Complete Communication

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By Kayla O’Brien

RISMEDIA, Nov. 15, 2008-In any market, communication is a key to securing client retention. Today, however, it’s more important than ever. “Customer service is number one,” says Sabrina Jones-Schroeder, managing broker for EXIT Real Estate Jones & Associates. “Take good care of your clients before, during and after the sale. If you keep in great contact and have done a good job to stay in front of the client, you will get referrals and repeat business.” Here, meet Jones-Schroeder and learn what other ways she’s positing her company for success.

Sabrina Jones-Schroeder
Managing Broker
EXIT Real Estate Jones & Associates
Spokane, Washington

Years in the industry: 18
Number of offices: 1
Number of agents: 80
Region served: Pacific Northwest
Average sales price in your market: $210,000
Average number of days a home spends on the market: 75
The best way to keep agents productive: By celebrating the successes we are having. We also try to bring a training module to the table to help agents increase professionalism and get more business.
The most creative ad we’ve run: We had a headline that said, “Achin’ for Acreage?” We used it for an out-of-area farm property and the phone rang off the hook-I guess a lot of people were achin’ for acreage.
Tips for getting the right listing price: Point out the market statistics to your sellers.
Advice for real estate rookies: The real estate industry is cyclical and a lot of agents are struggling, but just hang in there.
Recruiting recommendations: Sending personal invitations-inviting people to come and hear what our company is all about.

How are you keeping your agents productive in a slower market?
We offer two training opportunities every week where the agents can come in to brush up and hone in on their skills and professionalism. We also get together for business planning once a year as a group, and then every Monday we meet as a peer accountability group to discuss what we have to do, what we’ve done, etc. to stay accountable.

What are the best online marketing strategies you’ve been working with?
Everywhere we use print marketing, we make sure we’re advertising the website as well. If you’re not getting the traffic, it’s not good. We put our website address on business cards, in the Yellow Pages-everywhere.

How are you communicating with agents today?
We send broadcast e-mails to all of our agents. We try to cover everything of importance in our sales meetings, but if there’s something we want everyone to see, we send a broadcast e-mail.

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