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For Wiseberry Heritage sales manager Kimberley Burke, “the game changed but the goals definitely didn’t” as COVID-19 impacted the property market.
At the beginning of FY2020, Ms Burke set out to achieve big goals, including writing $1.5 million in commission dollars, ultimately utilising his 17 years’ worth of industry experience and 33 years of local area knowledge as part of Wiseberry Lake Munmorah.
“My biggest goals and focal point for the financial year was to help 100 move, buy another investment property and to write $1.5 million in commission dollars for the year,” she said.
“In order to do this, I also had the goal of increasing my market share to 30 per cent and to increase my personal team to ensure that the client service was so fantastic that our clientele became raving fans and lifelong friends.”
However, like most professionals, Ms Burke encountered hurdles with the onset of COVID-19.
“Things changed day by day” for everyone from the day the first lockdown measures were implemented, and the agent said her team definitely had to work smarter, harder and longer to achieve the results that they wanted.
“Even with over 17 years’ experience in the industry, the processes I had to undertake I had never seen before nor thought I would ever have to,” Ms Burke commented.
This meant changing up many of her usual ways of operating to fit the changing needs of the market, “from the qualifying process for buyers and sellers, inspections and even negotiations to match the constantly changing climate”.
So, while the game changed, Ms Burke said “the goals definitely didn’t”.
“If anything, it made reaching these goals more of a worthwhile challenge… It was worth it!”
According to the agent, the biggest factor in her success during this time was to not stop: “I was watching so many agents around me take their foot off due to the unknown instead of pushing harder to stay relevant in such a bizarre time.”
She considered empathy as a hugely important factor through this time, with current sellers experiencing difficulties, buyers having to change course and the standard stress of property being increased tenfold.
It’s why every move she made amid the “new normal” was focused on making her clients comfortable while still maintaining the level of excitement about moving into the next chapter of their lives.
For instance, Ms Burke has turned inspections into video tours for the initial buyer inspection.
Further, she made sure to maintain good relationships with brokers, banks and conveyancers in order to get sales across the line.
“As always, communication is always the biggest factor and this became even more important,” Ms Burke highlighted.
All about the people
Ultimately, for Ms Burke, the ability to build genuine relationships and consequently understanding the needs of her clients became critical in keeping her sales momentum amid the pandemic.
She explained how once you do understand the needs of a client, the dynamic of the negotiations changes dramatically and trust is established.
From Ms Burke’s perspective, this is what you need “in order to secure the perfect sale”.
She also made sure to continue learning, keeping her foot on the ground to continuously improve her local knowledge and tailor her service to the current needs of her clients.
“Throughout my 17 years in the industry, I have never stopped training and always chased every opportunity to develop and work on myself both professionally and personally. I have found that one of the most vital aspects of this is association — the people that I surround myself on a day-to-day basis — continue to challenge me and help me grow within my skill set, and [in] life in general.”
For real estate agents who are aspiring to top dealmaker status, her advice is: “Think of people before you think of the money. Results will always follow.”
“Take care of the people around you and they will take care of you. As you help the people around you grow, you will gain growth in return,” Ms Burke concluded.
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