Not enough hours in the day? Frustrated because you really need more hands in the office but don’t have the budget?
Jess Whatman from AgentSync knows there is a better way to streamline your office support without breaking the bank.
Ms Whatman has worked in real estate for 19 years with deep experience in modernising office procedures for agencies, including the use of virtual assistants working offshore at a fraction of the cost of in-house staff.
“Agents are busy people,” Ms Whatman says. “There are so many things they need to do in the day when they should be out there focusing on listing and selling.
“But they can have a virtual assistant in the background looking after admin, marketing, preparing agency agreements and customer database work at a third of the cost of employing someone to do that in the office.”
Ms Whatman has been at the forefront of developing real estate virtual assistants working offshore for the past eight years.
“Some agents are not at the stage when they can afford someone physically sitting in the office doing these tasks,” Ms Whatman says.
“Especially in Sydney, where an admin person with marketing skills now could cost up to $100,000 a year. That kind of work can be done offshore for $20,000 to $30,000 a year.”
The AgentSync service includes a consultation and comprehensive report to identify gaps and opportunities with office procedures and workflows.
Ms Whatman then develops a plan with timelines and cost analysis.
She also offers coaching and training for office administration staff.
“I have worked in agencies in operations and management roles and could see that a lot of the processes were outdated,” Ms Whatman says.
“Anything that can be done on a computer can be done by a real estate VA working with you during your office hours.
“Offices with outdated processes aren’t scaleable for growth. They get some extra listings and think, we need someone else in the office, but it is just not affordable.
“This is not about replacing the people in the office who love their work and the company. It is about freeing up agents from the mundane office tasks that can take up so much time.”
Ms Whatman works with specialist real estate VAs based in the Philippines.
“The people I work with in the Philippines are highly educated, many have university degrees, their English is good and they are in a similar time zone to work with our office hours.
“The companies I started working with eight years ago are just so grateful they took this on board. It has really set them up for growth and to be ready for times like these when the listings and sales are down.”
Ms Whatman says the wide range of property technology that is available can be confusing for agents.
“There is so much available that it is hard to know what is best for you,” Ms Whatman says.
“I don’t have an affiliation with any brand of tech. I assess what is working for you and what is not working and make recommendations.
“There is now tech out there that is a one-stop shop for these solutions, whether it’s for an agency or an individual desk in a team.”
For more information visit AgentSync
