Editorial
Front Page - Friday, January 15, 2010
Women’s Council of Realtors holds first meeting of 2010
Stephanie Coward
The Women’s Council of Realtors held its first meeting of 2010 last week at the Choo Choo Hotel. Organizational involvement and referrals were key themes during Tennessee State Women’s Council Governor Bobbie Noreen’s speech.
President Cheree Dumas called the meeting to order and took time to recognize two members whose involvement and help has been pivotal within the organization. “Sara Steiner has been doing our e-vites, and I just wanted to thank her for all the effort you do and everything you do for us,” Dumas said. Steiner was the first to be acknowledged and asked to come up and receive “her happy,” as Dumas called it.
Past President Jennifer Grayson was next up to receive a happy, later in the meeting. “We had a great year last year and it’s all because of you guys,” Grayson said. “You rallied and you’re always there when I asked you to do something and it was great.”
After the agenda was approved, 2010 President Elect Kaye Ivey introduced the key sponsor for January, Melanie Moore of Full Disclosure Home Inspection Services. “It’s gonna be a great year, I feel it coming,” Moore said. She then took a moment to share with the group all the innovative services her company provides. Clause 13 and a 100-day inspection warranty were two key points Moore discussed.
Moore ensured the Realtors knew about Clause 13 in her company’s contracts. “It is specifically a protection clause for the Realtors. It’s another level of protection for y’all that y’all are in no way liable for anything I find or don’t find on the report,” Moore explained. “Nothing I do or don’t do is ever gonna fall back on you. If I make a mistake, you’re never gonna pay for it.” The 100-day guarantee is good on all the items the company inspects. This provides a security net to homeowners who may not have the repair funds available the first three to four moths they’re in the new home, Moore said.
When the attendees were nearing the end of their lunch, it was time for the guest speaker. Ivey introduced Noreen. “Bobbie Noreen … began her career in California and spent 20 years growing a company selling over 3,000 homes, developing on-site training for agents and new construction and earning many sales awards,” Ivey said. “Bobbie has been involved in the Real Estate Associates and Board of Realtors with Williamson County; she was the president there in 2003. She was the 2005 Tennessee State President and 2007 Member of the Year.”
Noreen moved from California to Nashville with her husband in 1991. He was in a band and the move seemed like an exciting adventure to the both of them. She was ill prepared for the turn her business would take when she reached Tennessee. “My thought was that because I had 22 years in the business and was so successful in California that coming to Tennessee, you all would be just so excited to have me,” Noreen said. “I didn’t know a soul. I had no network.”
She knew only one person – the wife of her husband’s band mate – who would be a saving grace. “Thank God they wanted to sell their house, because that was the first and only sale I had that first year,” Noreen said. She realized that she had to make some major changes quickly and they would start with her going back to the basics. Real estate had been her sole source of income since 1972, and she wasn’t going to let a move stop her and end her career.
She realized that it was important that she got to know the people who were in real estate because these were her peers and the people who would be sitting across the table from her to get a deal done. “So I joined the board and threw myself into committees and just wanted to get known,” she said. Today, she’s a broker for a company of 180 Realtors and hasn’t looked back.
Those decisions were key elements to her success and things every Realtor should be doing, she said. So many view agents as “isolated islands,” which Noreen said is no way to approach a real estate career. “More so now, than I think ever, we rely on each other,” she said.
Relying on one another and networking whenever possible aren’t just bullet points to a good business plan, they’re crucial elements to any successful real estate career. Noreen asked the crowd to raise a hand if any of them had at least $10,000 in referrals last year. “I don’t consider I’ve had a good year unless I have $10,000 that I can show went for referrals,” she said. “Because I am the one that can generate referrals, but no one can refer to me if they don’t know me.” So meeting people and staying actively involved in organizations like Women’s Council develops relationships and is monetary beneficial.
“One of the differences between networking or marketing and sales is, (with sales) you are chasing the deal, every deal, and once that deal’s over, what are we? Out of business or unemployed,” Noreen said. “So you’ve got to have some system that creates a pipeline that continues to feed so that every time a deal closes you’re not out looking or chasing after the next deal. And the only way to do that is to create a system that has that happen, and networking should be a part of that system.”
According to Noreen, brand recognition is key. Agents need to look for themselves and stick to that same look in all of their materials – business cards, flyers, brochures and whatever else they use.
“People want to work with people they know and trust and feel good about being around,” Noreen said. It’s all about relationships. “Start meeting other Realtors. That will build your business and you will get inspired by other Realtors too.”
Noreen ended by reinforcing the usefulness of both the state and national Women’s Council of Realtors Web sites. Dumas then returned to the podium to close the meeting. She informed all present that the membership drive had begun and all were encouraged to bring another agent friend to the next meeting. The drive runs though March 31.
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