Buffini & Company Blog

How to Build Your Dream Team

How to develop and lead a productive team to great success

Win the market with our Do It N.O.W. campaign. This turn-key, marketing campaign will help you find and secure listings for the changing 2024 real estate market. Avoid the chaos and serve the listing every time. Outperform the competition and build long-term business.

If you don’t already know, I spent a large portion of my real estate career developing teams; effective, productive, happy teams at that! Right now, teams are one of the hottest topics in the real estate industry.  I get asked everything from what are the advantages to having a team, to how to recruit, develop and effectively lead one. The hardest job you’ll ever love (some days! Ha) In the meantime, I’ve given you a snapshot here of what I found to be the keys to leading a productive team to great success.

Lay the foundation

You have clear picture of what you want to achieve in this industry; more market share, more revenue, more ambitious and driven people that want to work with you, maybe a close knit environment.  The first step is to create the foundation on which your team or office will be built.  The mission, your values, your vision of where you and your company want to go.  Even if your office is a long standing pillar of the community, it is imperative to make sure you are always connecting your people back to the big reason why.  People want to be a part of something great and if they see themselves being able to achieve their goals and dreams inside of your vision, magic can happen.  Now here is the tougher part…how will you support them and help them to achieve those goals so everyone wins?  How do you tangibly deliver on the value you promised?  Determine your standard of care for your agents, for your buyers and sellers—people want to know, “What’s in it for me?”  Map out everything you offer from the on-going training, market share & leads, a special compensation plan, solid core values, a positive & upbeat environment and support. Whatever it is, you must communicate the value you bring wherever you can. Often.  And now, we recruit to that vision and set of standards.

Recruit the right people

interviewYou know one crazy hire can mess it all up, so it does help to establish a criteria for your team or organization.  Who are you looking for?  What qualities, skills, and personality should they have?  What do you want them to bring to the team?  Don’t settle for whoever walks in.  Trust your gut. Take your time.  Especially with key staff members, I suggest that you interview each candidate a minimum of 3 times and go deeper each time.  If you see any red flags, trust your instinct and let them go. If there are pertinent skills to their job description, have them show you what they can do (i.e. computer software, write a client email, etc.).  Lastly, make sure you have a written job description for each position and discuss expectations upfront.  Even though many members of the team may be independent contractors, you should establish standards for being on the team such as attending team meetings weekly, participating in training, and any lead generation expectations. 

Lead by example

I know, you’ve heard it before and it seems like a no-brainer, but I can’t stress enough how crucial it is to your success that the team’s culture begin and end with you as the leader.  This can be as simple as dressing professionally, being punctual, and maintaining a positive attitude.  It can also mean that you follow through with the training you promised when you recruited your team or that you recognize and reward excellence (i.e. a “shout out” at a meeting or lunch for a job well done).  Most importantly, you must embody the standards you set for production, activity, behavior, and standard of care for your clients.  If you are not living what you teach, chances are, your team and your agents won’t either and business will suffer.

Nothing gave me more satisfaction than helping agents thrive or seeing my team work together for good and knowing that the culture I created helped them get there.  It wasn’t easy always being held to the same high standards I expected from my team, but it was incredibly rewarding.  It not only made me a better leader and business owner, it made me a better person.  A pretty cool pursuit. I hope these keys help you as they’ve helped me and countless others.  Remember, if you want to go more in depth, register for the free webcast I’m hosting on June 3!  

It’s a good life!

J'aime

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Related Posts

March 8, 2024

The Blind Goat with Christine Ha


Christine Ha was the first-ever blind contestant and season three [...]

February 26, 2024

The Power of Perseverance


In today’s quick-fix world, many people just give up when they don’t instantly get [...]

February 12, 2024

All It Takes is a Goal


Do you want to fulfil your innate potential but don’t know [...]

February 12, 2024

How to be a Goal Getter


If you want to achieve your goals in 2024, you need [...]

January 10, 2024

How Much is Enough


In today’s status-obsessed world, it’s no surprise that many [...]

January 4, 2024

The Celtic Secret


Have you ever wondered why Irish people are so [...]