James Tostevin needs no introduction. The industry legend and top Victorian agent shared his secrets to a successful 40-year career at UrbanX’s annual conference, XCON 2023.
In fact, James is the single person that I’ve learnt most from in the real estate industry.
Which is why I want to share these learnings with you.
James shared plenty of tips, but the one thing that he believes separates him from his peers is the discipline he applies to prospecting.
Here are his five key points that will help separate you from your competitors and set you on the path to becoming the pinnacle of prospecting in your area.
Agents will live and die by their prospecting
James talked about his work ethic and the discipline he approaches his prospecting with.
Keeping a manageable contact list under 3000 allows him to keep in touch with all of his prospects.
In addition, he makes a minimum of 200 calls a week, which allows him to connect with his prospects at least four times a year.
Why? Regardless of whether the prospect is in ‘sell now’ mode or not, they will always remember your name when the time comes to sell.
Confidence is key
James also spoke about the importance of self confidence and believing in yourself. Otherwise, it will always be a struggle to win.
If you project confidence in the way you carry yourself, on the phone or in person, that confidence will transfer to your prospects.
If you can’t explain your point of difference in a simple manner, you will lose the interest of your prospect.
Practise this every week and it will become second nature in your arsenal of communication.
Always be open to learning
From training sessions through to adopting new ways of real estate.
James stands by the fact that no matter how experienced you are, if you continue to learn along the way, it’s the only way you will get better – it doesn’t matter how good you are, you won’t get every listing.
The one thing you can do is find out why and learn from it.
Learn from your competitors, attend their open homes and auctions – this will give you ideas on how you can run your own better and see why they’re successful.
It’s not always what you say, it’s what you ask
We hear this again and again – the key to uncovering information from your prospects is to ask the right questions.
So mastering the right questions to ask is paramount in your prospecting journey.
At the end of the day, it’s never about you and what you have achieved – it’s about the journey of the vendor and why they want to choose you over the competition.
Surprise and delight
Prospecting doesn’t always have to be direct.
James recommends that when someone purchases a property in your key area, whether it is from your office or not, send them a gift on (or close) to the date that they move in.
This will leave a lasting impression on them and the people that are helping them move in – normally their friends and family.
So there you have it! Five simple lessons to prospect like a legend.
The question now is: Do you have the discipline to employ these tactics and level up your business?
Happy prospecting!
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