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Last episode, I talked about gaining my first client, trusting the process, and realizing that if I could do it once, I could do it a hundred times more to build my real estate business. That first client looked at a lot of homes—we looked at homes for four months. What I really learned through that process is what brings me to today’s part of the story—the power of perception. A lot of what goes on in real estate is not necessarily what is actually happening, people don’t necessarily see the success, they see what I create. At this point in my story, I realized the power of social media and the power of perception. Although I only had one client at the time, I was posting homes on social media, and people perceived that I was having success and was busy helping people. They wanted to work with me. Now, I wasn’t lying about anything, but I learned that for many people watching social media, perception can be reality. The more I posted, the more successful I looked. Of course, today I don’t have the bandwidth to show 63 houses to every client, but if someone did need that kind of attention, I’d probably split it with someone on my team. I’ve done that recently with my business because I don’t want to work a ton of hours to make more money—I want to work less. But back in 2019/2020, I was in a different place. What I want you to hear, especially if you’re in real estate, is that every single time I showed that client a home, I posted it on social media. I wasn’t lying, wasn’t saying that I had a bunch of clients—I just said that I was showing a client a house today, took a picture of the house, and posted it. Then I would do the same with each house. It made me look busier and more successful than I was. The power of perception was that perception became reality. Eventually after showing the 63 homes, they found the home that was right for them, but by putting it on social media, it helped my business grow. I wanted people to perceive me as a great Realtor that would be willing and able to help them, to run out of the house to show them a home if they needed—so I was willing to show houses and post them on social media to grow my business. I also hosted open houses. You aren’t making any money when you host an open house, but I could make a post asking others to visit me at this great open house. No one (outside of the real estate world) knew I wasn’t making money, and it made me look successful. A person I went through real estate class with asked me how I was crushing it in the business. I simply said I was sharing everything on social media. This person didn’t survive and was no longer a Realtor because they weren’t putting anything out there on social media. I even told them I only had one client and was doing open houses—but to him I looked like I was successful. It was all about perception. The next part of the story is when those clients bought a house, and I got my first paycheck. Once I had that success, I felt like I could really do it 15 or 20 more times. I could build relationships and help people with one of the biggest decisions of their lifetime—and get paid for it. And the cool thing is that perception led to more success. On the next episode, I’ll share about the big summer I had after that settlement in April of 2020. It really propelled my business, but none of it would’ve been possible had I not used social media and understood the power of perception. Thanks for listening to the Real Estate Survival Guide. If you enjoyed this episode, we would appreciate it if you'd leave us a review on iTunes. It helps others discover the show. Thank you so much, and we will see you on the next episode.
Resources
Free social media coaching calls are back! To schedule your free social media coaching call go to: https://calendly.com/realestatesurvivalguide/social-media-strategy-for-realtors
Podcast edited by Kenny Carfagno.
Show notes and blog posts are created by Jennifer Harshman and RealtorEmails. John Schuchman is a licensed REALTOR® in Lancaster, PA, with Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Homesale Realty and a part of the Andrew Welk Group. The opinions shared on this show represent the opinions & values of John Schuchman and do not necessarily represent the opinions & values of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Homesale Realty. The opinions & ideas shared in this podcast do not guarantee or promise any results of success to the listener.
