One of the things I like to do is network. Getting out and meeting other professionals and seeing what is happening in and around the real estate business I feel offers a great opportunity to escalate all the success I'm trying to attain in this local market. Since I love technology I attend as many technology related seminars as I can as well.
Attending events has made me witness how different crowds with different niches interact with one another. Additionally, since I have so many years experience in the work a day world in general it lends to the fact that I attended many conferences, seminars, business events, and networking events in my lifetime.
Recently I had the experience of attending a real estate event. Since it was an event catering to real estate investors I felt it would be an ideal opportunity to pass out 1/2 page size postcards with two listings I have which would be great for investors. I kept the postcards short and to the point, price, 3 of the best photos for the properties, my contact information, and of course required disclosures.
One huge thing I noticed at the event is I saw no one else doing the same. Did I feel out of place? No. I felt like everyone else in the room should have been promoting their efforts or quests in a similar fashion since after all I saw it was a business networking opportunity. I even had a couple of people ask me “Can I have one?” as I was handing my postcards out to others.
It made me feel good that I didn't just show up to be a wall flower. Which leads me to the thought in order to get seeds to grow it sometimes requires walking around the yard to water them.
I know a few times I've slipped and showed up to events empty handed. I was totally disappointed I did not capitalize on the opportunity at hand afterwards. My challenge to everyone if you aren't doing it already is to make every networking opportunity work to your advantage. As the saying goes nothing beats a failure but a try. Promote! Promote! Promote! Don’t learn the hard way like I have in the past, empty hands can lead to empty pockets.
