How Real Estate Agents Build Referral Businesses | Title Agents Podcast Ep48

In a world where change is the only constant, Mo Shumil stands at the forefront, guiding title professionals to not just grow their businesses, but to master the art of innovation. With every episode, you're handed the keys to unlock unparalleled growth and stay ahead of the curve. Get ready for a transformative journey. Welcome everybody to Ignite Mondays. We encourage you to register and join the first Monday of every month.

We will be giving you plenty of time to do that and introducing you to our panelist guest speakers prior to each month. If you could please be on mute during this, we are going to cover a ton of information for you. So I'd like to introduce Katie O'Keefe. She is the broker owner of Dream Realty. She has over 20 years experience in the real estate industry.

She is passionate about helping clients turn their real estate dreams into reality. We also have Carlos Pachardo who is joining us today. He is the broker owner of Cap Real Estate. He is located in the DC, Maryland and Virginia area. He's got over 16 years of experience and runs a thriving real estate team.

We're excited to have you all. And Ashanti Lafayette will also be our third guest panelist speaker. She will be here momentarily. She's out of the Houston, Texas area. She is a luxury real estate professional with an exorbitant amount of knowledge and a client first approach.

So we're going to learn a lot today about valuable tools and resources that will help you grow your business in 2025 and moving forward, utilizing real estate referral driven businesses. And so with that, I open our panelist discussion today with Katie Ashanti and Carlos Pachardo. So we'll go ahead and get started. So Carlos and Katie, as we're waiting for Ashanti to join us, could you briefly share your journey in real estate and how you got to the point of building a successful referral driven business? Katie, we can start with you.

Sure. Good morning, everyone. So I have been licensed in real estate for 21 years. I have had my brokerage for 17 years. And I think for me, the key of building the referral base was right from go, I decided to get into different networking groups.

So I didn't just get my license and quit. It was continuing the education with different designations. It was joining different networking groups, BNI, after hour, happy hour groups. For me, I think I realized that the key was not necessarily so much what I knew, but who I knew. And so I think the valuable lesson there was to shake as many hands as you can, to get in front of as many people as you can.

It's always to some degree slow that first year. Who knows that you're licensed? Who knows what you're doing now in life? But I think, you know, you crawl, walk, run by year three, four, that pond had gotten bigger, and therefore the business was starting to flow in a little more easily versus having to pump the pavement. So I think year four was really when we started to see the numbers take off more organically than me trying to take every meeting and shake a hand and give a business card and put your name out there.

Year four, it finally started, you know, the phones were, the calls were finally starting to come in. So it took a few years, but now you're 21, very blessed that the ship is sailing more easily than it was in the first few years. Beautiful. And Carlos, how about you? Yeah, I started in real estate in the middle of the housing crisis back in 2009, helping people with short sales.

And that's where I got to hear about, you know, how they got themselves into, you know, bad deals, essentially, from the poor advice from a realtor or a mortgage lender. So I realized the importance of providing great service, of being a true advisors and educating your clients. After four years, I decided to really, you know, start my own brokerage. And that's when I, you know, at the beginning was my business was just all referrals from family, friends and business partner, principally my wife, who is a great mortgage lender. But once I started my brokerage, I started to do marketing, growing a team and implementing systems to get leads, convert them into clients, paying special attention to growing referrals.

And you know, you kind of, when you do a great job with your clients, you kind of expect them to remember you. But that doesn't always happen. So you really need to implement systems to stay top of mind and have them remember you when they need you or somebody in their network needs you. Okay. All right.

And it seems like Alex, we're still waiting on Ashanti to share with us. So I'm going to go ahead and move forward with our first question here on the panelists discussion. Okay, so I'm going to just move right in to our panelists discussion questions. And once Ashanti joins us, we'll include her in these questions. So Katie, I'm going to go ahead and ask this first question regarding our referral strategies and techniques in your business.

So what are some of the most effective ways you nurture your relationships with past clients to keep your network engaged and actively referring clients to you and your brokerage? So for me, my concept is, you know, CRMs are great. You know, I agree with Carlos. There needs to be some sort of systematic, you know, thing in place that will remind you who haven't you talked to, here's the last time that you did any kind of notes. For me, though, I like to keep it slightly more personable and deviate a little bit away from just real estate.

We can send CRMs, we can post about our new listings, but we like to try to encompass all different angles when we look at how and why are people going to refer to us. So for us, it means not only having, you know, a CRM, but it means engaging in social media, not only with posts about us and our brokerage and our listings and our successes, which I think are important to be mindful and remind people of what we do, but also to think out of the box. So for us, we host different events throughout the year, one being our charity event. We really only keep that invitation to our clients and customers. And what we find is, is we build a community within that community.

So our clients and customers start not only being able to give back, which they love, it gets us not talking about necessarily just real estate, but our community as a whole. And people I think really want to give back, they just don't know how to. So it's kind of double good. It's good for the community. We're doing charity at work.

We are in the public eye, we're able to see people that maybe we wouldn't normally see that particular year because they're not moving or they didn't have time to have that coffee meeting with us, but they'll make time to come to a charity event. So that's been really great for us and successful. And one year when we didn't do it, because I had some personal things going on, it was interesting because the people would call us and say, why didn't we do the charity event? You know, what was going on? And so you could see it was important to them because they were upset it didn't happen.

And then also secondarily, not only posting on your social media about yourself, but engaging with your clients and customers about their life, you know, cheering them on and your successes, asking about their kids, so keeping really good notes, you know, what was the daughter's name and how old was she or, you know, all the things we learn about our clients and customers when we're in those showings or sitting in their homes. I think not only do we need to ask for referrals, but I think when we're seen not just as the real estate agent, but a helpful person, a confidant, someone that's there in the community to support them and their family, I think it just really becomes more organic. I love that. And that is so true. Thank you for sharing that.

Carlos, networking is vital in the real estate business. How do you ensure that your network isn't just large, but also quality driven in terms of generating meaningful referrals? Yeah, you know, size is meaningless without a confidant, someone that's there in the community to support them and their family. I think it just really becomes more organic. I love that.

And that is so true. Thank you for sharing that. Carlos, networking is vital in the real estate business. How do you ensure that your network isn't just large, but also quality driven in terms of generating meaningful referrals? Yeah, you know, size is meaningless without depth.

I prioritize quality by nurturing relationships intentionally, checking in regularly, showing genuine interest in what's happening in people's lives. Just like Katie mentioned, you know, get involved, get track of things that are happening in their lives and talk about it, not just real estate. And also being a resource, even when there is no immediate business, okay? Helping them with things that you know about, nothing to do with real estate. I also focus on surrounding myself with like-minded professionals, people who value integrity, service, and excellence, such as Faith.

We're good friends. Yes, we are. It's not about adding every contact possible. It is about adding the right people and building trust over time. So, you know, you keep doing this and your network just grows and people are happy to be with you and you nurture relationships and networking just, and the referral business just grows.

Thank you, Carlos. That is so true. Being genuine and authentic always wins the day. So thank you for sharing that, Katie and Carlos. Our next question are going to be about challenges and overcoming obstacles when it comes to building your business by referral.

And so Katie, referrals can sometimes come in spurts throughout the year, or it can be challenging to keep steady, a steady flow of your referrals coming in. Have you encountered any challenges in this area and how have you overcome the inconsistency of utilizing your business on a referral-driven basis? Yeah, I think definitely. There's always going to be ebbs and flows, right? You're going to have peaks and valleys.

Last year, personally, I had one of the best years, you know, in my career. Things tend to just kind of hit systematically. So you get lucky on some years where people are calling, it's time to move, it's time to downsize. Sadly, my mom passed away. We need to sell our house, whatever it might be.

And then there are other years where it's a little more quiet. I think, again, not to be redundant, but you go back to, first and foremost, you have to ask, right? Like people sometimes will forget. And to be communicative and say, hey, I haven't talked to you in a while. And just so you know, my gold star is you referring me.

You have to be comfortable telling people, I really appreciate the business you just gave me. And if you ever want to say thank you to me, the best and biggest thing you can do is refer me to your friends and family. So I think, first of all, being direct, being forthcoming, and then secondarily, again, thinking out of the box, right? Like take every meeting. I tell all my agents, you know, when they say, how do we get to your level?

I'm like, take every meeting. And when you don't have meetings to take, create the meeting and call around. And whether it's the lender, the title rep, the old client, your dentist, your aunt, and just talk with people. And it doesn't, again, don't make it just about real estate because quite frankly, most people don't want to hear about it and don't want to talk about it and their need is imminent. But just creating that bond with people, they'll never refer anyone else.

I mean, I literally have an army of people that will say to me, I would never refer anyone else. Like you're our go-to person and we go out into the world and spread your name. So I think that there is no magic to it. It is, you can't sit in your office and think the phone is gonna ring. You gotta be in front of people.

It's a people business. Yes, agreed 100%. And so Carlos, for someone who's maybe just starting out in the real estate industry, how can they begin to build their business utilizing a referral network if they're starting from scratch? And what's maybe the best approach to ensure they're making the right connections in starting from the beginning and building their referral basis from there? Yeah, really you have to start by taking action and contacting your friends, family, your social circle.

Check your phone database on the contacts. Go through them all to see who should know about what you're doing now and how you may be able to help them. And also be willing to let their friends know about you. And like Katie says, you always ask for referrals as you get to know people. You join local community groups, attend networking events like BNI and build real connections with people.

Be intentional, listen more than talk. That's a big one. Look for ways to add value and always follow through on promises. Because when you say you're gonna do something, you wanna make sure that they know you're gonna be there. Focus on building trust and credibility.

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Visit alltechnationaltitle.com or DM us today to start the conversation. I do have a question. I don't know if anybody else has a question that's on this call today. Would you recommend from somebody just starting from scratch building their business from the bottom and building this business in that way? Would you suggest reaching out online, providing video and educating clients and asking for the business that way?

Yeah, definitely. Now with social media, that's a pretty big deal. Doing webinars, doing social posts that are educating clients about the market, what's happening in the market, about the process of buying or selling, about mistakes people should avoid. There's all kinds of things that you can interact through the social media nowadays that can help you with this business as well. So that's a very good point, Faisal.

Katie, do you have any input with that question? Yeah, I totally agree. I think video sometimes tends to freak people out. They don't like how they sound or they aren't comfortable on video. And so I think the more you do it, the more you do it, right?

Like to get over any anxiety or phobia is to just do it a million times and maybe you need to crawl, walk, run. So even like snippets on whether you're Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok, whatever you're utilizing, hopefully all of them, is that maybe you can start with not a video. Maybe it's just a voiceover. Maybe it's a snippet of today's like interesting fact. And then the more you get engaging, the easier it'll become for sure.

Thank you for that information and those suggestions for those or any of those that are just starting out. Okay, we're gonna move on to the next section here. This is about personal insights and advice for the real estate professionals here today. So if you had, Katie, if you had to name one key principle or habit that has contributed most to your success, as you've been in the business for 20 years, I'm sure you have referrals coming out of your ears because you've made a point to build those relationships and work by referral. And so if you were to name a key principle or habit that's contributed to that success in the referral-driven approach, what would it be?

Stay consistent. You can't do something once and say it didn't work. So like Carlos said, B&I, he mentioned B&I. I will tell you, when I was newly licensed, I'll never forget this, it's like ingrained in my memory. I would wake up every Tuesday at 6 a.m.

and work by referral. And so if you were to name a key principle or habit that's contributed to that success in the referral-driven approach, what would it be? Stay consistent. You can't do something once and say it didn't work. So like Carlos said, B&I, he mentioned B&I.

I will tell you when I was newly licensed, I'll never forget this, it's like ingrained in my memory. I would wake up every Tuesday at 6 a.m. to go to a 7 a.m. B&I meeting where I knew no one. I was so nervous and scared.

I was very young at the time. But those people to this day were other small business owners or salesmen, saleswomen. They are still in my community. They have become great friends. I stayed in that B&I group for years.

And so I think, again, you have to stay consistent. You can't ask once and think someone's going to remember for the next 20 years to call Katie O'Keefe. You have to be in their face consistently. You have to touch base with them, be in their life consistently. There's a statistic, and I don't know if I'll do it justice, but it was if you do eight touches in a year, they're like 28% of the time more likely to contact you.

To me, eight touches in a year couldn't be anything. It can be a social media post, a direct email, a phone call, a coffee clutch, whatever it might be. 28% more likely to contact you is a huge number. So I just think that would be the biggest thing is stay consistent. Consistent and persistent.

And persistent. And persistent. Follow up, follow up, follow up. Yes. And so- Your experience with B&I shows them how well you speak.

You know, so you got your 45-second elevator. That's right. If you know B&I group, that's exactly right. I was never a member. I visited them, but my wife was a member.

So I used to come to hers every so often and go to other chapters and meet people. Great organization. Yes, it is. And that's how they are referral driven. That's how they run and operate.

Yes. The giver's gain. You put in the sweat equity, you care, you're considerate, and you're genuine about helping others. It comes back to you tenfold. I love that about B&I.

And utilizing that practice in our real estate industry, building those referrals. And so Carlos, I'm gonna move on to this next question. You've clearly built a strong relationship in your community. And so how important is community involvement? And I know that you mentioned charity events, Katie.

How important is the community involvement when it comes to utilizing or building the referrals based on your connections in your community? Do you have any tips as it relates to real estate? Okay. Yeah, community involvement has been absolutely central for my referral growth. It is not just something I do on the side, it's part of who I am.

I volunteer with a couple of faith-based organization that I'm a member at. Connecting with people there, obviously outside of real estate, but letting them know what I do and helping them out with whatever it is that they need. And also anything to do with real estate or mortgages for that matter. I'm also active with a local association of realtors, the Northern Virginia Association of Realtors. I did three years in the grievance committee, now four years or five years in the professional standards committee.

It's my way to give back to our professional to help agents do a good job. I also dedicate time each month to teaching Virginia Housing first-time homebuyer education classes, where actually faith comes as well to teach the title section of it. And it's incredibly rewarding. Not only am I helping educate and empower new buyers, but I'm also building trust by showing that I'm here to serve, not just sell. Because you're not allowed to sell in those classes.

But because of my active involvement with them, I get invited to different Virginia Housing panels in front of a live audience and Facebook broadcasting for first-time homebuyers. So that's a great plus. And for real estate professionals looking to strengthen their own community ties, I recommend getting involved where your heart is. Join organizations, volunteer, and look for ways to give back meaningfully. Authenticity is key.

When you're consistently present and truly invested in your community's well-being, people notice, and over time, those genuine connections translate into a powerful values-driven business referral network. And if you're part of a large brokerage, get active. Meet members from all over the country, because you don't just have to rely on local referrals. They can be referrals from other realtors outside of your area. So just be active and truly be there.

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Alltech National Title, smart transitions built to last. Thank you, Carlos. That is so true. We have to be consistent and persistent and active in the community, not sell, but educate. And so I love that suggestion and advice to everyone here on the call today.

Katie, I'm gonna ask you another question to provide advice and suggestions for those on our webinar today. So looking back, what do you wish you had known? And I know we have to go way back because you're 20 years in, but looking back, what do you wish you had known about building a referral-driven basis? Because again, that kind of goes back to you were starting from scratch and now you have a beautiful brokerage that is thriving and successful. And so what is something that you wish you had known about building this referral-driven business when you were first getting started?

I would say start right away. Even if you're like, well, I don't have anyone to ask. You know, I've only done one deal. It's who you know. And don't look at it like it's my client or my customer.

It's, again, it's mom and dad and aunt and uncle and dentist and your prior teachers. Anyone that's what we call in your sphere of influence, your friends, your friends' friends, start right away. Contact everyone. When someone comes and gets their license and they're new and they say, what should I do? I'm like, make a list in your head, in your phone, on paper, whatever it is of every person you know.

And write the letter, write the email, send a mass text if you can. It's that, you know, get everyone's permission. Obviously you don't wanna be spamming anyone, but don't wait. I don't think you need to wait until you've had 20 closings to start asking 20 people. We all know 50 people, 100 people, 500 people that need to know you're a licensee.

You need referrals. You're really good at what you do. You're passionate about what you do. So don't wait, just start. Just get out there and make it happen.

Thank you, that's great. Be active, be proactive in your goal to build. Yeah. Keep in mind, it doesn't have to be people even in your database on your phone. It could be, you know, the teachers at the school, your hairdresser, you know, when you go to the store, you meet the people, you know, the clerks behind, you know, the counter, there's just people all over the place that you touch bases with that you can try to establish a relationship and let them know what you do.

Hey, you know, have you bought a house? You know, anything like that to start, you know, getting to know them and establishing that referral network that you need. I've noticed, you know, working with you, Carlos, specifically for the last 14 or 15 years, that many of your clients' referrals, they, you know, are folks that you reached out and you were active. or have you bought a house, you know, anything like that to start, you know, getting to know them and establishing that referral network that you need. I've noticed, you know, working with you, Carlos, specifically for the last 14 or 15 years, that many of your clients' referrals, they, you know, are folks that you reached out and you were active at the beginning of your business where, you know, they're sending their mother and their brothers and cousins, and you become the family realtor.

Everybody wants to work with you because you've done such a fantastic job letting everybody know that this is what I do. I'm passionate about serving you, the community, helping you, you know, turn your dreams into reality. You care, and you show that compassion to your clients. And they then say, I want to work with Carlos. I want to work with Katie.

These are professionals that are now friends, and I want to send everybody I know, that my colleagues, my family, you know, to you to buy and sell real estate because you've built that relationship based on being genuine and authentically you. And I think people, they care about that, especially when it comes to referring you. And then it becomes compounding interest, you know? It's something that you're constantly gonna be, you know, building upon and just staying active and doing what you know how to do and do it the best way you can. You're going to see the results.

And so thank you for sharing that. Okay, Katie, I'm gonna ask you this question because it's a hot topic. So given the increasing role of social media, okay, and digital platforms, it's like drinking water out of a fire hydrant hose. There is so much and too much to choose from, but I know that it is an effective way to get your name out there and build your brand or, you know, rebrand. And so given that increasing role of these platforms and AI, do you believe that online referrals and reviews are just as important as word of mouth referrals?

Amen. I mean, 100%. So I think you have to be careful though. I don't know that I would only pigeonhole just social media, right? Because for me, I think about how am I getting a 20-year-old client, but how am I still getting an 80-year-old client, right?

So you have to reach the whole gamut. So I think there's room for everybody. So whether it's social media, whether it's still an old school mailer, it's a phone call, it is, you know, using AI, it's, I think you really have to, don't be afraid of technology. We all can't stand change to some degree, right? When you upgrade your phone and you're frustrated because you don't know the new system, but I think it's important to utilize it all.

And again, not just Facebook, not just Instagram, I think you have to kind of sprinkle it all over because depending on that age demographic is going to be dependent on what they're utilizing. So if I only were doing old school mailers, you know, in an envelope with a postage stamp, how many people, I have clients that literally say, I don't even pick up mail. Like I go to my mailbox once a month, but then am I reaching my client that, you know, maybe needs to sell their house and they've been in the home 54 years if I'm only using Facebook? Because he or she may not be utilizing that. So I think, again, don't be afraid of it.

Use it all. When a new platform is catching some steam, jump on it, learn it, start utilizing it. It's all important. Thank you for that. That is very true.

Do you have any comments on that, Carlos? Yeah, I mean, and that's, you know, it kind of reinforces the whole idea of providing great service too, because you get, you provide five-star service, you're going to get a five-star reviews. And today everybody wants to check out your online reviews, right? You know, either Zillow or Google, and people are checking the reviews to see if, you know, people are happy with your performance. So in my case, I also, you know, won the five-star award.

That's an award that's given to, in this area, less than 99 realtors in the Metro DC area. And there's about, I don't know, 20,000 agents here. So, and I won that prize 10 years in a row. And granted, I'm not the only guy that does, you know, provides great service, but when somebody, when they came and offered me the award, I jumped on it because I knew that there's something I can mention to my clients. You know, it's not just me saying it, it's an organization that actually called my, you know, my clients from the previous years to figure out whether they should give me the award.

So it's another thing that we can use when we're talking to our clients and what it shows on social media, on the internet. Yeah, to promote that you're an excellent realtor. And not only do my clients say this and send me referrals, but here I have an organization and I just want to let you know, I'm in it to win it for you. And I'm a win-win type of realtor and real estate professional and broker. So I love that.

Thank you very much for sharing that. Okay, Katie, I'm going to come back to you with another question. What are some of the most effective ways that you nurture relationships, past clients that you may have worked with, you know, 20 years ago, 15 years ago, 10 years ago, and to keep them in your network and keep them engaged. As you know, a lot of people, they're living in their homes for, you know, five to 10 years and then they're ready to sell, move up, move down. And so what are some of the effective ways to stay in touch with those and ask for their referrals?

I mean, you've been in business for a very long time. Do you have a system? I actually think it goes, Hannah Carlos had touched on it earlier. When you talk about, it's not just about selling houses. So when we go to the closing table, I tell people all the time, I am here to be a resource, right?

Like the deal is closed. More than likely you're not moving. For the next, you know, three to 10 years, depending on your life circumstance. But when you remodel and you need a recommendation on the plumber or where to go find the new flooring or a mover, we're really great resources. So I always tell people, like, utilize me in ways that I'm not going to get paid, right?

There's no skin in that game for me. But I want to be helpful because if they know, you know, I don't have to work that hard. Let me just call Katie because she's got a great name and someone that's going to help us out. I think, again, it goes back to, not only do I want them to utilize me when it's time to sell or buy, but I want them to always consistently think of me when any time when you think about your house and remodels, whatever it might be, I'm thinking about Katie and we're going to call her. So I think it's not so much always, you know, selling, it's what we can do for them.

And, or people will call me and go, hey, we're going to, we're not sure if we want to sell. So will you come and do, you know, a CMA, but I don't want to waste your time. I'm like, you're never wasting my time. Let me just come visit with you. And I'm happy to do it.

And we'll just talk and catch up. So I think people need to know that. You're not just a salesman and you're not just in it for the check. We need that. But I think it's just utilizing us in other ways that we can stay consistent.

So, and both of you, Carlos and Katie are, do you, you know, do a client event or do you have an item of value to your personal database that you stay in touch with and, you know, make sure that you're reaching out to them with resources. Is there anything else that you share with your clients and letting them know, hey, I'm still here. I'm still a realtor. I'm for you and your success. If you want to have that renovation or you want to redo your bathroom or, you know, master on suite, you know, I'm your person.

Is there anything else that you might provide to them that is an item of value? I don't know, a newsletter, an event. How do you guys stay in touch with your client database? This podcast is proudly sponsored by. Need extra hands without extra overhead?

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Safi Virtual, expert support tailored for title professionals. Yeah, I mean, like we said before, you can't just hope that your clients are going to remember you. You really have to be top of mind. So you've got to implement a system, a referral system in your business. And that could be, you know, sending a monthly newsletter or a monthly or regular magazine with your, you know, with your information on it.

You know, it could be different client events, you know, a barbecue, a movie theater, you know, things like that. You know, whatever that, what is it, a pie for Thanksgiving or Halloween? The Popeyes with pies? Yeah, yeah, the pie for, you know, whatever. So just stay in front of them because you can't blame it if they don't remember you when they need you.

Okay. And also, you know, emails, provide market updates through emails or social posts, okay, or videos. You know, people that don't mind doing videos. Videos is a great way of communicating these things. Okay.

And making phone calls. And when you call, don't just check in, although we don't really want to be always talking about real estate, but call with a purpose. You know, reach out when something meaningful like a market change or a new opportunity or insight, you know, that can benefit them so that you're not just calling to say hi. But hey, you know what? Rates are going, you know, starting to go down.

Now may be the time for you to think about selling. I know you were talking about it a few years ago, you know, but with a 3% or a mortgage, but obviously we're not quite at the 5% with people hopefully start really making those changes. But, you know, that's the kind of stuff that you want to be doing, you know, and positioning yourself not just as an agent, but as a trusted resource and advisor. I agree. And I also think some of your lender partners also have some great things that they can offer you too.

You know, if you have a go-to lender or one or two, I mean, they've got some great CRMs that they love to partner with us. My Home IQ, HomeBot is another one where when you utilize them, if they're the lender on your deal, they'll go ahead and keep your client in their database and then do some co-branded marketing, which will stay on top of things. I mean, it's statistical, right? It's an average, but it'll say, you know, this year it looks like your home went up 3%, 12%, 22%, whatever it might be. So I think it can be, you know, easy if you stay on top of your CRMs.

And there's so many out there. There's some very sophisticated ones that are driven just for real estate. And there's some generic ones depending on the time and money you want to throw at it. But I think, Faith, you know, that is another opportunity where it's not you spending the time. It's the systems doing it for you, which is also a beautiful thing.

Yes, the efficiency behind the utilization of social media, AI, and all the technology available to us nowadays. And like Carlos said, when you're following up with these folks and you're calling with a purpose, you might find out they went from two kids to four in the timeframe of five years that you sold them their house. And guess what? I'm so glad I followed up. Now that I know you have four children, you need a bigger house.

Let's sell that one or rent it out. And we'll go ahead and move into another house because I know you need to. And so that, you know, calling with that purpose and following up, you're showing care. You're showing compassion. I'm not just a realtor, but oh, by the way, I would love to service you, your clients, your friends, your family, your colleagues, your neighbors.

But I'm calling because I care and I am here as a resource. And I genuinely want to follow up with you and see how's life. Oh, you need a plumber? That's great. I got one for you.

You're covered. And so thank you. That is beautiful. Thank you guys for sharing that. So I'm going to go ahead and move on to another question here.

Building a referral driven business requires a solid strategy. And we kind of just went into a little bit of detail with that and effective tools and platforms. So what are some of the tools and platforms that work best for you in generating those referrals? Is it Facebook, social media, TikTok, Instagram? Is it sending emails?

Is it sending videos, posting? Is it sending text messages personally and asking how they're doing? What is the most effective way when you're building referral relationships? What's what's the most effective tool or resource that you've been using in your successful business? I would say even though my quick answer is there's not one thing.

You don't see one thing rise above the rest because, again, I think it is like sprinkling it throughout. Because this consumer might only utilize this platform where those, you know. But I think in general, if I had to pick one, I think the masses are using Facebook stuff in my world. That tends to give us the biggest bang for our buck. If I if I post something on Facebook, we are getting the most engagement, the most interaction.

Probably secondarily, Instagram. But again, I wouldn't pick just one. I would try to use them all, even if you're don't have enough time to do something different on every platform. I mean, there's also different software that you create one post and it'll just kind of post it throughout all the platforms. If you can tweak it a little bit, I think it's more interesting.

Because then that way, as myself, if I use all the platforms, I'm not seeing the same thing seven times. But I think it is using it all. And I think utilize AI. Well, I think everyone was nervous about it. People are still nervous about it, but it's so dang helpful.

So you're not spending so much time recreating the wheel. AI will do it for you. Yeah. It's kind of scary, though, because then we're going to rely on it, you know, for the rest of our careers in real estate. But it is very effective and super easy to to utilize those those systems.

So thank you for sharing that. Do you have anything to add on to that, Carlos? Well, I mean, there's nothing like, you know, you have a CRM, obviously, just about everybody does. And we do automatic emails, right, to the whole database or to a subset. And there's nothing like getting a phone call saying, hey, that was a great, you know, that you thought of me.

And you're like, what did I tell you? Because sometimes you don't even know what's going out and you're getting phone calls from it. So that is a great feeling, even though you have to be quick and reacting to it. But it's wonderful. All this technology stuff.

It's it's a lot. But we we we really do need to lean into it because it's moving at light speeds and it is very effective and super easy. OK, so, Carlos, there's often a misconception that referrals are just about asking for them. Hey, do you know anybody that I can help, you know, sell or help them buy a property? Can you explain why providing value and maintaining that trust with your clients is just as critical as generating the referrals?

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Try www.titlegpt.ai today. I mean, you've got to create that relationship. You know, it's it's it's even, you know, the referrals are great because when you get a referral, they trust you instantly. You don't have to sell them. You know, you have to convince them to work with you.

But you nevertheless, you need to treat them as a new lead and explain what you do. Explain the process of buying or selling and the importance of working with somebody that is knowledgeable and has the experience to help them through it. You know, don't just assume just because you got it as a referral that, you know, they're going to be happy with you. When you get a referral, they trust you instantly. You don't have to sell them.

You don't have to convince them to work with you. But you nevertheless, you need to treat them as a new lead and explain what you do. Explain the process of buying or selling and the importance of working with somebody that is knowledgeable and has the experience to help them through it. Don't just assume just because you got it as a referral that they're gonna be happy with you. You don't really have to worry about anything.

No, show that why it is that somebody refer you to him or to her, it's because what I do and the way I explain things, the way I educate my clients. So you gotta work at nurturing that relationship. Don't just create the referrals and don't just be happy with getting the phone call. And back again, providing the five-star service is going to make them eager to recommend you and provide you with great reviews. And then you've gotta double down on nurturing the relationships over the long term.

You want lifetime clients, not just one transaction. You want lifetime clients, and that's why you wanna have the system to stay top of mind. You wanna help them with whatever it is that they need at this time, but also in the future and their kids. Just like you said, I do have a lot of family stuff. I saw it grow up.

You know, when the parents bought the house, they were 10 years old, 12 years old, and now they're using me. And it's really rewarding, it's wonderful. Yes, it is. Thank you, Carlos, for sharing that. Okay, and so, Katie, I'm gonna come back to you with this question.

If you, oh, wait, I already did that one. I'm so sorry. Okay, as the real estate market continues to evolve, especially with the new technology, how do you see referral-based business strategy changing over the next few years? And I know that's kind of a loaded question, because it is moving at super fast speeds. But how do you envision utilizing the tools and resources we have right now that are super effective and helping us build that referral-based driven business?

But how do you see that changing over the next few years, especially when it is impacting social media and AI in your business? I just think we're gonna see it more and more, right? So we talked about what happens when that 80-year-old with the idea that wants the paper mailer. Well, as our generations turn over, I mean, we're really going to be more solely utilizing social media. And I think with the emergence of AI, and AI, again, there's different levels, right?

You can get free, just chat GPT free version, and then there's more sophisticated versions. But I think it's going to, the beauty is it is going to do the work for us. And so you can go into chat GPT, any kind of AI, and say, hey, create a posting schedule for me that eloquently asks for referrals in a non-in-your-face way. You can coach it to ask these questions, and then it'll give you some options. The more you coach your AI, the more it'll get your vibe.

Carlos and I are two salespeople with two different personalities, two different strengths. And I think the more the beauty of AI is where you use it. Yeah, it literally learns who you are and your tone. So sometimes if I use AI, I'm like, oh my gosh, that's too stuffy. Like rewrite that again with using the same information in a more playful manner or in a low manner.

And so I think, again, that AI, as much as we're still doing the work, is you still have to direct it. You have to give it the information that you want it to have. It's going to make our jobs, I guess, more fluid and easier. And I really see that the future. So going with the flow.

So just kind of, you know, side coverage, jump in and capitalize on that. That is great. And that's the way to do it. Always be learning, learn something new and capitalize on it to the best of your ability. Carlos, do you have any thoughts on that, on where you see utilizing these tools and resources and technology, AI, social media, moving forward and changing over the next two years?

Well, you know, it's funny because I come from technology. I spent 26 years in the telecommunications industry. So, you know, I was there at the beginning of the cell phone industry when we started building networks and having pocket phones. And, you know, there used to be car phones and there were pocket phones. And then I remember being in big meetings where we're talking about data on the phone.

And we're like, why would you try to use the phone to write messages? That's pretty silly, you know? And look at us now. I mean, then the iPhone came and look what we're doing. I mean, it's just amazing.

So I'm looking forward to whatever is gonna happen over the next 10 years because it's gonna make our life even better. Okay, this is kind of a loaded question too. I know that there's been some fear in the market that AI could take over your jobs. And, you know, you've got an Uber driver who's your real estate agent. Do you believe that there's any validity to that in the real estate industry?

I mean, I'll give you my opinion. I think, again, 10 years ago you could sell your own house, right? That hasn't changed. You know, are we vital? I guess vital is the key word there.

No, you can sell your own house. You can buy your own house without a real estate agent. But people don't know what they don't know. We are a people business. They need us.

I always say like, I'm not necessary but I'm going to make it less stressful, more fun, hopefully make you more money than if you did it by yourself. And I don't think AI is going to change that. You know, it's just a people to people that people need our help. They need the handholding. They need us to talk them off the ledge.

And that's our job. I mean, if you ask a real estate agent, what's your job? I mean, we're a real estate agent, right? We're a therapist or this or that. We wear all the hats.

And so AI doesn't change that to me. All right. The relationship is key, number one. But also that people don't know what is in the contract, how to negotiate, what's a contingency. I mean, they can look it up.

They don't know what they're doing with 20, 15 years of experience and more. They have trust in your, you know, experience to get them to the finish line in a seamless, you know, way. And so we're gonna wrap up with just this last question. And so do, lastly, what is the biggest lesson you've learned in your career that you think every real estate professional should keep in mind when they are building their referral-based driven business? You know, the biggest lesson I've learned that while this business is absolutely about closing deals and handling transactions, getting your commission, getting paid, but long-term success comes from focusing on delivering the five-star service.

The kind of service that is going to earn you five-star reviews and make your clients eager to refer you to their family and friends. You know, and we're not, houses are not all the same. Just about every single house has some differences to it. So, you know, we can bring our experience to explain the difference in value for the different features that the house has. You know, the contract, you know, it could be 30 pages sometimes, okay?

People get very nervous looking at all this, you know, legal language and everything else. So, you know, helping them through all of that. I, you know, I just don't think our job is gonna be done. You know, I don't think AI will take over. I think we're gonna be here for the long-term.

Yes, you will be. And we'll be helping you with your settlements along the way and getting them to the finish line as well. So do you have any lessons that you've learned that you can share with us as well, Katie? I think the key to remember is bad reviews travel faster than a good one. So I have heard horror stories, as I'm sure we all have, about real estate agents.

Yeah. And either, yeah, lack of communication, lack of professionalism, lack of knowledge, lack, and lack, and lack, and lack. And again, bad reviews move faster. So every time you don't feel like working, you don't feel like showing that house, like to some degree, suck it up. Remind yourself that a bad- faster than a good one.

So I have heard horror stories, as I'm sure we all have, about real estate agents. Either lack of communication, lack of professionalism, lack of knowledge, lack and lack and lack and lack. And again, bad reviews move faster. So every time you don't feel like working, you don't feel like showing that house, to some degree, suck it up, remind yourself that a bad review is going to move quicker than a good one, and really put the check secondarily. I think more times, especially if I'm in a buyer-agent situation, I will tell my buyers why not to buy this house that we're standing in, then why to.

And I think people really respect that because it's not just like, oh, you like it? Let's write an offer. It's why do I think this is not good for you based on the goals that I know that you have? Or like Carlo said, I want you to call me in seven years when you've outgrown this, and this is why I'm concerned about this. And so that to me is the big lesson.

Don't worry about the paycheck. The paycheck will come. Just be good. Be good to people. Be good.

All right. And then we'll wrap up with this. Do you have any books, podcasts, or resources that you would recommend to everyone today to help grow their business and tap into the power of referrals? Carlos? One that comes to mind is Raving Fans.

It's a great book about providing great service and how people really feel good about it and refer you. And for me, I don't necessarily have a specific real estate book that I would recommend. I really like just sales and business podcasts in general. I just think, again, when you talk about how to ask for business, how to ask for referrals, that's an art. It's not easy for everyone to get up in front of someone and say, I need your help and feel confident about it.

So I think, again, while you're driving your life away in between houses and client meetings, get those podcasts on. And you're going to take maybe one or two snippets from everything and that's how we get to where we are. Thank you, Katie and Carlos. Have you all ever read or recommend The Million Dollar Real Estate Agent? I have read it multiple times.

It's a good one. It's probably one of my first books I ever read. Yeah. Carlos, have you read that book, The Million Dollar Real Estate Agent? Yeah.

So I guess that would be a recommendation as you're growing and building your business on referral. Are there any questions as we close today's webinar? It doesn't look like anybody's asked a question here that I can see in our group chats. Thanks, Alex. Yeah.

Alex, did you have anything else to share with us today? Oh, I took a lot of notes. I saw several note takers, really, really good insights. Yeah. I mean, I think the online reviews and I'll add from a marketing standpoint here, the Google reviews are immensely important for SEO.

About a year ago, Google changed their algorithms to give a lot more weight for SEO on the Google review. So to Carlos's point, deliver a five-star service so you can get five-star reviews, but you've got to ask for them too. And like Katie said, bad reviews travel faster than good reviews. We all know if somebody's upset, they're more likely to put a review out there than somebody that's happy. So for those happy clients, it's very, very important to ask for the referral.

But again, really, really good advice. I personally got a lot out of it. So we really appreciate your insights, Carlos and Katie. Thank you. Thank you so much for joining us today and sharing your wealth of knowledge and experience, tools and resources to help us grow our business, utilizing referrals.

So I personally got a ton of information out of today's webinar and everybody that is joining us today, I hope that you will join us on our next webinar, the first Monday of each month. And so that will be June 2nd. Please be on the lookout for emails, text messages, phone calls, and social media. We will be posting our next panelist guest speakers. Thank you, Carlos.

Thank you, Katie, so much for joining us today and make it a great day. Go build that referral business. Enjoy. Happy Cinco de Mayo. And that's a wrap on today's journey with Mo Shamil from the Title Agents podcast, reminding you that mastering the art of innovation is key in the title industry's fast paced world.

If you're finding it tough to keep up with the changes and challenges, remember, you're not alone. Our calendar is open for you. Find the link in the show notes and let's connect. Make sure to hit subscribe to not miss out on strategies that elevate and insights that empower. Together, we'll navigate the future of the industry.

I look forward to our next meeting in the upcoming episode.