How to Become a Top Commercial Real Estate Agent

Commercial real estate brokerage is a dynamic field. Incredible success in the business can be achieved by those who assert themselves in the right environment and utilize proven strategies. Hello, I'm Michael Bull, President of Bull Realty, host of America’s Commercial Real Estate Show and senior instructor with Commercial Agent Success Strategies. I’ve studied best practices for success in commercial brokerage since I was 18 years old. I have closed over $5 billion in sales and leases, and I’ve been training successful brokers for the past 20 years. Today I'll share my Top Ten Strategies for Success.

Number 1: Take care of your client. Concentrate on how you can best help your client. Sincerely taking care of the people you work with, will help you make the right decisions throughout your day, and throughout your career. Treating people the way you would want to be treated, will help you build a lifetime of business. It’s your reputation, referrals, and repeat business that build your career. Be sure you, and the company work with, treat your client’s best interest, as your guide to success.

Number 2: Education. Prior to, and throughout your career, educate yourself. The days are gone when we trained, then we worked, then we retired. Successful people never stop training. You should have a personal education plan, and work with a company that has consistent training opportunities. Success in commercial brokerage requires expertise in many areas, including analysis, sales, negotiation, marketing, business development, and many other areas. As an example, at Bull Realty we offer at least two training opportunities every week. Here’s a tip: visit these two web sites. CCIM.com, and CommercialAgentSuccess.com.

Number 3: Specialize. It's important, especially in larger markets, to specialize in one sector of the industry. To add value for your clients and to create efficiencies in your practice, you should concentrate, as much as practical, in one specific area of the industry. In the basic property types of office, retail, industrial, multifamily and land, there are even further specialties to consider as a focus: medical, self-storage, single tenant net lease, management, project leasing, tenant rep, asset management, debt & equity, restaurants, hospitality and development. There's all sorts of specialties to consider. The efficiencies of specializing will make a big difference in your career.

Number 4: Motivation and sales ability. As I have trained brokers for the past 20 years I’ve found that motivation and sales ability are key components to success. If you're in a commission-based business like commercial real estate, sales ability and self-motivation are extremely important. Consistently study sales and motivational material. The better your ability to sell and to stay motivated, the better you will do. Think about it. You can have the best property or service in the world… but if you can't sell it…if you can't keep the prospects motivated throughout the entire process, your success will be limited.

Number 5: Prospecting for business. Building your client base and securing exclusive assignments is the holy grail of the business. The more skill, methods, and time you spend prospecting, the better choices you have, to work with the best prospects. Be sure that you, or your firm, has helped you design, implement, and continually perfect proper prospecting. Here's a tip: consider daily minimums to keep you on track.

Number 6: Time management. If you’re a commercial real estate agent, time is your most precious commodity. Your continual study and improvements in time management, will add directly to your bottom line. Look for ways you can save time, don't let people waste your time, know the right questions to get prospects to business, and learn proper procedures to utilize the support you have available. Plan your day, your week, your year and the next five years. Be sure to plan your success and use your time wisely. Here’s a tip: Don’t let these three things waste your time, reading emails, surfing the internet, and cell phone interruptions.

Number 7: CRM Database. Customer relationship management. As agents, our success is based on matching buyers and sellers, and landlord and tenants. It’s a little like the card game concentration. Place all cards face down, turn over two for a match. If they don’t match, turn them back face down. Turn over another, and remember the matching card. We don’t have to remember any more. Now we have mobile access to CRMs, with the ability to customize the fields.  Pick a CRM you will use, and use it.

Number 8: Working Hours. It's your business. The more you put in, the more you get out. You should look at your business, as a business. Consider the company where you work, if you will, as your franchisor, and you as a franchisee. Whether you want to make a hundred thousand a year, or a million a year, you will do better if you run your business like a business… which means putting in the proper planning, systems, and the proper hours. It's difficult to compete in such a dynamic field, working nine to five.

Number 9: Integrity, Honesty & Reputation. Since success in commercial real estate is affected by your relationships, it's imperative to utilize the utmost integrity in your practice. For example, we founded Bull Realty in 1998 with two primary missions, provide the best disposition marketing in the nation and grow a company of advisors, known for their integrity. Treat everyone right, and be honest, this builds your reputation, and your business.

Number 10: Proper Platform. Many agents fail because the company they work with doesn't provide a proper platform. Don't just concentrate on a company with the best splits, or a company with a big name. Concentrate on your net income, and building your business with the best platform to help you, and your clients. Look for a company with excellent training, great support, and business building resources. A company with a great web site and powerful marketing systems. And be sure to join a company with an experienced managing broker, that understands the top strategies for success in commercial real estate.