If you are a Realtor reading this blog, I want to make this perfectly clear. I joined Coldwell Banker almost three years ago, and in that time my real estate career has soared. The CB brand has been instrumental in my success. The marketing, brand, and support are second to none. If you are considering the next move in your real estate career here is why you should choose Coldwell Banker.
First things first, Coldwell Banker has been around since 1906. It’s a trusted brand with a great reputation as the biggest and best brokerage in America. Full stop. If you are working for a boutique brokerage you can’t imagine the opportunity cost of staying where you are. I had no idea how much business I was missing out on by being with a medium sized regional brokerage (that is no longer in business). Once I made the move, my phone started ringing from clients who would never have called me at my old brokerage and I realized what a great advantage it is to be with CB. Size, branding and reputation matters.
Realtors are independent contractors. We build our own businesses and our goal is to become entrenched in our markets, to become the ‘go-to real estate resource’ for our communities. Looking at it purely from a high level, your personal real estate business on it’s on will only take you so far. When you align with a brokerage, depending on their reputation and branding, the brokerage will help you penetrate your local market further.
When I became a Realtor, just a few years removed from completing my MBA, I leveraged my brokerage’s brand in every listing appointment. Over the years as I gained more experience my listing presentations became more about what I brought to the table. There were times I left listing appointments and was hired by clients who didn’t even know the name of my broker. Because I was with a smaller brokerage, I felt like I was eclipsing it. The service and dedication to my clients I brought table was more important than the brokerage itself.
That approach only took me so far. At Coldwell Banker I have embraced the brand, and l try to make sure my clients see the value in not just my services but what CB has to offer as well. There is no question that it helps to be in an office where I live and sell real estate here in Terra Linda. It makes me hyper local, while being backed by a national powerhouse.
If you are a new agent looking to get into the business, I believe there is no better place to start your career than Coldwell Banker because of their ongoing training. Looking at the training calendar in April the least number of classes on any given day is 4, the most is 13. This is a great benefit to experienced agents as well. During the shelter in place, I was attending as many as half a dozen training classes a week. Now I pop into a class when I feel like I need a refresher on a subject or if I’m ready to learn something new.
The training isn’t confined to classes. At the end of our weekly meetings, we have a segment on marketing updates from a marketing specialist, then the specialist will email everyone a summary of the day’s presentation. My MBA is in marketing, so I have a great appreciation for the marketing segments. Also, and most importantly I meet regularly one on one with a marketing specialist who helps me with all aspects of my business. Sometimes we tweak my website. Other times we work on my marketing plans. Coldwell Banker has great marketing specialists, and I feel very fortunate to be working with Nakia Fritz. Without her help I would not have just completed my best year by far in real estate sales.
Coldwell Banker has the training. We have the support. We have the tools. We have everything you need (and more) to be successful in your real estate career. Contact me if you’d like to learn more about why I am grateful to be at CB each and every day, and how CB has helped me to become one of the top agents in Marin County.