From the desk of 2021 RRC President Alex Milshteyn, CRS
I know members have a strong interest in building a reliable referral network. When I refer a client to a CRS, I know they will be in great hands with somebody who has taken the same coursework as I have and built a successful business.
The CRS designation is one of the most coveted designations available, with an unsurpassed educational program. As a result, the Find a CRS tool has been incredible for my business because I’m able to easily find like-minded real estate agents throughout the country who can assist my clients.
To further enhance the ability of RRC members to assist their clients, we need to continue to build a successful referral network. So I am happy to share that significant enhancements and modifications have been made to Find a CRS.
The new robust features that are integrated into the Find a CRS tool include:
- Communication: A message center, notifications, posts and feeds will enhance many aspects of incoming and outgoing communication, including announcements and updates from RRC.
- Community Groups: A community landing page will show posts from the active groups a user is associated with. Users can view updates from a group as well as share an update or post a referral.
- Skill Endorsements: A Recommendations and Skills section will list a user’s skills and endorsements and enable other users to endorse existing skills.
- Badges and Ribbons: Badge icons appearing on the user’s profile page will include an RRC Certificate, awards, RPAC donations, state and national leadership roles and more. Ribbons will show attendance at Sell-a-bration, member endorsements and past leadership posts.
Building a strong referral network provides the opportunity to generate substantial income. The referrals I sent out last year generated a five-figure income for me. I’m located in a college town, so I receive a lot of referrals from other college towns. For outgoing referrals, I tell all my friends throughout the country, “If you’re ever moving, please let me know so I can put you in touch with a real estate agent in that local market.”
A good friend of mine just moved for the seventh time since I’ve known her. Every time she moves, she calls and says, “Alex, I’m going to be relocating—who do you have at my new location?” I’ve reminded people to think of me when they think of real estate, no matter where they are located. Then I’m able to put them in touch with somebody I trust. You don’t need too many friends like that to make it very worthwhile.
Another friend reached out and said: “Alex, we’re moving to a city in Oregon. Do you know anybody there? We’re not sure if we’re going to rent or buy. We’ve never been to the city; our employer is relocating us there.” I was able to find a great CRS, and she gave them a tour of the community without any guarantee they were going to buy a house. She went above and beyond because she got the referral through Find a CRS. But because she did such a good job promoting her community, not only did they buy a property, but they’ve decided no matter what, they’re staying there for good.
I prefer to refer to REALTORS® who have their CRS designation, are motivated and will treat their clients in a way that’s similar to how I treat my clients. It’s a service that you’re able to provide to your clients—to know that you can put them in touch with somebody you trust.
I invite you to check out Find a CRS, update your profile, join one of the available groups and start using all of the new features the enhanced tool provides to CRSs.
Photo: Scott Stewart
