Leveraging September

Let’s talk about September. In real estate, September can feel like an in-between month. Summer is winding down, kids are back in school, vacations are ending, and the market may begin to feel a little different. Before you know it, you’re staring directly at the fourth quarter. But I want you to think about September differently. September is a preparation month. You have two equally important jobs during the month of September. The first is to securely wrap up the business you generated during the summer. If you have transactions in escrow, listings under contract, buyers working through inspections, financing, appraisals, repairs, or closing conditions, you cannot afford to take your eye off the ball. Finish strong. Make sure every transaction gets the attention it deserves. Communicate with your clients, stay ahead of potential problems, and follow the critical path all the way to closing. Remember, a transaction is not income until it closes. But here is where balance becomes incredibly important. You cannot become so consumed with closing yesterday’s business that you forget to create tomorrow’s business. That is one of the biggest mistakes sales professionals make. They get busy, they stop prospecting, they stop communicating with their database, and they stop creating new opportunities. Then, 60 or 90 days later, they wonder why their pipeline is empty. September gives you an opportunity to prevent that. While you are wrapping up your summer business, you should simultaneously be preparing for the next 90 days. What is your fourth-quarter communication plan? Who in your database needs a market update? Which homeowners tried to sell during the summer but did not? Which listings are overpriced and may eventually expire or be withdrawn? Which buyers became discouraged because they could not find the right home? These are not dead opportunities. They are conversations waiting to happen. Your job is to educate people about what happens in the fourth quarter and help them understand how they can position themselves for what comes next. And do not forget something else. The fourth quarter does not just determine your fourth-quarter income. The work you do in October, November, and December is very likely creating your January, February, and March income. That means your first quarter next year is already beginning to take shape. So use September intentionally. Finish what you started this summer. Protect the transactions you already have. Continue adding people to your database. Reconnect with buyers and sellers. Plan your holiday communication. Identify the people most likely to transact in the next six months. And most importantly, maintain balance between servicing today’s business and developing tomorrow’s pipeline. September is not a month to coast. It is a month to organize, communicate, prepare, and position. Close the summer strong. Build the fourth quarter deliberately. And use the fourth quarter to create a powerful first quarter next year. That is preparation, and preparation is what separates reacting to your business from actually running it. I’m Don Stanek, and this is REAL TALK.