a top agent who has perfected both their craft and their communication style.
Sandy Sicsko has a powerful story of how HighNote impressed another agent: “When Joe and I were beta testing HighNote, we actually had one listing agent who said, ‘If you tell me how to get this, I will make sure that your buyers get this house.’ He went on to say that he had never seen anything like it, that it was amazing. And it truly is.”
8. You need a little expert guidance
No matter how experienced you are in the real estate world, there’s always room to learn more. There will always be a more experienced agent out there, or someone who has found a key to success that really works for them. Never underestimate the professional value that fellow agents can offer.
HighNote lets you follow in the footsteps of an expert: HighNote was founded by top San Francisco real estate agent Mark Choey, of the highly successful Climb Real Estate. Mark’s track record proves that he knows the ins and outs of real estate. He knows what works and what doesn’t work, and has invested the time and energy into developing HighNote. Everything offered by HighNote is something that Mark believes is extremely valuable when trying to win new clients, present offers, or communicate other important information. He has teamed up with great developers and designers to make it all possible.
As Eric Boyenga says quite simply and succinctly: “There’s just nothing like HighNote.”
If you’re a real estate agent looking to take your business to the next level, click here to get started with HighNote.
