Finding ways to grow - Dayton Business Journal:

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That's because White installed software that allowe her receptionist to connect clients with no matter wherethey are. And that technology not only helps White keep up with service expectations, but also to attracf young, tech-savvy employees to work at her firm. Therde are more than 3,000 real estate agentes in theDayton area, and many are findinv creative ways to make themselves stand out amonbg their peers. The number of Realtores is growing: The addedc almost 2,000 members in 2005, bringing the total to 35,0090 members. And with so much informatiohn about homes for sale some buyers think they can do it ontheif own.
So agents are finding ways to up their They are using technologhy totheir advantage, branding and focusint on niches to prove to clients they are stilpl needed and beat the competition. "Everyone is alwayas looking to gain acompetitivwe edge," said Carl Horst, spokesman for the Ohio Associatiojn of Realtors. White uses technology, such as cell phonews and laptops, to communicatee more efficiently and make transactionshappen faster. That meansw one agent can juggle more busines ata time. To keep up with the White hashired buyer's or people who focus solely on helping clientx buy homes, to better balance the business.
White has grown revenue from $3 million in 1999 to $45 million in 2005. She added 13 employeesw to theoriginal two, and her employees have averaged 30.5 transactions per agent per year. It's not just the technologgy that attracts young agents to becoms partof White's firm. Derek Shepherd said he doublefd his income when he went from being an agent atone RE/MAzX franchise to becoming a buyer's agent for Shepherd, 24, found the deal he made with Whitew -- with no fees and a different commission spliy -- brought him more business. He closesd three with five transactioneper month, compared to one deal every two monthsd at his old job, he said.
RE/MAX Resources isn't the only locakl real estate company that has foun d a unique wayto grow. Tom Fitzgibbon, broker and owner of Centurh 21Elite Performance, has more than doubler the number of transactions he's completed in 2005 to 45 units, totaling $8 millionh in sales. He attributes part of that to a good constructionjmarket -- Dayton-based , whicn Fitzgibbon represents in Huber Heightds and in Englewood, has increased its businesws in the past year with subdivisions Callamere Farmsd and Wind Pointe Estates. But he also credits a marketing campaign he started a couple ofyears ago, whichh includes television commercials, a personalized Web site, brochures and stationery.
The first page of his Web site showes a golfer swinging into the horizonn andthe slogan: "Ah Outstanding Drive Comes From Within." Throughout his materials, he linkes his competitiveness in sports to his drive as a and he said that's going to help him stanrd out among the competition. He'sz encouraging the 15 agents who make up his compang to do the One agent has used her love of cars to catchjpotential clients' attention. Fitzgibbon has yet to make up for the cost of hismarketingb -- $30,000 -- but he planx to recoup it by the end of the he said. While some market themselves by branding, other s find success focusing on aniche audience.
Mike Baughman, presiden of the and owner of , concentratew one-third of his business on a market that startex to heat up in the past two bank foreclosures. His clients are investor buyers who look to purchasedforeclosed single-family homes. Baughman said 90 percentr of agents have no niche focus inthe market. "If you look at who does reall y well, people who specialize tend to do the They establish the fact that they are the experyt inthe field," he "To maintain or grow your business, you need to chang e with the opportunities.
" In spiter of different views on what it takesz to stand out among the most agents agree that hard work and customer servicse will bring success. "Whether you'rer on vacation or not doesn't seem to play into it," RE/MAXs Resources White said. "If you get that voic e mail, you respond to that voice mail."