Real estate coaches are a vital part of the industry (as our special report clearly shows), and Mike Ferry, founder of The Mike Ferry Organization, is one of the best-known coaches in the industry. He answered several questions from Inman for the inaugural post in our real estate coach profile series:
Age: 69
Social media: LinkedIn
What’s your favorite activity outside of work and why?
My wife and I travel extensively throughout the world, and a good portion of the time we are at beautiful golf resorts as we travel. It’s great to see how the rest of the world lives.
How many agents do you coach?
I personally coach 16 brokers/owners.
How many agents does your business coach?
Just over 2,500.
Do you measure the ROI of your clients? How?
More than 20 years ago, we developed what we call the Numbers Analyzer. With this tool, we ask our clients to state their transaction and income goals, and then we measure how they’re doing each week against that goal and tell them what adjustments have to be made to accomplish that goal. We don’t get involved in talking to them about the return of their investment because each one makes the investment for a different reason.
Do you find some holidays annoying?
The only annoying part is the number of holidays there are.
Differing people have different needs. But what specific strategies do you seem to find yourself recommending most to real estate agents?
You’re correct: Each person has different needs. However, most of them revolve around refining their sales skills so they can operate a business effectively; strengthening or maintaining a positive mindset to make it through the day; and taking some type of productive action each day so they can look back and say it was a great day.
What are some common hang-ups or weaknesses that keep agents from realizing their full potential?
It’s simple: They don’t have goals, objectives, dreams or passions that drive them and keep them motivated to accomplish something great.
How do you address those hang-ups or weaknesses through coaching?
We can’t create motivation in an individual who doesn’t have it. Motivation is internal, not external. So, we can’t do anything more than suggest that they try to create a goal that goes beyond complacency or “just getting by.”
How much does the average client pay your business for coaching every month?
The average client pays $1,000 per month.
What’s the biggest obstacle you’ve faced in growing your business?
We are creating our own competition every day because everybody looks at what we do and thinks it must be easy, so they break off from us to start their own companies.
How have you tried to overcome this obstacle?
My job is to create ideas faster than my competition can borrow them from me.
What do you do when you want to relax?
I play golf, read or walk on the beach.
Do you think coaching is more popular in real estate than other sales industries?
I only deal in real estate, so I can’t answer that question.
Have you ever been a real estate agent?
Yes, I was an agent and owned a company in Southern California.
Do clients often begin coaching agents themselves?
As stated previously, so many of our clients think that building a business is simple (maybe because we do it so well and it looks easy) that, therefore, they break off and try to become coaches themselves.
How should real estate agents measure success?
The industry says it’s by gross sales volume, gross income or number of transactions. But we believe an agent should measure their success based upon the plans and goals they’ve set and their ability to work toward them and accomplish them.
Want to be a part of our coach profile series? Email contributors@inman.com.