Okay, so you might notice my picture has changed again. Having a
picture on my business card was something I had to get used to when
I first became an agent. After all, who else has their pictures on
their cards? It seemed so egocentric to me. After all, I had come
from the architectural world at a time it was considered unethical
to advertise. Talk about a paradigm shift!
Okay, so you might notice my picture has changed again. Having a picture on my business card was something I had to get used to when I first became an agent. After all, who else has their pictures on their cards? It seemed so egocentric to me. After all, I had come from the architectural world at a time it was considered unethical to advertise. Talk about a paradigm shift!
And then there is the conflict of wanting your picture to look like you, but perhaps not too much so. I made a decision early on to change my picture frequently, because some people in real estate use one picture so long it starts to look like their high school prom picture, or worse, like the person in the picture is their child.
And then there’s a dilemma when you get a new hairstyle, or new glasses. (Or, I suppose, plastic surgery.) You may need another picture but you have four thousand cards with the old you on it.
When I first got into the business (last century) it was not uncommon for agents to get their picture taken with a cell phone in their hand. Of course, back then the phone was about as big as their head. That was considered very “high tech.” Some agents like to get their picture taken with an animal. This is considered the “human touch.” Though I have horses and sheep and llamas and dogs and cats, I was never tempted to get my picture taken with them. What if someone got me mixed up with my animal?
I have come to realize a picture is not a bad thing on the card of a real estate agent. After all, these people are coming into your home, bringing crowds of people. It’s not bad to feel reassured that the person is who he or she claims to be. That is, of course, if you can recognize them in the picture!
Choosing the right picture is only one of the quirks of being a Realtor. Another is deciding on a marketing strategy. After all, there are lots of real estate professionals to choose from, and most of them look pretty much alike in their pictures. (No, silly, that’s the dog!) But if you look at the ads, most of them make the same claims. I always counsel new agents to spend some time thinking about what makes them unique. Why should a prospective buyer or seller use you over some other agent? If the agent doesn’t know, he or she might be in the wrong field!
Another peccadillo is the amount of “stuff” Realtors have to cart around to do business. Just imagine you have to go out every day with a lock box key, lock boxes, open house signs, balloons, cell phone, appointment book, business cards (with picture or without), fliers, marketing materials, etc., etc. No wonder we age so fast and need a new picture every year. It tires me out just thinking about it.
Then there’s the issue of how to enter a home you’re showing. You use your Supra key to get the house key out of the lockbox. You ring the door and wait for a moment. Then you use the key you’ve retrieved and open the front door. Sometimes, just as you’re putting the key in the lock the owner swings open the door and you’re standing there looking like you’re about to attack them with their own key. Other times you open the door, go inside, and find there is someone inside the house asleep. Or, if your karma is really bad, they’re in the shower and didn’t hear you ring. They come out of the bathroom in a towel (if you’re lucky) and it’s hard to choose who’s more horrified: Them, the prospective buyers, or you.
You never know what you’re going to find when you go into a house. You might find lots of musty trophy animal heads. Prospective buyers are rarely indifferent about those. Some people have boudoir pictures on the walls that can raise an eyebrow.
Sometimes there are amazing collections of frogs, or owls, or Thomas Kinkade or tea cups. The furniture might look direct from Pottery Barn or from the dump. Some people have no furniture to speak of and keep their possessions in piles against the walls. Some of us throw out or recycle old magazines, others of us keep them forever. Some of us keep clutter at bay, and others live in its clutches. There are drape people and shade people and no window coverings at all people. Some people leave doors and window open, others batten down the hatches whether they’re home or not. It’s always fascinating to see how other people live.
Being a Realtor is definitely not a boring, humdrum existence. There is always something different each day: New challenges, wonderful people to meet, opportunities to explore. It’s a good life helping people achieve their dreams.
Be kind to your Realtor.
