“Goosey Lucy said that Ducky Lucky said that Henny Penny said the sky is falling.” From reading and listening to the media you can’t help but think of Chicken Little. Okay, well I’ve finally heard enough! I’m so weary of hearing one person after another bemoan the sad state of real estate today […]

As I’m sure you know, it is difficult to operate a business in today’s economic climate. It is more difficult to operate a start-up business, particularly a restaurant. That’s why I bought a going concern. During the course of my due diligence, I was given P&Ls for the previous six years of […]

Ok. I closed the restaurant… well, it’s more like I am in the seemingly eternal process of closing the restaurant. I can tell you one lesson: It’s a lot easier to start something that it is to stop it. Buying a point of sale system takes a morning. Selling one takes […]

In the last installment, I compared the restaurant manufacturing operation with real estate. In this installment, we’ll look at a restaurant as a sales organization. While the back of the house (the kitchen) is all about manufacturing, the front of the house (the dining room) is all about sales. Meeting customers, setting expectations and […]

So I closed the restaurant after a year. We had grown sales about 20% over the year and were continuing to grow in sales and margin every month, while controlling costs and growing margin, but we were still another year from turning a profit. Because of the down turn in real estate, the […]

Well, I finally did it. I decided to close my restaurant after a year of hard work, a lot of struggles, and even more soul searching. Over a hundred thousand dollars invested in trying to “turn around” a failed upscale eatery. And as I unwind the affairs of the restaurant, I must […]

Putting it All Together
WHAT’S IN THIS INSTALLMENT?
1. THE TECHNOLOGY ELEMENT
2. THE HUMAN ELEMENT
In the previous installments we’ve discussed all the various elements or components of what I believe to be the best buyer seminar you’ll find anywhere. I’ve determined not to give you just fluff, but rather to give you my entire […]

Leveraging by Team Building
WHAT’S IN THIS INSTALLMENT?
1. THE DIFFERENT TEAM MODELS
2. THE LEVERAGE TEAM
3. MOVING TO MANAGEMENT
In the previous installments, I’ve discussed many aspects of building a growing and successful real estate business at a time when real estate professionals are failing at record rates. With 86% of new real estate […]

Prospecting — Turning Leads into Closed Deals
WHAT’S IN THIS INSTALLMENT?
1. THE ANATOMY OF AN INTERNET LEAD
2. PROSPECTING AND THE REAL ESTATE BUYING CYCLE
3. PROSPECTING: WHAT TO DO AND WHEN TO DO IT
4. COMMON MISTAKES AGENTS MAKE
In the previous installments, I’ve discussed how it all has to start with leads or customers. […]

The Secret to Success with Internet Leads
WHAT’S IN THIS INSTALLMENT?
1. THE TRUTH ABOUT INTERNET LEADS
2. UNDERSTANDING THE REAL ESTATE BUYING CYCLE
3. A SIMPLE AND POWERFUL ILLUSTRATION
4. MEETING THE INTERNET CHALLENGE
THE TRUTH ABOUT INTERNET LEADS
According to the 2006 National Association of REALTORS® Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers, as many as 93% […]