Teaching Real Estate Agents the Art of Seduction

Newton, AL, August 18, 2007 --(PR.com)-- While most real estate agents agree that a strong Sphere of Influence, (or SOI; a personal network of friends, family and past clients), is fundamental to success, the majority of agents are still beating the street in hopes of attracting business from strangers. Lead generating techniques are a hot topic in agent discussion groups, with active debates on the costs and benefits of various methods such as lead purchasing, search engine placement and of course, the more traditional prospecting activities of cold-calling, farming, door-knocking and For-Sale-by-Owner chasing. Every real estate agent is looking for the magic bullet to guarantee him or her a steady supply of quality leads.

That magic bullet, according to real estate agent and author Jennifer Allan, is an effective SOI business model. Allan, who has created a niche as the “Master of All Things SOI,” is also the creator of an online program entitled “The Seduction of Your SOI.” This year-long program takes real estate agents step-by-step through the process of creating and maintaining a contact database, followed by a series of weekly projects and activities designed to nurture the elationships the agent already has, while maximizing opportunities for building new ones.

While it may seem like a simple concept, many agents are reluctant to pursue a SOI business model. “The primary objection,” says Allan, “is that agents don’t want to develop a reputation for being ‘that annoying real estate agent’ who is avoided at parties.”

According to Allan, her program teaches agents how to respectfully generate business and referrals from an SOI, without annoying anybody. “However,” Allan says, “an SOI business strategy isn’t right for everyone. Agents who lack confidence or enthusiasm about their real estate career won’t be able to generate confidence or enthusiasm among their SOI, which is critical to the success of an SOI Seduction campaign.”

Jennifer Allan is the author of Sell with Soul, The New Agent’s Guide to an Extraordinary Career in Real Estate. She built a successful real estate business that relied almost 100% on referrals from her SOI, even though she claims she’s not a “people-person.” Due to her strong SOI, she was able to abandon most of her self-promotion efforts and focus entirely on providing excellent service to clients. She claims that a business based on referrals from an SOI will allow an agent to make an exceptional living working far fewer hours than agents who must continually prospect to generate new clients.

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