1. Answer your phone. “Customers usually hire the first agent who connects personally with them.”
2. Be responsive. “You can’t be afraid to say, ‘I don’t know, but I’ll find out.’”
3. Be service-oriented. “You’re not just their Realtor. You’re their reference point for doctors, hairdressers, everyone. You need to have a full inventory of professionals who can take care of all their needs. You need to associate yourself with the best people in every field, and be willing to share your knowledge.”
4. Work your sphere of influence, and widen it as much as you can. Pam has gotten business through her poodles, her horses, her charitable work, and of course, through referrals. “Eighty percent of my business comes from personal referrals.”
5. Preview new listings when they come on the market. “You can’t sell inventory you don’t know anything about.”
6. Keep in touch with friends and former clients. Use postcards, monthly e-mail blasts and online updates about their neighborhoods. “At first I always felt like I’d gotten a pink slip when we had a closing, but I learned relationship shouldn’t end.”
7. Ask people for their business. “It’s up to you to reassure them by saying, ‘I want to work for you.’”