Winter has traditionally been slower for the real estate industry. If that is the case for you this season, it doesn’t mean you have to hit the brakes on your business. There are many opportunities to sell in the winter, and it’s a great time to take stock of your business and do a little work to prepare for the peak months ahead.
Sell in the winter
The winter is not a total dead period when it comes to real estate sales, and depending on where you live, your business may never slow down. But there are always people moving throughout all seasons and who need to buy and sell. There are some clear advantages to selling in winter: less competition, initiative-taking buyers and the ability to highlight the winter side of your home. It all comes down to determining the buyer’s or seller’s motivation and knowing what to say to ease any hesitations.
Bring fresh skills to life
It can be difficult to find time to educate yourself when things are busy. But as a CRS, there is a responsibility and duty to maintain, develop and grow skills and knowledge to stay with the times. Winter is a great season to sharpen overall skills, especially after the last few years of volatility. This means taking advantage of training, improving your phone skills, working on your sales scripts or presentations and learning innovative marketing techniques. Excellent resources are never more than a few clicks away—you just need to find the time to sit down and utilize them.
Build the Rolodex
A slowdown in business means you can focus more on your real estate networking and marketing efforts. You want to get as many leads as possible into your pipeline so when spring comes, you are ready to jump into action. Consider attending more community events and business luncheons, and setting up more coffee dates with new friends—or a new agent you’ve met. Search for volunteer opportunities in the area where you could meet new people. Whatever you do, follow up with any new contacts you meet.
Research
Another wonderful way to utilize free time during the industry’s off-season is by conducting research of trends in your market and branching out into new fields or niches. Having a better understanding of your market means you can find niches or angles to help you improve your outreach. What demographic has been migrating to your area? What price range sold the most in 2022? Consider getting specialized in new areas to build and attract new clients in that space.
The winter season can be demotivating. But agents can fight back negative feelings by staying busy and working their business in new ways, preparing for when things pick up again—because, it inevitably will.
Learn how to stay active and get more involved in your community by attending the webinar “Locally Grown: State and Local Involvement” at CRS.com/webinars.
Photo: iStock.com/Olga Simonova
