Taking the Time to Learn with Maddison Woodward, Michael Bacon and Danielle Jenkins

Working as a cadet then transitioning to a leverage agent teaches the business administration process of real estate, the intricacies of customer service management and the fundamentals of lead generation.

Maddison Woodward

Hitting The Ground Running

Mirroring her grandfather’s and father’s passion for sales, hitting targets flows through Maddison Woodward’s veins. The moment she left school, Maddison took up a position as a cadet.

Working in the Belmont area, for the first two months she worked on reception, mastered the Service Area of a database and assisted in marketing and open for inspection preparation. Maddison says, “Being on reception really taught me how an office worked, who had what responsibilities, where messages went, the business process of real estate.” She had to ensure that any data entered into the database was clean and she advises anyone interested in starting in real estate to get as much database training as they can.

With her strong background in sales, she then progressed onto a client service manager role, working with three agents and started to exercise some decision making power and participate in the sales process. Maddison says, “I handled all buyer enquiries, so the agent’s phone numbers were removed completely from RealEstate.com and Domain and diverted straight to me.” She also tracked buyer enquiry from Inspect Real Estate, Intelli Messaging, emails and ring-in enquiries.

Understanding the importance of qualifying buyer enquiry, she made sure that no-one slipped through the cracks. Confident of her ability to deal with customers, she was then asked to make contact with potential buyers. She also conducted unconditional testimonial calls and handled aspects of the vendor relationship.

After twelve months as a cadet and client service manager, Maddison has now progressed to the leverage role of sales associate generating leads. She says, “The biggest part of my role is prospecting. I’m continually looking to identify further business opportunities by creating referrals, providing that second to none customer service, using qualifying questions when I take enquiries, asking the right questions and really listening, creating quality rapport and just getting out and meeting the community.”

Michael Bacon

Watch This Space

Knowing he wanted to get serious about his real estate career, 18-year old Michael Bacon made the move to Brisbane to learn from the best. He did his research and landed an interview with Steve Grimbas at Place’s Nundah office. He says, “Steve did $46 million worth of sales last year as opposed to $6 million for some other principals. That was a big sign for me to know that I was at the right place with the right support. It was quite scary moving in the first couple of weeks, but I knew it was definitely going to be the best move for me in the future.”

With some experience in a country Queensland office, Michael started as a leverage agent. He explains, “A lot of my business is based on prospecting. I wound up getting 14 appraisals in two weeks. I’ve got 53 appraisals since I started about four months ago.”

Michael works the phone hard. He says, “It’s all about the follow-up. Just the way you speak to people on the phone.”

He says every time he picks up the phone, he thinks, “that’s where the money comes from. That’s the difference between good or bad agents. The good ones always prospect a lot and that’s something you can’t really forget to do. You’ve always got to prospect. Otherwise business won’t come in.”

Michael drops out letters and then in a connected marketing moment, performs the phone call. He is keen to learn and eager to become an agent. He says, “The only thing I worry about is someone asking me, ‘How old are you?’ But he knows the winning argument. He’s fresh. Hungry. He says, “I’m young, I’m modern, I keep up with technology. I don’t have a wife. I don’t have kids. Don’t have a mortgage to pay – all I have to worry about is my career.”

Danielle Jenkins

A Few Years In

Entering the industry straight from school and now at 20 years of age, Danielle is the leverage agent to Allison Mifsud from Epping First National. Allison regularly hits well over a million in performance fees. Danielle is an extension of Allison: making the important phone calls, escalating clients and attending opens.

Part of Danielle’s role is to manage the buyer workflow. She says, “I work alongside Allison. I’ll be there at the open homes meeting and greeting all of the buyers coming through, which then allows me to create more of a relationship with those buyers. I introduce myself, let them have a look around at the property. I follow-up with a phone call on Monday/Tuesday, seeing what their situation is; if they’re interested in buying; if they’re open to receiving a free market appraisal on their current property. I will then take notes on those buyers, let Allison know what everyone’s situation is and we’ll go from there – whether she would like to then personally call certain buyers if she would like to make an appointment for her to come and have a look at their property herself.”

Danielle is also a key part of the selling process and formally introduces herself to vendors which builds her own profile and starts to lay the groundwork for her to one day go solo. A letter goes out to a vendor with her details, so it, as Danielle explains “allows the vendors to have another person who is contactable at all times, as Allison does get quite busy with her appraisals and presentations, listings, et cetera. It allows the vendors to have somebody else alongside who is always contactable, ensuring everything gets done, meeting their needs.”

Like Maddison, Danielle is keen to one-day move into sales. She says of the future, “I see myself listing just like Allison, selling properties, and going as far as Allison has.” She’s certainly in a pole position to take the leap.