Broker Harmony

Carol Klock
The Gayle Borden Group
Coldwell Banker Real Estate
Years in real estate: Carol Klock, 25; Gayle Borden, 22
Years as a Team: 12
Region Served: Broward County, Greater Ft. Lauderdale, Florida
Number of team members: 10

When and why was the team formed?
The short version is that Gayle and I met when we were both nationally ranked top agents and the more we got to talking about how we worked as individuals the more we realized that we could do much better as a team. The typical solo agent really wants to do a good job but finds it hard just to keep up. He or she has to do everything from answering phones to getting feedback, researching the market, arranging showings, installing signs, setting up inspections and it just goes on and on and on. With our team the buyer or seller gets better results because we don’t work alone. Each team member has a specific role to play in the buying or selling of a home and so our customers love us.

How does your broker support agent teams in his or her office?
Coldwell Banker supports us totally. In the early years they were nervous. But Coldwell Banker is excellent and we communicate everything with them. Our broker is a phenomenal broker and their point of view is the same as our point of view. The company trusts us completely. We handle all of our own marketing and we are completely self-contained. Coldwell Banker is smart and supportive and so our arrangement works. But it is extremely important that our team knows that we are working within a company and that we need to ask less of an office because we need to give back.

What is your financial arrangement with your broker?
We run everything. Gayle Borden is the agent. So whatever split she would have she has. And we pay for all of our support staff. We run ours like a company within a company.

What do you specifically rely on your broker for as the team leader?
We rely on our broker to maintain standards of the company because our reputation is linked so specifically with theirs. But the benefits we get are many. First of all, we are Coldwell Banker. We are international and our company raises the bar in the industry. Coldwell Banker is the gold standard and being part of that brand raises our brand. Then I have to add, their Web site is second to none.

What is the key to successful recruiting and making sure that everyone works well together, etc.?
We have a rigorous interview schedule. We ask all of our questions three different ways and if the person being interviewed answers one question a different way, a red flag goes up. We want any new hire to be honest and nice and team oriented. We also look for individuals who are family oriented. We would never come right out and say do you like family. But if the candidate talks about how important his or her family is we know this is one good indication that this might be a good team member. The best question that we ask is, “What kind of people annoy you?” If they describe someone that sounds like someone on our team, then we know they aren’t right for the team-we want everyone to be compatible.

As far as actually recruiting…we don’t. At this point we have at least one or two people asking to join our group every week. We also give them tests before we even meet with them the first time. If there is even one typo on their resume we don’t even call them. If you aren’t careful with your resume, you won’t be careful with our clients.

Success Strategies
The best way to inspire the team? Be inspired yourself

The most difficult client you have ever dealt with:
Buyers and sellers in general can become different people in the process of buying or selling a house. I don’t know why this is but it is an amazing phenomenon. Customers can get needy at strange times. You know the saying, “It takes a village to raise a child?” Well in our opinion, it takes a team to raise a buyer or seller.

Percent of your budget is dedicated to marketing:
No more than 20 or 25%

Philosophy for success in real estate:
Balance, balance, balance. Find out what the customer wants and give them exactly what they need and then you will be successful.

Lesley Geary

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