Good day,

As real estate agents in a world of change, there are always new things to know to advance in your real estate practice.

We that in mind we will like to use this medium to as a means to update us on real estate tips.

Now let's discuss on the main topic.

What does innovation mean?

And how can it benefit you, the real estate agent?

Innovation is a very loose term, often thrown about as a solution to a business’ need for growth, or as a description about people or companies. Think Apple: they are definitely innovative – but how? What is it they do that makes them innovative? Are they any more innovative than Gillette with razor blades? Or Coca-Cola with their new personalised drink cans? Can you even compare innovation between businesses? If not, how can you be innovative in your business?

I have a simple mantra about what innovation is that helps to keep my team focused on how we are innovative:

Innovation is not a word.

Innovation is not a strategy.

Innovation is a culture – a culture of client understanding, a culture of market understanding, and a culture that drives you to create solutions with your customer as your partner. Innovative thinking changes the way a company works. Instead of designing and building monolithic products behind walls of requirements, it builds solutions collaboratively with customers. This enables:

An understanding of the value the solution brings to the customer’s business
An understanding of the wider market needs the solution addresses
A way to go to market with customers not at them

The key take-out for a small customer-focused business like a real estate agency is the thinking around partnering or working collaboratively with your customers to create solutions to their needs. Starting first with your customers’ needs helps you determine what technologies you need, what processes you should employ and how you can structure your business for the disruptive changes that are happening. It also influences your behaviour and, through that, your culture.

For example, we are seeing demographic shifts in some parts of the country and particularly in some suburbs. As an agent, I am sure you have seen those ‘regeneration’ suburbs where a majority of sellers are retirees or older and a majority of buyers are couples and young families. Old, tired houses are being sold to young, energetic couples who promptly renovate.

Please, this is supposed to be interactive, so the floor is open to questions, suggestions and comments

How can you be innovate in that market?

First, see your buying and selling customers as partners with whom you collaborate to meet their needs. This builds you a stronger brand and a bigger business. For example, a real estate agent I know has created a ‘renovation pack’ as both a glossy booklet and as an online site. In it are story boards of houses he has sold and their journey from “tired old 60s house” to “new, polished party pad”. It contains tips and tricks of renovations, before and after shots, and puts a lot of focus on the buyers of his houses and how they have maximised their investment.

He is being innovative as he has built the site in collaboration with buyers and highlighted them, and through this has a great asset now to use to convince new sellers to go with him, and to help new buyers visualise what they can do with tired houses.

Plus, he has the benefit of getting a few listings of newly renovated properties from buyers who like renovating and want to do it again!

Form an organization and register your members. Have a code of conduct.

One of you guys is s common thief in Ibadan who thinks that just because he showed me a land in an estate that I didn't buy equates to me owning me 10% fee for any land that I buy in that estate.

Also for sellers be careful who you list your property with.

You guys have a lot to work on with ethics before thinking of innovation.

Good day,

You are actually right.

We need seriously need to work on ethics but this article is not for unethical agents but professionals that want to advance in their practice.

It's unfortunate, that there are many individuals that pose as agents but have no background in the business.

But sooner or later, something will be done about quacks

Thank you

CityNG:
Form an organization and register your members. Have a code of conduct.

One of you guys is s common thief in Ibadan who thinks that just because he showed me a land in an estate that I didn't buy equates to me owning me 10% fee for any land that I buy in that estate.

Also for sellers be careful who you list your property with.

You guys have a lot to work on with ethics before thinking of innovation.

findngproperty:
Good day,

You are actually right.

We need seriously need to work on ethics but this article is not for unethical agents but professionals that want to advance in their practice.

It's unfortunate, that there are many individuals that pose as agents but have no background in the business.

But sooner or later, something will be done about quacks

Thank you

So how do you separate out professionals and quacks unless you start with an organization that is based on ethics?

This is a serous question for me.

I don't mean to sully your thread but yours is the first thread on here that makes sense on this matter.

@OP you I've got a lovely topic here. Pls what type of professional course can can help a quack estate agent to perform better? Cheers.

There are different courses as well as registration to bodies and institutions.

For instance, to become a member of Nigerian Institution of Estate Surveyors and Valuers (NIESV), you will need to take their professional exams.

Also, you can join Association of Estate Agents in Nigeria (AEAN) - The recognized professional body for the practice of Estate Agency in Nigeria.

In order to have other options on courses, you can checkout [url]schoolofestate.com[/url]

plasgidy:
@OP you I've got a lovely topic here. Pls what type of professional course can can help a quack estate agent to perform better? Cheers.

The technology used is secondary to the innovation, which comes from the collaboration. A site that can meet his needs, and show how to produce the booklet that goes with it, are both technology choices. But these choices are made after the true innovation happened.