"Getting the word out" is certainly one of the biggest hurdles we have in any venture we undertake.  And doing it CREDIBLY even moreso.  After all, we've all encourted charletains of one sort or another who professed certain talent or expertise...but then we discovered (too late, no doubt) that it was all a ruse, that they simply spun a web to get down into our wallet.  No one wants that to happen to them!

Frankly, that IS the beauty of Facebook.  When you put yourself "out there" personally, you begin to gather your friends and family and share all sorts of things.  Some things are consequential...some not so much.  Eventually, if you keep active in the platform, you discover that something else you begin to gather is NEW friends.  People who are already friends of your "friends", or people who have similar interests as you. It's the perfect place to begin creating that credibiltiy.

But what about the "business" portion of it?

We just had a question from an agent who's been working with short sales and wondering how the ACRE consulting model might (or might not) fit in.  Below is his question ... and my response. We encourage YOU to take part in this discussion ... what are your thoughts, concerns, and experiences when dealing with short sales, and do you apply the same or similar options with them as you would with the "normal" transaction.

QUESTION

I handle alot of short sales and have a question for you. When doing a short sale you cannnot charge a fee for you "extra" services. Not only is it illegal, it is unethical in my opinion.  However, within the ACRE program I am wondering if you/me/we or someonewere to get a license with DFI, would that make it legal and ethical??

We know this is a topic near and dear to all of you, so we decided to share as much as possible of what we talked about here on the Exchange. Unfortuately, despite repeated attempts, we were unable to record the session. However we tried to make copious notes and hope you're all able to find a useful nugget or two. Enjoy!

Knowing and charging for your value is at the heart of consulting. And even IF you never actually use "by the hour" charging, once you go through the exercise of actually determining your "hourly" rate, you will never, ever look at how you spend your time in the same way. And an additional byproduct of that exercise is that it better prepares you for having honest discussions with consumers about the whole compensation topic! We're being challenged more and more by, not just the internet, but by all sorts of "alternative" business models playing the "who can charge the least" or "How low can you go" game. And when it comes to commission "limbo", no one wins....not the consumer and certainly not the agent. Whether you're talking about seller services or buyer services, like working with buyers without so much as a signed buyer agreement, when we "give away" our time, all we are doing is reducing our value...both in the eyes of the consumer, as well as ourselves.

When asked about what percentage of agents could likely become "real" real estate consultants, Mollie's response is "likely less than 1%....in order to charge for expertise, the agent must have some!"

I don't know how many of you are already subscribers to Jim Kimmons' blog...but if you're not already reading it, you should be. Not only does he provide exceptional content, as one of our ACRE grads, he also incorporates the "consulting mindset" into the perspective from which he writes his articles!

THIS IS LONG, FOLKS (SORRY)....BUT HOPEFULLY HAS SOME GREAT NUGGETS IN IT FOR YOU!

We just completed our very first Teleseminar for 2008 - the topic being "Consulting with Homeowners". What follows is as much of the "essence" of this discussion as my dancing little fingers were able to capture...but hopefully it will be sufficient to be a "reminder" for the great group who participated...while also offering some food for thought for those who were not able to make it. We hope, whether you were able to join us today or not, the following will jog your imagination, get the creative juices flowing, and generate some of those fabulous AHA!!! Moments that some of today's participants experienced. Hopefully, you'll want to continue the dialogue here...ask questions, make comments....we'd really LOVE your input!!!

One of our Grads sent me a message off list today thinking she had somehow missed something and wanted to be sure she knew where to find it. She really hadn't missed anything, but when I began writing a response to her, I decided it would best put here instead...both in the event someone else had the same "perception" that she did...but also to bring up something that I don't recall having discussed here. What she wrote was basically "I recently saw a post to Laurie Furem that mentions something about a pre-list package. I was wondering whether you can direct me to it so I can check out that pre-listing presentation.

Alright, we've all heard it before...never ASS U ME anything! I'm sharing this with the group because I felt there was a valuable lesson here...both for myself, as well as for any of the rest of you who may be reluctant about the response you'll get from your office. Now, I certainly understand that in the "traditional" split type offices, the rules of engagement are quite a bit different. But for the rest of us...who are supposed to be able to operate more independently, here's my story....

Talked about Consulting are our network meeting this afternoon. VERY interesting. One very outspoken member had her defenses way up before I began talking...I just said "maybe it would be best to hear what I've brought BEFORE coming to any conclusions". She was in a tither because of ongoing fees to be listed on the site, etc. Another equally outspoken member said (after the presentation) that she agreed with what I'd presented 1000%.

I kept trying to differentiate your program from the typical "discounted", limited service, etc., programs out there, and also tried to get the point across (which several in the group DID pick up on and comment on)...this is ALL ABOUT DIFFERENTIATION...and creating an opportunity to get in the door of many people who would otherwise pass us up. Rather like the guys who promote "we'll sell your house in 30 days or we'll buy it for cash!" Consumer thinks that's great....until they sit down and get the details....like the cash guarantee as 15% BELOW market value! At which time they opt for the "traditional listing agreement". But the GUY GOT IN THE DOOR!

Several want more information. I had gotten through about 100 pages of the book before the meeting and emailed everyone a link to the book details and a link to your video. Several said they'd surely get the book (I made sure they understood it was written for the consumer, not the agent....but was well worth OUR reading too). I also told them that in the 100 pages I DID read, there was not a single point you made that I did not agree with wholeheartedly! Great Job!!!

Judi