About the Guest:
Kate Smith is an award-winning real estate agent from Harcourts in South Australia. With over 23 years of experience in the industry, Kate has established herself as one of the top agents in the country based on volume. She makes 200-250 sales a year with one support staff and automation. Kate sells properties across a wide range of price points, from $880k to $4.5m. Kate began her career as a professional basketball player before transitioning into real estate. She is also a single mother to two young children.
Summary:
In this interview, Kate emphasises the importance of maintaining relationships with past clients and utilizing automation tools like Realtair to stay in contact with clients. Kate also highlights the benefits of using video content, particularly drone footage, to showcase properties and attract buyers. She reveals that the majority of her listings come through referrals and discusses her approach to closing deals as well as juggling career and family life.
Key Takeaways:
The #TechTuesday training series is a collaboration with Realtair
About the Guest:
Kate Smith is an award-winning real estate agent from Harcourts in South Australia. With over 23 years of experience in the industry, Kate has established herself as one of the top agents in the country based on volume. She makes 200-250 sales a year with one support staff and automation. Kate sells properties across a wide range of price points, from $880k to $4.5m. Kate began her career as a professional basketball player before transitioning into real estate. She is also a single mother to two young children.
Summary:
In this interview, Kate emphasises the importance of maintaining relationships with past clients and utilizing automation tools like Realtair to stay in contact with clients. Kate also highlights the benefits of using video content, particularly drone footage, to showcase properties and attract buyers. She reveals that the majority of her listings come through referrals and discusses her approach to closing deals as well as juggling career and family life.
Key Takeaways:
The #TechTuesday training series is a collaboration with Realtair
Kate Smith, the award-winning agent from Harcourts in South Australia. How long have I known you, Kate?
Kate Smith:Since I so probably about 20, 23 years. I remember we picked you up from the airport back for a Rain and Horn conference.
Tom Panos:And you weren't, at the time, full-time real estate. You were full-time professional basketballer or just finishing basketball, am I right?
Kate Smith:Correct. Yes, so I was playing WNBL, so had just started in an administration role within the office, so that allowed me to still, you know, train two, three times a day and then from there I kind of lost the love for basketball and started the love for real estate.
Tom Panos:So I've got to say something, kate, before we move on. I was in New Zealand last week and I ran into a professional sportsman who was at one of the seminars I spoke at into a professional sportsman who was at one of the seminars I spoke at and he was a ex-swimmer and a professional swimmer. I think he was trialling for the Olympic Games and he was doing really well in real estate. And I said to him during the break I said has swimming in any way helped you in your real estate career? And he said look, not in terms of relationships with people, but there's a lot of similarities between prospecting and swimming. I said tell me more. And he goes.
Tom Panos:Well, you know, when you're swimming, you're swimming in a lane with a black line, you're staring at the line for hours and hours and it's boring, but you know that you've got to keep doing it. And he goes and that's what I feel like prospecting is. It's boring and I'm just hoping the day comes where it gets to the stage where people start ringing me up. Then, when I spoke to you this afternoon, kate, and I asked you how much of your listings come, because they call you, you don't call them. And you said to me everything, everything's a call. Everyone calls you. Is that right them? And you said to me everything everyone calls you.
Kate Smith:Is that right? Look, there was a period there so when I built myself from about 50 or 70 sales up to 150, I was making the output. Because of how my days are situated now and being a business owner as well, I don't get to do the volume of output that you really need to be doing to build to that level. So at this point it's probably just maintaining and a lot of that is done through, you know, automation within the office retaining those relationships and those touch points with past clients. So it's taken you know it's taken the effort and the work, but we're probably at a point now where we are an attraction agency within our area and you also, kate um, you don't even work like the.
Tom Panos:I mean you started selling a few expensive properties, but if I can recall, your homes were always like 500 grand or thereabouts yeah, look, my average sale price is around the $800,000.
Kate Smith:There's been a few recently where we're starting to enter into that kind of $2.5 million, $3 million plus. The other week we sold highest auction record result in Westlakes for over $4 million. So I feel like it's great to be diverse across all price points and that's something that in my area you know we'd be selling a property maybe $3,000, $350,000, all the way up to $4,500. So you need to be able to relate to all different seller and buyer groups and that's something you learn as you progress in the industry as well.
Tom Panos:Okay, your team. It's you. You're the lead agent. Who else works with you in your team?
Kate Smith:So within my immediate EBU. So there's me, I'm assisted by two co-agents, and then we have an EA that oversees all the calendar and administration of those listings. External from my EBU, we have a client liaison officer or person within the office that's responsible for, you know, booking all the appraisals and running that program or that system as well. So that is something she does for the entire office, not just myself.
Tom Panos:Okay, and you also have a videographer on board now.
Kate Smith:We do, and we do, and Sean's in the room with me, right.
Tom Panos:So he's a full-time video editor. Yes, theme Tech Tuesday, and we're going to talk about tech because, by the way, susan, can you please, in the chat box and also on social media, susan, put down the link, because this is brought to you, of course, by my partner, realtair, who is also providing services to Kate. You use Realtair. We're going to talk about that in a moment, kate, yep, but you're a videographer. What kind of video content is he shooting for you at the moment?
Kate Smith:So look the best type, which is immediate. So, as we know, within the industry, we all want what we want and we want it very quickly. So Sean is a full-time employee in the office. Every day He'll come to any major auctions or most of our auctions, and also come out on the weekends and just film content at all our open and auctions. I'll literally walk into the office with a listing go bang, sean, I need you to go out here, get a drone, let's start getting some content on this property. And that allows us to send it out immediately to the database and start that pre-process very promptly. So it's a very effective tool. Recently we've had some really impressive property that the drone content and the video that we're able to create I feel makes a very big difference between the marketing that we can supply to our clients as well. So a lot of drone content. I'm based on the coast, so hang on. Do you want to put that on? Sorry, tom, you're right, you're based on the coast. Go on, you were want to put that on?
Tom Panos:Sorry, tom, you're right, you're based on the coast. Go on, you were saying you're based on the coast.
Kate Smith:Yeah, so a lot of our properties are lifestyle. It's about selling a lifestyle and portraying that to buyers, so we'll incorporate a lot of drone and video highlighting the lifestyle that this area offers.
Tom Panos:Okay, Now this year, how many sales do you reckon you'll do for 12 months?
Kate Smith:So sitting at about 240 so far.
Tom Panos:Okay, an average comp is about 10, 15 grand per sale.
Kate Smith:Yeah, look, that's something that obviously you know varies, but yeah, I would say around that, probably around the 15.
Tom Panos:Okay, so you get a call to do a listing presentation. Explain how you use Realtor in the listing process.
Kate Smith:Yep, so call comes into the office. We've trained Sandra up within the office to run the process, so the appraiser will come in. She'll speak with the potential seller. We have two scripts that will run through. I can send them through to you after if anyone wanted to see those as well.
Tom Panos:That'd be wonderful if you could do that. We'll share that team or we'll share that with our real estate gym member community. So they've got two scripts, and who reads the scripts out?
Kate Smith:So Sandra will run through the scripts with them. If she gets to a point where we establish that it's a fairly hot appraisal, then if I'm in the office and able to take the call, then I would make the booking myself. A lot of times I'll be in appointments, so when the appraisal comes in we'll want to get back to them as soon as possible. She'll run through the script. That script will allow us to qualify the motivation of the buyer, if they've had other agents, if they have any understanding of where they think they sit dollar-wise, and from there she can decide who we book the appraisal for. Upon booking that, we produce our digital introduction, which we do through Realtair, and that is sent out not just via email with confirmation of the appointment but also through SMS. I actually find I get a better response via SMS. So you'll get you know an immediate click or read through, and then there's an acceptance button that they'll push and that pretty much happens immediately.
Kate Smith:That content I like to think of it as like a pre-appraisal box. So basically, they've made the appointment, you're pushing that out straight away. So there's already two touch points before you've been out to the property. Um, the one thing we still do manually within the office. If we have a hot appraisal and it's in excess of a million dollars, we will drop a pre-appraisal box within one to three hours of the appointment being booked. We don't do that for all appraisals, but that is something that we will do for hot in excess of a million and if it's hot and under a million, we'll just do a pre-appraisal pack and basically I like to think of that as introducing yourself to the client. It doesn't have any information around pricing or fees. It's just about you as an agent and the agency, et cetera.
Tom Panos:So essentially you use Realtair as a pre-list kit, you use Realtair as after you've gone to the listing and you use Realtor to your database.
Kate Smith:Yep. So as much automation as you can. Obviously, you know, from what I understand, we're probably saving anywhere from like 11 to 15 hours a week through the automation process. We'll go out, do the appraisal, the agent will bring back appraisal sheets. Basically we just put it on. Sandra will put all of that information into the CMA and then from there we'll produce the digital pitch which is just a summary of what we've discussed in the appraisal associated fees, costs and method of sale and that gets pushed through the client. Obviously, the beautiful thing about Realtair is you can see when they're reading it, when they're opening it, when they're sharing it, you can see if they're opening it multiple times, and that's all in live time as well.
Tom Panos:Okay, team, if you're not a real tech client, I think the time's come, because AI is with us and if you're not on real tech, you're actually falling behind the ladder of tech. And, as they say, if you don't like change, you're going to dislike and hate extinction. I want to ask you, kate, how many listing presentations do you reckon you go to in a year or a month?
Kate Smith:So since utilising Realtor which is about 12 months, so March last year we've got about 700 recorded within the system. That is a combination of, say, market updates and actual appraisal and listing appointments as well. So that's another great thing is you've got a record of everything that you've done within that time, of everything that you've done within that time. The other great thing, which again you know, as much automation as possible. But you can set up the quarterly market reports so we may go do what we refer to as a price update, not ready to push to market, but we'll keep that client updated every three months with a market report which is all generated for you automatically.
Tom Panos:Okay, you know, when you go to a listing presentation, how long do you reckon you're normally there for? Kate?
Kate Smith:Look, I'm pretty. I don't know like I walk in. I'll do the walkthrough first, I reckon.
Tom Panos:Kate, you've got an unfair advantage, right. You walk in. You're already famous in your marketplace. They've seen your boards up. They've seen you on REA. They know about you, don't they?
Kate Smith:Oh look, yes, Obviously there's a lot of repeat client that we go to, which is amazing, but we also do get called in against multiple agents as well. So you know there's plenty that I miss out on. So again, you know that's just part of the industry.
Tom Panos:You know, when you miss out on a listing, do you get upset or you move on.
Kate Smith:I always think of no as next opportunity. So you wish them well, you know, great best of luck. I'm sure they'll do a great job. If it doesn't work out, feel free that you can come back to us and then we move on. My mindset at that point is okay, who can I ring and tell in my database that that listing's coming up before the other agent does it? So that's the other side of it. If we miss out on that and we know it's going up with someone else, we'll get on to prospecting around that actual appraisal.
Tom Panos:Okay, now you're at a listing. Do you ask for them? Hey, do you want to list with me? Or is it naturally they say, oh yes, let's do it. How does it work?
Kate Smith:Look, not all of them are like that, and I was brought up in an industry like during my time heading into real estate or building within the industry we weren't trained that way.
Kate Smith:Within the industry.
Kate Smith:We weren't trained that way, Like the scripts and dialogues that agents well, new agents use now are a lot more assertive.
Kate Smith:So you've got some young agents which are amazing listers because they ask for the business, because they're taught that it's okay when I was coming into the industry to be a woman and to be assertive and to be young it could be you had to be mindful of how that came across to the potential vendor as well, so you didn't want to be too confident or too cocky. So I was taught a very different way and then when I got to a point within my career where I became assertive and just started asking for the business so it makes a big difference learning how to close properly or being confident enough, knowing that you are giving them a service and that's the other thing that shifted for me is that I know my knowledge within my area is exceptional and I know that the prices we get are better than anyone else in the area, and when you know that internally, you know that you are helping the client. It's the right thing for them in selling the property.
Tom Panos:Okay. So, kate, I want to stop on that point because I've got to tell you everyone that is profound what Kate has said. She's more or less saying I don't feel guilty or nervous about asking for the business because I think that I am going to get them a better result and for that reason it's in their best interest, because if they don't this with me, they might go with someone who will get them a substandard result. So in many ways, part of the reason that you do it is you're actually helping them. They're better off using you. But you are right Particularly, I notice, with females. They often find that if I ask for the business, I'm being pushy, I'm intruding, I'm overstepping that mark.
Tom Panos:Yep intruding, I'm overstepping that mark. Yep, but you're saying to me is, as time has gone by, you've got comfortable with the fact that you accept I'm there to get business and I'm there to get a buyer for them yeah, look, I mean, and I'm still not, like I'm not an amazing closer, like I know that, and you want to be comfortable with the dialogue.
Kate Smith:Like I was never taught to be comfortable with that dialogue and that's why a lot of these younger or newer agents, they're amazing closers because they ask for the business. So it does make a big difference, but I just found that I was never completely comfortable doing that. So you also want to be comfortable with the dialogue so it doesn't come across that you are being pushy or you know acting in your interests and not the client At the end of the day. That's what it's about.
Tom Panos:Okay, You're a role model. You don't even realise it, but I know it because I get a lot of female agents say to me how does she do it? She's got kids, Like I mean, it's more than you've got kids. You're bringing up your kids like you're a single mum in many ways. Can I say that? I've said it now anyway, yeah, but the bottom line is I want to ask you, how do you balance like work? How old are the kids?
Kate Smith:So Paris is seven and Milan is six and they're awesome and I love them, you know more than anything, but they are very full of energy, so very demanding. Um, especially being a single parent, you've got two children that are vying for your attention. So yeah, it's pretty hectic, but it's good. I love it. I'm a big believer that anything in life you know that's worth fighting for is going to unbalance your life as well. So for me, before kids, real estate was my life, so it never felt like sacrifice or that I was giving anything up because it's something I wanted to do seven days a week. Now, having children, obviously you get you get that mum guilt and I want to be with them a lot. But I also have the responsibilities of a business owner and to my clients as well what are the sacrifices?
Tom Panos:You mentioned the word sacrifice. You said I sort of did real estate so I don't feel like I've sacrificed. But do you feel in your life leading up to now and even now, do you feel that being an agent that does 250 deals a year costs you these things in your life? What are the things that cost you in your life to be able to, long-term, write good numbers?
Kate Smith:I think it's about providing service to the client, and being in a service industry is a privilege Look, it's extremely. Sometimes it doesn't feel like that and we all know that like it's debilitating and it's frustrating and it's gut-wrenching and all of that. But it's also. There's nothing more that I love than listing and selling a property, getting an amazing result, making the client happy, the buyer that's the best feeling in the world and that's what I absolutely love about real estate. That will never go away. It's all the other you know parts of business ownership, et cetera you get caught up in and that's just part of it. You've got to take the good with the bad as well. So it doesn't feel like sacrifice when you love what you do.
Tom Panos:You've been in real estate how long now, kate?
Kate Smith:23 years.
Tom Panos:What do you reckon the biggest differences are with real estate back then and real estate today?
Kate Smith:I feel that probably like we're probably a bit more humble back then Like you'll get people now they'll sell 20, 30, 40 properties a year and they, you know, think they're and that's fine. Like there needs to be an element of ego and I get that works for a lot of agents and a lot of marketplaces. I found that that didn't really work for me. So you can be hungry. You need to be humble, though, as well. That's my. That's how I've run my business.
Tom Panos:So, yeah, okay. Scott Gemmel, a gym member, has asked Kate, I relate to you feeling on clothes. Can I ask if it changes for you as soon as you feel the energy of the presentation is looking like they are comfortable and understanding of your recommendations? So do you feel like you know when they start? You know it's hard to explain, it's like the wind, you can't see it, but there's this energy where it feels like, yeah, we're going to go with you. Do you feel like it gets easier to close?
Kate Smith:you, um, do you feel like it gets easier to close? Um, look, I think you need to get better at understanding what a client's objections are. Once you get an understanding of why they may not want to close or sign on the spot, then you can address that in a way that is non-confrontational. So you do get to read people. You know it's like any any craft that you do. You get to read and understand people. You'll meet certain personalities that you've never met before. That still surprise you after 20 years. Um, but you know being able to read people and make sure that they feel comfortable. And then if they they say look, you know, we're not ready to sign today, and then you can try and enter into the objection without doing it in a, you know, aggressive or pushy way.
Tom Panos:All right, Kate, absolutely. You know, by the way, real estate gym members just go into the real estate gym. I've interviewed Kate many times. She's spoken at conferences, not just in Adelaide, where you, you know, spoke at the advertiser, but you've also spoke at. You spoke at ARIC. That was about three years ago. That was a blast for you, wasn't it?
Kate Smith:Yeah, it was awesome. I remember going there in 2014, Tom, and saying one day I want to be on that stage and also, that's the amazing thing about real estate is, if you write it down and say this is what I want to achieve from it, no one can stop you In professional sport if you are not the coach's favourite or you twist your ankle or whatever happens. They can control your destiny, but in real estate, it's up to you that is so true and I tell a lot of female agents.
Tom Panos:One of the big advantages of our industry is, yes, I do agree, in many organization there is a ceiling and your life is dependent on your boss. And if you don't, you know participate in all. Dependent on your boss. And if you don't, you know, participate in all the stuff your boss wants. Right? Your life is impacted, your income and your happiness.
Tom Panos:But in real estate, your group certificate each year is totally dependent on the value that you bring to your core community, how many people you serve and how many problems you solve to people in real estate, in your market. And it doesn't matter if you're a girl or you're a, how many problems you solve to people in real estate, in your market. And it doesn't matter if you're a girl or you're a guy, if you're young or if you're old, if you're born here or if you're born in India, it makes no difference. Basically, it says we will reward the person that provides the best level of service to the most amount of people with the most amount of money. And, kate, you've been doing it so well. Alex has just asked Kate are most of your campaigns auction-oriented or private treaty?
Kate Smith:I love auction and I actually feel that you know a majority of the times probably 95% or 99% of the time time auction will achieve the best result. The interesting thing in our market I'm not sure how everyone else is finding it, but I've had about three or four finance fall through in the last two months, which in 20 years you know it was pretty rare. So that's either more of a reason, I think, to push to auction at the moment, but also it's the only way you can confidently say to your client I know that I've ticked every box. We're in a compression environment. We know that this is the best possible result for the current market.
Tom Panos:Okay, beautiful Team. By the way, you know that in the chat box, if you go there and click on the link realtairecom forward slash AU resources. Forward slash Tom Pannis prospecting dash rocket fuel. Listen, it's long, don't type it out. Just click on the link, you get all these resources that will help you list and sell more real estate for free. Okay Now, kate, I want to thank you, obviously, for you to come on here today. You're a fan of real estate. It works for you and your business, is that right?
Kate Smith:Yeah, I think as much automation. Like you said something the other day, Tom, which was recency beats loyalty.
Tom Panos:Yeah, yes.
Kate Smith:So for me, I have so many clients and it keeps me up at night that I do not talk to and I know I should be talking to them. But if you have that automation happening for you, it's just something that you know in the background. It's constantly grinding away, so nothing beats a phone call. But that is an amazing, amazing product, but phone call is highest, it's the highest.
Tom Panos:And after that you've got all these layers going on Price update, real tear, text message, you know, email going there. So you've got all these things going, but at the end of the day it's not going to become a listing till you have that final conversation which gets you into the door. Jeez, you get into a lot of doors I just can't get over. In the last 12 months you must be going based on those numbers, man. You must be going Kate to like it must be 20 to 30 appraisals a week, kate, yep.
Kate Smith:Yeah, so 20 is probably around the mark. We're not doing the 30 anymore, obviously. I think everyone was for a while there. It was pretty hectic, but around the 20 would be right.
Tom Panos:All righty, Kate Smith. I don't think that there is a female agent in Australia that does the volume that you do, and there is definitely not an agent that's done the volume that you do, and there is definitely not an agent that's done the volume that you've done on a consistent basis. It's now been like I think it's been. You've roughly been at this level for a decade now, haven't you? Yeah, Thereabouts, thereabouts. Alrighty, Kate Smith, attraction agent 5.0, good to see you and you're looking good, Kate as well, and congratulations. I think you've shown people it's not easy but it's worth it. And you've got a six and a four-year-old that don't sound like they sleep 12 hours straight each night and you get to like I was saying my kids, they were very alert, very active, right, and there's. So you get to like I was the same, my kids. They were very alert, very active, right, and there's positives and negatives to it.
Kate Smith:the negatives is that it doesn't stop they've just rocked up at the office too, I think so they're there now, yeah, yeah.
Tom Panos:So you have you learned to integrate work life, kids, all in one.
Kate Smith:Oh, I've got an amazing team that obviously, like being the business owner, I can bring them to the office. So they've just finished school, they'll come to the office. But they're great kids and that's another thing that teaching them. So they get to see their mum like working and I like to think that that's going to pass life skills on to them as well. So I actually find being a mum tougher than doing real estate.
Tom Panos:So okay, okay, stay well, enjoy your break at Easter, spend it with your family and thank you so much. And Realtair again continues to be. Look, they're picking up a lot of people that are coming from other non-Realtair products because it is seamless, it's one ecosystem, it works, it's robust and the best agents in Australia are using it. Kate Smith, thank you so much To all our viewers. I want to thank you so much and enjoy your break.