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WESTWORDS NOVEMBER 2020

I AM

I AM REBECCA MINKS I AM PROFESSIONAL I AM TRUSTWORTHY I AM CARING I AM RESOURCEFUL I AM PREPARED I AM WEST USA

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING “Becky handled both my sale and purchase this year in April, and then, in July. I cannot say enough good things about Becky as a realtor, and as a person. She is professional, knowledgeable, friendly and composed. For me, having a realtor who could shield me from most of the stress of buying and selling was very important, and Becky did just that. Without hesitation, I would recommend you hire Becky for your next sale/purchase. I already know, should I need a realtor in the future, Becky will be my first call.” “Becky is amazing. This is the second time I have had the chance to work with her. Through my home buying experience, she was with me every step of the way. She was dedicated to the entire process and was looking out for my best interests. She is very simply THE BEST!!” “Becky was an absolute pleasure to work with. She consistently went above and beyond to help me close on my home in ways that I don’t think other realtors would. I heard of her through a recommendation from a coworker who had a similarly great experience. I couldn’t be happier with my choice to select her as well. Knowledgeable, kind, available, and very hardworking for her clients.”

BROKER BLOG WITH BOB STEPHENS SOME THOUGHTS FOR SELLING NEW HOMES I wrote 2 articles titled—WHAT WOULD I DO? And, also, EXTRA SERVICE FOR BUYERS! These should be very interesting to agents that maybe just started in the business or even some old-timers. FIRST, you will need to get your buyers registered at the new home builders Model Home Office the very first time you take them to the models. If they buy during the next 30 days, they will pay West USA Realty a referral fee which we will use to pay you. If they don’t buy, then you must register them again every 30 days or they won’t pay us. A WONDERFUL SYSTEM and you do not even have to write the contract—the builder’s salesperson does it. Then when it closed escrow in ??? months, they will pay us on the base price of the home & not the final price that the buyers pay for upgrades. And another thing, the builder’s lender does the pre-qualifying if there are any loans to be obtained. THEN, if they are unable to qualify, it is rare that they would get the earnest money returned, so please understand that part. There are about 50 or 60 pages of a contract to sign that the salesperson will explain to them.

And when West USA collects 3% of the basic sales price, it is a nice paycheck for you.

As the home is being built, I believe that it is a good service to take pictures of the progress about once a week like when the concrete is poured, when the frame gets placed on it and other things that are happening—the buyers will appreciate it. Of course, the buyers will visit the site also.

A new built home that is listed in the MLS may be a different situation and will require you to write the contract as you always do!

It is critical during this time to keep in touch often, so that your competency & attention to the buyers is never doubted and it will build future business for you in referrals to an agent that cares. And ask if they have any friends or family that might like to live in this area or some other area. NOW THEN, something hard to understand is the buyers walk thru after the home is getting ready to close. Some builders won’t allow you or any inspectors to be there. It is between the builder’s project foreman and the buyers BUT, you can ask to be there. The following day or soon after, they have an appointment to sign the final closing papers at the title company. They will probably get the keys about 3 days later. The foreman will appear soon to view the repairs the buyers want and will then schedule it. So, become a new home expert where someone else does the work and you are the nice knowledgeable person that introduces them to some great homes.

Questions, contact: Managing Broker, Bob Stephens 602-942-4200

THE 4 E’S FOR CREATING HIGH-VALUE SOCIAL MEDIA CONTENT

BY KEITH FLYNN, DIGITAL MARKETING DIRECTOR The type of social media content you post as a REALTOR® can make or break your social media marketing success. Yet, far too often, too many real estate professional post content that focuses on buying and selling; you’ve seen the “Just Listed, Just Sold” posts. Don’t get me wrong, you certainly should be posting your clients listings, and it’s great to celebrate your successes, but when it’s only those two types of content, it tends to turn your audience off. Instead of interrupting your audiences to sell them something, focus on adding value to their day. Following the 4 E’s of social media content: Entertain, Educate, Empower, and Engage can help you achieve high-value content creation success. The Four E’s of social media content creation to win friends’ and followers’ loyalty start with having some fun. Entertain We socialize on social media to get away from our long busy day and forget about the world’s worries for a moment. We love to be amused, so give your audience something to smile about. The last thing real estate is is boring, so injecting some fun into your content is a great way to show your audience that you’re fun, likable, and someone they want to connect with. Educate Whenever possible, take the opportunity to enlighten your audience about real estate that they didn’t know they wanted. A great formula is “They Ask, You Answer.” The chances are that if one customer asks you a question, someone else out there has the same question too. Take the Top 5 most common questions ask of you, and create some video answers.

Empower Empower your audience. Provide simple tips, tricks, and best-shared practices to help your audience. Create a series of “How-To’s” or “Need to Knows” for first time home buyers. Whether it’s getting ready to borrow via a mortgage or how to check your furnace and HVAC filters, your content will empower them at the same time keep you top of mind so the next time they have a need or know someone who does, they’ll think of you. Engage Of all the 4 E’s, Engage is the most important. When someone comments, shares your content, it creates a greater value of trust compared to just clicking the “like” button or casually exploring your social media channels. Remember, being a real estate agent is about building relationships and prospecting. Well, social media is no different - this is just social prospecting. Create content that elicits a response in the form of an answer, feedback, or an opinion. The more they engage with your content, the more they will begin to know, like, and trust you until they become advocates for you. If this is something that you have not done in the past, start with some simple questions requiring yes or no responses. This is a comfortable way for your audience to start engaging. The high-value content you hope to build with the 4 E’s of social media creation can only bring you a better business and better relationships. By getting your audience to love, not just like your personal brand, you’re more likely to dive more leads, close more transactions, and in the end, be a much more successful real estate professional.

TODD MENARDâ€™S

REAL ESTATE MARKET STATS

AWARENESS

WEEK

DECEMBER 7-11

MONDAY, DECEMBER 7 MONTHLY GIVE BACK

This program supports our mission to support our agents and their passion to give back to the communities. When a donation is made from an agentâ€™s transaction, they get entered in a monthly drawing. Each month a name is selected, and that agent picks the charity we give money to that month. Amazing partnerships have been established between many charities throughout our communities.

TUESDAY, DECEMBER 8 AGENTS IN ACTION

We love to see our agents doing amazing things in the community and our agents in action highlights these extraordinary things. Agents can nominate any agent and they are featured in the monthly newsletter, West Words.

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 9 A100 DONATIONS

These are our main source of income to help keep our programs running. These are donations made on the A100 form from each transaction. Each donation makes everything we do possible!

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 10 COMMUNITY IMPACT

Our community impact is thanks to our agents doing big things in their community. These are through drives, volunteering and bringing awareness to charities all around.

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 11 ENA FUND

This program is the most meaningful as it allows us to support our own agents in time of need. 50% of all income that comes into West USA Cares is placed in this account. Agents can apply for assistance when they have an unexpected emergency. Many agents and families have been able to get financial help at a time when it was needed most and we were able to step in to take some of the burden off.

SHOW YOUR SUPPORT

WEAR RED ALL WEEK

BLANKET

DRIVE NOVEMBER 15TH - DECEMBER 15TH

West USA Cares is partnering up with Cultivate Goodness to host a Virtual Blanket drive for those experiencing homelessness, as well as victims of Domestic Violence this Holiday season. Each Blanket is $10.00 and will be wrapped with a ribbon and tag. Those who sponsor blankets will have the option to include a personal, uplifting message. With homelessness and domestic violence on the rise, we are counting on your support to help provide warmth, comfort and holiday cheer. Funds can be donated through Cultivate Goodness’ website at www.cultivate-goodness.org or via Venmo @cultivategoodness. Please consider sponsoring 1 or more blankets to help keep the members of our community warm when they need our help most. *Receipts are only given for donations over $75. Cultivate Goodness is a 501 (c)3 charitable organization and they are a qualifying charitable organization for AZ State Tax Credit.

EMPLOYEE

MONTH OF THE

CJ MASCARELLI Creative Director, Corporate Office

Congratulations to CJ Mascarelli West USA Realty’s November Employee of the Month! CJ is West USA’s Creative Director. In the short time CJ has been with West USA, he has helped rebrand our West USA Realty Luxury Division and bring overall continuity to all our marketing efforts. With CJ at the helm of our creative work, we are very excited to see what our marketing department will be able to do for the company and for our family of agents. Thank you, CJ, for being a part of our West USA Realty family.

M O N DAY

T U E S DAY

02 West USA Weekly Webinar 9:00am - 10:00am / Webinar

Ahwatukee Office Meeting 10:00am - 11:00am / Zoom

West USA Agent Orientation 10:30am - 12:00pm / Webinar

w/ Michael Douville

Creating Real Estate Wealth

w/ Michael Douville

Don’t Do Dat w/Broker Bob Stephens 1:00pm - 1:30pm / Webinar

10:00am - 10:30am / Webinar

ALL OFFICES CLOSED Veteran’s Day

Facebook Basics for Real Estate Professionals w/Keith Flynn 10:00am - 11:30am / Webinar

Kierland Office Meeting 10:00am - 11:30am / Zoom

F R I DAY

Arrowhead Office Meeting 10:00am - 11:00am / Zoom

FREE REMOTE CE CLASS Disclosure and the Law 3Hrs Disclosure Law 9:00am - 12:00pm / Zoom

10:00am - 10:30am / Webinar

T H U R S DAY

Creating Real Estate Wealth

Don’t Do Dat w/Broker Bob Stephens 1:00pm - 1:30pm / Webinar

West USA Weekly Webinar 9:00am - 10:00am / Webinar

W E D N E S DAY

NOVEMBER 2020

FREE REMOTE CE CLASS Secrets to Unprecedented Growth and Referrals 3Hrs Real Estate Legal Issues 9:00am - 12:45pm / Zoom

Video First - 5 Video Ideas for Real Estate Professionals w/Keith Flynn 10:00am - 11:00am / Webinar

West USA Weekly Webinar 9:00am - 10:00am / Webinar

Don’t Do Dat w/Broker Bob Stephens 1:00pm - 1:30pm / Webinar

Prostart Training Session 1 9:00am - 4:00pm / Zoom

Creating Real Estate Wealth

Prostart Training Session 1 9:00am - 4:00pm / Zoom

10:00am - 10:30am / Webinar

Canva Basics for Real Estate Professionals (Holiday Edition)

Real Estate Market Summit 9:00am - 12:00pm / Zoom

w/ Michael Douville

Prostart Training Session 1 9:00am - 4:00pm / Zoom

w/Keith Flynn

11:00am - 11:30am / Webinar

Prostart Training Session 2 9:00am - 4:00pm / Zoom

Prostart Training Session 2 9:00am - 4:00pm / Zoom Creating Real Estate Wealth

West USA Weekly Webinar 9:00am - 10:00am / Webinar

w/ Michael Douville

Don’t Do Dat w/Broker Bob Stephens 1:00pm - 1:30pm / Webinar

FREE REMOTE CE CLASS To Be Or Not To Be Paid, That Is The Question - 3Hrs CE Credit Category 9:00am - 12:45pm / Zoom

ALL OFFICES CLOSED Thanksgiving Day

ALL OFFICES CLOSED Day After Thanksgiving

10:00am - 10:30am / Webinar

30 Prostart Training Session 3 9:00am - 4:00pm / Zoom West USA Weekly Webinar 9:00am - 10:00am / Webinar Don’t Do Dat w/Broker Bob Stephens 1:00pm - 1:30pm / Webinar

• CE- Continuing Education Renewal Training • Luxury Division Event

• Commercial Division Event • Office Meetings