ILLINOIS 4-18-22

ILLINOIS EDITION

6 WAYS TO GET YOUR CLIENT TO TRUST YOU

Top Agent Tips and Questions for

CHOOSING YOUR LISTING AGENT

EMOTIONAL FLUENCY : HOW TO COMMUNICATE

FEATURED AGENT

WITH CLIENTS WHEN TENSIONS ARE HIGH

ANN LYON

COVER STORY

CONNIE ANTONIOU

ILLINOIS EDITION

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ANN LYON

CONNIE ANTONIOU

CONTENTS 4) 6 WAYS TO GET YOUR CLIENT TO TRUST YOU 6) TOP AGENT TIPS AND QUESTIONS FOR CHOOSING YOUR LISTING AGENT

15) CREATIVE MEDITATION FOR THE REAL ESTATE PROFESSIONAL 20) EMOTIONAL FLUENCY: HOW TO COMMUNICATE WITH CLIENTS WHEN TENSIONS ARE HIGH

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6 Ways to Get Your Client to Trust You The word “REALTOR®” can leave a sour taste in some people’s mouths. Many of today’s home buyers and sellers grew up during the 2009 recession. They are wary of anything 4

or anyone who comes off as too salesy, and they want to work with individuals who they can trust.

But how do you prove to someone you’ve likely never met that you can be trusted?

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Put Testimonials or Case Studies on Your Website

When something goes wrong, own up to your mistakes. Don’t hide bad news from your clients. Be upfront and responsive.

Testimonials and case studies are social proof that you have both the experience and the skills to do the job your clients are hiring you for. People often leave testimonials when they are either incredibly disappointed or extremely happy with the service they were provided, so they’re a good indication to prospective clients of the treatment they’ll receive.

Case studies, which you can post on your blog or website, have much of the same effect, but even more than testimonials, case studies demonstrate your real estate and finance expertise because they explain how you achieved a specific set of results.

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Be Responsive and Accessible

Can your clients reach you easily? That doesn’t mean you need to be available 24/7, but you should respond to your clients within a few hours of receiving their message. When agents don’t respond to their clients’ calls or emails for days on end or fail to provide them with a direct line of contact, their clients’ experience can quickly become frustrating.

Agents are busy but so are their clients. If you constantly show up late to or reschedule meetings, your clients won’t feel like their time is respected or their business is valued. Make sure you set a realistic schedule for yourself rather than spreading yourself too thin.

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Be Honest and Transparent

Sometimes you don’t have the answer to a client’s question. Be honest about your strengths, weaknesses, and the limits of your knowledge. A good response might be, “I don’t know, but I can find out.” Be transparent with your clients, and they’ll respect you for it.

You should always act in their best interest.

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Go the Extra Mile

If you do the bare minimum, that’s what your clients will remember. Their experience won’t be memorable, and they won’t gush about you in online testimonials or in real life to people they know who could use your services. It’s that simple.

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Put Yourself in Your Client’s Shoes

Clients understand that you need to earn money, but that doesn’t mean they want to feel like they’re just a dollar sign to you. Be empathetic to your client’s concerns, even if you’ve heard it all before. Your clients should know that you are there for them.

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Be Consistent

Being responsive, friendly, and knowledgeable shouldn’t be an act. If you “turn on” your personality for clients and then suddenly become a different person when they leave the room, it’s likely that the cracks in your mask will eventually become apparent.

But “faking it till you make it” is so common it’s become a cliché. When we are starting out, we don’t always have the systems or resources in place to create a smooth client journey, from onboarding to closing, so instead we constantly try to reinvent the wheel. Give yourself time to pause, slow down, and reevaluate your workflow. Creating systems creates

consistency, and those systems can and should be constantly updated.

Developing trust between you and your clients will take time, but doing these things can give you a running start.

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Top Agent Tips and Questions for Choosing Your Listing Agent Now that you’ve decided to sell, it’s time to select the professional to help you market your property. Before meeting with agents, however, consider Top Agent Magazine’s tips for preparing yourself. Frist, ask yourself what kind of relationship you’d like to have with your listing agent. Are you seeking a casual, personable relationship and the latest marketing tools or are you interested in a more formal, traditional relationship and approach to marketing techniques? Next, populate your list of agents by attending open houses and asking for recommendations from recent buyers and sellers.

Finally, schedule your meetings at your home, where you’ll be able to gauge the chemistry between you and each agent.

During your meetings, expect any Top Agent to ask you several questions, but also consider discussing the following: 6

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Will you please describe your sales experience and local network?

Ask your Top Agent to describe recent listings and sales of homes comparable to your own. Ask about the sellers’ priorities, the original list price, market time and number of offers. Top Agents will also describe how well they are connected with other REALTORS® in the region as well as their contacts with relocation companies, local corporations and chambers of commerce.

Be sure to ask about each agent’s knowledge of how your market has changed over time and what has influenced change.

You’ll learn a lot by listening to agents’ opinions.

How will you market the property? Each

Top Agent has a unique set of online or local marketing tools at his or her disposal. Some use lead-generation applications and nearly ever luxury agent take advantage of video. Even video marketing tools vary from agent-to-agent, however.

You’ll get to decide if you prefer an agent with higher-end video production and 3D Matterport tours or an agent with more intimate techniques featuring walk-and-talk style video tours.

What factors influence your list-price recommendation? Before an-

swering this question, most Top Agents will have several questions for you, including whether you’re more focused on a faster sale or a higher list price.

They’ll also educate you on how best to balance both market time and list price relative to sales histories your area.

Now that you’ve seen the home, what repairs or improvements do you recommend before listing? You’ll learn a lot by listening to agents’

opinions on your home’s sale potential with or without some improvements.

Most Top Agents will also recommend a full professional inspection prior to listing to avoid surprises during buyer inspection.

How will you help with staging? Some Top Agents will pay for part or

all of the staging costs. At a minimum, however, a Top Agent will have a staging professional or two in their partner network. While they’re at it, they may provide referrals for carpet cleaning, painting, gardening and other minor finishing touches.

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What attributes of the property will you want to highlight? Each Top

Agent will have a somewhat different answer to this question, but that’s a good thing! Even if you have your own ideas about your home’s greatest attributes, you’ll glean insight into the current market by considering different agents’ opinions. In learning their views, you may even change your mind about your home’s most marketable features!

What is your approach to Open Houses? How many agent-only Open

Houses will your Top Agent want to host? How many truly Open Houses?

Some Top Agents may even reveal a “swankier” approach to the Open House – such as an evening cocktail party or by-invitation “open” hours to which buyers visit along with the agent representing them.

Who will be our primary point(s) of contact from your office? This

important question will help you understand the scope of your agent’s practice. You’ll get to see if your agent runs a robust team with many hands on deck or if he or she works by close, one-on-one contact with each client.

Either approach is wonderful; you get to decide what suits you.

Now, let’s list!

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CONNIE ANTONIOU

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Top Agent Connie Antoniou is one of the Top 5% percent of Chicago agents—with a helping heart Connie always puts her clients’ needs first.

Connie Antoniou’s luxury real estate journey could be the screenplay for the next great motion picture. Born in Dubuque, IA; Connie’s competitive sales experience started while working as a traveling sales representative for Reynolds® Aluminum.

After a series of life events, Connie’s fiancé signed her up for real estate courses one Valentine’s Day and by the time they’d Copyright Top Agent Magazine 10

returned from their honeymoon she had started selling her first properties in the Spring of 1985.

Connie started her real estate career with Adam & Myers and later Brush Hill in the highly competitive Hinsdale market of Illinois. At Adam & Myers; she was taken under the wing of then preeminent agent Top Agent Magazine

Meryl Adams and garnered firsthand experience in luxury sales. Predominantly a solo agent; she developed an affinity for working with CEOs and professional athletes.

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Consistently in the Top 5% of agents during this time; she especially loved working with the players and coaches of the Chicago Blackhawks hockey team. “I Copyright Top Agent Magazine 11

Connie is a marketing rebel that goes against the grain and still believes in spending money on print advertising. “They say print is dead…bad print is dead, but good print is alive.” would do everything for them; including incorporating their jersey number into their home phone number! It is how I developed my concierge level of service.”

After years of serving high end clients in Hinsdale; Connie scaled and purchased her first realty office called Hunter’s Fairway; aptly named for its equestrian estate and Copyright Top Agent Magazine 12

golf fairway listings in Barrington, IL in 2007. Weathering the storm of market shifts; Connie has remained one of the Top 5% percent of Chicago agents ever since.

With a helping heart; Connie always puts her clients’ needs first. “When [the players] would come back into town for the season I would get their groceries and help restock their fridge…they just needed Top Agent Magazine

someone they could trust.” She later went on to open a second office in 2012 with Sothebys International Realty. Building on a successful model; Connie later merged with Jameson Sotheby’s International Realty® to provide a boutique service experience to her discerning clients with large company resources.

Connie is a marketing rebel that goes against the grain and still believes in spending money on print advertising. “They say print is dead…bad print is dead, but good print is alive.” She currently curates Top Agent Magazine

an editorial for Country Magazine; a high end publication that provides its luxury buyers and sellers with informational content. Her style is subtle yet effective; casual but commanding. Connie uses a mix of quarterly editorials, high end professional photography and drone video to market her listings. For her referrals, she has assembled an all-star team that projects the same level of concierge service her clients are accustomed to. Her team ensures that every one of their buyers and sellers receive best in class discretion. Throughout the years of stressful and Copyright Top Agent Magazine 13

demanding clients, her success with them rests in her ability to generate humor as a way to diffuse tense situations. “I’m personable and I like to have fun.”

Connie is a big animal lover and supporter of community involvement. She has sat on the Brookfield Zoo Women’s Board, the

Barrington Chamber of Commerce Board, and helped organize numerous fundraising golf outings. With such an impressive career; Connie and her team have their feet on the accelerator as they look to add more agents this year. “My goal isn’t to be the biggest, but to be the best and… [to] enjoy the fruits of my labor.”

To learn more about Connie Antoniou email connie.antoniou@sothebysrealty.com, visit connieantoniou.com or call 847-508-7775 https://

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Creative Meditation

for the Real Estate Professional The real estate world can be an industry of intense emotional and psychological pressure. Deadlines, meetings, employee needs, client needs and a hundred other items on which one needs to focus on a daily basis can create an environment that is not only not conducive to mental well-being, but can be outright detrimental.

Learning to quiet the mind has been the focus of meditation for millennia. While those not familiar with the concept of meditation may instinctively think of yoga mats, incense, and chanting when the word “meditation” arises, there are in fact, many forms of meditation that can integrate quite Top Agent Magazine

easily into the daily hustle & bustle world of the busy real estate agent.

First, think about when you are alone each day. Here are some possible times to practice mediation during the work day: • When driving to the office in the morning • When driving to a showing or to meet a client • Before your open house begins • After the open house • Driving home in the evening 15

Repeating a mantra can be very calming, particularly when you are trying to rid yourself of negative, self-defeating thoughts.

These are just five examples of times when you can take advantage of meditation techniques to quiet your mind and, by extension, increase productivity. A calm mind is a more thoughtful, better tuned instrument.

Here are some examples of meditations you can try:

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For when you’re driving, download and listen to any number of audio Guided Meditations available on the internet. YouTube has a generous selection of these, many of which are geared towards success in business.

2 Repeating a mantra can be very calm-

ing, particularly when you are trying to rid yourself of negative, self-defeating thoughts. It doesn’t matter what words you choose, as long as you feel good about your choice. “I am a success” or “I will approach all of my clients with love today” are two examples. Whatever works for you and gets you into the desired mindset.

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3 Something as simple as listening to pleasant music in your car can be considered meditation, provided it brings you to a place of comfort as opposed to one of spiritual discordance.

4 The most important thing, however, is to take time to find gratitude in everything you do. Count your blessings, be grateful the exciting career in real estate you have built for yourself.

Once you’ve mastered some of these techniques at quieting your mind, you can attempt to find some that work even better for you. Walking, plain silence, or even exercise can have meditative qualities and benefits if practiced on a regular basis.

When you’re truly feeling calm, your clients can sense this. And with this comes the feeling that you can be relied upon to stay focused and calm in any unforeseen circumstances. And in the world of real estate, that’s a highly prized commodity.

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ANN LYON For Ann Lyon, it was a matter of possibility; continue her established career of twenty years in Architecture or transition pathways toward real estate. Real estate would offer Ann the opportunity to make a significantly higher income for her family yet still use her knowledge of architecture, design, and zoning to build a fruitful career where she could continue her passion for homes. Today Ann is an agent with a team of three, including Jeff Folker, Kim Campbell, and Jennifer Mower. Each group member specializes in a unique area of expertise, making the four of them the fantastic four of realtors. Together, they service Lake Forest, Lake Bluff, the North Shore, and the City of Chicago.

While Ann specializes in architecture and design, Jeff has a background working with global companies and negotiations. Kim brings her finance and banking expertise to the table, while Jennifer has substantial experience in sales and marketing. “I have partners who add a lot to the business because they have such a diverse background and opinions and we work well together. It allows us to service clients in all areas,” Ann shares. As a result, their repeat and referral business are between 50 and 60%. Clients circulate back to work with Ann and her team while they constantly work to ensure excellent customer care. Whether it’s staging, being present for showings, or hiring the best contributors for photography and video, the team clears their clients’ pathways and does whatever they need to do to be of assistance.

Ann and her team stay in touch with clients throughout the holidays and connect yearly. They also utilize their email list to check-in and share relevant information with clients whenever necessary. Ann markets listings through print advertisements, magazines, newspapers and maintains a strong web presence. Between this and social media, including Facebook and Instagram, they Top Agent Magazine

make a point to emphasize their global reach. As a result, the team produces between fifty and seventy million in volume yearly.

Ann most enjoys helping people find their perfect home for their family. “It’s an emotional process and something that means a lot to a family. I get a lot of satisfaction by finding that perfect home, one that excites them, one to grow in and enjoy,” she shares. Importantly, she says her clients are wonderful people.

Ann stays involved in her community with her participation in the Lake Forest Chapter of the Infant Welfare Society of Chicago. She has also worked on the past 9 Showhouse and Gardens in a leadership capacity. In addition, Ann stays involved in her children’s school activities and church.

When Ann isn’t working, she enjoys spending time with her family, golfing, and hiking. Her plans for the future include continuing to grow the business locally and getting licensed in Florida and Wisconsin, places they have a network of clients in already. As for her team, Ann believes they are a perfect size with the four of them. Lastly, Ann shares, “Real estate has been a tremendous career opportunity for my partners and me.”

To learn more about Ann Lyon please visit lfcmpartners.com email ALyon@atproperties.com or call 47.828.9991 http://

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Laughs!

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Emotional Fluency:

How to Communicate with Clients When Tensions are High Managing emotions, expectations, and personalities are central to a successful real estate career. After all, this is a business based on relationships and interpersonal communication. Likewise, real estate is built on one of life’s central milestones—homeownership. This means that stress, disappointment, excitement, and competition are inherently 20

involved in the process. As an agent, you take on the real estate world every day, but most of your clients aren’t well-versed in the norms of the industry and are likely riding an emotional roller coaster throughout.

Acknowledging this, how do you steer the ship when emotions and tensions are running high?

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For starters, it’s not always intuitive. Just like you add tools to your arsenal when it comes to marketing, social media, or lead generation, you also have to add emotional tools to your repertoire. Here are a few ways to diffuse tense situations and keep clients on an even keel—even during the ups and downs of the transactional process.

Create realistic expectations from the outset and reinforce them as you go As a seasoned agent, some aspects of the industry may seem run of the mill to you, but may come as a shock to your clients. That’s

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why communicating expectations from the beginning can help create reasonable touchpoints in the minds of your clients. In addition to talking through the steps of the transactional process with your clients, consider writing out a checklist or compiling a buyer’s guide that can serve as a resource for them throughout. Think of it like a security blanket, but one that’s built by facts, figures, and anecdotal experience. If you paint a clear picture of what to expect, clients are less likely to be taken by the surprise and react impulsively as a result. What’s more, reinforce next steps, expectations, and possible outcomes as you go. If your client is left to wonder or guess at what’s ahead or

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what will happen, they will either envision the worst-case scenario and panic, or they’ll misjudge the next step and be disappointed or left anxious as a result. Minimize surprises by communicating regularly, clearly, and with all options on the table.

When unveiling a problem, come to clients with potential solutions in hand Any agent worth his or her salt knows that bumps in the road are likely to occur along the way. You can’t promise a transaction free of stress or unforeseen issues, but you can minimize the ensuing stress by preparing you client in advance for any potential problems, and by addressing any problems

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clearly and with solutions already in hand.

Clients are likely to become agitated if a problem arises and they can’t understand why or what it means. That’s why slowing it down, talking it through, and offering potential avenues for recourse can quell fears and remind clients why they chose you to facilitate the transactional process. This means you’ll have to vigilant, proactive, and on the ball. Of course, it’s much easier to be an agent when everything is going great and flowing naturally. It’s when things take an unexpected or negative turn that true talent is really tested. Accordingly, show your clients that you are confident and in control by remaining adaptable, communicative, and clear in your problem-solving approach.

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Never underestimate the power of listening As an agent, you are probably well-versed in putting out fires and sourcing solutions. Sometimes, however, clients are really looking to you as a confidante and a listening ear. You’d be surprised how much nervousness you can resolve by simply offering a listening ear and offering reassurance. Sometimes it’s not about providing a band-aid or a practical solution; oftentimes, it’s all about listening. Clients need to feel like they’re being heard, even if you’ve heard it all before. By listening to their fears, acknowledging their perspective, and reiterating their goals—you display your empathy and understanding, which is often just what a client Top Agent Magazine

needs to feel better. In other words, you don’t have to break out the graphs and data each time a client airs his or her insecurity. First, slow down, listen, and interact on a personal level. You may stop an emotional upheaval in its tracks simply by putting your listening cap on.

Not all clients are alike. Some will require a little more hand-holding than others, but it’s your job to put yourself in their perspective, recognize the milestone at hand, and managing the personalities you’re working with. The next time you feel frustrated by a client’s unpredictable emotional energy, keep these insights in mind as you diffuse the situation, steer them to a place of comfort, and fortify your interpersonal skillset in the process.

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