Business Plan Plan For Success

Plan For Plan For Your SuccessYour Success

For The Experienced Real Estate For The Experienced Real Estate Sales ProfessionalSales Professional

Participant WorkbookParticipant Workbook

Plan For Your Success 1 6.1.07

6.1.07

IntroductionIntroductionGUIDE TO BUSINESS PLANNING

Studies have shown that those engaged in business planning consistently outperform those with no business planning. While planning does not ensure success in accomplishing goals, it is rare to succeed solely by luck or circumstance.

This planning guide is designed to take an “experienced real estate sales professional” through the business planning process. The course will help you define where you are today and how in the coming months you can reach your chosen goals.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Steps In The Planning Process..............................................................................................2

Step I: Situational Analysis..................................................................................................... 3

My Sales and Production Statistics........................................................................................4

My Recent Sources Of Business............................................................................................5

My Personal Strengths & Weakness......................................................................................6

Business Expenses - Past 12 Months....................................................................................7

Step II: Determine Your Objectives........................................................................................8

Step III: Develop Strategies.................................................................................................... 9

Step IV: Develop Tactics...................................................................................................... 10

Plan Worksheet.................................................................................................................... 11

Step V: Measuring My Plan Results.....................................................................................12

My Personal Business Plan.................................................................................................13

Step I: Situational Analysis................................................................................................... 14

My Sales and Production Statistics......................................................................................15

My Recent Sources Of Business..........................................................................................16

My Personal Strengths & Weakness....................................................................................17

Business Expenses - Past 12 Months..................................................................................18

Plan Worksheet.................................................................................................................... 19

Step V: Measuring My Plan Results.....................................................................................20


Steps In The Planning Steps In The Planning ProcessProcessSTEP I: SITUATIONAL ANALYSIS - “WHERE YOU ARE TODAY”Business planning provides you with guidelines for making sound business decisions. The first step in developing your plan begins with a written analysis of you and your marketplace… “where you currently are” in terms of your business goals.

STEP II: OBJECTIVES - “WHAT YOU HOPE TO ACHIEVE”Objectives represent the desired outcome you hope to attain within a given period of time. They answer the question, "What do I hope to achieve?"

The objectives of a business plan provide direction and serve as standards for evaluating performance. Well-written objectives are specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and time-oriented (SMART).

(S)pecific

(M)easurable

(A)ttainable

(R)ealistic

(T)ime-oriented

STEP III: STRATEGIES - “HOW YOU WILL ACCOMPLISH YOUR OBJECTIVES”Strategies outline “how to accomplish your objectives.” They are broad activities that are within your control.

Strategies are not to be confused with goals. To differentiate between a strategy and goal, ask yourself…can I control this activity? If the answer is yes, then it is a strategy.

STEP IV: TACTICS - “HOW TO MAKE YOUR STRATEGIES HAPPEN”Tactics are specific action steps for making each strategy happen. They include “who is responsible for what and when” and the expense involved.

STEP V: PLAN MEASUREMENT - “EVALUATION OF YOUR PLAN RESULTS”Essential to the business planning process is the measurement of your plan’s success. A business plan should be revisited at least every 90 days. If your objectives and strategies are not working - change them!


Step I: Situational Analysis Step I: Situational Analysis

“Where I Am Today”“Where I Am Today”

ANALYZING MY BUSINESS 1. I currently have a business plan: yes; no

2. My current business approach is: just me; me and a personal assistant; me and a buyer broker; my team: other: ________________________________

What’s working well: ________________________________________________

What’s not working well: _____________________________________________

3. What are the strengths of your business approach: ______________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

4. What are the weaknesses of your business approach: ___________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

5. I am managing my business well: yes; no Explain: ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

6. To what do you credit your past real estate success: _____________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

BUSINESS GROWTH

1. My strategy for building my business is working: yes; no Explain: ______________

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

2. My greatest challenge over the last 12 months has been: _________________________

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

3. What could you have done over the last 12 months to improve your business? ________

_______________________________________________________________________


4. My greatest opportunities over the next 12 months: _____________________________________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

5. Threats to my business over the next 12 months:

_______________________________________________________________________


My Sales and Production My Sales and Production StatisticsStatistics

Period: _______________________ Sources: MLS, office and personal records.

COMMISSION INCOME: Commission Income $_______________________

Transactions/Sides # _______________________

Average Commission $ _______________________

LISTINGS: # of Listings Taken #_______________________

# of Listings Sold #_______________________

Percentage of Listings that Sold % ______________________

Average List Price $_______________________

Average Sale Price $_______________________

Average Sale to List Price Ratio % ______________________

BUYER CONTROLLED SALES: Buyer Controlled Sales/Closed #_______________________


REFERRALS: Outbound referrals sent #_______________________

SALES AND PRODUCTION ANALYSIS

Can your percentage of listings “taken“ to “sold” be improved? Yes, No

Is your sale to list price ratio in line with market standards? Yes, No

Is your average listing taken/sold below the office average or your goal? Yes, No

What was your estimated contracts written to contracts closed ratio? ______ %

Why?


My Recent Sources Of My Recent Sources Of BusinessBusinessDetermine the source of business for your last 10 listings taken and 10 buyer controlled sales starting with the most recent. (past customer, relative, farming, FSBO, expired, etc.).

LISTINGS TAKEN:Property or Name Source of Business

_________________________________ ___________________________________

_________________________________ ___________________________________

_________________________________ ___________________________________

_________________________________ ___________________________________

_________________________________ ___________________________________

_________________________________ ___________________________________

_________________________________ ___________________________________

_________________________________ ___________________________________

_________________________________ ___________________________________

_________________________________ ___________________________________

BUYER CONTROLLED SALES:Property or Name Source of Business

_________________________________ ___________________________________

_________________________________ ___________________________________

_________________________________ ___________________________________

_________________________________ ___________________________________

_________________________________ ___________________________________

_________________________________ ___________________________________

_________________________________ ___________________________________

_________________________________ ___________________________________

_________________________________ ___________________________________

_________________________________ ___________________________________

ANALYSIS

Do you see any trends (i.e. much business coming from few sources or most listings being taken in a certain geographic area or niche of buyers or sellers)? Yes, No

List issues or opportunities you see from this analysis.


My Personal Strengths & My Personal Strengths & WeaknessWeakness My greatest strengths _____________________________________________________

My greatest weaknesses ___________________________________________________

On a scale of 1 to 10 (10 being highest), evaluate yourself in the following areas:

Current financial position ________

Professional knowledge ________

Use of Systems ________

Use of Marketing Tools ________

Business Building/Prospecting Skills ________

Listing Skills ________

Selling Skills ________

Communication Skills ________

Where can you make improvement over the next 12 months? ______________________

_______________________________________________________________________

Analyzing My Target MarketsAnalyzing My Target Markets My geographic target market:

Current number of active listings ________

Average list price ________

Number of sales in the last 12 months ________

Average sold price ________

I would describe the current market as a (buyer, seller, balanced) market.

Estimated sales in the next 12 months will (increase, decrease, stable).

Is there a company or sales associate that is dominant in this market? Yes, No

Market analysis: (Rate 1-5 with 5 being excellent)

Turnover _______ Affordable Housing _______

Economic climate _______ New construction _______

Anticipated growth _______ Support services nearby _______

Issues and/or opportunities: ________________________________________________

MY DEMOGRAPHIC TARGET MARKET


Consists of: ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________



Business Expenses: Past 12 Business Expenses: Past 12 MonthsMonths

GENERAL EXPENSE MARKETING EXPENSES

Auto (gas, repairs, tolls, etc. $ __________ Newspaper ads $ _________

Insurance (auto) $ __________ Magazine ads $ _________

Insurance (E&O, other) $ __________ Direct mail production $ _________

Dues (board, mls ,license) $ __________ Church/club directories $ _________

Prof books, tapes, etc. $ __________ Promotional flyers $ _________

Education $ __________ Postage/delivery $ _________

Phone, pager $ __________ Yard signs/riders $ _________

Office supplies $ __________ Photography $ _________

Equipment (fax, tech, etc) $ __________ Closing gifts $ _________

Computer (hardware) $ __________ Other _________________ $ _________

Professional services $ __________ Other _________________ $ _________

Secretary/personal asst. $ __________ Other__________________ $ _________

Sales conferences $ __________ Other _________________ $ _________

Gifts $ __________ Other _________________ $ _________

Entertainment $ __________ Other _________________ $ _________

Other _________________ $ __________ Other _________________ $ _________

Sub-Total General Expense: $__________ Sub-Total Marketing Expense: $ __________

TOTAL EXPENSE: $ _______________

Put an * next to each expense category you can improve upon.

EXPENSE SUMMARY Commission Income + $_______________

General and Marketing Expenses - $_______________

Profit/Loss Profit = $_______________

Marketing Expense as % of income _______________ %(Marketing Exp Commission Income)(Top producers invest 8-10%)


Step II: Determine Your Step II: Determine Your ObjectivesObjectives

“What I Hope To Achieve"“What I Hope To Achieve"Objectives provide direction within a given period of time and serve as standards for evaluating performance.

Develop “SMART” objectives:

(S)pecific

(M)easurable

(A)ttainable

(R)ealistic

(T)ime-oriented

SAMPLE PLAN OBJECTIVES

1. To earn an annual personal income of $ _________________.

2. Increase my listings taken from _____ to _____ in _________.

3. Increase my listings sold from _____ to _____ in _________.

4. Increase my commission income from _____ to _____ in _________.

5. Increase my buyer controlled sales from _____ to _____ in _________.

6. To spend _____ % of my personal income on personal promotion.

7. To work a maximum of ___ days per week and take ___ weekends off per month.

8. Professional development __________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

9. Personal development ____________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

10. Technology Plan: My annual budget is _______________ . My needs are ____________

_______________________________________________________________________

11. Financial planning and retirement program _____________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________


Step III: Develop Strategies Step III: Develop Strategies

“How Will I Accomplish My Objectives”“How Will I Accomplish My Objectives”Strategies are broad activities that are within your control. Generally, it will take more than one strategy to accomplish an objective. By the same token, however, each strategy, if carefully planned and implemented, can accomplish a number of tasks at the same time. For example, farming a higher price range area could increase your average commission dollar as well as help to meet your listing objective. Get additional mileage for your efforts by implementing strategies that serve multiple purposes.

THOUGHT STARTERS

FOR LISTING STRATEGIES:

Visit/Call FSBO's

Call expired listings

Use Tell 2O on all listings

Use 7 second presentation more often

Obtain appropriate price reductions

Establish a client follow up program

Development of farm areas

Use Seller Service System

FOR SALES STRATEGIES:

Hold open houses

Contact former customers

Better buyer qualification

Use 7 second presentation more often

Better use of the Best Buyer System

Development of farm areas

Increase personal promotion

Use the Best Buyer Follow up program

FOR COMMISSION/PROFIT STRATEGIES:

Increase the number of listings

Better customer follow-up

Work in higher price range

Hire an assistant

Contact previous customers

Take salable listings

Obtain appropriate price reductions

Decrease/increase business expenses

SAMPLE OBJECTIVE WITH STRATEGY:Objective: Increase my buyer controlled sales from 18 to 22 in 2007.

Strategy: Hold at least 2 Open Houses per month.


Step IV: Develop Tactics Step IV: Develop Tactics

“How Will I Make My Strategies Happen”“How Will I Make My Strategies Happen”Tactics are the specific steps for making each strategy happen. Unless the strategies are broken into very specific steps (tactics), the objectives will not be met.

Use a planning worksheet to organize your strategies and tactics in such a way that everything is at your fingertips. That way you will know immediately who will be responsible for what and when for each action step and the expense involved.

TACTIC ELEMENTS

Action When Who Cost Completed

________________________________/_________/____________/________/__________

________________________________/_________/____________/________/__________

________________________________/_________/____________/________/__________

________________________________/_________/____________/________/__________

SAMPLE OBJECTIVE, STRATEGY AND TACTIC:Objective: Increase my buyer controlled sales from 18 to 22 in 2007.

Strategy: Hold at least 2 Open Houses per month.

Tactics: Decide on house to hold open and date.

Preparation for and conduct the open house.

Follow-up with visitors and seller.


Plan Worksheet Plan Worksheet Objective: (What you hope to achieve) ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________


Strategy: (How to accomplish) __________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________

Tactic: (How to make my strategy happen)


____________________________________/___________/____________/__________/ ________

____________________________________/___________/____________/__________/ ________

____________________________________/___________/____________/__________/ ________

____________________________________/___________/____________/__________/ ________


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____________________________________/___________/____________/__________/ ________

____________________________________/___________/____________/__________/ ________

____________________________________/___________/____________/__________/ ________

____________________________________/___________/____________/__________/ ________


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____________________________________/___________/____________/__________/ ________

____________________________________/___________/____________/__________/ ________

____________________________________/___________/____________/__________/ ________

____________________________________/___________/____________/__________/ ________

Step V: Measuring My Plan Step V: Measuring My Plan ResultsResultsPLAN YEAR: _____________________

JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUNE

LISTINGS

Taken Goal

Actual

+ - Goal

Sold Goal

Actual

+ - Goal

BUYER CONTROLLED SALES

Goal

Actual

+ - Goal

COMMISSION INCOME

Goal

Actual

+ - Goal

JULY AUG SEPT OCT NOV DEC

LISTINGS

Taken Goal

Actual

+ - Goal

Sold Goal

Actual

+ - Goal


Goal

Actual

+ - Goal

COMMISSION INCOME

Goal

Actual+ - Goal


IF YOUR OBJECTIVES/STRATEGIES ARE NOT WORKING - CHANGE THEM!

My Personal My Personal Business PlanBusiness Plan

For: ___________________________________

Plan Period: From _____________ To ________________

MY PERSONAL COMMITMENT

I have carefully considered my personal commitment toward furthering my real estate career and hereby commit myself to the effort and sacrifices necessary to achieve my goals.

I agree to track my results and meet regularly in a planning session with my manager in order to review my progress and make plan changes as needed.

Associate: ___________________________________ Date: _________________

Manager: ___________________________________ Date: _________________


Situational Analysis Situational Analysis

“Where I Am Today”“Where I Am Today”

ANALYZING MY BUSINESS 1. I currently have a business plan: yes; no

2. My current business approach is: just me; me and a personal assistant; me and a buyer broker; my team: other: ________________________________

What’s working well: ________________________________________________

What’s not working well: _____________________________________________

3. What are the strengths of your business approach: ______________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

4. What are the weaknesses of your business approach: ___________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

5. I am managing my business well: yes; no Explain: ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

6. To what do you credit your past real estate success: _____________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

BUSINESS GROWTH

1. My strategy for building my business is working: yes; no Explain:______________

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

2. My greatest challenge over the last 12 months has been: _________________________

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

3. What could you have done over the last 12 months to improve your business? ________

_______________________________________________________________________


4. My greatest opportunities over the next 12 months: _____________________________________________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

5. Threats to my business over the next 12 months:

_______________________________________________________________________


My Sales and Production My Sales and Production StatisticsStatistics

Period: _______________________ Sources: MLS, office and personal records.

COMMISSION INCOME: Commission Income $_______________________

Transactions/Sides # _______________________

Average Commission $ _______________________

LISTINGS: # of Listings Taken #_______________________

# of Listings Sold #_______________________

Percentage of Listings that Sold % ______________________

Average List Price $_______________________


Average Sale to List Price Ratio % ______________________

BUYER CONTROLLED SALES: Buyer Controlled Sales/Closed #_______________________


REFERRALS: Outbound referrals sent #_______________________

SALES AND PRODUCTION ANALYSIS: Can your percentage of listings “taken“ to “sold” be improved? Yes, No

Is your sale to list price ratio in line with market standards? Yes, No

Is your average listing taken/sold below the office average or your goal? Yes, No

What was your estimated contracts written to contracts closed ratio? ______ %

Why?


My Recent Sources Of My Recent Sources Of BusinessBusinessDetermine the source of business for your last 10 listings taken and 10 buyer controlled sales starting with the most recent. (past customers, relative, farming, FSBO, expired, etc.).

LISTINGS TAKEN:Property or Name Source of Business

_________________________________ ___________________________________

_________________________________ ___________________________________

_________________________________ ___________________________________

_________________________________ ___________________________________

_________________________________ ___________________________________

_________________________________ ___________________________________

_________________________________ ___________________________________

_________________________________ ___________________________________

_________________________________ ___________________________________

_________________________________ ___________________________________

BUYER CONTROLLED SALES:Property or Name Source of Business

_________________________________ ___________________________________

_________________________________ ___________________________________

_________________________________ ___________________________________

_________________________________ ___________________________________

_________________________________ ___________________________________

_________________________________ ___________________________________

_________________________________ ___________________________________

_________________________________ ___________________________________

_________________________________ ___________________________________

_________________________________ ___________________________________

ANALYSIS

Do you see any trends (i.e. much business coming from few sources or most listings being taken in a certain geographic area or niche of buyers or sellers)? Yes, No

List issues or opportunities you see from this analysis.


My Personal Strengths & My Personal Strengths & WeaknessWeakness My greatest strengths _____________________________________________________

My greatest weaknesses ___________________________________________________

On a scale of 1 to 10 (10 being highest), evaluate yourself in the following areas:

Current financial position ________

Professional knowledge ________

Use of Systems ________

Use of Marketing Tools ________

Business Building/Prospecting Skills ________

Listing Skills ________

Selling Skills ________

Communication Skills ________

Where can you make improvement over the next 12 months? ______________________

_______________________________________________________________________

Analyzing My Target MarketsAnalyzing My Target Markets My geographic target market:

Current number of active listings ________

Average list price ________

Number of sales in the last 12 months ________

Average sold price ________

I would describe the current market as a (buyer, seller, balanced) market.

Estimated sales in the next 12 months will (increase, decrease, stable).

Is there a company or sales associate that is dominant in this market? Yes, No

Market analysis: (Rate 1-5 with 5 being excellent)

Turnover _______ Affordable Housing _______

Economic climate _______ New construction _______

Anticipated growth _______ Support services nearby _______


MY DEMOGRAPHIC TARGET MARKET


Consists of: ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________



Business Expenses: Past 12 Business Expenses: Past 12 MonthsMonths

GENERAL EXPENSE MARKETING EXPENSES

Auto (gas, repairs, tolls, etc. $ __________ Newspaper ads $ _________

Insurance (auto) $ __________ Magazine ads $ _________

Insurance (E&O, other) $ __________ Direct mail production $ _________

Dues (board, mls ,license) $ __________ Church/club directories $ _________

Prof books, tapes, etc. $ __________ Promotional flyers $ _________

Education $ __________ Postage/delivery $ _________

Phone, pager $ __________ Yard signs/riders $ _________

Office supplies $ __________ Photography $ _________

Equipment (fax, tech, etc) $ __________ Closing gifts $ _________

Computer (hardware) $ __________ Other _________________ $ _________

Professional services $ __________ Other _________________ $ _________

Secretary/personal asst. $ __________ Other__________________ $ _________

Sales conferences $ __________ Other _________________ $ _________

Gifts $ __________ Other _________________ $ _________

Entertainment $ __________ Other _________________ $ _________

Other _________________ $ __________ Other _________________ $ _________

Sub-Total General Expense: $__________ Sub-Total Marketing Expense: $ __________

TOTAL EXPENSE: $ _______________

Put an * next to each expense category you can improve upon.

EXPENSE SUMMARY Commission Income + $_______________

General and Marketing Expenses - $_______________

Profit/Loss Profit = $_______________

Marketing Expense as % of income _______________ %(Marketing Exp Commission Income)(Top producers invest 8-10%)


Plan WorksheetPlan WorksheetObjective: (What you hope to achieve) ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________



____________________________________________________________________________



____________________________________/___________/____________/__________/ ________

____________________________________/___________/____________/__________/ ________

____________________________________/___________/____________/__________/ ________

____________________________________/___________/____________/__________/ ________


____________________________________________________________________________



____________________________________/___________/____________/__________/ ________

____________________________________/___________/____________/__________/ ________

____________________________________/___________/____________/__________/ ________

____________________________________/___________/____________/__________/ ________


____________________________________________________________________________



____________________________________/___________/____________/__________/ ________

____________________________________/___________/____________/__________/ ________

____________________________________/___________/____________/__________/ ________

____________________________________/___________/____________/__________/ ________

Make copies

Measuring My Plan ResultsMeasuring My Plan ResultsPLAN YEAR: _____________________

JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUNE

LISTINGS

Taken Goal

Actual

+ - Goal

Sold Goal

Actual

+ - Goal


Goal

Actual

+ - Goal

COMMISSION INCOME

Goal

Actual

+ - Goal

JULY AUG SEPT OCT NOV DEC

LISTINGS

Taken Goal

Actual

+ - Goal

Sold Goal

Actual

+ - Goal


Goal

Actual

+ - Goal

COMMISSION INCOME

Goal

Actual+ - Goal


IF YOUR OBJECTIVES/STRATEGIES ARE NOT WORKING - CHANGE THEM!

Business Plan Plan For Success

Business

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