Do you let your prospects and clients know who you really are, or do you hide behind a professional mask?
In reading real estate websites and “about me” pages, it’s clear to see that plenty of agents are hiding. Their 
names and photos are there, but “who they are” is missing. They list their experience and credentials, but offer nothing that gives a clue to their personality, their business philosophy, or what they care about beyond the commission check.
It seems to me that if you want customers and prospective customers to trust you, you need to let them know who you really are underneath that professional exterior. And I think this practice yields results in two ways.
First – they see that you’re “real.” Just yesterday I watched a professionally produced, well-polished promotional video clip that brought just one word to mind: plastic. Worse, I got a feeling that I probably wouldn’t like any of the members of that real estate team.
Maybe it’s just me, but I like to deal with people who seem to have some personality. If I’m going to choose you to represent me in a real estate transaction I want to know that you have some enthusiasm for the business – and for helping me accomplish my goals. I want to see that you’re a good-hearted person, not a mean-spirited individual who seeks someone to blame – or disappears – if the going gets tough.
Second – when you share something of yourself, you allow your prospects to see that in some way, you are “like” them. And that means you’re probably a good person. That may be a wrong assumption, but that’s another story.
I’m a dog person, and even though the years I spent in rescue proved to me that it isn’t true, my first impression of someone who is (or claims to be) a dog person is that they’re probably OK. I feel the same way about horse people, gardeners, and people who home school their kids.
If you’re a golfer, or a non-profit volunteer, a parent to 6 kids, a hot air balloon enthusiast, or a gourmet cook, you naturally are drawn to others who share those interests and activities. Prospects can also find a connection to you based on your past occupations, your hometown, or where you went to school.
You don’t have to reveal every aspect of your private life in order to show who you really are, but if you share a little, you’ll become a real person and people will trust you more.
Be who you are, and let others know who you are. Not everyone will love you, but you don’t needeveryone to love you.
Besides, you’ll have more fun working when the people who choose you are “like you.”
To learn more about what goes into an effective agent bio and to see samples, click here.
Image courtesy of Stuart Miles @ free digitalphotos.net
