You originally accepted the challenge of a real estate agent for many reasons. It may have been due to your love for meeting new people, or finding just the right house for the specific needs of a family. Then you discovered all the planning and paperwork involved in the process. There is marketing, contact management, client acquisition, client retention, design, along with many other administrative and development issues. In a perfect world you could hire someone who would only come to work when you really needed them and they’d always know just what to do. They would never call in sick, take up space in your office, or bother you with insurance concerns. Welcome to a Perfect World The idea of a virtual assistant may sound unique and perhaps even a bit futuristic, but a Real Estate Virtual Assistant can provide the perfect opportunity for you to do what you do best without the hassle of many undesirable elements of real estate sales including transaction coordination, marketing design work, client database management, data entry, lead follow-up, and lead generation. A web-based virtual assistant can aid you in critical times, allowing you to more fully concentrate on what you enjoy most - serving your clients and selling property. Practical Reasoning Virtual assistants never take up room in your office, they never call in sick, they aren’t entitled to workman’s compensation and best of all they take care of you in some very specific ways. -Reduce administrative tasks -Increase market awareness -Handle design tasks -Perform transaction tasks -Free up time for agent -Track and follow up with leads -Stay in touch with past clients on agents behalf -Perform direct mail marketing campaigns -Configure and maintain contact database You might already have a capable assistant in your office, but by learning more about the services of a Real Estate Virtual Assistant you might think twice about hiring a replacement when they leave. A Virtual Assistant - What Do They Do? A virtual assistant will make your business their business for as long as you need them. They take care of all the details you know are needed, but hate doing. Ask yourself, who do you think would do a job better…someone who wishes they weren’t doing it or someone that makes it their specialty? A virtual assistant is someone who makes use of available technology to help you build and maintain your business. Change Can Be Good We understand this idea may seem strange to the sensibilities of some, but as communication methods, technologies, and software have advanced so have opportunities for cost effective outsourcing that frees real estate agents to pursue more lucrative endeavors. If you have a need for an assistant, but wonder about the cost effective nature of such a hire, consider the benefits of a virtual assistant providing both a viable short and long-term strategy as well as saving you time and money.
Sarah Reiter is president of Creative Agent Solutions, a virtual marketing company that specializes in <a href="www.VirtualCAS.com">real estate services</a>. Creative
Agent Solutions is a member of the International Virtual Assistants Association (IVAA), the Southeast Valley Regional Association of Realtors (SEVRAR) and Scottsdale Association of Realtors in Arizona (SAAR), as well as a Certified Virtual Assistant
(CVA) with the Settlement Room.
