Coaching real estate agents to win listing presentations starts with proper onboarding. This is the step I see a lot of real estate leaders overlook. As AI continues to reshape real estate (and the cost of labour continues to rise), investing in onboarding and retention is a good move.

Clients will rely on A players as our industry continues to shift. Finding, nurturing and retaining that level of talent starts with you, as the leader.

When onboarding new sales agents, this is where I start. Before we jump in, if you need help attracting or retaining sales talent, book a free 15-minute call with me to see where you’re at.

The first 90 days of a new hire

Support

When you’re onboarding a new sales agent, the first 90 days are the most important. They need to get acclimated into the vision and the role they play within it. Make an effort to get to know their personal and professional goals, as those will impact performance down the line. Once there’s clarity and confidence there, get them deeply integrated into the systems, processes, and ways of operating.

Integration

A big part of that discussion should be introducing them to your internal software platforms, so they understand how to request items and actions within the business. This should consist of pre-recorded training materials and 1:1s. The goal is to free up agents as much as possible to focus on serving people looking to buy or sell. You can achieve this through support via offshore operations, AI solutions, and automations.

If they’re an established agent, they’ll need to understand the systems really well, so they’re not tempted to work in silos. Experienced agents know how to sell, but it’s important to explain your niche and unique points of difference as an agency.

Leads

Leads are like oxygen for an agent. As a leader, it’s part of your responsibility to continually drive lead opportunities to grow their database and meetings with property owners in the area – via appraisals to progress them towards listing presentations and sales. Help them nurture these relationships with systems and processes.

Comraderie

Make it part of your onboarding that they meet everyone in the team. Plan a team event to bring everyone together. An agent should feel as though they’re part of something special when they join and that they’ve got a key role to play in order for the team to succeed.

This isn’t a once-off effort. Maintaining culture and driving performance requires ongoing focus. Need help creating all of your operating systems and scaffolding? Grab 15 minutes in my calendar.