Filling Your Pipeline: Origination vs. Order Taking

Many sales agents have a love/hate relationship with their database. Often it is because they have never mastered the art of origination. They are still managing their pipeline like they are taking short cook orders at a diner, just processing the customers that are in front of them. Even experienced pros can struggle with walking the fine line between generating business and managing the existing business that they have.

Where can one find a healthy balance? The proof is in learning how to originate a steady stream of customers to network with.

Defining Origination

Origination at its core is creating new relationships for your business. It can come in two forms: building new relationships with people that already have a connection with you but have never used your services, or creating entirely new relationships.

People Who Know You But Have Never Used Your Services

If there are individuals in your Sphere of Influence (SOI) that you have not worked with yet, there are three things to consider.

• Are you sure they know you are licensed and where you work?
• If they are working with a different agent, do you know why?
• Have you offered them anything of value?

You would be surprised how many family members, friends, and former coworkers are confused about how licensing, commission, and referrals work. They might think you only work with buyers, sellers, or in a specific area. They may also think you are too busy to help them, based on what your narrative is in your marketing. If you want your SOI to take you seriously, you need to show them that you are an educated agent with the skill set to help them.

People Who Have No Idea Who You Are

Take a moment and think about how busy your daily life is. How many emails, texts, phone calls, letters, flyers, memos, and commercials do you think you absorb during your day?

In September of 2017, The Business Journal reported that the average American could be subjected to up to 4,000 advertisements a day. Let that sink in. Remember that one postcard you sent out a few months ago and never received any leads from? The postcard did not fail, but the way you interacted with the prospect did.

If your marketing systems have failed in the past, you need to consider three things:

• How are you conversion/follow-up skills?
• Does your audience know that you are trying to reach them?
• When they are contacting you, are they contacting you from a specific call to action?

Advertising is becoming more challenging every day. Consumers do not wish to be bothered with countless flyers and advertisements. Time is a priceless commodity. If they identify your message as something that WASTES their time, instead of saving it, your message will fail. We live in an instant gratification culture. People want their goods quickly, effortlessly, and to be able to review and hold the seller/service provider accountable for their personal experience. Can you offer a smooth and efficient transaction?

The Two Biggest Mistakes Agents Make with Origination

Assumption and vanity. Do you assume that everyone knows how great or professional you are? Is your message one of vanity? And the worst combination of these two mistakes: Do you believe because someone hired you once, that they will hire you again? Keep these errors top of mind when you are building any part of your business plan that deals with customer interaction.

Wrapping Up

If you have decided to make a full-time career in real estate, origination tasks will need to be part of your schedule every day. Your pipeline (stream of business) will not remain full if origination is not a primary focus. Origination is an art form. You will need to study, practice, fail and then start the cycle over again to figure out what works. Keep working, keep evolving, stop being a short order cook, and become a master at building relationships for the long term.

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