How to Sell Your Time as a Scarce Resource | Mia Hannah

Imagine pivoting from the corporate world, diving headfirst into the ever-competitive field of real estate, and then navigating the tumultuous waters of a recession, all while emerging victorious with a successful small business. Mia Hannah is now a marketing EXPERT who helps real estate agents and home service providers grow their businesses. Her side hustle is BOOMING, and she's on her way to the top! In this episode, Mia shares her gold nuggets for success in business. She talks about the importance of relationship sales, selling your time as a scarce resource, and understanding your prospects. Did you know our amazing voices can go beyond just the microphone? Yes, we have video! Subscribe to our YouTube channel here!

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Mia’s Links:

•  LinkedIn | @miahannah

•  Website | https://www.atlcommunities.com/ 

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GOLD NUGGETS:

(00:00) - Sales Process and Small Business Success

(05:59) - Eyewear Sales and Strategies

(17:29) - Getting Into Real Estate

(21:22) - Real Estate Listing and Disc Profiles

(35:09) - Surviving a Recession

(44:09) - The Power of Marketing and Newsletters

(52:07) - Real Estate Agent's Exit Strategy

(01:02:42) - DIY Nightmare Story

(01:08:08) - Tenacious Marketing Tips

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Previous guests on The Small Business Safari include Amy Lyle, Ben Alexander, Joseph Sission, Jonathan Ellis, Brad Dell, Chris Hanks, C.T. Emerson, Chad Brown, Tracy Moore, Wayne Sherger, David Raymond, Paul Redman, Gabby Meteor, Ryan Dement, Barbara Heil Sonneck, Bryan John, Tom Defore, Rusty Clifton, Duane Johns, Beth Miller, Paul Burleson, Andy Suggs, Chris Michel, Jon Ostenson, Tommy Breedlove, Rocky Lalvani, Amanda Griffey, Spencer Powell, Joe Perrone, David Lupberger, Duane C. Barney, Dave Moerman, Jim Ryerson, Al Mishkoff, Scott Specker, Mike Claudio and more!

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If you loved this episode try these!

• More Balls than Brains can lead to Success with Rocco Sinisgalli

• Building a Home Service Business with Huge Returns | Joel Mooneyham

• Scaling a Moving and Junk Removal Business: A Candid Conversation with Roger Panitch

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Have any questions or comments? Connect with me here!

Thanks to our sponsor Smart Hire Solutions LLC!

Transcript

Sales Process and Small Business Success

Chris Lalomia 0:00

Which sales process did they use with you guys?

Alan Wyatt 0:04

We should get a doctor on the podcast and ask why they suck at business.

Chris Lalomia 0:09

I know actually sushi said that I play golf this weekend with a doctor. They do just suck at business. They want nothing to do with it, they just want to help people and also let you know exactly how smart they are. Don't forget that part.

Alan Wyatt 0:23

I'm glad about the help people piece and I'm really glad that they suck at business Now you know why these things are happening.

Chris Lalomia 0:30

But the consolidations, you're right, though I'm going to find somebody who's doing that, let's do that, that'll be fun.

Alan Wyatt 0:35

That'll be a fun episode, you don't?

Chris Lalomia 0:36

actually think I'm making this.

Alan Wyatt 0:37

You're actually going to write that down.

Chris Lalomia 0:38

Welcome to the Small Business Safari where I help guide you to avoid those traps, pitfalls and dangers that lurk when navigating the wild world of small business ownership. I'll share those gold nuggets of information and invite guests to help accelerate your ascent to that mountaintop of success. It's a jungle out there and I want to help you traverse through the levels of owning your own business that can get you bogged down and distract you from any your own personal and professional goals. So strap in Adventure Team and let's take a ride through the safari and get you to the mountaintop. Uh-oh, I love that music, man. I tell you our intro music is some of the best out there. I actually made our intern, michael, put it on my playlist just so I could hear it more. Here's the thing, right Every time you guys listen to this podcast, you get in here.

Chris Lalomia 1:26

I don't know if you're in your car. I don't know if you're out on a walk taking a run. Maybe you're even listening to it at work when you're not supposed to, when you're thinking about starting your own business, whatever that may be. One of the things I teach my sales guys is when you get into a sale call right before you get there. I want you to clear your head trash, what's called just get that trash out, everything that was building up before you got to get it out. And that's why I'm hoping, when you get on this podcast and listen to this, you're feeling like, hey, this is my chance to kind of decompress and get out and maybe learn a little bit something while I'm having some fun. So, clear that head trash, let's get in there, let's figure out what's going on, and so now you can start building, bonding and repairing. I just made up my own word, alan.

Chris Lalomia 2:07

Here we go, just like with every episode we always say cheers, and today we say cheers to one of my favorite real estate agents, Mia Hanna Hello everybody, Hello Mia. And we're back. Mia is a Renaissance woman.

Alan Wyatt 2:26

And you're both wine snotts.

Chris Lalomia 2:28

And we're both wine snotting, so what are we cheersing with today? Today, we're cheersing with.

Alan Wyatt 2:33

Ramole Toscano 2020.

Chris Lalomia 2:37

With a backup of maybe an abruzo percino, but some of us are drinking beer.

Mia Hannah 2:41

Says the guy with your two fist. He's two fisted with Gate City, which is soon to be a sponsor.

Chris Lalomia 2:47

We're actually working on that right now. But before we jump in, one of the things we're really celebrating is this is going to be. We just published our 100th episode, and one of the things that we're very proud of is that now we're in the top 10% podcast worldwide.

Alan Wyatt 3:01

So we've, universally we've been saying you know, hey, we're kind of a big deal. Well, now we're kind of a big deal.

Chris Lalomia 3:08

Yeah, so funny enough, just this morning I got hit up by Netflix one of the know if we wanted to do a documentary like Smartlist and follow us around. No, I'm just kidding.

Mia Hannah 3:18

Like, really Not yet.

Alan Wyatt 3:21

Not yet. Yeah, they're starting with this one, mia, so you're gonna be on Netflix.

Chris Lalomia 3:26

So why is Mia a Renaissance woman? Mia is a Renaissance woman because she got into the corporate world, said you know what, I'm getting out of the corporate world and I'm going to go try my hand at real estate agent and she is a real tour, which we'll talk about what real tours are versus real estate agents. And now here she is in the I guess third stage of her life, saying you know, I'm going to help, I'm going to help other real estate agents with their marketing and she actually publishes the trusted toolboxes newsletter on the side, her side hustle, which, turning into her full hustle is, she does email newsletter marketing. So we're going to a lot of great gold nuggets today, my friends, she's a broker to right.

Mia Hannah 4:05

I am a broker, yeah, yeah.

Chris Lalomia 4:06

All right, that's even a bigger deal. So, mia, you got into the corporate world. Let's set that stage for a minute. What did you do in the corporate world?

Mia Hannah 4:13

So I would say that my real career started in the when I let me see. So my real career started in the wholesale optical industry and you know, you know. You take those tests when you're in high school about what you should sell or what you should do.

Alan Wyatt 4:34

Yeah, that's it what you should do, longshoreman. Yeah, talked about that.

Mia Hannah 4:37

Yeah, I actually I heard that on one of your podcasts, so my, I really did who was it?

Alan Wyatt 4:44

Was it you? Yeah, I went to a pretty blue collar high school. I don't think they had anything like sales or any of those fancy.

Chris Lalomia 4:53

They don't have an fancy job.

Mia Hannah 4:55

Longshoreman, that's great. So my test came back and I was kind of tied for two different things, but the one that it was either be a teacher, that one going to happen, so it was selling art and that was what you know. That test came back and said I needed to do selling.

Alan Wyatt 5:14

That's really specific.

Mia Hannah 5:15

Well, yes and no, because really, when you think about it. So when I first got into my career, I jumped around and I sold all kinds of stuff, and I sold intangible products and tangible products huge difference.

Mia Hannah 5:29

There's a huge difference. And you know, there was a period of time where I was in the advertising industry and I sold white space. So I sold advertising space and then I sold graphic design. Well, both of those are pretty intangible, at least from the get. You know, in the beginning they're they're intangible and I was okay at that. I was, you know, I kind of made a living.

Alan Wyatt 5:55

It's a lot more fun selling a thing. It really is.

Eyewear Sales and Strategies

Mia Hannah 5:58

And I didn't really take. My career did not take off until I got into selling eyewear wholesale and I happened to work for a Austrian company called Silhouette, and they were, it was their eyewear is. You know, is was and still is a piece of art, both in the way that it's made and in the and in the style they were. Actually they've got stuff that you can't even sell here in the United States because it's so fashion forward.

Alan Wyatt 6:30

Would Chris look good in it drinking his wine?

Chris Lalomia 6:33

Hello, I feel fashion. She just said. She said I don't think we sell the.

Mia Hannah 6:39

US word.

Chris Lalomia 6:40

I'm like send me that website, because I am so fashion forward. I wear three different colors of shirts red, white and black and they all say the trust tool box.

Mia Hannah 6:50

So you know when they really kind of like get made a name in the United States was when Colin Powell wore his the very first drill mount. That I mean he was out there in front of all you know. You know what a drill mount is, the rimless frame.

Chris Lalomia 7:05

Yeah, yeah, I remember that.

Mia Hannah 7:07

And it was a silhouette frame. Those are silhouette, yes, and that's when that company I mean, really became a sought after name in the, you know, eyewear fashion and so there you were, but you were doing B2B sales, so you're selling to people who are selling these. I was, and I realized that most doctors aren't really good salespeople right or not good business people, Not good business people yeah or not.

Mia Hannah 7:31

It was very you know, but I had a lot of success in it. I was with them for a very long time and, you know, did sales, got into sales management, sales training and which sales process did they use with you guys?

Alan Wyatt 7:48

We should kind of do with a standard, or should get a doctor on the podcast and ask why they suck at business.

Chris Lalomia 7:54

I know actually she said that I played golf this weekend with a doctor.

Alan Wyatt 7:59

They do just suck at business. They want nothing to do with it.

Chris Lalomia 8:03

They just want to help people and also let you know exactly how smart they are. Don't forget that part.

Alan Wyatt 8:09

I'm glad about the help people piece and I'm really glad that they're really bad Now you know why these things are happening.

Chris Lalomia 8:15

But the consolidations, you're right, though I'm going to find somebody who's doing that, let's do that.

Alan Wyatt 8:19

That'll be fun. That'll be a fun episode. I think I might know somebody. You're actually going to write that down. Was that a good?

Chris Lalomia 8:25

idea, chris. Okay, one Fine, Just one, all right, just one All right, but back. Back to me. I shall. We All right. So we're talking about eyewear, Eyewear.

Mia Hannah 8:37

Corporate. Yeah, that's where you're selling B2B.

Chris Lalomia 8:40

Doing all that and again the sales process. Did they have a name for it or was it just their process?

Mia Hannah 9:42

They didn't really have a name for it, but I would say that it was very relationship. It was a relationship sell. It was very. You know, I didn't I had when I first started out I had. Actually, when I first started out I had a three state territory and my, my, what would you call that? The the round I. It took me 12 weeks to get to through these three states and I would leave on Monday morning and I would come back on Friday afternoon and I would and I was driving. It was Alabama, georgia and South Carolina.

Chris Lalomia 10:15

What was your favorite state?

Mia Hannah 10:19

Um, I actually had some. I had a lot of fun in Alabama.

Chris Lalomia 10:24

Get right out of town, because I would have said that would be my worst.

Mia Hannah 10:27

No, no, no, no, that was yeah.

Chris Lalomia 10:28

You know I'm a big fan of South Carolina Me too, and that was back in my partying days too.

Mia Hannah 10:32

So, yeah, All right. So did they give you any?

Alan Wyatt 10:34

formal sales training. Do you have formal sales training? Or did you learn it all the hard way. Isn't that amazing? I learned it all the hard way, really, yeah.

Chris Lalomia 10:40

Yeah, I found that amazing because it me I hit on one thing that I think a lot of people maybe can appreciate or not, but as a guy who was in both sides in relational selling, that's what I did in the consulting business Way, different sales concept than what I'm doing in in the handyman business, which is more transactional.

Chris Lalomia 10:59

And so, yeah, the farmer versus the hunter, yeah, you really, and so I think that nuance is with relational, is that longer sales cycle. Number one. Number two you've got to play angles and you've got to figure out things and in today's world, which I think is even wilder, is you can't, you can't, you can't do the shiny bobbles, you can't do the hey man, I'll take you to dinner, hey, I'll take you here, I'll take you there, I'll take. I'm trying.

Alan Wyatt 11:23

That's why I'm filtering myself, because all the places I took people by. Yeah, so the cheetah misses you, whoa.

Chris Lalomia 11:29

Hello, that's what I didn't want to say, but yes, anyway, I, by the way, it's real, it's the old the gold club.

Chris Lalomia 11:38

It doesn't say what I allegedly so, but no. Back to that is that you're trying to figure out how to take a long term play, get them to look good in their business. They're probably playing up to a boss trying to figure out how to get their C suite to buy into what you're trying to sell. It takes a minute. And then when you're doing handyman work and what I was selling, I realized all of a sudden I went from a long transactional, a long relational cycle to basically I was into a quickie. I mean, it was a quick transaction. It was like sell now or it's done.

Alan Wyatt 12:11

Well and so you like quickies Exactly what I was going at.

Chris Lalomia 12:16

Okay Is that it said I was I like. I like faster transactions as long as we're talking with me.

Alan Wyatt 12:22

I think we just made me blush.

Chris Lalomia 12:24

Sorry, Mia.

Mia Hannah 12:25

Perfect, good, good, okay, so, yeah. So what I was about to say was that in that 12 weeks, I would not leave an account until I made my next appointment 12 weeks later. And that was the way that I was. I was very successful in that business and and it was because I never left an account without making my next appointment and I've actually that's a golden nugget.

Alan Wyatt 12:56

That is a really good golden nugget, because then they expect you and they actually make time for you and it's not a bother. They know you're coming.

Mia Hannah 13:05

My, I have a very good friend that's my hairstylist and I have pretty much taught her that she don't let the client leave unless until they make their next appointment. Because, think about it, you've got to go to get your haircut, or whatever, every four to six weeks and you just make the appointment. How?

Alan Wyatt 13:26

often do you get your hair cut? Funny enough, you should say that.

Chris Lalomia 13:30

My hairstylist and I have an appointment all the time. But no, I go back to the point. I think that that's so solid is that when you make your treatment while you're there, am I? It's a great temples again. Yeah, turn it.

Alan Wyatt 13:42

Time to process tips I.

Chris Lalomia 13:45

Or coloring, or maybe a little bit by making that appointment, then it's in the calendar and it's there. You know they can cancel, but the likelihood of canceling is a lot lower if you're trying to set it up six weeks, laughter the fact and say, yeah, I'm coming here in six weeks, no, I'm busy, no, no no, no.

Mia Hannah 14:01

Well, the name of the game is making them think well, if they don't fit into your schedule, then you, you know, then you're not, you might mess them on the next trip.

Chris Lalomia 14:10

How about?

Mia Hannah 14:10

that I mean that's what I would do. I made myself seem Scares me more. Yes, exactly way more scarce than I was, and that that, for me, that was key.

Chris Lalomia 14:21

How about that scarcity selling versus I can't I got? If I don't make the sale, I'm not gonna eat. Oh my god, I gotta give this away.

Mia Hannah 14:27

I gotta give this away now, but I mean think about it if you have a three-state territory, you're like, if you don't catch me, then it's gonna be 12 weeks later before I, before I, come back around and they, you know you, they don't. They didn't want to wait that long, but by the time I left that industry I literally I went from three states down to two states, down to one state and I mean I had half of Atlanta by the time I left that industry.

Chris Lalomia 14:52

Oh boy, yeah. Why did they curve it up so much? Was it competition, or is it lack of?

Mia Hannah 14:57

No, it was not comfortable, it was. It was what corporations do they, they, they, they want you to work harder, and so I would grow the territory, and then they would bring somebody in and split the territory, and then I had to work harder, and half the territory, and then, you know, and then I would build that up and then they would cut that in half again and I had to, you know, I had to work harder to build that up so that I was making the same income. And that is why that's the biggest reason why I love corporate America.

Chris Lalomia 15:32

There you go. That's a big one, yeah the. D and center. That just happened.

Alan Wyatt 15:36

It's amazing how often corporate America just can't get out of their own way. It's like oh, this guy's making a lot of money, so I'm gonna cut his territory, or?

Mia Hannah 15:45

they or change a commission plan.

Alan Wyatt 15:47

Yeah, you had a great year, so obviously we must have missed our forecast, and so let's just, you know, raise it up by 40%. It's like you're just killing the drive of the people that are doing a great job for you, as opposed to just making a choke on the money that they earned Right.

Chris Lalomia 16:02

I just saw an article in I think it was entrepreneur magazine saying that during COVID, or the remote Working process, we got going. Right now this guy has three jobs that are quote unquote full-time, but he figured out that he could work in part-time and so he has three of these and he ended up doing 344 in a year, talking about how he was able to smoke and mirrors and get a buddy that has doing that with two.

Chris Lalomia 16:25

Yeah, so back to corporate America and the games that are played, you know. So, on the other side, you grow your territory, hit your bonus. Oh, you know what your bonuses changed? Oh, you grow. So we're either gonna double your number, we're gonna have your size, and oh, by the way, you have to see numbers, boy, that's a lot of fun. Boy, Just keep kicking me in the gut every time I come in here. So so you left, all right.

Mia Hannah 16:44

So and that's why I left, because I got tired of that. I was like, I mean, they keep wanting more and more and more and more out of me and it was getting harder and harder, and You're.

Chris Lalomia 16:53

You were traveling every week too.

Mia Hannah 16:55

I was doing a lot and then even when I got into management, then it was on playing, it got even bigger.

Chris Lalomia 17:00

But yeah, yeah, all right so you went to, you made the move into real estate agent. So let's talk about how you made that leap and why you did it and how you did it and Did you have a plan and I didn't have a plan.

Getting Into Real Estate

Mia Hannah 17:11

I just knew that I didn't want to travel anymore and I loved homes and I loved Relationships, selling, which you know real estate is that. I know that it's. It's also transactional. But you know, if you work by referral which a lot of really good real estate agents it's by referral it's not of it's not as much of a as a numbers game. There's nothing out there.

Chris Lalomia 17:33

I was scared the crap out of me. Yeah, I'm sorry, both, both the suit, because you're on the podcast, can't see what's going on. We have windows where we're in my basement and and and it's a gated and I got a pool and the whole thing and I was out there two weeks ago and I had little deer poops all over there.

Alan Wyatt 17:50

I'm like what are they doing? In my back here? I thought about the deer poop I did. I was so disappointed in you. I know I like come on.

Chris Lalomia 17:56

What are they?

Chris Lalomia 17:56

because they're back there in my pool and I don't want them swimming in my pool, I think you know, every time I see a bird, get on my little ledge out there and sort of doing this little bird bath, I'm running like a feed. I mean I'm like a dog with a with a bone. I'm like get out of my pool. You're not sure to do my pole, you damn bird, get on there. So yeah, I hear deer pooping in my backyard. Or was like well, chris, that's nature. No, not in my backyard, maybe in my front yard, but not my back.

Mia Hannah 18:18

Okay, Okay, all right. So now you know. I'm so back to you. Know why I wasn't nervous about coming on this podcast?

Alan Wyatt 18:24

because of rants like you just got a punches button.

Chris Lalomia 18:28

Oh yeah, all right, so back to me.

Alan Wyatt 18:30

Yeah, please. So you thought we saw a bunny out the windows. What you're saying?

Mia Hannah 18:39

What were you gonna do?

Chris Lalomia 18:40

you got a crossbow, or Because I've never owned a gun, lead pipe. I've talked about this off and off. People are how come you don't have a gun? I said because number one, I don't. I'm just not a big fan, I don't use them. I said number two, it would be used on me. So no fucking way.

Alan Wyatt 19:00

That's why all your knives are dull in the kitchen exactly underlocking key with two combinations.

Chris Lalomia 19:14

Hey, mia, glad you could join us. Thank you, oh, I'm sorry. What was that about again?

Mia Hannah 19:19

No, but I looked at the window because I always do that when I'm thinking I look out a window in that. Funny, I don't know why, but I do that.

Chris Lalomia 19:26

I'm back. I was looking out the window again.

Mia Hannah 19:27

Okay, I thought I saw something move, Chris no oh geez, we're gonna kill him, okay. Real estate so yeah, so I got into real estate Because I liked houses, I wanted to be at home, but the most important reason that I got into real estate was because I wanted I Wanted to be my own boss. I mean, I'd spent a lot of time not being my own boss and I just, you know, knew that I was driven and disciplined and I didn't need a boss.

Mia Hannah 20:00

That's the way I was, so you took a bet on you and I had and I had control over my income and that for me that was a big deal At the time, so that was probably the biggest reason that I got into what year did you get into real estate?

Chris Lalomia 20:14

2004 so four, and so for everybody backtrack, and you know, eight was the beginning of the downfall. So four is the height, and I think so you got going in party time.

Alan Wyatt 20:26

Huh, you got going in party.

Chris Lalomia 20:27

I did get going in party time, yeah, and that's a great way to put it, I'm she what she got going like at 11 o'clock Saturday night in studio 54, 70s, right, because we had more real estate agents. I remember hearing a step more real estate agents here in Atlanta, then the metro Atlanta of the metro area of LA at the same time.

Mia Hannah 20:48

Yes, yeah, it was crazy yeah oh it was, and you know, I don't know that I would have had a lot of people get.

Real Estate Listing and Disc Profiles

Mia Hannah 20:58

Part of the reason that they're very nervous about going into real estate is because they weren't the your straight commission sales and most people haven't done that in their career and you can't, you can't hide no, and I had been straight commissioned sales at that point for about 10 years, so it did not scare me, I wasn't nervous about it, and so that was another reason why I just kind of took the leap. I just I remember I'll never forget it I was sitting at my desk and I saw this paycheck come in and I went okay, I'm done.

Chris Lalomia 21:34

I'm done. I'm done All right. So how'd you get into the real estate business?

Alan Wyatt 21:38

I was just gonna ask you remember your first client and thinking kind of hope they don't realize. I really don't know what I'm doing. I do, yeah, I actually remember that.

Mia Hannah 21:49

Well, and you know, there are statistics out there. I can't name one off the top of my head, but there are. There are. That is new real estate agent. That is there. That is their biggest fear is Having somebody ask them how long have you been in the industry? Mm-hmm and and that was absolutely my biggest fear I did not want anybody asking me that. So the very first listing presentation that I went in oh, you were talking fast.

Mia Hannah 22:21

No, I was so over prepared for it. Be, I mean, I was. I mean, if this was back before you. You know we're working with laptops and you know you had electronic presentations and stuff like that. And I walked in with a stack like this of For the listeners three inches apart, yeah of comps, of comparable sales, and I went, I and I mean I was showing them, you know everything, and it was all printed in color and it was. I mean it was the overkill Was crazy and what were they doing?

Chris Lalomia 22:59

They were appeasing you, just going. Yep, uh-huh.

Mia Hannah 23:01

Well, this is the interesting thing, and this was like one of my very First lessons and it was based on a very good piece of advice that I got when I went into real estate. The piece of advice was Okay, you're just one in a million and of real estate agents, do not cut corners, never cut corners. So of course, in this one I didn't. I went through everything. I swear I think my presentation was too too Ever so long We'll just sign.

Alan Wyatt 23:29

Please shut up.

Chris Lalomia 23:29

I know Right there that reminds me If you, if you don't sign with me, I'm gonna stay, stay, stay here all day, read the entire Bible, but but you guys.

Mia Hannah 23:43

This was you know what they ended up. I did not know this. Going into it, it was two engineers.

Alan Wyatt 23:51

Oh they wanted all that. Oh my god, they were lapping that data. Oh yeah, they were doing six weeks in 2004.

Mia Hannah 23:56

They're probably using quattro.

Chris Lalomia 23:57

I had a sign listing agreement when I was in the US.

Mia Hannah 23:59

I had a sign listing agreement when I walked out 20 minutes.

Alan Wyatt 24:02

Yeah, you would, yeah, yeah, but engineers perfect.

Mia Hannah 24:06

Yeah, it was perfect.

Chris Lalomia 24:07

There's any way I could say I'll sign now. Will you shut up please?

Alan Wyatt 24:11

All right, can we get it?

Chris Lalomia 24:11

last night.

Mia Hannah 24:12

No, thank you Right, because, yeah, that's exactly right and that actually spurred because I was so Taken aback at that whole process that that spurred me and I went with keller-williams after I'd interviewed 18 brokers.

Alan Wyatt 24:28

Oh, that sounds a little obsessive.

Mia Hannah 24:30

Well, I was a trainer, and so I knew that I knew, but also knew what I didn't know, and so I Wanted to yes, I did, it was very obsessive and I love how she's she.

Chris Lalomia 24:42

You know what she finally gave up. She was trying to defend it. Yeah, but we're in therapy, right now we're here in the small business safari therapy, 18s and really finally admitted she goes.

Mia Hannah 24:51

Yeah, yeah, yeah but I went with keller-williams because at the time they were no, I mean, it was all about the training and they were known, and also I was in. I would say that 15 out of the 18 brokers said well, you haven't talked to that keller-williams yet, have you? That's like, you know multi-level, you know drinking the Kool-Aid, you know, and and I hadn't even heard of keller-williams it wasn't until the last two interviews that I went to keller-williams offices and I did it only because I had so many brokers going. Well, you haven't gone and talked to color when you don't want to do that, because how about?

Alan Wyatt 25:24

that for an anti-cell. That is jealousy of the number one.

Mia Hannah 25:27

You know I mean seriously and it was all about and it was all about training and that's why I went with them.

Alan Wyatt 25:34

So part you know I'm a kw commercial.

Mia Hannah 25:37

Oh, are you really? Yeah, oh, I work with a couple kw commercial agents.

Alan Wyatt 25:41

I do their newsletter. Yeah, you shouldn't, oh.

Chris Lalomia 25:45

She's look at you. She came on his podcast to sell you wait a minute.

Alan Wyatt 25:48

Who's podcast is this? Yeah, you back. I don't need no stinking newsletter. Right, that's what I've heard. I don't need a website on the yard.

Mia Hannah 25:55

No I don't my clients coming to just talk to me.

Chris Lalomia 25:57

I you know, I picked my clients. Okay, alan, we do this podcast talking about how to grow your business, but he's not learning. But that's a different story.

Alan Wyatt 26:06

I'm a stubborn man.

Chris Lalomia 26:08

All right. So you went to keller-williams, which for a lot of listeners, just again in the residential world, keller Williams has an incredible reputation of training and developing talent and culture and culture yeah yeah, yeah. Gary Keller did a great job with that, I mean absolutely. Yeah so, so you made a good pick, uh, but, and the reason that I did it was the training.

Mia Hannah 26:31

I mean, that was the, because I knew that I could stay with them for two years and then I could go anywhere I wanted and I'd be fine and that was the biggest reason that I did it. But with all that and one of the things that I learned and I really went after it after that listing appointment Was the disc profile. I learned that disc profile Okay, looking at me all confused oh, oh no, chris is a huge disc guy, my all my people in my company have been disc profile.

Chris Lalomia 27:01

Okay so everybody's in there. In fact, when you come into my office which me, has been there I? She hasn't seen it, but I'm gonna show it to her next time. Guess what Chris is? I'm a pleaser.

Alan Wyatt 27:13

You're an amiable, I'm amiable, I'm amiable. Shut the hell up, alan. Back to me, all right.

Mia Hannah 27:21

So are you an ID or a DI?

Chris Lalomia 27:23

I am an.

Alan Wyatt 27:23

ID. Actually, You're an ID. You're an ID. There's no other letter for this. Yeah, no, Actually I come up with more ID. I actually care about people. I just don't show it much.

Chris Lalomia 27:28

So yeah, and sometimes I even care what people think about me.

Mia Hannah 27:33

That's going back to that thing they never like gives compliments, I don't. So I'm going to say I'm going to say you know, compliments, I don't.

Chris Lalomia 27:39

So what Mia's talking about is that our intern, michael, was in here setting up the show and getting ready to get going and took some pictures and Mia came in and said hey, I really like your newsletter, chris. Oh, that's right, I'm plugging a new one. I've got a newsletter. It comes out every month. Don't forget to go out there and check out chrislalamiacom and sign up for our newsletter, because it's filled with really fun goodies and it's short and it's brief as I've heard that we have to be brief.

Alan Wyatt 28:05

You hurt yourself on the video. This time I did, which is really fun.

Chris Lalomia 28:08

Yeah, you're going to love this video. It's going to be a lot of fun. A lot of video and a lot of personal injury by Chris. So, anyway, it was just a twist today.

Alan Wyatt 28:20

You know you could be like the jackass of newsletters I think after all the times we've talked about your hand clamp shooting with a nail gun. I think that should be an upcoming newsletter. Oh my god, I write that down.

Chris Lalomia 28:29

Oh my god, I'm going to make a huge aside. I know this is about Mia, but no, it's got to be more of me. So I went in and volunteered for SkillsUSA National Competition. Kids come together, they do carpentry, hvc, a welding team.

Alan Wyatt 28:41

skills is what I was doing Is that like a punt, pass and kick of the trades For?

Chris Lalomia 28:45

the trades. I love it. It was amazing. In fact, we're going to do a remote there. They actually asked us because when I was down there Monday working this couple of weeks ago, I said, well, I have a podcast and we do it and it's about small business and business ownership. And they said, well, that would be great if you would come down and do a remote for us next year because the National Competition is going to be in Atlanta for three years. But I was down there on Monday and I was ripping, cutting, sawing and everything. The only thing I did was I dropped a half inch piece of plywood on my toe and that nail's probably not going to make it, but every digit still was intact.

Chris Lalomia 29:22

But I was working with these guys who were shop teachers. They were 67 years old and when I was leaving they're like are you coming back tomorrow? Because I mean, all jokes aside, I can cut some wood and I can do some stuff, but yeah, I had a blast.

Alan Wyatt 29:37

That's really cool.

Chris Lalomia 29:38

So, skillsusa, we're going to pump this thing up, we'll talk about it and we'll see if we can't pull that remote off. We're actually sending out an email to the SkillsUSA Georgia team first to see if we can't do some stuff to help promote the trades and the skills.

Alan Wyatt 29:51

But anyway, how old are the participants?

Chris Lalomia 29:54

They're all 18 to 21. No, I'm sorry, 16 to 21. So it could be in high school or aging up into going into college, and it was from Automotive IT, culinary, but I was focused in the construction trade.

Alan Wyatt 30:07

Oh, that's cool. I like that it did. It was so cool. I love how you give back, even though I make fun of you a lot. No, it was a lot of fun.

Chris Lalomia 30:13

And I tell you what I walked out of there just sore, but happy, no kidding, I was back to just fun man, just fun Cool, all right, but again, we were talking about Mia.

Alan Wyatt 30:25

Is Mia here at the podcast, or is it just us? I can't remember. All right, mia has already gone to half a bottle of wine. No, I have not.

Mia Hannah 30:32

I've taken two sips.

Chris Lalomia 30:34

Hey, don't worry, nobody can see it on video unless you go to our YouTube or our YouTube shorts on YouTube.

Alan Wyatt 30:39

Well, now that I've said it, you may as well, yeah, you might as well keep going.

Chris Lalomia 30:41

All right, so you start doing the sales. Let's go back to this. So real estate agent sold your first house, got your first one under your belt, feeling good, this is four, five, six Businesses building businesses building, boom, boom, boom.

Mia Hannah 30:56

Yeah.

Chris Lalomia 30:56

How good did it get.

Mia Hannah 30:58

It got really good. I did I mean, yeah, I made, got awards six months in Because, remember, I knew the animal, I knew the, I knew relationship selling and I knew how important consistency was.

Chris Lalomia 31:14

And you used the disc profile to help you identify your client.

Mia Hannah 31:17

Absolutely, and that first client was the reason that I really started to study that, because it's not about what I am, it's about what the person I'm trying to sell to was, and so that I paid real close attention to that. And so somebody like you I would never go into a bunch of detail about. I would show you the highlights of the comps, but I would talk more.

Alan Wyatt 31:45

I would talk Big numbers, big pictures. Yeah, my head's shaking all over the place, and I mean anybody that's a D on that disc profile which is dominant driven.

Mia Hannah 31:56

Anybody, that's that man they don't want to hear anything. They just want you to, just you know oh.

Chris Lalomia 32:05

Here's Chris coming into the room.

Alan Wyatt 32:07

Oh, hi Chris, Hi Alan, hi Alan, Dun dun, dun, dun, dun dun. That should be our podcast.

Chris Lalomia 32:12

But funny, that should actually it was funny enough. I do have the cape, so I would have walked into that presentation with her with the cape on going. Ok, present, Throw the cape back, it's you to it.

Mia Hannah 32:24

Oh boy.

Chris Lalomia 32:25

Yeah, it's time to go the disc profile, go back to it again. We've talked about this quite a bit. I can't believe we haven't talked about it more. Mia, it is so big because I do that to help us with our sales. Because there's four quadrants in disc. To make it simpler, and I tell my sales guys, you are in one quadrant, here's the problem. Three quarters of the people out there are in the other three quadrants. So everybody you're going to sell, you've got to figure out who they are. Because if you are the quickie, quick, quick, quick guy and this person wants you to slow it way back down and give them all the details and you're not doing that, you don't have the win. And if you have somebody who wants to win and be the high D, who wants to flip his cape off and have you, wow him and then tell him how cool he is and then give him a bottle of wine, boom, you got him Right. That's the kind of thing. So obviously Mia had been schooled in sales.

Alan Wyatt 33:14

Now you know, it's not divided into four equal quadrants.

Chris Lalomia 33:17

Well, well, well, I know, I know I'm with the quadra. I mean, it's the biggest of all. Of course it's actually the smallest, what?

Alan Wyatt 33:23

But it seems like the biggest because you're in it.

Chris Lalomia 33:26

Well, exactly, thank you OK.

Mia Hannah 33:31

It's getting deep. I wore long pants today.

Alan Wyatt 33:34

You should have wore boots Wee.

Chris Lalomia 33:36

Here we go.

Alan Wyatt 33:40

OK, who looked?

Chris Lalomia 33:40

a squirrel. Podcast over. All right back to Mia.

Alan Wyatt 33:47

See, I told her it'd be fun. She said I don't know if I want to do this. I'm like, come on, get on here All right.

Chris Lalomia 33:52

So you're selling, you're killing it right. 4, 5, 6, 7. Was it all?

Alan Wyatt 33:55

referral.

Mia Hannah 33:58

Yeah.

Alan Wyatt 33:58

Or was it because you were following the system, or what were you doing?

Mia Hannah 34:02

I was never. The entire time I've been in real estate I have never been one to go after for sale by owners. Expires the numbers games, the ones where you do the robo dial Ambulance chaser. I've never been that person. Everything I've ever done has been by referral, and which is part of the reason that I've went into the business I'm in now. But anyway, well, one of the yeah anyway, so it's so.

Chris Lalomia 34:30

That's a huge gold nugget. We have a business, I mean we're still in the back. Referral business. I mean, we've talked about this over and over and over you can go drop your personal injury lawyer. We had Jen Goran. She's up against the John Follies and Morgan and Morgan's. The one call, that's all. I mean these guys are spending not thousands of dollars, I'm talking hundreds of thousands of dollars a month just to get a client. And so Mia built her book of business on networking and referring and referrals right.

Mia Hannah 34:58

Advertise, so do you do a certain degree. I mean you know, because you, you know, when you do a good job, they're gonna come back to you and that's you know, that's what you that's at the Stockholm syndrome.

Surviving a Recession

Chris Lalomia 35:13

You know what's? Because I'm not involved, and so that's what's going on in my company too right now is, while I was out volunteering, I got my operations manager is going on vacation for a week, the my schedule is going on vacation for a week and she is absolutely shitting your pants that I'm going to get involved again.

Chris Lalomia 35:28

So she is trying to tell me so, so much. She's like Chris, I got this, I got it all figured out, I get this and she's not doing it. But she's doing. She's sending me emails about I've. She's got the whole two weeks all planned out, just so I don't get back at all.

Alan Wyatt 35:40

That is so cool, though your business is grown yeah.

Chris Lalomia 35:43

Oh okay. Yeah, no, but she's doing a great, but she is freaking. I told her I'm like, deb, calm down, calm down, you're good. I want you to have a great time with the grandkids. And I said I promise you I will only screw up at least three or four days.

Alan Wyatt 35:55

So but no so what we've learned here is even though you prefer quickies, you do still have to make a relationship out of it. I do, yeah, yeah, I do. I make a relationship with my folks, yeah, of course my team.

Mia Hannah 36:06

All right back to me, Shall we oh who's podcast assistant with a small business part, Don't forget to go on to go on to the media dot com.

Alan Wyatt 36:14

Open you another bottle of wine.

Chris Lalomia 36:15

Yes, oh my god.

Mia Hannah 36:17

Take my third Please. Third sip, she says don't worry to you.

Alan Wyatt 36:21

We're drivers outside. We actually call her a server.

Chris Lalomia 36:24

It means we call her a car service. So it's good. No, we're gonna get her hammered. It's good, you know, best business ever done over wine. Okay, now back to killing.

Alan Wyatt 36:34

I think all of our best ideas over.

Chris Lalomia 36:36

Well, that's why we're doing this part. That's exactly. Yeah, we are geniuses after 12 years.

Alan Wyatt 36:41

That's how the podcast started me yeah.

Mia Hannah 36:44

Wow.

Alan Wyatt 36:44

Still for a lot of beer.

Chris Lalomia 36:47

We thought we were relatively smart and amusing and charming and and had a lot, of, a lot of stuff to offer people. That's right, that's because we're really smart, especially at 1 30 in the morning when the when the bartender is saying boys, last call, Time to go.

Mia Hannah 37:03

Oh, yeah, that was before coming.

Chris Lalomia 37:05

Yeah, Okay, back to me.

Chris Lalomia 37:10

So killing it six, seven all referral, all the referral business did a great job and I have seen me in action. She does an incredible job, but it's hard to separate yourself from the others. You know you got to do that with good referral, repeat business Right. So here comes 2008. We're in Atlanta, the most saturated real estate market in the nation. I think at that point that's another stat that that one. You know what check me, I don't care this the most number one saturated real estate agent market in the nation was Atlanta. Atlanta because of the house we can have that many houses.

Mia Hannah 37:46

I mean, again, I did not come prepared to, you know, quote stats, but it was amazing the number of agents that dropped out. I mean I survived 2008, 2011, but not gracefully. I mean it. There was nothing graceful about that, and you know most age well. I mean, think about the attrition rate. And most agents don't make it past two years. 80% of agents drop out after two years. I mean, that's a known stat and you know, I'd been at it at that point, I'd been in it for four years, but I knew just enough to be tenacious.

Chris Lalomia 38:29

So so what did you fall back on? I mean obviously 2008,.

Mia Hannah 38:34

And I don't care what business you're here, it was just, it was just flipping tough man.

Chris Lalomia 38:38

I mean I started my business then, so I was starting at the bottom. It was rough, but you had been up your high, and so what did you rely on? Give us some, because we're looking at a recession coming again. What did you rely on? What would you tell people? This is what got me through there.

Mia Hannah 38:57

This sounds like a plug marketing.

Chris Lalomia 38:59

Hello, I 100% agree. Yeah, this was. Was that a setup? No, it wasn't actually. It doesn't, it seems disingenuous Chris. No no.

Mia Hannah 39:10

Seriously.

Alan Wyatt 39:11

I think you like that word. That's a big word, it is.

Chris Lalomia 39:16

That's a big one, that's an SAT word right there.

Mia Hannah 39:18

It was marketing had. That was when I figured out that I was going to have to pay somebody to do my marketing, because marketing didn't. Marketing is not what brought the business in, which is why I did it not so gracefully for those couple of years. Marketing doesn't bring the business in, but it gives you the opportunity to lead generate when, when that presents itself, you have to market to have the opportunity to lead generate. So I'm not sure I'm following that, unpack that for me.

Alan Wyatt 39:57

All right here we go, unpack.

Chris Lalomia 39:59

You have to have doesn't count by. It's a corporate word, that's a quote, all right.

Mia Hannah 40:02

so I don't. Where did I? What did I miss here? How did?

Chris Lalomia 40:04

I. So you said I'm not making money but I'm going to go pay people to help me saying marketing didn't bring in the leads.

Mia Hannah 40:11

No, well, because there were no leads coming in them. Think about it.

Alan Wyatt 40:16

Well, they say 50% of your marketing dollars are wasted.

Mia Hannah 40:19

You just don't know which.

Alan Wyatt 40:20

50% in 2008. It was bigger presented than that.

Mia Hannah 40:24

I ended up. You know what I? I supported myself by learning the short sell market. That's how I supported myself during that period of time.

Chris Lalomia 40:32

All right, there's the big T right there. That's tenacious.

Mia Hannah 40:35

Yeah, you, you, I mean, you got to go with the flow. And so I learned how to do short sales. And again I learned how to do it very well and I did that. But in the meantime I knew that that wasn't going to stick. It couldn't stick. So I also started to do regular marketing to my referral base, to the people that I was doing short. You know, did you just?

Alan Wyatt 41:03

no, no, he spilled wine all over the control board. Don't worry, don't worry about it.

Mia Hannah 41:16

I was in the middle of a really good point too, I was writing them things down, and I shouldn't be writing.

Chris Lalomia 41:22

I should just be listening. I was writing it because I thought it was good, okay.

Mia Hannah 41:25

Are we back what? Was I saying again, I want to.

Alan Wyatt 41:28

So you were. You were kind of getting what you originally said that I was I didn't understand was. You were marketing, but that wasn't for leads.

Mia Hannah 41:39

No, so, okay. So you've heard the saying. Since you're a commercial real estate agent, you've heard the saying that when you get into the business of real estate, you are actually getting into the business of lead generation. That's right. You've heard that.

Alan Wyatt 41:54

Sure, I mean, I'm not sure.

Mia Hannah 41:57

That's right, you're a commercial real estate agent. Never, no, sorry.

Alan Wyatt 42:03

No, I won't tell you what just went through my mind, but go ahead.

Chris Lalomia 42:08

Can you tell me later?

Alan Wyatt 42:10

Okay.

Chris Lalomia 42:10

Thank you.

Mia Hannah 42:11

No, it I mean really. I'm really glad this isn't Okay. Don't worry, it's not, we'll edit it all out. Nobody's going to hear any of this. No.

Chris Lalomia 42:24

It doesn't matter. Okay, here we go so.

Mia Hannah 42:27

so the reason that you want to do marketing is so that you know, as a real estate agent, you are not going to have the opportunity to sell anybody until they're ready to to buy or sell. That's when you start the lead generation piece of it. So marketing is keeping your name in front of brand awareness marketing is what you're saying. Yeah.

Alan Wyatt 42:52

Okay, yeah, okay yeah.

Mia Hannah 42:54

Which I started. I had never really done it before, when I was, you know, 2004 to 2008, actually probably 2004 to about 2010 or nine or 10. I, you know, I was just, you know, relying on my relationships. But and then I learned the short sale market and that was bringing money in. But I realized that at some point that would stop and I needed to be able to fall back on my relationships. And the only reason that I was going to be able to fall back on that is because I was marketing and keeping my name in front of people and I was so busy lead generating for short sales that I did not, I wasn't doing any marketing. So, you know, when that was over, I was going to be a forgotten brand and so I started. And I was too busy, and so I started paying somebody to do my marketing for me.

Mia Hannah 43:57

So she's making less money but yeah, putting more money in marketing, that was not easy.

The Power of Marketing and Newsletters

Chris Lalomia 44:02

That's not easy and, as she said, not graceful. It's hard. And I tell you you, know, as we're here here we are in 23, looking at somewhat of a recession and a pullback, depending on the market you're in and what's going on. And I'm starting to see it, but I saw it at the beginning of the year and I leaned into it, so I increased my advertising, increased my marketing, my, my next look at you and I'm staying up, but I'm starting to see it.

Chris Lalomia 44:26

I mean it, just it can only last for so long. So I'm back to taste tenacity. I'm trying to figure out. The next thing so I think that's the key thing is, when the going gets tough, are you the tough or is it time to go? And that's where in especially in real estate agents, you know you, when you're a realtor and you've been through the licensing and you've done all this stuff, you're in it to win it. You're actually not just playing at this, you're actually in it to make it work. And that's a key thing, you know. Back to licensing and getting into it. But I want to get that far. I want to go back to the marketing thing, because that's how you found this next niche. Here we are now, so you make it through there and then here we go, the run up begins.

Mia Hannah 45:01

So I've been an agent for 19 years and so about six years. So I was I started paying somebody to do my own marketing, again, probably about 2010. And then, all of a sudden, I guess, let me see, that was probably about 2017, 2018. I started paying attention to what that was getting me and, yes, it was keeping my name you know name in front of them and there is a, there's a line of thinking that it doesn't matter. You know, if you send a postcard, it doesn't matter. If they put it directly into the trash, can they see your name going?

Alan Wyatt 45:43

as they're throwing it away.

Mia Hannah 45:44

Right, and it's the same, and it's the same thing and actually, Chris, I got one for you. And it's the same thing, like you know, with email. It doesn't matter if they, just if they delete the email, they open it. Look at it, they see your name.

Alan Wyatt 45:58

That's interesting.

Mia Hannah 46:00

That's marketing, that's marketing.

Chris Lalomia 46:03

And we're talking about this because we're going to, we're talking about the newsletter stuff and the marketing stuff. Right, and she's right learning it, and that's where I want to pivot to the next step, because we got about 10 more minutes to get into this.

Mia Hannah 46:13

I know it's flying, I know right, all right, go, so so there's a deer pooping in your pool right now, Chris podcast pause.

Chris Lalomia 46:23

Give me my gun. He looked. You said you didn't have a gun.

Mia Hannah 46:28

But so marketing is that's how you keep your name in front of people. So that and and you know, I again ungracefully made it through 2008, 2011, but then 2012, 2013,. All of that hit and I mean I've had best years ever and I have, you know, had a upward trajectory ever since because I continue to do the marketing. But I did realize that it wasn't just about marketing. It was important what I was putting in front of people, Because the some of the marketing that I had was very frivolous and it was it, you know like you dunking on a basketball, or whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa.

Chris Lalomia 47:15

Not only can I not dunk, but in that video which you guys are going to, have to check out. I had to. I actually had to put a bunch of foam pads down because I was afraid.

Alan Wyatt 47:25

Did you really know? I didn't know, but I was.

Chris Lalomia 47:28

I was like, oh my God, you know, back in the day, literally I've dunked the ball like twice in my life as a six to basketball player just could never do it. I'm playing man can jump, this guy but playing football finally got big enough and could jump enough I did, but so but back to his point. His point is I'm making stupid videos that people like to watch.

Mia Hannah 47:50

Alan that's why it's top 10%, Chris. Marketing, that's marketing. That's why people are listening to their house. They're going to, you know well, maybe not when their house floods, but you know when something breaks in their house. They're going to remember that stupid video.

Chris Lalomia 48:06

So I've actually, through this podcast, have a number of people reach out to me, a lot of them handyman remodellers, because that's obviously where I'm coming from Knife sharpener, carpet cleaners. They all asked you know, like, what's the easiest way to get into it? I'm like you have a, you have a, you have a customer list.

Chris Lalomia 48:26

Yeah, I said email marketing every week, every month every month you got to do it once a month, I said that's the cheapest form and if you got to pay somebody to do it, the cheapest form of getting in front of you, because it pays dividends in spades and it pays over and, over and over. And that's what me has been doing, my newsletter now for about two years.

Chris Lalomia 48:44

I think to and I would tell you before then I still tell. The story is that I said this in a networking group once and somebody asked me. I said oh, it's email networking. You got to keep email.

Mia Hannah 48:56

And they went off and you do.

Chris Lalomia 48:57

I saw I do it with someone. So I went back and by that at that point it was just me and Cindy in the office. I looked I had sent an email out in eight months. I was like, oh yeah, and so immediately I got out, so I did it by myself, did it by myself. Then I took one of my internal guys, tried it, didn't do it, me says, hey, let me help you with my newsletter, with your newsletter. Let me think about the format, the way you're doing it. You know, and the guy who was helping me internally was at the time, my sales manager who loved him like the way he did it. She was let me do this, let me do this, let me do that. Hey, let's add a video to it. Bingo, bingo, bongo. Right now, our open rate in our industry is supposed to be 22% and our open rate is what?

Mia Hannah 49:47

There's months where it's up close to 60%.

Chris Lalomia 49:50

Yeah, how about that? Bingo, bingo, bongo.

Alan Wyatt 49:53

Chris, I did it again. So I will say so when you outsource your marketing, especially social media, the big clunk that I feel is that person who's doing your marketing doesn't understand the business and so whatever's coming out from the business just doesn't feel right. And I will say credit to you when I get Chris's newsletter it seems like it's coming from Chris.

Mia Hannah 50:20

And that is one of my goals always. Yeah, and that's a big deal. Yeah.

Alan Wyatt 50:24

Because there's a lot of people out there that'll handle your marketing and his video goes a long way towards that yeah.

Mia Hannah 50:29

Yeah, I mean it's important to and you know all the the main touch, plus marketing, is the name of my business and my main say it again Touch plus marketing, okay.

Chris Lalomia 50:44

We're going to put that in the show Touch plus marketing and guess what Can?

Alan Wyatt 50:48

we make it. Can I tell you why? I named it that yeah.

Mia Hannah 50:50

Okay, so you can take one of my newsletters my real estate newsletters and you can turn it into 10 touches. You can take all these different articles that I put in it and and create. You can put do a social media post. You can send out another email. You can print out a PDF and write a note on it and send it through the mail. There's so many different things that you can do with this kind of newsletter that that's why I call it touch plus.

Chris Lalomia 51:21

Hence touch plus. I think we should do it again. It's more than one touch plus marketing. I like that. We are the four horsemen of the apocalypse.

Alan Wyatt 51:33

That's right, baby.

Chris Lalomia 51:34

But that's what marketing is the apocalypse? Here we go no, I'm kidding Back to this. So obviously pivoting, you're, you're, you're, you're in the real estate business. You still do this, but now you're doing the newsletter for people because you're helping other agents realizing that while we're going through another downturn and you've got to be better than your competition, because it's funny, in, I swear, in the last week I have had, I've had, I've signed up seven agents.

Real Estate Agent's Exit Strategy

Mia Hannah 52:03

Oh my God, in the last week alone in the last week, and the reason is that we're going into a time in the market where you've really got to do. It's all about marketing because, yeah, there may be a slow down, but you just keep your name out there and you keep going. There's still business.

Chris Lalomia 52:20

So why do you think your emails are better than somebody else? Like you know what, you know me, I'll do it myself, and I've heard this all the time. You know. You know, chris, I, you know, I've, I've YouTube this and I know how to change my own toilet out so I can do it myself. I'm like, yeah, absolutely. So why are your marketing emails so much better? What is your unique selling proposition?

Mia Hannah 52:37

Well, it's kind of a threefold thing. Well, kind of so. It is that, first of all, I am an agent, have been an agent for 19 years. I understand the beast, I understand what needs to be said. Second, my focus is putting something in there for everybody. There can be. That newsletter is going to appeal to some. You know somebody that's actually thinking about selling their home. It's going. It can appeal to an 18 year old living at home in the basement, and then it's I know one of those 24 year old.

Chris Lalomia 53:17

not the basement, but we talked about it, but I mean, but it's consistent, it's a consistent touch that my agents don't have to touch.

Mia Hannah 53:26

It's a turnkey service. Yours is turnkey. Yeah, I know, okay, now you do a video, but I have a lot of other businesses at this point that don't. In fact, you're the only one that really does a video consistently for me. Everybody else, they just rely on me to do it. I send it to them a day or two before it needs to go out and say, hey, approve this, they approve it. They don't have to touch it.

Alan Wyatt 53:48

This is where I think that's a big deal. That's the big thing. Is touchless Touch plus Touch.

Mia Hannah 53:54

it's touchless touch. I need to figure that out. Touchless there's something there isn't there.

Chris Lalomia 53:59

There's something there Touch me less.

Mia Hannah 54:03

Where are we going with this?

Alan Wyatt 54:05

Okay, Chris.

Chris Lalomia 54:05

I'm not back to the cheetah.

Alan Wyatt 54:06

I mean, I mean alluvia alluvia allegedly Okay.

Chris Lalomia 54:09

Thank you All. Right back to this. One of the things and I don't want to make this a shameless plug, but I will that I've enjoyed about what Mia does and brings to the table in our newsletter is that it's not. Hey, come see me, the trusted toolbox will fix your wood rod. Hey, come see me, we can do this. It is hey, have you ever seen what a man cave can look like when you do it like this? Have you ever done a family room that allows everybody to enjoy it? Have you ever done a mud room? And look at these ideas you can get and you're giving people ideas in their house and you're actually giving them value and reasons to actually click on the email oh my gosh, this is cool.

Mia Hannah 54:47

And it's always in the subject line and it's not. The whole newsletter is not about Chris, it's about I know you talk about that hurt the trusted toolbox. Okay, chris, okay, so no, it's about the different, you know it's about. It gives some ideas, so that's you know it makes. It makes you a relevant resource.

Chris Lalomia 55:12

So here's my Renaissance woman. I started that in the beginning, right, so she gets out. She is she's. She didn't say on the podcast, but she has told us before she is not an Army brat, she is an.

Mia Hannah 55:23

Air Force angel.

Chris Lalomia 55:23

Thank you, and she got into corporate America, did her thing, gets into real estate, weathers, the storm and eight to 11 because, as she said, is really more like nine to 11. But it was tough and she chose the tenacity and now it's pivoting yet again for that quote, unquote retirement. But I want to get out of it. But you know I want to write these newsletters.

Mia Hannah 55:43

So being a real estate agent is 24 seven and I don't. I'm done with 24 seven.

Alan Wyatt 55:49

Yeah, residential, your weekends are 24 seven.

Mia Hannah 55:52

So I'm now into a, a. I created this so that I could take my computer and go on the road.

Chris Lalomia 55:59

And she went on the road last year to I did where.

Mia Hannah 56:02

I went to Puerto Rico Hello, puerto Rico and I rented a place on the beach. What was that, chris? For three weeks at the beach at the beach.

Chris Lalomia 56:12

Oh, that's my Spanish.

Mia Hannah 56:15

I know it's La Paya, but this is a matter.

Chris Lalomia 56:17

All right back to the, so back to, you know, being able to scale and pivot, you know, over your career and your course. I mean, obviously this is not the course you had plotted out when 18, when you said, oh boy, it looks like I'm supposed to be selling art, and then I'm sure you had that. Just for a glimmer of a minute you thought I'm going to France and I'm selling all the Louvre's art or the what's that called, the place over Louvre, dad, whatever.

Chris Lalomia 56:41

Yeah, you want to talk about the Louvre. You want to know if I went there, if you know how fast I go through that thing? Probably wait, I got. I got 45 minutes. I think I can do it under an hour, but I'll see it all. Hey, I want to see it. Don't get me wrong. I love, I enjoy it. He embraces me. Anyway, back to me. Shall we I got it?

Alan Wyatt 57:03

I got a story about the British Museum in 45 minutes, but I'll tell you some other time. Did you work when you were in Puerto Rico?

Mia Hannah 57:10

I did With her laptop doing her email marketing, and that's that was so when you produced my when you're produced my email from Puerto Rico.

Chris Lalomia 57:19

I know the only reason I knew it is because you were in a capoco.

Alan Wyatt 57:22

I and you weren't working, I wasn't but she was just an interesting comparison. Just wanted to point that out.

Chris Lalomia 57:30

Wait till you hear about July.

Alan Wyatt 57:31

Now it's really good.

Chris Lalomia 57:33

Okay, it's right around the corner, oh yeah we're going to end a podcast with that one.

Alan Wyatt 57:38

So what's the exit strategy for you?

Mia Hannah 57:40

Oh, my exit strategy from yeah, so that, okay, that goes into the book. I know one of your questions is what is the book that had one of the biggest impacts on me?

Alan Wyatt 57:52

Can I just go ahead and hit the book recommender the book.

Mia Hannah 57:55

Okay, so it's Robert Kiyoski's cashflow quadrant that had a big impact on me Rich dad, poor dad yes, that's rich dad, poor dad and any talks of me, chris.

Chris Lalomia 58:10

Why Richard. Richard wants to put that. He said Can you endorse my next book and the inside jacket? Oh, you're the rich guy, poor dad guy. Okay, we're gonna see if we can get Richard on Good luck with that.

Mia Hannah 58:24

I actually.

Chris Lalomia 58:26

I actually have a shot. Wrong story what? Oh yeah. Okay, so anyway you guys are both shots, aren't you?

Mia Hannah 58:36

I know people.

Chris Lalomia 58:37

I know people. Okay, yeah, I know people. So on the left, side of the quad.

Mia Hannah 58:41

You really want to be on the right side of the quadrant to have an exit strategy, and so at. Real estate agents are actually still on the left side. It's employee and self employed is on the left side. The right side is business owner and investor. So right now I'm a business owner, but that will turn me into investor. I will either just sit back at the beach and, you know, be the CEO up here and let other people run my business which is who knows what I'm going to end up doing with it or I'll sell it. I'll do one of the two.

Chris Lalomia 59:16

I'm not sure which, but I'm building something that I'm going to be so selling the email business, will you be able to sell or move over your book of business on the real estate side? I was interested in that. That was one question I had for you before we left.

Mia Hannah 59:29

Am I gonna?

Chris Lalomia 59:29

I will do real estate business.

Mia Hannah 59:31

I'm going to be. I will. In fact I've already started. I'm referring a lot of it out.

Chris Lalomia 59:35

Okay, yeah, we'll be a tangible asset for you to sell. No, no, because.

Mia Hannah 59:42

I didn't build that. See, I could have built it and I could have flipped over to the right side of that quadrant as a real estate agent. I could have built a team and done that, but my passion just wasn't there. I didn't that.

Chris Lalomia 59:55

I think that's a great book and it's also a great point because you know, as you built a real estate business, you built it for you and it's unfortunately it's not going to be able to be sold. However, the email marketing that's touch plus or touchless touch plus marketing.

Alan Wyatt 1:00:13

Well, a touch plus, touch plus marketing to work on your jingles, just don't. All right.

Chris Lalomia 1:00:18

So a couple more beers. I got it, okay, here we're gonna do this. All right, let's keep jump jumping through these questions, shall we? Your favorite feature of your house. I think I know what it is too.

Mia Hannah 1:00:29

I bet you don't.

Chris Lalomia 1:00:31

Oh, look at that look All right, it's the showdown it is.

Alan Wyatt 1:00:34

It's like gunslingers they're both squinting at each other.

Chris Lalomia 1:00:39

Whistle for me. I can't, I can't.

Mia Hannah 1:00:43

I bet you think it's my kitchen. You did, you did, which it's actually. That's probably my second favorite, because I love to cook. I'm a big cook, but it's actually my bedroom and my bath, my bedroom and bath. I love my bedroom and bath.

Chris Lalomia 1:00:58

There you go.

Mia Hannah 1:00:59

It's got. It's gorgeous, it's got sun coming in the windows, it's beautiful and it's like the only place that I can go into my whole house and get away from work.

Chris Lalomia 1:01:09

That's right, because you do work out of your house. All right, I like that. Yeah, okay, I did.

Alan Wyatt 1:01:13

And I thought I had to read get away from you.

Chris Lalomia 1:01:15

Wait a minute, I'm not in, I'm not there. No, your work. Oh, the work, yeah my work.

Alan Wyatt 1:01:21

No, the work your work. I do, but everybody's my work, please.

Chris Lalomia 1:01:26

Everybody's here for me, thank you. If you can't get away from me in your bedroom, what no? Come on, let's keep going. All right, back to you, mia, please, can we? All right, let's. So. If you're a customer and you're out there and you're in the marketplace, what is the customer service pet peeve of yours?

Mia Hannah 1:01:43

Rude-ness.

Chris Lalomia 1:01:44

Rude-ness.

Mia Hannah 1:01:45

It is amazing to me how many people on customer service are just flat out rude and it's more than likely because they don't like their job. That is not my problem. I am a customer. Do not do that to me.

Chris Lalomia 1:01:58

So do you blame the person? You blame the process and the company and the culture, because and that's a leading question I realized the answer.

Alan Wyatt 1:02:05

I don't blame them. It's the dumbass who put the rude person in that position.

DIY Nightmare Story

Chris Lalomia 1:02:10

Yeah, Unfortunately, I just went to the dentist I've been going to for 22 years, Right, and I've got. I got to get some work done. And I went and just get my teeth cleaned before the work and the latest like I can't clean your teeth with those to an x-rays. I'm like, nope, not doing that because I got to get the work done. I'll do the x-rays next time because I can't stand getting x-rays. Longer story there and she goes oh, then I'll lose my license. I'm like, okay, that's bullshit. So I'm like, where are we at? She goes well, we'll have to reschedule. I'm like that's fine. I get up, walked out to the ladies and I'm gonna cancel my appointment. I'm out and everything All right. I was like, nope, not at all.

Mia Hannah 1:02:46

Wow, I'm gonna do another dentist.

Chris Lalomia 1:02:48

It's not her fault, though I don't blame her. I'm actually not mad at her. I'm just mad at the way my dentist built her practice to do this, and now I'm going to go meet my dentist at her new practice and let her know that she kind of blew it on the business side.

Mia Hannah 1:03:02

I have a really great dentist in Duluth. Just saying my dentist will beat up your dentist Whoa. All right, we'll have to talk because this is it's important, because I'm a, I'm one of those people that that's like probably my biggest fear is dentists Anti-dentite.

Chris Lalomia 1:03:16

I well, I go every three months and here we go. Now we're talking about this.

Mia Hannah 1:03:20

You know, in a small business party, you just don't know what you're going to get.

Chris Lalomia 1:03:24

But you keep listening because you're just not sure what he's gonna say next.

Alan Wyatt 1:03:28

You know watching the car wreck.

Chris Lalomia 1:03:30

Oh my god, it's just so bad. It just keeps going over and over and over. Okay, so next question, and I think we're at the end. Give us a DIY nightmare story.

Mia Hannah 1:03:41

Oh, this is good.

Chris Lalomia 1:03:42

Did I get to the end?

Alan Wyatt 1:03:43

Yeah you did. Yeah, we're on.

Chris Lalomia 1:03:45

D, I know, thank you. I have four questions A, one, two, four, seven.

Mia Hannah 1:03:52

So the one thing I do want to say about this is that I am. I don't do DIY Never, ever. I'm. I've never done that, I've been. You know that tier I had when I came in. That's pretty much the way I am about DIY.

Alan Wyatt 1:04:04

Back on your head shortly. I know we're almost over. It's almost over.

Mia Hannah 1:04:08

But I did have this one situation. I used to be quite the party giver. I had parties at my house all the time and I always did like. One of my biggest batches was my Christmas party. And the day before my Christmas party I like, I noticed that the toilet and the but in the downstairs, you know, in my main area, was really slow to drain and it was like what's wrong with that. So what did I do? I went well, that's not going to work, so I put drain down the toilet.

Chris Lalomia 1:04:50

Yeah, uh, oh, what is that? Danger will Robinson? Danger will Robinson, that's an old timey reference from a long time ago that's lost.

Mia Hannah 1:05:01

Lost in space. Oh, he knows it. Oh, my God.

Chris Lalomia 1:05:04

You do not put drain out down the toilet, my friends, because why did it? Oh, was it do? Did you flush it? Does it blow up? It does.

Alan Wyatt 1:05:13

Are you serious? Okay, yes, never put drain out down a toilet.

Chris Lalomia 1:05:17

Do that tonight, friends friends, don't ever put drain out.

Mia Hannah 1:05:21

Don't have a toilet.

Chris Lalomia 1:05:22

There's a plunger for a reason.

Mia Hannah 1:05:23

Toilets are made for a different drain out. But even the plunger, I tried the plunger, it wasn't working. It was slow, it was just slow.

Alan Wyatt 1:05:29

So anyway so what happens is?

Mia Hannah 1:05:32

I had to wash all my table linens for this party.

Chris Lalomia 1:05:35

I mean, I'm seriously. It's not instant combustion, you have to flush it and then it blows.

Mia Hannah 1:05:39

I had like 75 people coming over to my house the next day. I started my washing machine and everything started coming out.

Alan Wyatt 1:05:50

Oh, my God Any water.

Chris Lalomia 1:05:52

Shit clogging the main. Shit clogging the main.

Mia Hannah 1:05:54

Water on the main floor.

Chris Lalomia 1:05:57

This is a good one. This is great the day before my party it was horrific, are you saying and this is for Christmas, merry Christmas, hey, so if there was?

Alan Wyatt 1:06:08

somebody who wasn't like my favorite and I got invited to a party and I brought some drain out and I stuck it down their toilet and they didn't know.

Chris Lalomia 1:06:16

Would it blow up If it's flowing? It would not blow up.

Mia Hannah 1:06:19

But if it does not, it will come right back at you. Well, you guys haven't heard. You have not heard the best part yet.

Chris Lalomia 1:06:25

Oh, let's continue.

Mia Hannah 1:06:27

So it was. I was on the septic tank. I was in vinyns at the time. That's where I live, in vinyns. I was on the septic tank, and it's right oh are you serious, I don't know.

Alan Wyatt 1:06:40

This is why I'm not DIY People. How do we?

Chris Lalomia 1:06:43

not know. This Call me.

Mia Hannah 1:06:45

So I finally got desperate. I was like OK, so I call the emergency plumber and he comes over and they're like where's the septic tank? I had no idea where the septic tank was. They started digging. It was five feet from my front door.

Alan Wyatt 1:07:02

Your septic tank.

Mia Hannah 1:07:03

Yeah, oh, it gets better, hold on. So yeah, it was five feet from my front door, so that looks like a big funeral plot. I mean it does. I mean it's the shape and everything.

Chris Lalomia 1:07:17

It is yeah, yeah, that's where your barrier dead in your ship.

Mia Hannah 1:07:21

So they bear, and so it's 2 o'clock in the morning Now. I want you to know that I lived in a duplex. I lived in this really, really cool place. Do you remember the Ski Hill in Vinyns?

Chris Lalomia 1:07:32

No.

Tenacious Marketing Tips

Mia Hannah 1:07:32

That was back way back in the party day. Yeah, that's before your time. So I lived in a duplex and I had these three girls living next to me. Now I want you to know, before I tell you this, that I had only been in this place for six months and the septic tank's on my side they dig it up. It's 2 AM in the morning and the guy comes into the door and he goes ma'am, can you come out here and look at the septic tank? I just need to show you this and I go out there. Should I say this Go ahead. Yeah, please sit, I already know what's going.

Chris Lalomia 1:08:09

I know it's coming, go ahead.

Mia Hannah 1:08:11

Go. The whole top layer was condoms.

Chris Lalomia 1:08:17

Ooh, were you expecting that, chris? No, I was using the T-word, I was going tampons.

Mia Hannah 1:08:22

No, it was condoms.

Chris Lalomia 1:08:23

The whole top layer was condoms. Didn't know that.

Mia Hannah 1:08:28

No, I was actually going tampons and he was like you're not supposed to do this, so I'm like I.

Alan Wyatt 1:08:32

Oh, so he was thinking they were yours. Yes, he thought it was mine. He's like hey, ma'am, and then he's thinking hey, do I got a chance?

Chris Lalomia 1:08:39

Not a chance there, plumbercrap, but OK, all right, there you go. There's the DIY nightmare story. That one is classic. And now we've all learned something else You've never put Dorino down a toilet, alan. We'll talk after we get out this podcast.

Mia Hannah 1:08:52

Can you take that last part out when you edit this? Sure? Oh yeah, We'll edit it anywhere you want.

Chris Lalomia 1:08:58

Mia Hanna, you've been an incredible guest. Touch Plus marketing. This is marketing at its finest, because what today's marketing is all about is being different in the world, and right now you just got different, if you stayed this long on this podcast. You got some different shit. Man Fuckers, we got to go.

Alan Wyatt 1:09:13

I think you got a new idea for your next video, for your newsletter.

Chris Lalomia 1:09:16

I know exactly. Do you have condoms?

Alan Wyatt 1:09:17

all over the top of your septic tank.

Chris Lalomia 1:09:19

Cold, chris, cold, chris, boom, dorino blowing up in your eye.

Chris Lalomia 1:09:22

Ha ha ha. All right, we've had a lot of fun. Mia, we are going to put this all over the show notes, but marketing, marketing, marketing people. You picked up something great, arc. If you're trying to grow your business and keep going, look, you've got a couple different ways you can do it. You can go corporate America and you can work for the man and they keep cutting in half, cutting in half. You can go out there and take that chance and bet on yourself and guess what? It's not always easy. That's what we just heard, but you know what you can keep doing. Stick to it, be tenacious, Tent.

Alan Wyatt 1:09:51

Tenacious, tenacious, tent.

Chris Lalomia 1:09:54

Because I was thinking damn, that's my problem.

Mia Hannah 1:09:56

I'm stuck in my head so I couldn't. I would not have said that.

Chris Lalomia 1:10:00

OK, well, I would have, Well I decided that you were totally right.

Mia Hannah 1:10:04

Hey, I got a video for you All right, stay tenacious, keep going.

Chris Lalomia 1:10:07

Let's get up that mountaintop and let's make it happen. Everybody, we're out here. We've got to go. Cheers. Thank you for watching.