Allow me to pose a question. What does it take to become the top listing agent in your market? If you’ve ever asked yourself that question, you’re already on your way! You’ve shown that you’re interested in mastering the listing side of our business. And you’ve acknowledged that you are competitive — very competitive. You’ve shown your desire to become the best at something, so you’re not interested in mediocrity.

What if I told you that the difference between a struggling agent and a master listing agent is very small? What if I told you that most agents I’ve met have within them the potential to become top agents?

“Okay, Matt,” you’re probably thinking, “if it’s so easy, then why are most agents struggling today?”

I believe they struggle because of fear. Fear of believing that they can be great agents. Fear of trying something that they’ve never tried before. Fear of investing in their own business. Fear of what other agents or their broker might think of them. Fear of going for it. But that can stop today.

As you begin to read The New Ultimate Listing Presentation, I want you to consider that, in all likelihood, you already have the ability to become a master listing agent. You simply need some help pointing yourself in the right direction. Well, that and you need to face your own fears.

How do I know? Because I nearly failed in real estate — and I nearly quit the business because I was working very hard and making very little money. Thankfully, I didn’t quit. Instead, I went on to list dozens of properties over the next few months.

During my first calendar year in the business I listed 114 homes, and all at 8% commission or more! I did it in a below-average real estate market. And if I can do it, I know that most of you who are reading this can do it too.

In The New Ultimate Listing Presentation I’m going to tell you exactly what I’ve learned to do — the very step-by-step process. If you follow it, and follow it step-by-step, I know it will work for you as well. Before I get into the actual steps, however, I want to share with you an email I got last week from one of our agents.

“Dear Matt:

I wanted to send you the listings that I have obtained in the past 2 months at 8% commission. It has been very exciting to obtain the listings because I have not had one commission objection!

$ 59,000 @ 8%
$ 79,000 @ 7%
$ 432,000 @ 8%
$ 349,000 @ 8%
$ 341,000 @ 8%
$ 525,000 @ 8%
$ 489,000 @ 8%
$ 169,000 @ 7%
$ 375,000 @ 8%

Total listings $ 3,497,000 and total commission $ 277,280 — wow!!! Now, all I want to do is to get more listings at 8%! As you say, it is a numbers game and I know that some of this is going to close and I want to maximize the numbers. Just for your information, of my last 8 listing presentations I have closed 7 of them. So interesting because I have no commission objections! More to come. This is just the start of something HUGE!!!

Brian Bell
Sutton Group Lake Front Realty”

Let me ask you a couple of questions. Do you think this agent had any idea that he could be this successful before learning my listing approach? Did he suddenly get smarter? Did he suddenly work harder? Absolutely not! He did two simple things. First and most importantly, he realized he could do it!

Then he took the same exact procedure I used, and he implemented it step-by-step. I know it sounds too good to be true, but go back and re-read his letter. Even he seems surprised! But more significantly, he knows that his business will never be the same again. Read the last line: “This is just the start of something HUGE!!!”

So let me ask you another question: could this be you in two months? I think it could be. In fact, I know it could be. If you truly want it to be you, if you’re reading this and dreaming “What if it could be me?” — let’s make that dream come true. Somebody has to list those houses in your market. Why shouldn’t it be you? I say it should be you! So here’s what we’re going to do.

As you read The New Ultimate Listing Presentation, I’m going to challenge you to take action to become that master listing agent. You too can list two houses every week, and always list them at a premium. You really can. My dad used to say, “Son, you can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make it drink.” The same is true with this approach — I can’t make you learn it. But I urge you to take responsibility for your own success.

You CAN become the dominant listing agent in your market if you do what I did, and I’ll show you how. I have agents using this approach in markets from Florida to Washington. From New York to California. Small markets and large markets. Buyers’ markets and sellers’ markets. Our system works virtually everywhere that the agent has the courage to apply it.

Agents are telling me that it’s actually working better now than it did several years ago, because now, more than ever, sellers are needing an edge when it comes to selling their homes. And this approach is just that edge. In just a few installments, you’ll see what I mean.

I realize that as you begin to learn my approach, you’ll have questions. I want you to know that I’m happy to help you answer them. I want you to feel free to ask me questions. I’ll do my best to help you. Try me. I am amazed at the emails or voice mails I get from agents who think that they will get some sales department or somebody seven levels down the food chain. It’s funny to watch their reaction when I personally write them back or call them on the phone.

Also feel free to print out the material and take the time to read and study it, whether you read it online or on paper. It really could be the most profitable thing you’ve ever done for your real estate career. At the least, it will open your eyes to a listing approach that you’ve probably never heard before. This much I promise. And it will help you to list at a premium while our entire industry suffers from a downward trend in commissions due to the advance of discount brokerages and agents who can’t hold the line on discounting.

Matt Jones is the founder and CEO of FavoriteAgent.com and nationally syndicated author of LCM: The Secret to Success in the New Age of Real Estate, The Ultimate Listing Presentation, Traffic: How to Sell Fast and Net More, Becoming a Mega-Producer, and 20 Questions: Everything You Always Wanted to Know about Real Estate but Were Afraid to Ask. Jones’ North Carolina-based company has been profiled by major media outlets as an innovator and a pioneer in the industry, and CNN’s Pulse on America claimed FavoriteAgent.com is “changing the way real estate is being done in America.” This content is cross-posted in the following locations: BlogMattBlog.com, RealBlogging.com, NewsGeni.us, and now Amazon Kindle.