Agent Advice

How to get your first sale in real estate

What you lack in experience, you must make up for with energy and market knowledge.

Andrew Duncan

03 Apr 2023 — 6 min read

Securing your all-important first sale in real estate is all about getting into the right headspace.

Once you've nailed that, you must employ a consistent prospecting plan to generate listing opportunities.

This step-by-step guide will take you through each step to help you lock in your first listing (and your first sale) as quickly as possible.

Podcast version

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Key Takeaways

First up, get your mindset right.

Think about your first sale as an inevitability. It's going to happen, it's just a matter of when not if. It's the first of many sales you will have in your career, so it's no big deal.

I strongly suggest you dive into your real estate career with No Plan B.

If you tell yourself you'll give it 6 months and go back to your old job in I.T. if things don't work out, then you are already set up to fail.

If you give yourself an 'out', you are unlikely to have the tenacity and drive needed to do what it takes to succeed in real estate sales.

You have to be ALL IN.

To achieve this all-important career milestone I suggest you make some critical commitments to yourself. Print this list of affirmations and carry it with you at all times.

I am consistent in my approach.
I will pick my marketing methods and I will deliver on those every week until I'm achieving a level of sales which I'm happy with, and then I'll keep going because they've worked for me. I'm not gonna try a different prospecting method every week and chop and change and switch from one to the other because if I do that, I'm not going to get the results I'm looking for.
I am patient. I know that if I put in the work and do the basics, the results I'm looking for will come. It may take months, but success will come.
I will stay hungry and enthusiastic.
When people talk to me about real estate, I am positive and uplifting.
I do everything I can to establish my credibility, build my own knowledge, and be an expert on the real estate market in my local area.

Prospecting plan

Always lead with value.

The quickest way to build a following of raving fans is to make sure every marketing strategy you employ provides the recipient with value. Consistently help enough people make smart real estate decisions and you'll have all the business you could ever need.

Start by...

Sending a weekly email newsletter with an Agent Monday article to everyone on your database (start with friends, family, local contacts, past colleagues and past clients from previous careers). Aim to add 10 people to your email list every week. Use a tool like Substack or Mailchimp to get started quickly.
Drop a printed newsletter using Agent Monday articles every fortnight in your target farming area (ideally 500+ houses). Want to get your first sale quickly? Pick a bigger area and drop a newsletter every week.
Target foreign listings (properties on the market with a competitor). Ask permission to help them find a home to buy. Build a relationship and be first in line when their existing agency expires. Aim to visit 10-20 owners in person, every week.
Always be in the office. First one in, last one out. Managers and experienced salespeople give opportunities to new agents who are hungry and eager to learn.
Carry a lead sheet with you at all times. Try to fill it with 20 contacts/addresses who might be thinking of selling in the next 6-12 months. Every day, ask yourself - what does that owner need? How could I add value to their buying/selling process? Are they aware of all the recent sales near their home?
Run property investment seminars. Great way to meet property-obsessed locals who can become key referrers.
Join local clubs or networking groups. For example, a local property investors association, sports club, charity or rotary group. Any cause that you are passionate about.
Start a Podcast. Call it "(Your area) real estate." Drop a new episode each week. The simplest approach is to click record on your phone or computer, read an Agent Monday article out loud, and post! You could also record a quick market update, or interview local business owners as a way to support them and highlight cool people doing great work in your community. Use a tool like Spotify to get started quickly.
Set up your Google Business page.

Always be positive about the market. Drop helpful stats in your conversations. For example...

"The average time to sell right now is 32 days, which is actually a big improvement from where we were 6 months ago, and is historically very good for this area. The market is really heating up..."