A solid business plan is essential for any business – especially for establishing goals, measuring successes, and analyzing problems. Real estate business plans are no different. By taking the time to plan your business goals and strategies, you can ensure that you stay on track and reach your targets. However, most business planning tools for Realtors focus only on the business and don’t focus on work-life balance.
As a Realtor, your life and your business are intertwined. You are the brand – and your life and your story are center stage when you present yourself as a trusted advisor to your clients. Your level of integrity, background, education, and experience are all factors that clients consider when choosing to work with you. Whether you represent a small brokerage or a national brand, you are still responsible for yourself and your level of success.
Traditional business planning tools for Realtors only focus on the numbers – how many clients, how much commission, how many houses sold, etc. Business is an integral part of your life, so the key is to include your life in your plan. Whether you’re just getting started in this industry or you’re looking for ways to improve your current business strategy, read on for some valuable advice.
We’ll be releasing part 2 of this series next week so keep your eyes peeled.
Traditional Business Plans
Business planning tools for Realtors traditionally focus on sales goals, monetary goals, metrics, and measurable data. You would begin by setting objectives like total sales volume, annual commission income, and the number of houses sold. Then you can map out the goals you hope to meet and outline the steps you need to take to achieve those goals.
Unfortunately, a traditional plan stops there. It’s business goals and sales metrics only. Traditional business planning considers your business as a separate entity within your life but doesn’t take a look at the other factors that contribute to your success.
The ROAR Difference
ROAR, or the “Register of Attack Regimen,” is a different kind of business planning tool for realtors that takes a more holistic approach. Created by Fairway Ignite, ROAR incorporates your life and business goals and helps you plan the steps to success for both. It all starts with visualizing your dream life and then creating the steps to get you there. This tool has three basic steps for business planning; let’s look at each of them now.
Make a Plan
Begin with reviewing and evaluating the successes and failures of the previous year. On the business side, know your numbers, including how many transactions you closed, total dollar volume, average commission per transaction, etc. Use journals, calendars, photos, and social media for jogging your memory on the life side. Then take a hard, realistic look at the things that went wrong and the things that went right in both areas so you can decide which behaviors to continue and which to change. From there, you can create a clear vision for your next year in business.
Set Goals
An integral part of business planning for realtors is defining your goals. Do you have an income goal? Do you want to win an award? Get a special designation or license? Decide what you want to achieve next year, then break that down into smaller actions that will get you there. ROAR encourages you to take a realistic look at all aspects of your business and personal life and set reachable goals for each area. Without holding back, take a hard look to define what you want from your life, family, future, fun, business, relationships, wellness, finances, and more.
It’s important to set measurable goals to achieve optimal success. ROAR encourages you to use “SMARTER” goals – specific, measurable, actionable, relevant, time-keyed, exciting, and risky enough to demand your best effort.
Work With Someone
Accountability can make a difference in your ability to achieve your goals and successfully implement your plan for success. ROAR encourages you to work with someone to help you stay grounded and realistic with your goals. Constructive feedback can help you see the areas you need to revisit. Working with another person improves our view to be realistic about our successes or failures. Sometimes a simple conversation with an accountability partner can help you get back on track with the goals you have set and are determined to achieve.
The Tools
Using the ROAR method of business planning for realtors is not a simple five-minute process. You have to really reflect on and define what you want to achieve in every aspect of your life. Worksheets for each area of your life are available to help you consider the things you find important and guide you on the right path.
Real business planning begins once you’ve completed the assessments for each area of your world. After completing ROAR, you will have a business plan that takes your values, goals, and needs into account, along with ways to track your progress and stay accountable.
Review and Revise Regularly
A business plan should not be set in stone; it is meant to be fluid and change as the business evolves. ROAR encourages you to review your plan each quarter and determine which things are working well and need editing. Take a look at your success and failures and learn from each experience. Keep the goals that work and change the ones that don’t. After your quarterly review, rework your plan based on your new information.
When new things occur in your life or business, you can review these plans and goals again. A fluid plan means it can change as many times as you need it to. Some people review their plan monthly, but ROAR recommends you should at least review your plan quarterly and annually.
Big Dreams Get Big Results
You are encouraged to create your plan as if your goals have already been achieved. This visualization technique helps you build confidence in your ability to achieve success.
Don’t be afraid to account for large profit margins, increased customer traffic, and overall business growth when making your plan. Set your goals so that you can take small, manageable steps toward achieving them. Create an action plan as if you have already achieved your goals rather than as if they are still long-range ideas.
Final Thoughts
As a Realtor, your business and personal life are intertwined. That’s why it’s important to use business planning tools that help you balance work and life while still achieving success. Most traditional business planning tools for Realtors only consider metrics and income goals and don’t incorporate your personal goals. ROAR takes a holistic approach that fuses your professional and personal goals to create a plan that helps you achieve a work-life balance.
ROAR can be a great way to help you and your business reach new heights. Download our free guide, which provides templates and worksheets for all of the important components that go into creating an effective plan tailored specifically around YOU!
Be on the lookout for part two of this three-part series which will dive deeper into your quarterly business planning.
So what are you waiting for? Start planning for success today!
