Joey Wilkes – Call, Call, Call & Follow-Up!

Lindsay Favazza: Welcome to the Agents Who Crush It In Real Estate podcast. I am here today with Joey Wilkes. She is an agent on the Spyglass Realty team in Texas, and they are one of our training customers. We’ve heard such great things about you, Joey. I’m so excited to talk to you today. Welcome to the podcast. 

Joey Wilkes: Thank you for having me. I’m excited to be here today. 

Lindsay: Excellent. Well, Ryan made sure that we talked to you. After looking at your numbers, year over year, I totally understood why, because you went from your first year licensed and in real estate, you were dabbling. Then it seems like this year, you just crushed. I want to know what the change was from last year. Take me back to last year, and then let’s walk through this year of, what are the things that you did to grow your business? 

Joey: Sure. I have been a real estate agent technically for two years. I’ve had my license for two years, but that first year, I was a single agent and my brokerage– My family member was the broker and he just allowed me to be sponsored by him, and I did three deals under that brokerage. Then COVID hit and I was at home, not really doing anything, twiddling my thumbs, because I was doing real estate part-time, and I realized I have the opportunity right now to jump into real estate and just hit it hard. I have got the time and I have nothing to lose. I Googled– This is going to sound funny, but I googled the best brokerage in Austin, and Spyglass Realty popped up. 

I gave Ryan a call and interviewed with him. I was just so nervous about interviewing because I really was a rookie real estate agent. I didn’t know what questions to ask, and by the time our interview ended, he said, “Are you in?” I just said, “Yes, I’m in.” Because it sounds great, looks great, and I have nothing to lose, so let’s do it. From November of 2020, is when I joined, to now, I’ve done those numbers, and it’s been great. It’s been great, yes. 

Lindsay: You had last year in 2020, which was a pandemic year as well. You were part-time and it was a pandemic year. You did about four sales, and then this year, you are already on track for– Well, you’ve already closed 14, and then you were telling me before we started that you’ve got some already signed, so more under agreement. That is a huge increase in business. Don’t ask me to do math, I can’t do math, but from 4 to 14 is a huge increase. What is the biggest contributor to that changeover from the first year to the second year? 

Joey: I will say that the biggest contributor is going to be having the training to convert your leads. Because even if leads are given to you, how in the world are you going to talk to these people and convince them to work with you as a buyer’s agent or a seller’s agent. I will say it was very nerve-wracking in the beginning to make these cold calls with these leads that were provided to me. Most of my business has been company leads, but with the training and the Crush It courses, just the scripts and all the information that is provided, just really helped convert those leads. 

Lindsay: What was it about cold calling that scared you? 

Joey: Well, you’re talking to somebody who doesn’t want to talk to you. They don’t have the time and they don’t want to be sold something. Well, I felt I didn’t know what to say, and I would get hung up on my words, I would feel like I sounded like an idiot, these people are never going to want to do business with me because I have no idea what the hell I’m doing. 

Lindsay: Then that lack of confidence is only going to make you worse. [laughs] 

Joey: Yes, it does. When I just stuck to the scripts with what I was given through the Crush It courses, and after one call, if it went terrible, I would just go back to my scripts, go over that in my head and be like, “Okay, let me try this.” I just worked through it that way. Then after the 10th cold call, I realized these people on the other end of the phone are just like you, so Just talk to them like they’re your friend. Don’t try to sell them something, don’t try to sound smart, don’t use big words. Just talk to them and see what their situation is. From there, my business just increased exponentially. I just relaxed. That’s what I did. 

Lindsay: You had the confidence, and you knew what to say or what you should be saying for certain things, and that gave you that confidence to just power through it. At the same time, there’s a lot of people that have the scripts and they still don’t make it to that level. What were the ways that you were practicing? I know you said that you would get off a call and if it didn’t go exactly how you wanted it, how would you pivot and go over it and get better? 

Joey: Right. I always told myself, “Well, if that didn’t go great, I’m just going to keep a positive mindset, number one, and just read back over it, see if I’ve missed something, see if there’s just a different way to approach it.” Then I think it helps to have a great sales manager who will help you, talk to you in a way like, “Hey, why don’t you try saying these words, or talk to them like this.” It really too pivoted for me when I got to know my broker better and my team, because it made me realize that we’re all just people. I keep saying that over and over, but when you’ve realized like, “Hey, we’re all just humans, it’s not serious, but you want to make money.” 

You just need to relax a little bit. That’s where I saw the most changes, when I just said, “Okay, let’s just redo the scripts, let’s just have some conversations with some other people, and then let’s try again.” 

Lindsay: The bottom line is if they’re a lead, they filled something out. 

Joey: Exactly. 

Lindsay: They reached out in some regard. They technically did want to talk to someone, but– Good. Other than some of those leads that maybe you’ve gotten from the company, what are some of the other places that you’ve gotten leads, and how have you generated those leads for yourself? 

Joey: Sure. Spyglass is really good about marketing. I am able to pick up a few leads, just from marketing myself through Facebook, Instagram, and I always make it a point to reach out to other realtors for referrals. I’ve had some really good referral clients from other realtors in other states, so that’s helped me immensely. I really feel like just those relationships that you’re creating with your community around you through word of mouth too, is going to help you. Get on the phone, talk to people, go to conferences, go to events, and that’s another way for you– It’s another way that I refined my conversation skills as well. You just got to keep in touch with people, just talk to people. [laughs] 

Lindsay: Do you do a lot on social media, or are you emailing them, are you postcards? How do you keep in touch with those people? 

Joey: I make phone calls, and on social media, I just post a little bit on Facebook and on Instagram. I try to keep my stories going on Instagram because I feel like more people are just clicking through stories instead of going to your actual profile. I’ve gotten some really good– I just noticed that more and more people are watching my stories when I put more stories up, and so that’s a view. Then using reels, trying to stay on top of what the hottest social media trend is. It can be exhausting, but our brokerage provides really great marketing tools and a great marketing team that helps us with that. Yes, it’s just been through those outlets. 

I haven’t sent out– I was just going to say I have not sent out postcards yet, but I am going to do that. I actually got them in today, so I’m going to head over to the printing company, pick those up, but I plan instead of sending the postcards, I’m knocking on doors. 

Lindsay: I love it. It’s that one on one, person to person. 

Joey: I want to talk to people. 

Lindsay: Now that you’ve crushed cold calls, you can do a door knock. 

Joey: Yes, and again, it’s just telling yourself, “Okay, it’s either going to be a yes or no. They can slam the door on. What’s the worst that could happen?” They could say, “Stop soliciting,” or, “I don’t want to talk to you.” “Okay, I apologize for bothering you, and have a great day.” Then you’re going to move on to the next house. 

Lindsay: On to the next one, and then that next one could be the one that’s selling tomorrow and they need you. 

Moderator: Let’s take a quick break and hear from Dave Karoly, the Master of Objection Handling as he teaches you how to overcome buyer and seller concerns. 

Dave Karoly: Okay. The question we got is what to say when a seller says, they’re considering working with a friend or family member who has a license, but isn’t actively selling, but is willing to reduce their commission. It’s a long question. It doesn’t matter if they’re looking to hire a family member, a friend, some stranger off the street who either recently has their license or maybe isn’t full time. You really need to handle that objection the same way. It’s all about experience. I’ll tell a seller, okay let me ask you Mr. Seller, how many homes has that person sold? Okay. One or two. How many negotiations do you think they’ve been in. Maybe one or two. 

I’ve negotiated hundreds of sales and come across pretty much anything you can come across. Did you know Mr. Seller one wrong word in a negotiation can cost you $10,000, maybe even more? Let me ask. What’s the most important thing to you paying the lowest commission or getting the highest sales? Exactly. 

Moderator: Thanks, Dave. Now let’s get back to the show. 

Lindsay: Fantastic. I feel like you are the person that, well, maybe you’re not the person originally, but I feel you have developed the skill of taking no and moving past it. Has that been an easy thing for you or was that definitely one of the most difficult things that you had to overcome? 

Joey: Yes, that was one of the most difficult things to overcome. Just having that confidence and not letting a no be a confidence crusher because that’s what happens to most people is that they hear no and then they’re like, “Oh, well I must be terrible at this,” but it’s just one person just move on and they know the more you do it, the easier it becomes so, yes. 

Lindsay: Perfect. Yes, the more practice you have at it, and the more times you hear no, the more you’re desensitized to it. 

Joey: Exactly. That’s true. 

Lindsay: Have you had support from family, from friends? Have they been now like realizing, “Oh, she’s doing pretty well at this?” What has been the feedback that you’ve gotten from them? 

Joey: I’ve gotten great feedback from my family and friends and they’re excited for my success, which is it feels great and they’re telling people about me, which helps me be– It increases my business even more. My husband is great about getting the word out about my real estate business and he’s provided me with some leads, so that’s always a good thing. My very first clients ever in real estate, I thought I would never hear from them again, but I’ve just kept up with them and social media just a little bit. They reached out to me and said, “We’re ready to buy a home. We’ve done all the work. We just need to see it and we need you to write a contract.” 

I think the more you get the word out, the more people that you have that are getting the word out about you the better. Again, it goes back to making those touch points, calling people, and then having those conversations with them. 

Lindsay: What do you love the most and what could you leave out of real estate now that you’ve had a full year under your belt, and you’re really starting to rock and roll. What is your favorite and what’s your least favorite thing about real estate? 

Joey: I think my favorite thing about real estate is that there is never ever a dull moment. There’s never a dull moment and I really enjoy working through kinks and working through conflicts that will be like what is even happening here, but let’s just push through it or let me find that answer for you and helping people to just win their dream home. That really should be at the core of why you want to be a realtor is that service aspect of helping people get into their dream home because that feels damn good for you and for them and seeing them smile and just be so excited. It’s totally worth it. 

Lindsay: What’s your least favorite thing? 

Joey: My least favorite thing has to be– Well I have two, one of them, I don’t like cold calling. I really don’t, but I do it with a positive attitude and just, yes, I’ll just leave it at that. I don’t like cold calling. 

Lindsay: I feel like that’s a good message though, even though you’ve overcome it and you’ve gotten good at it, that doesn’t mean you have to love it. You’re never going to love that, but you still have to do it and it’s a necessary evil. You might as well be good at it. 

Joey: Yes. The second thing that I don’t like about it is I don’t like to lose and so in this market right now in Texas, and I’m sure in your market too, it’s really hot, we’re intensive, we have multiple offer situations and when you lose or you come in second, it is just soul-crushing almost because you’re so close. Those are, I would say those are the two things that I don’t like about real estate. I don’t like cold calling and I don’t like losing. 

Lindsay: Well, I think the not losing aspect of what you don’t like is probably going to help you to be a better realtor, too. 

Joey: Yes, it does, and it helps refine your offer and it helps your client to see what a better offer could look like, and before you know it, you’re winning. 

Lindsay: I love it. In this market with all the craziness that we have all been dealing with like it’s, every market has had this low inventory issue. What are some ways that you have been able to get some of those offers one for your clients? Is there anything that you think has helped you stand out or, or get it done? 

Joey: Yes, certainly. One is just educating the client on what to expect and when the market’s so hot like you are going to be competing with 10 to 20, to even 50 offers. I’ve been in a 54-offer multiple offer situation and that you need to come in always at your highest, do your best. If you’re super serious about it, you have to show that on your contract and you have to show that to the seller. It’s just educating your client on what that looks like in the contract. We up our option money really high, and we make sure that they are comfortable walking away from that. Should they get under contract and decide to back out and then we lower option days which was a termination option here in Texas. 

We lower that to about three to five days, which can be really scary, but as long as you’re doing your due diligence and you get things lined up ahead of time, you can really help your client win that offer. 

Lindsay: Excellent and as far as this crazy market goes, I’m sure you’ve had to deal with some buyers and sellers going through some pretty rough times. How do you manage the emotional side with your clients? What steps do you take to get them through these difficult and exciting– Even when they get an offer landed, there’s still so much to do and it’s such an emotional process. How do you help them with that? 

Joey: It is, and again, it’s just telling your client and educating them again on what to expect, walking them through the process of when we get here, we’re going to move to this step and then just keeping in touch with them and keeping in constant contact with them because they’re going to have a lot of questions and if they can’t get those answered, they’re probably going to lose their mind. It’s really important just to stay in constant communication with your clients, educating them on what the processes are. 

Lindsay: Perfect. What advice would you give to an agent who maybe this is their first year in real estate and they aspire to be like you and get 14 deals next year, at least? What advice do you give to that person that’s starting out and in your shoes like last year? 

Joey: Sure. I think my advice would be call, call, call and keep following up because I have lost deals where I did not follow up and somebody else we’ve done and got that buyer or seller I would say, keep a positive mindset and really think– For me, I also feel like my success came from realizing that I do have something to prove to my new broker and this company that I am a valuable team member. I let that push me and drive me because I don’t want to just be a lump on a log in the brokerage, nobody wants to be that. 

Just set your goals, ask yourself what you want and then take your steps, take the steps to get there. Call, keep a positive mindset, call again, and just really utilize all the tools and the training that your broker is going to provide for you. Find the best brokerage that is going to do that for you and for me, I did. Ryan Rosenbeck and Sonny Tracy and Johnny McCarthy at Spyglass Realty they are the best brokerage in Austin. 

Lindsay: You guys all heard that, if you are an Austin agent that you might want to check them out, give them a little plug here. Joey, I hope that you had mentioned before that you like to do events and things like that. We have our event in February, we would love to meet you. We hope that you can come and join us. It’s here in Massachusetts so hopefully, you can get Ryan and come on up here and be our guest up here at the conference. We would love to have you guys come. Joey, thank you so much for being our guest with us today. I know our audience learned a lot from you and I really appreciate it and I’m going to watch as your sales grow over the next year I’m sure. 

Joey: Great. Thank you so much for having me. This has been great. Thanks.