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Thanks to yesterday's Mastery Monday with Seniors Real Estate Institute on "Decoding the Senior Community Lingo" you know know who's who in the senior community space. Now it's time to reach out. In this blog post from the SREI archives, Dr. Nikki Buckelew shares tips on how to reach out to senior community representatives....and how not to:

WHICH REAL ESTATE BOX DO YOU LIVE IN? Having been in real estate for about three decades now, and having been an agent, office manager, team leader, coach, and trainer in the industry, it’s clear that while public perception is all real estate agents are the same, there are clearly at least 3 very distinct boxes in which agents fall.

My observation is that without some coaching or strong leadership in their lives, most agents fall into Box #1.

Those in Box #2 are usually either the result of poor character or poor training — either way, this box is what has given the real estate profession a bum rap.

Lastly, those in Box #3 have figured out that real estate sales can be meaningful, fun, and profitable.

You probably already know what box you are in, but you may be wondering why it matters.

Box #1: Typical REALTOR® Box This box contains the real estate agents, both new and seasoned, who are likely doing their jobs quite well. They have reputations as being good people and competent professionals.

The tendency in this box is to work with a variety of clients – no particular concern for where a property is located, the type of property, or the goals and challenges the client may have.

If you meet someone new and introduce yourself as a Realtor, chances are this is the box they put you in (metaphorically speaking).

The mantra coming from this box sounds something like, “I will work with anyone who wants or needs to buy, sell, or invest. Anywhere, anytime, anything.”

Not only will these agents work with just about anyone, they will work until midnight, on weekends, and skip their kid’s soccer games chasing the next sale. Keeping focused and maintaining a balanced life can be hard for agents in Box #1.

As years go on, some agents in Box #1 decide to expand and hire support staff or team members, while others choose to remain solo. Because they are worn-out and burned out, they typically look forward to the day when they can scale back and not work as hard (sooner is better than later).

Box #1 agents are the equivalent of a Super Wal-Mart. They carry a little bit of everything and are required to negotiate their price and principles because their value is diminished by the law of supply and demand.

Box #2: Atypical agents Fortunately, this box is not nearly as big as Box #1. This is the agent box that neither the agent community nor the public prefers to know or talk about.

This segment of agents — existing in every market I might add — that are incompetent, lack integrity, or are “only in it for the commission.”

These agents usually come and go. That said, there are a few bad apples out there tenacious enough to withstand public, professional, and legal scrutiny.

Despite their lack of ethics and shotty business practices, Box #2 remains with people preying on the naivety or ignorance of consumers and frustrating the heck out of agents in boxes #1 and #3.

Box #3: Experts Over the years, smart real estate professionals have learned that trying to be all things to all people is exhausting. Hence, the evolution of Box #3: Experts (or specialists).

Let’s be clear before I go on — I’m not talking about those agents with all the alphabet soup following their names. This isn’t about how many classes people take or how many initials they acquire (many with a bazzillion designations have the least amount of sales experience and expertise).

Being an expert is about, well, expertise … it’s about focus and intention toward one (or maybe two) specific market or consumer segments.

These agents make it their business to know virtually everything about their target audience and have chosen to focus their attention on a very specific niche and refer the rest.

By doing so, these agents provide a much higher level of service to their clients and are far more satisfied with their overall businesses.

Just like attorneys, physicians, and financial gurus, agents in Box #3 find a niche and serve that niche masterfully. Consider Nordstrom and Starbucks when you think about Box #3 agents. They know their target audience and the provide a product AND experience that keeps them returning for more.

They certainly aren’t always the cheapest, but the quality they offer is unmatched.

These professionals have earned a very loyal following, their customer service rankings that are off the charts, and they frequently choose NOT to retire because their careers are providing meaning, purpose, fun, and lifestyle options.

Moving from Box #1 to Box #3 Box #1 is not a bad place to be. It may have its appeal and brokerages tend to encourage agents to live in Box #1. Their perspective being that EVERYONE is a potential piece of business, so why specialize.

In fact, Box #3 can seem like a scary box to live in when you’re deep-seated in Box #1. But being a specialist opens the door to for agents to do what they love while making a living at the same time.

Do you like golf? Become THE EXPERT in Golf Course properties (assuming your market has golf course properties).

Love the water? Specialize in waterfront properties, boaters, and all things water (assuming you have water in your market).

Love the hip downtown vibe of urban revitalization? Learn all there is to know about it and spread the love!

Seniors Real Estate Institute As for us, we are passionate about the more mature market segment. We enjoy helping longtime homeowners and their families with the challenges associated with retirement community moves and downsizing. We know the 55+ market and all that goes along with it. And there is far more than most agents ever imagined!

If you’re considering a move from Box #1 to Box #3, we would love to talk with you! We want to know your motivations, fears, concerns, questions, and reservations.

BTW… We’ve all had them and so let’s get them out in the open and EXPLORE the many possibilities allowing you to LOVE your career and your life again!

Being Truly Different To become a true expert and specialist serving the mature market, you don’t just show up for a weekend seminar and pay a few hundred bucks.

Becoming an expert isn’t for everyone because it requires an investment of time, money, and effort. If you are TRULY dedicated to becoming the best agent for your clients, we encourage you to join the SREI community of experts and become a Certified Senior Housing Professional (CSHP).

On this week's Mastery Monday with the Seniors Real Estate Institute, Dr. Nikki Buckelew discussed connecting with people in ways that were meaningful and tied to your own passions and interests.
The same approach applies to staying in touch with seniors who may not be ready to move. In this video from the SREI blog, Educational and Fun Ways to Stay in Touch, Nikki gives 3 ways to stay in touch with people while staying authentic.

What should you be studying if you’re going to master senior real estate? We’re all about learning, educating, empowering, and equipping here at the Seniors Real Estate Institute, so today we’ll share three areas of focus for being at your best when serving your clients.

1. Environmental gerontology. This is the study of environments as we age. The textbook “Environmental Gerontology: Making Meaningful Places in Old Age” edited by Graham D. Rowles and Miriam Bernard is good resource (though academic) for those who are looking to increase their knowledge beyond the marketing side of the industry. Learn about place attachment, environmental meaning, and community later in life.

“These three books will help you better understand and assist your senior clients.” 2. Psychology. Learning more about how people think and process information about where they will live as they get older is a critical aspect of what we do in senior-centered real estate. “Aging in the Right Place” by Dr. Stephen M. Golant is a great text which includes both academic research and personal experience. Dr. Golant is a gerontologist, but his book is very much about the psychology of how people view their environments as they age.

1. Communication. To enhance your perspective in this area, check out “How to Say It to Seniors: Closing the Communication Gap with Our Elders” by David Solie. This book takes what gerontologists learn through research and makes it applicable to us in everyday life, allowing us to help seniors make informed decisions with their lives.

The Success in Seniors Real Estate curriculum includes key elements from all of these texts.

"Sis, what's wrong with mom?"

The approaching holiday season means the gathering of family from far and wide, many of whom have not seen their older family members for a year or more. Many will come away shocked and surprised that mom or dad or grandma or grandpa have aged significantly. In more serious cases, the younger family members may be concerned at what they perceive as a drastic reduction in the ability of their loved one to live independently. They may even feel that the older person’s safety is at immediate risk.

Therefore, this holiday season is a prime time for you – the Certified Senior Housing Professional in your city – to be of utmost service to both the senior and their family members.

In some scenarios, a family member may have a hunch that the senior is having some difficulty with living independently but be unsure as to what clues to look for to bolster (or explain) their concerns to the senior or other family members.

Most will be confused as to what to do next and what their options concerning senior housing and care may be. Worse, if most or all of the family members live a significant distance away from the older senior, the stress and difficulty in handling the situation mounts further.

At this juncture, both the senior and the family caregivers need you, their local CSHP, to look at the specific situation and offer advice and solutions. But, of course, if they don’t know about you or your service, their problems only mount.

It’s important that you get the word out this holiday season to both your circle of influence and to the general public. Of course, this can be done through traditional advertising and also by focusing your email database and direct mail marketing on this topic.

You should also make sure that you have a couple of blog posts focused on this issue and on highlighting your expertise in the area. Social media posts across all of your online platforms must contain several messages designed to help your followers, fans, and friends know how to handle the situation if it arises in their family.

Here are just a few of the questions likely to be swirling in their mind: Do they need to move or will home health care be enough? How do we pay for either help or assisted living? How do I broach the subject to them? How do I talk about this to my other family members? How can we arrange this when all of live out of town? Am I just being paranoid? What signs of decline should we all be watching for? Who’s going to arrange and manage everything? The sale of the house? Moving? Estate Sales? Who can help us understand the financial implications? What options are there with Medicare? Do they have to go to a nursing home? What level of care do they need? Should they or can they move in with any of us? Can any of us give them the proper care? How do we find a good senior community? Can someone help with this?

Again, these are just a few of the problems that a family member is overwhelmed with when a holiday visit shows signs that an older loved one may need help living alone. Structure your advertising, blog posts, and social media posts to address these issues and remind folks that you can be of service.

Keep in mind that home health care providers and senior communities always note an increase in the number of “cold” first time inquiries they receive from family members during and immediately after the holiday season. Make sure those senior professionals – your colleagues – know that you are available to be of service with many of these issues that lie outside their realm of expertise.

(SREI Blog repost)

So many letters, so little time. With countless acronyms out there, you may ask yourself, do I need a certification or designation to serve the senior market?

"I keep hearing about seminars. Why would a real estate agent want to host seminars?" Dr. Nikki Buckelew gives you a quick overview into why seminars might be the breath of fresh air you've been looking for in your senior-focused business.

In this video, we discuss 3 ways that adding seminars to your business strategy can help make you the mature market expert.