LOS ANGELES 2-7-22

LOS ANGELES EDITION

BE THEIR REALTOR® FOR LIFE:

5 Morning Habits to MAKE YOUR DAY SUPER PRODUCTIVE

How to Build a Relationship with Your Clients that Will Last a Lifetime

3 EASY AT-HOME

A STEP-BY-STEP GUIDE TO

DIY PROJECTS

CONVERTING INTERNET LEADS TO REAL LIFE SALES

TO INCREASE PROPERTY VALUE

COVER STORY

CINDY AMBUEHL A FAMILIAR FACE

COMPLETE RETROFITTING AND WATER CONSERVATION COMPLIANCE (PER SENATE BILL NO. 407)

LGS was founded in 1987 to assist Realtors in meeting mandatory requirements prior to the close of escrow. As the list of requirements grew, so did we! LGS has been committed to providing the professional service necessary to successfully meet our customer's needs. One hundred percent customer satisfaction is not only our goal, but it is our mantra. n

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Retrofitting Inspections and Noncompliant Plumbing Disclosures Los Angeles DWP Certificate of Compliance Seismic Earthquake Valves Low Flush Toilets Water Heater Straps Smoke Detectors Carbon Monoxide Detectors Window Glazing

License Number 900919

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LOS ANGELES EDITION

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CINDY AMBUEHL

CONTENTS 4) BE THEIR REALTOR® FOR LIFE: HOW TO BUILD A RELATIONSHIP WITH YOUR CLIENTS THAT WILL LAST A LIFETIME 13) 5 MORNING HABITS TO MAKE YOUR DAY SUPER PRODUCTIVE

16) A STEP-BY-STEP GUIDE TO CONVERTING INTERNET LEADS TO REAL LIFE SALES 20) 3 EASY AT-HOME DIY PROJECTS TO INCREASE PROPERTY VALUE

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Be Their REALTOR for Life: ®

How to Build a Relationship with Your Clients That Will Last a Lifetime In the world of real estate, an agent’s relationship with their clients can make or break their career. This industry revolves around working well with people, and being able to develop a strong relationship with your clients is the foundation that you business is based upon.

Just like with a house, if that foundation is weak, the rest of the structure is also going to be unsteady and fragile. The mark of a good REALTOR® is their ability to build up a good referral network and following of loyal clients. This isn’t something that just happens by accident. Building healthy, strong relationships with your clients takes work and knowing how to gain another person’s trust, respect, and friendship. Here are some ways to make sure you are building the right kind of relationship with your clients.

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1. Use Your Friendliness and Optimism to Win Them Over: No one wants a pushy, overly confident salesperson for a REALTOR®. Clients are much more inclined to put their trust in the hands of someone who is friendly when it comes to one of the biggest financial transactions of their lives. A pleasant, outgoing disposition will win you more clients as well as friends. You want to establish rapport in the first few minutes of first meeting prospective clients. Rather than starting with business right off the bat, begin your meeting with some small talk such as similar interests, hobbies, and family life. This will immediately help to put your clients at ease, and show that you are not simply trying to “sell” them something.

People also respond well to optimism. During what can be a very stressful time, clients need someone to help them stay positive when a situation looks difficult and challenging. Optimism also tends to radiate charisma, and people want to be around and do business with charismatic people. You want to learn how to understand, motivate, and inspire people.

2. Be an Inquisitive Learner and an Empathetic Listener:

On the other side of this coin is knowing how to listen empathetically. Empathy involves actually putting yourself or your mind in their shoes so you can genuinely understand their concerns, needs, and opinions. That understanding and empathy is then reflected in your conversation with that client. Your clients want to know that you care about their situation, and that they’re not just another sale for you to make. People are much more willing to put their trust in you when they can sense that you are actually making an effort to feel what they feel in order to understand their situation.

Showing your interest through questions, and then thoughtfully listening goes a long way towards gaining trust. Showing empathy and acknowledging the feelings and emotions involved in your clients situation helps build a relationship founded on genuine care and trust.

3. Watch for Nonverbal Clues:

Don’t be afraid to show your curiosity and ask your clients a lot of questions. Some of these questions may even be difficult and uncomfortable. You want to discover and learn as much as you can about your client. Don’t make the mistake of jumping straight into the role of the know-it-all. Every different client has unique needs, so you want to learn as much as you can about their specific situation before trying to propose a solution. You want to uncover their primary motive for buying or selling, and flush Top Agent Magazine

out any potential concerns they might have.

After you’ve gained as much information as possible, you can then gauge their interest in your possible solutions by asking “what if” questions. Being inquisitive also demonstrates to your clients that you are genuinely interested and invested in their situation.

Most communication happens nonverbally, so knowing how to interpret your client’s body language can be incredibly helpful. Here are a few things to pay special attention to: Eye contact: Be careful with the level of eye contact you use with clients when first meeting.

Too much and too little eye contact can send the wrong impression. You want to try and maintain eye contact around 70 percent of the time. That is the amount that most people are comfortable with. Pay attention to your client’s level of eye

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contact to determine how comfortable they are.

When someone avoids eye contact that could mean they are not engaged in the conversation.

A good way to quickly build a feeling of rapport when first meeting clients is to make eye contact when you first meet them and then start nodding yes to what they’re saying. If the client reciprocates the eye contact and nodding, you’ve established a connection.

4. Prove your honesty and credibility:

Choose the right handshake for each client: One handshake does not fit all people, and that first handshake can be crucial to making a good first impression. The way to do a good handshake for each client is to try and mirror the other person’s handshake in strength, keep your shoulders aligned as you are preferably standing when you shake hands. While you shake your client’s hand make sure you make eye contact and give them a sincere smile.

Showing a little weakness can actually be to your advantage in this situation, and will actually make others more inclined view you as honest. You don’t want to come across as too good to be true. When revealing this weakness, however, the key to coming out on top is turning what sounds like a weakness into a strength. For example, your service may be more expensive, but that’s because you offer more personalized and extra services than your competitors.

Honesty and integrity are the two traits that 98 percent of buyers and sellers report are qualities they consider “very important”. The thing is you can say you have these traits all you want on your website, bio, etc., but trust has to be earned, and the only way to do this is to prove your credibility.

Here are a few tips for how to sound more credible:

When you talk to your clients avoid using filler words such as “um” and “uh”, which can decrease your credibility. You also want to watch the tone of your voice. People tend to translate a deeper tone as sounding more credible.

You want to develop a relationship to last a lifetime when interacting with your clients. There are many things you can do to accomplish this, and using these tips can take you from getting just a few referrals and repeat customers to gaining a loyal client following. Taking the little extra time to make sure you are projecting the right attitude and making sure that you are doing things to gain your client’s trust can make a world of difference for your business.

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CINDY AMBUEHL A FAMILIAR FACE

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CINDY CINDY AMBUEHL AMBUEHL Most Most people people would would say say Cindy Cindy Ambuehl Ambuehl has hasaa familiar familiar face. face. There There are are some some very very good good reareasons for that.

From being deeply ingrained sons for that. From being deeply ingrained inin her her Santa Santa Monica Monica Canyon Canyoncommunity, community,to tobeing being featured in Top Agent Magazine yet again, featured in Top Agent Magazine yet again, toto gracing gracing TV TV screens screens with with her her roles rolesin inJAG, JAG,The The Bold And The Beautiful, Seinfeld, or dozens Bold And The Beautiful, Seinfeld, or dozensof of other roles, it seems like no matter where you other roles, it seems like no matter where you are, are, Cindy Cindy is is there, there, ready ready to to help. help.

any anysort sortofofstudio studiobonus, bonus,she shebought boughtproperty. property.

This started around Chapman University, This started around Chapman University,but but would soon spread to engulf luxury homes would soon spread to engulf luxury homes throughout throughoutthe theregion. region.While Whileititstarted startedasasjust justa a fun funhobby hobbyand andaasimple simpleunadulterated unadulteratedlove loveofof property, property,even eventhose thoseproperties propertiessoon soongot gotinto into show business.

Dealing with homes and being show business. Dealing with homes and being inin the the entertainment entertainmentenvironment, environment,she shefound found herself in unique situations, including having herself in unique situations, including having one oneofofher herproperties propertiesfeatured featuredininTom TomHanks’ Hanks’ ‘That Thing You Do’.

Once the first twins of Hitting rewind a few years, when Cindy was Hitting rewind a few years, when Cindy was ‘That Thing You Do’. Once the first twins of eventual family of six boys showed up, she actively on screen, whenever she received her actively on screen, whenever she received her eventual family of six boys showed up, she Copyright Top Agent Magazine 8 Copyright Top Agent Magazine

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decidedthe thetelevision televisionlifestyle lifestyleschedule schedulewould would decided toomuch muchand andthe theobvious obviousother otherdirection directionofof bebetoo careerwas washer herlove loveofofreal realestate. estate.She Shewrapped wrapped career herstory storyline lineon onJAG JAGand andtransitioned transitioned toto upupher therole roleofofmom. mom.ItItwas wasthen thenshe sherealized realizedthat that the propertieswould wouldalso alsobecome becomean anall-consumall-consumproperties ingpassion. passion. ing Shelicensed licensedwith withColdwell ColdwellBanker BankerininPacific Pacific She Palisadesand and learned learned the the ropes ropes during during the the Palisades beginningofof2007 2007into into the the 2008 2008 recession, recession, beginning some of real estate’s toughest years. This was some of real estate’s toughest years. This was Top Agent Magazine

during aa huge huge downswing downswing in in the the market, market, and and during the job job wasn’t wasn’t just just placing placing aa sign sign in in the the lawn lawn the and waiting waiting for for the the inevitable inevitable buyers buyers to to show show and up. This This was was learning learning to to fight fight for for each each and and up. everyclient clientin inan anupside-down upside-down market, market, finding finding every theright rightperson person for for the the right right property property and and getgetthe ting aa match match that that was was aa winning winning combination combination ting through hard hard work work and and dedication. dedication. When When the the through marketregained regained strength, strength, Cindy Cindy didn’t didn’t simply simply market reston on her her laurels. laurels. She She came came in in fighting fighting hard, hard, rest and the the regrowth regrowth of of the the market market only only fed fed her her and passion. Any moment she is not watching her passion.

Any moment she is not watching her Copyright Top Agent Magazine Copyright Top Agent Magazine 9

It’s a personal level of care and consistency that keeps Cindy’s client base strong, with a 90% referral rate leading up to $300 million in recent yearly sales. boys on the university football fields or on a basketball court, she’s digging deep into what makes each property unique, and what unique individual would be the best new owner.

She spends her days taking care of her clients, letting them know just how important they are and how she takes a deep personal interest in creating the right match to a property. She knows that fabulous garage needs to find a car enthusiast to fill it. Many of her clients come from a high-end midtown Orange background 10Copyright Top Agent Magazine

and she works for their hard earned trust to become a valued resource. Every home is carefully examined with every client’s needs kept in mind. Consistency of effort is key, no matter how unique the offering.

It’s that personal level of care and consistency that keeps her client base strong, with a 90% referral rate leading up to $300 million in recent yearly sales. That client base is her second family. With weekly eblasts and updates to her Instagram account (@CindyAmbuehl), Top Agent Magazine

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Cindy is a marketing master for the properties north and south of Sunset. Coming up next would be embracing new technologies for digital marketing, with one foot still in the print world at LA Times and others, branching into development and digging in to the tools and assets for client outreach. Cindy is

always there. For her clients, her family and her community, ready to guide and help. Her personal love of the area was exhibited when they decided on a remodel of her own home rather than consider being anyplace else. Just look around the football crowd and you’re bound to find her.

For more about Cindy Ambuehl please call 310-321-9148 or email cindy@cindyambuehlgroup.com 12Copyright Top Agent Magazine

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5 Morning Habits to Make Your Day Super Productive For many, most mornings begin with a rush—a rush to get dressed, a rush to find something edible for breakfast, a rush out the door and into rush hour. Likely you have heard articles advising you to set your

alarm early to give yourself some flexibility —which is sound advice, of course—but consider a few of these additional tweaks to your morning routine that can set a productive tone for your day at large.

1. Keep Screens Away Until Breakfast Oftentimes, our first instinct upon waking is to check-in on our phones, tablets, or computers, to scope out the latest social media updates and e-mail correspondence. While diving into the action might seem productive, studies show that waylaying screen time until you’re up and dressed, and have had a good breakfast, will actually make your first pass Top Agent Magazine

at all things digital more focused, clear, and efficient. Instead of answering a few e-mails, checking out a friend’s photos, and then hurrying to shower and dress, instead make a resolution to keep the online world at bay for the first half-hour to an hour after you rise, then you’ll approach the digital world with fresh eyes, energy, and adeptness.

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2. Meal Prep Sometimes hitting the snooze button is inevitable, but if you make prepping breakfast the night before a part of your routine, then grabbing something healthy on the go will be a snap—and your stomach will thank you for it. Load up your coffee machine ahead of time, so all you have to do

is hit brew. Or, chop up a fruit salad, mix a smoothie, or simply put a granola bar and a grapefruit in your lunch bag, ready to be grabbed on your way out the door. Even if it’s small or basic, keeping yourself fueled will keep distractions, inefficiency, and mood swings at bay.

3. Queue Up a Podcast on Your Commute Whether you’re driving, biking, or taking public transportation into the office, a podcast is a perfect way to brush up on industry knowledge. Try sourcing a podcast relative to your field and narrated by experts.

Not only will it get you thinking about the topics of your industry—while expanding

your professional vocabulary—it will also wake up your brain and get your head in the game as you prepare to launch your day. Use your commute time to bump up your knowledge and conversation points, and you’ll be ahead of the curve before you reach the office.

4. Begin with a To-Do List When work gets busy, sometimes just getting started is an overwhelming prospect.

Before you dive in to your e-mails and projects, take twenty minutes and be thoughtful as you assess your daily and weekly to-do

list items, then map them. By giving yourself a bullet point system of what you need to accomplish and by when, you can undo some of the anxiety that a busy schedule promotes.

5. Walk It Out, Even If You Missed the Gym While we often rely on coffee for our morning buzz, exercise provides a potent burst of energy that can supercharge your day. But, let’s say you’re running behind and skip the gym—all is not lost! Take fifteen minutes in

the early morning to take a walk around the block a few times. The fresh air and aerobic exercise will wake you up, get your blood moving, and provide your morning with a natural injection of motivation.

Everyone’s morning routine varies, but perhaps the first step is identifying aspects of your routine that could be improved, and tackling them from there. From waylaying

screen time distractions to getting in a little blood-pumping exercise, keep these tips in mind as you launch your most productive morning routine ever.

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A Step-by-Step Guide to

Converting Internet Leads to Real Life Sales In the era of apps, instantaneous social platforms, and text messaging, it’s little surprise that the modern homebuyer begins his or her search for real estate representation online.

Even if you’ve got a top-notch website or an influential social media presence, how do you connect with web surfers who have yet to commit to the services you offer? Take a look below to learn a few key techniques to bridge the gap between digital interest and real-world sales.

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RESPONSIVENESS IS KEY Like it or not, our digital culture relishes immediacy and instant gratification. With that in mind, be sure to stay on top of online interest forms, e-mails, or newsletter signups. Don’t let an online lead go to waste by taking too long to engage and follow-up.

Things move fast, and it’s easy for potential clientele to forget which websites they’ve visited. Even if your lead isn’t ready to commit then and there, you demonstrate your

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Mastering the fundamentals of digital communication is the first step to converting digital interest into concrete business. accessibility and attentiveness by following up swiftly—a characteristic anyone would seek in an agent or lender.

ENGAGE WITH OPEN-ENDED CONVERSATION When online back-and-forth goes stale, communication drops off quickly. If you’re following up via e-mail, social media, or text, be sure to keep topics focused squarely on the potential client. Ask open-ended questions to give your lead the opportunity to loosen up and engage on a personal level. There’s no better way to cement a digital lead than to take a pointed interest in the specifics of their situation. Doing so transforms the impersonal invisibility of the internet into a true connection.

GIVE ADDED VALUE Plenty of businesses send impersonal, automated messages in response to an online inquiry, but establishing a true connection may mean providing your lead with something of value. Perhaps you’re forwarding a property for sale that fits the interests of your lead, or a relevant article, or maybe you take the time to send a personal message—demonstrable value and a personal touch separate your follow-up response from spam. Other ideas to consider when Top Agent Magazine

adding value to your follow-up technique: incorporate area promotions and access to local events, make a date for coffee, or offer a brief consultation free of charge to make the first move.

DON’T STOP MAKING CONTACT If you don’t connect with your internet lead right off the bat—don’t be discouraged. It often takes multiple tries before a follow-up interaction sticks. Folks are busy and frequently flooded with e-mail blasts and junk mail. A lead may not engage without a little prodding that shows you’re committed to their business. Remember: it’s the squeaky wheel that gets the grease.

Digital leads don’t have to be difficult to capture. The internet plays a powerful role in funneling modern clientele your way, but in order to take full advantage of the web’s reach, you’ll need to tailor your follow-up technique. Mastering the fundamentals of digital communication is the first step to converting digital interest into concrete business. Keep these tips top-of-mind as you build your online presence and mine the vast world wide web for an endless wealth of clientele. Earning a command of digital lead conversion is the surest way to bolster your business in the ever-evolving digital era.

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Laughs!

Graham Harrop Graham Harrop Cartoons Cartoons

Putting the power of humour to work for you!

Putting the power of humour to work for you! grahamharrop.com

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3 Easy At-Home DIY Projects to Increase Property Value Most homeowners have a lengthy list of chores and bit projects they intend to accomplish around the house. Oftentimes, those to-do items are completed piecemeal over a long stretch of time, or else sometimes not at all. However, when it comes time to prepare a home for market, all those tasks begin to pile-up and overwhelm. The 20

list of things to do before the photographer comes or the first open house is held might seem endless, but not if you tackle just a few things here and there as you go. These sorts of projects—easy, DIY, at-home tasks you can accomplish in a few hours or less, with tools you most likely have on hand— go a long way with marginal effort.

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Complete a quick rehab of closets and storage areas Many agents advise clients to declutter and depersonalize their spaces ahead of professional photography and home showings. The idea is to provide prospective buyers with a neutral palette. Not only does this allow them to imagine their own lives unfolding within those four walls, but it also helps make a home’s square footage stand out. One way to add visual space to your home without calling in the contractor is to declutter common storage areas and closets. When buyers can get a complete look at a closet’s capacity, or a pantry’s depth, or the garage’s full functional potential, they get a better sense of a home’s potential and thus, its value.

In that vein, consider decluttering and cleaning your high-traffic storage spaces: the garage, pantries, closets, attics, and basements. Besides, organizing and discarding unwanted items help you prep for a move anyway, while giving potential buyers a peak at how spacious your home really is.

Add easy curb appeal with a bit of sweat equity Sure, curb appeal can arrive in the form of a new mailbox, pathway lighting, or updated house numbers, but it can also come cheaper than that. Curb extends to the upkeep of your lawn, landscaping, and home’s façade, and there are plenty of ways Top Agent Magazine

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you can give these zones a refresh without spending anything but time. Keeping your front and back yard green and uniform adds a lux layer to exterior square footage.

Likewise, polishing the outside of your windows, trimming hedges, and sweeping the walkway can make a tidy and wellcared for first impression. There are other measures you can take too. Planting wildflower seeds in empty beds, or collecting some landscaping rocks to frame mulched areas can add a bit of character to your residence. Repainting the front door, ensuring trees are trimmed, and keeping back patios 22

neat and uncluttered also underscore a home at its finest, which is ripe for buyers to snatch up.

Transform tiled spaces into sparkling clean surfaces.

Bathrooms and kitchens are where sellers can stand to add plenty of value in the process of selling a home. While pricey renovations might be out of the question for some, there are still affordable and time-effective ways you can transform for these spaces for the better. Cleaning,

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bleaching, or redoing your tile grout—in either kitchens, bathrooms, or other tiled spaces—can give these high-trafficked areas a new lease on life. Ensuring windows, mirrors, stainless steel appliances and backsplashes are streak-free and polished also demonstrate to buyers that your home is well-cared for and practically move-in ready. Sometimes, the devil is in the details. You might consider relining drawers, changing out knobs and fixtures,

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or else decluttering cabinets and shelves for a fresher look.

No matter the challenges ahead as you prepare your home for sale, completing a few small tasks every weekend or so can put you miles ahead of the competition.

Without spending a dime, you can add serious value to your home’s bottom line, setting you up for success as you begin your own home-shopping adventure.

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