Entry by Merv Forney

SmartPlan™

  23 Comments

SmartPlan.jpgHere is important information on the SmartPlan™ cost, licensing, coaching and payment:

COST: The SmartPlan™ templates are free. You only pay for two hours of consultation on how they are built and how to use them with clients. A single purchase is $350 for individual one-on-one coaching. You CAN "buddy up" with one or more agents and the cost is $200 each. The coaching will be done simultaneously with all "buddy" participants via a conference call.

LICENSE: The SmartPlan™ license is for one user. The templates are proprietary and confidential to protect both the end user (you) and me. The templates cannot be copied, shared or distributed in any form to third parties without my written permission. And, under no circumstances can the templates be displayed in public in any form including Websites. A printed (and signed) copy of the SmartPlan™ you created for a client CAN and MUST be given to clients that engage in a listing or buying agreement since the resulting fee plan becomes part of the agreement. Listing and buying agreements are confidential so we are protected. Clients should be reminded that the agreement and SmartPlan™ you created for them is confidential. A copy of any plan you create must NOT be given to clients without an executed agreement.

COACHING: I believe it is imperative that I personally provide the coaching for several reasons.

  • I need to understand how you work to best advise you on how to use them,
  • I need to understand your market to advise you on hourly rates,
  • Not all jurisdictions are the same and it is important for me to understand your unique requirements, and
  • I cannot get a sense of your proficiency and understanding without having the personal contact.

It is important that I know you have grasped the concepts and can use them appropriately. Hence, no canned instruction. Also, buying only a portion of the coaching is not permissible. It DOES take the full two hours to adequately cover the important concepts on how they are built and how to use them with clients.

GUIDELINES: It is a very intense 2 hour consultation. There will be many questions. So, my experience is that three (3) participants is the practical maximum. More than that diminishes the effectiveness of the conference for all participants.

Also, it is extremely important that participants know their way around Excel spreadsheets and workbooks from a basic understanding and navigation. It's OK if you don't but I can only take you solo (no buddy). It is the only way to be fair to you (you will require personal attention) and not hold back other participants.

The SmartPlan is MS Excel based so you will need Microsoft Excel (Office 2003 or greater) on your computers.

PAYMENT: I only accept payment via credit card by using a PayPal business interface. You do not need to be a PayPal member to use this service. Note: There will be a $10 processing fee added to the price to cover my out of pocket cost and additional administrative handling. I no longer accept checks.

For more information or to request this service contact me at:

merv.forney@erols.com or ...
make a request by leaving a comment on this post or ..
call 703-431-2145

Note: I am traveling North America I never know what time zone I will be in.

23 Comments

I am IN. I want to buddy up. Please let me know where to mail my check to you and when I can do the coaching call. I am hoping it can be early this week, or later this week at the latest - I suddenly have a potential client who's interested in this approach and I don't have a very well defined plan so I'm in "need help" mode!

Thanks!
Mary

Check your email. More instructions coming soon.

Marv,
We spoke last month. I too wish to sign up.
Larry Thomas

Pam Henhold is seeking a "buddy" to team up with for the SmartPlan. If you are interested contact her directly at

Pam Henhold

As a reminder:
Single purchase cost: $350
Buddy purchase cost: $200 each (max of three at a time)

You purchase 2 hours of my time, the templates are free.

Here is a recent, very astute question:

If 2 people are $200 a piece is there any discount per person for 3 people? Or is there some flexibility in the amount of time it will take???

Here is my answer:

No further discount or extension of time for 3 participants. Nice try!!! I typically spend at least 2 hours preparing for a two hour call. This is called overhead and is part of my multi-agent CONSULTING fee. We will learn more about overhead during our call.

Important: When developing your hourly rate or fixed price service be sure to include the COST OF INDIRECT time. That is, as in my example above, the time spent before or after a direct service to a consumer or client.

I am such a strong believer of Merv's SmartPlan and I would have been lost without the consultation.

I purchased it when I was fairly new to ACRE® and totally in a fog. I can't tell you how powerful this tool is, especially if you use it with the services you will include after looking at the Needs Analysis.

I signed up with a Buddy and IMO, it was one of the best investments I have made. Merv is super on the consultation.

Laurie

Yes, I would like to buddy up with someone, please contact me directly.

Barbara Kyle is seeking a "buddy" for the SmartPlan™. Anyone interested should contact her directly via email at: Barabara Kyle

Barbara Kyle is again seeking a "buddy" for the SmartPlan™. Anyone interested should contact her directly via email at: Barabara Kyle

I'd be willing to buddy with someone on the SmartPlan coaching.

Hello Mr. Forney:

I would like to start my training with the Smart Plan as soon as you could schedule it.  I will be doing it alone as I'll need help with the Excel program.  I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Toni Kuilan

Toni, I'll email you offline.

Merv

Hi Merv- if Fred Carver and I buddy up on your Smartplan, can we both obtain rights to use the forms, etc? Thanks,

Tony Wick

Hi Tony,

Yes, you both will have individual use of the templates.

Are the templates only excel? I have a Mac and an iPad both are using Numbers. Thanks.

Hi Frank, Sorry, Excel  only.

Numbers on a Mac does a good job reading and writing Excel files. Give it a try. It just might work. If you need someone to test a file or two, let me know. I'd be glad to help with my new MacBook Pro!

For the IPAD, you might try Quickoffice.  It handles my mirosoft files and is pretty easy to use.  I think it was $10, or so.

Thanks for the input. I have Quickoffice for the iPad and VMWARE Fusion Windows emulator with Office 2007 for my MacBook Pro. I was just hoping that their was a native solution. I've noticed especially with spreadsheets that a lot gets "lost" in translation.

Thanks again.

 

Hi Merv,

You mention that the templates are free. Does that mean i can get a copy of them, or do I need to sign up for a consultation to get the free templates?

 

Walter,

Thanks for your inquiry.

I don't give away the templates without the coaching (consultation) as described:

COST: The SmartPlan™ templates are free. You only pay for two hours of consultation on how they are built and how to use them with clients. A single purchase is $350 for individual one-on-one coaching. You CAN "buddy up" with one or more agents and the cost is $200 each. The coaching will be done simultaneously with all "buddy" participants via a conference call.

And,

COACHING: I believe it is imperative that I personally provide the coaching for several reasons.

  • I need to understand how you work to best advise you on how to use them,
  • I need to understand your market to advise you on hourly rates,
  • Not all jurisdictions are the same and it is important for me to understand your unique requirements, and
  • I cannot get a sense of your proficiency and understanding without having the personal contact.

It is important that I know you have grasped the concepts and can use them appropriately.

I could SELL the templates without coaching and I would have no idea how one might misrepresent them to clients. Would you give away a MLS Listing without other REALTOR® services?

Also, The templates come with consulting with me on how to use them (services) so I don't get bogged down with software sales taxes in every state and province in North America.

Hello, anyone who is looking for someone to "buddy" up with for Merv Forney's Smartplan please let me know, I am ready to sign up ASAP.  You can reach me at majogi1@yahoo.com

Afternoon,

I am ready to get moving on this...  My email is Keith@soundpointre.com for anyone who wants to do this together....  This will be fun!!

I'm looking for someone to buddy up on a SMARTPLAN coaching with Merv.  Please contact me if you'd like to take advantage of this opportunity! Linda Balliro

lballiro@comcast.net.  617-401-4048

This page contains a single entry by Merv Forney published on March 14, 2009 5:00 AM.

Mother NAR's Approval was the previous entry in this blog.

What is the SmartPlan? is the next entry in this blog.

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