Deb Van Wyck: Becoming the Neighbourhood Expert

Deb Van Wyck has been realtor mainly in the Dufferin County/Caledon area since 1996. She started as an assistant for a successful farm/horse agent, and then transitioned into her own business in 1998.

In this episode, we chat about Deb’s creative approach to neighborhood farming and community marketing, how an ice cream truck plays a role in those efforts, her advice for agents who want to start a Facebook group for their area, the pension and retirement plan she’s implemented that has included bringing her daughter and son-in-law into the business, the steps she suggests taking if you’re just getting start on your real estate journey, the one thing agents should never sacrifice, the one idea you need to give up right from the start, the books she’s loving at the moment and how she works them into her schedule, and more.

Beating Burnout: 5 Steps to Finding Your Badass Flow

It’s that time of year where we have to talk about burnout. It is unmanaged stress over time, and it happens to all of us in real estate. In fact, if you say you’ve never experienced burnout, I would say you’re probably not actually selling a whole lot of homes.

So, in this solo episode, I’m sharing a five-step process for beating burnout.

Jessica Chariton: Keeping a Sabbath Day

Jessica Chariton is a broker associate with HomeSmart Preferred Realty in Salida, Colorado where she lives with her husband and five kids under the age of fourteen.

She is in year five of her real estate career and she’s done six figures every year except her first.

Jessica and I talk about setting boundaries, the power of being intentional, and how important rest really is for both your physical health and how the rest of your week rolls out.

How to Get a Price Reduction, the Badass Way

We’re now officially in a market where we’re seeing an undeniable shift into needing to have conversations with our clients about price reductions. While it’s understandable that a lot of agents avoid this conversation at all costs, it’s not a very badass thing to do. So, in this solo episode, I’m sharing my tips on how to handle price reductions with your clients.

Darlene Dato-on: From New Immigrant to Success

 Darlene Dato-on moved to the United States from the Philippines in 2010 with her two young children and has been a Realtor in Clark County, Nevada for five years.

Four years into her career, she was in the top 500 agents out of 18,000 in her region. She’s also done more than $10 million in sales volume entirely from referrals.

In this episode, we chat about her journey of getting established in the US and in her career, the role social media played in her career in the beginning and the role it plays now, how she landed her first listing and buyer, the tip she has for any agent who needs a quick infusion of business, the importance of creating boundaries around your work, how she stays so motivated to keep making each day a successful one, and more.

3 Critical Steps to Thrive in Shifting Market

 After having a fantastic spring market, I’m back! I hope you had a great start to your year as well so that you can ride out what is really a worldwide market shift that we’re beginning to see now.

In fact, it’s because of that shift that I am bringing you a shortened version of a workshop I did for the Badass Women of Real Estate Facebook group on the podcast today.

In this episode, I share three steps you can take to thrive in a market that is undeniably shifting to make sure you keep your market share as a badass woman of real estate.

Samantha Hewit: Growth from a Broker's Perspective

Samantha Hewit is the Director of Realtor Development at Royal LePage Signature in the Greater Toronto Area.

In her duties, Sam’s in charge of helping over 1,400 agents with support, education, and growing their businesses.

In this episode, Sam shares how she went from answering phones to her position now as a leader at one of the largest franchises in Canada, what she believes is the key to successfully using social media for your business, the key indicators that a new realtor is more likely to have a successful business, the actions steps she recommends for realtors who feel like they’re in a slump, what she does to ensure she stays in the right mental space for being on top of her game, the three things you should do right now to grow your business, the common misconception most new realtors have, a story of when her integrity was test by a buyer and how she handled it, the most common doubt she sees female agents have, and more.

Munira Ravji: Micro-Niche Facebook Groups

Munira Ravji is a realtor and the owner of Olea Real Estate Group; a 5-person team that approaches real estate from a community development lens and utilizes Facebook groups to generate leads by fostering connections with the community.

In this episode, Munira shares the importance of niching down your market area and audience, how embedding herself in her local community of just five buildings using a Facebook group has led to 50% of her total client base, the steps she recommends other agents take when building a Facebook community of their own, how she still stresses about where the next deal will come from even though she’s in the top 3% in her area, why she will continue to focus on investing in people, and more.

Emily Jones Open Houses, Social Media & Systems

Emily Jones is a Realtor who works in the west Greater Toronto Area, serving Burlington, Oakville, Hamilton, and West Toronto. Emily got into the real estate business at 23, and since then has grown to be one of the top independent agents in her brokerage, and in the top 5% of all Realtors (by units sold) in both the Hamilton and Toronto real estate boards.

In this episode, we chat about how she got into real estate at the young age of twenty-three, her steps for a successful open house and how they were crucial to her early success in real estate, the importance of being pro-active in the early stages of your real estate journey, how she successfully uses social media in a way that does feel spammy or salesy, how she is able to work with clients outside of her age bracket and get them to trust her, the importance of understanding your client’s emotions throughout their entire journey with you, when she realized she needed better systems in her business and which ones she implemented first, how hiring help for both her business and personal life has helped grow her business, how she believes she needs to think like a CEO in order to push her business to the next level, what she does to get her confidence back when it feels shaky, why she’s choosing to focus her efforts more on social media and video, and more.

How to Grow Your Business Using Social Media Part 2

 Welcome back, badass women of real estate! I’m so excited to bring you part of how to grow your business using social media. In this second part, I share how follow chains and groups are actually hurting your social media accounts rather than helping them, why you need to have a clarity of purpose if you want people to resonate with your social media posts, why it’s critical that you have testimonials on your social media accounts, how marketing isn’t about you at all, the challenge I have for you after listening to this episode that will help you know to post on social media and help you better connect with your audience, and more.

Cynthia McGiverin: Starting in A New City

Cynthia McGiverin has been selling real estate since 1991. She started in B.C, moved on to Alberta and then Toronto and Ottawa. She has served on the Fraser Valley Real Estate Board, Toronto Real Estate Board's Arbitration Committee, and served on the Ottawa Real Estate Board Education Committee. She has also completed specializations as Buyer Representative (BRS), Senior Specialist (SRES) and Certified Negotiation Specialists (CNE).

In this episode, Cynthia chat about the steps she’s taken every time she’s changed markets, the in-depth research she does to learn all about her new market, the fear she’s had from day one, how she keeps herself motivated after all these years in the business, the importance of being flexible, why she prioritizes being an early adopter of new technology, and more.

How to Grow Your Business Using Social Media Part 1

I’m thrilled to have you here for this special topic that is very important to me and I’m sure very relevant for you; how to grow your business using social media.

In this solo episode, I cover how my social media use can be directly linked to about 80% of my home sales each year even though I don’t have millions of followers, the book I suggest reading if you’re worried about not being creative enough to stand out on social media, ten steps to using social media for your business in an easy and authentic way, and more..

Lily Wyss: Instagram

Lily Wyss is a residential real estate agent who lives and works in Portland, Oregon. Her ability to work with and attract clients she loves working with through means that feel authentic and fun has led her to be in the top 20% of her brokerage in production multiple times. In this episode, we talk about how she specifically uses Instagram to attract those clients.

How to Create Exceptional Client Experiences

In real estate, we hear so much about how to get more clients. However, I've noticed realtors are often afraid to ask for reviews at the end of the process, and I think it's because they're worried about not providing enough value to their clients. In this solo episode, I dive into this topic and share some thoughts on how to provide more value than you cost.

Katie Steinfeld: Creative Selling

Katie Steinfeld lives and works in the Vaughan/Great Toronto Area. She is the Broker of Record and Co-Founder of On the Block Realty and Co-Founder of On the Block Auctions.

Katie is a mom to four kids, a surrogate to one, and a Board Member for the Real Estate Council. of Ontario. She is also the host of the Level Up - The Podcast for Realtors. She also loves to travel, listen to books and podcasts, bake, and run.

In this episode, Katie shares what the last eleven years of her real estate journey have looked like, how their auction platform came to be and why it sets her company apart, the industry pushback she received when first starting the auction platform, what it looks like when a seller uses their auction platform, examples of unique and creative ways they market their homes, three things new agents need to do in order to create success for themselves, what agents have to sacrifice in order to be successful, one thing agents should never sacrifice, the struggle she experiences with comparing herself to others and not remembering all that she's accomplished, the one tool she thinks everyone needs to utilize in their business, and more.

How to Protect Your Business and Change Brokerages

This week, we're talking about a rarely discussed element of being a badass... protecting your business.

In this episode, I share a brief synopsis of a horrible experience I had at a previous brokerage that helped me to recognize when it's time for a change and the five things you need to do to protect your business when changing brokerages.

Jessica Foote: Boutique Service

Jessica Foote is a born and raised San Diegan who now lives and works in the Temecula Valley. She is a top producer who currently runs a sing;e-team brokerage that launched during COVID-19.

In this episode, Jessica shares her journey into real estate, what it was like to start her own brokerage, what she believes sets Native apart from other brokerages, her long-term plans to take Native global, the key steps to starting your own brokerage, the three most important actions for agents to take to grow their business, what it's like being an agent for professional athletes, the sacrifices she believes real estate agents need to make to be successful, her surprising answer for something an agent should never sacrifice doing, the main doubt she still experiences that's been a challenge as she's built her brokerage, the biggest game-changing tech she's incorporated into her business, and more.

How to Overcome Fear and Take Consistent Action

If you listened to last week's episode with Shaleni Henriquez, you know her success is a testament to the fact that she's willing to show up over and over again... and today's episode is all about exactly that.

This week, I'm sharing five tools to help you overcome fear, push past procrastination, and take consistent action.

Shaleni Henriquez: Community Video

Shaleni Henriquez is a realtor based in Milton, Ontario who loves using social media to showcase her town. She was a top 10 bombomb video award winner for a series of videos called Check It Out Milton.

In this episode, we chat about Shaleni's journey into real estate nine years ago, why she and her business partner chose to call their company a collective instead of a group or team, how she got started making videos, how doing video has helped her business even though that's not her intention, five steps for creating a market update video (which she says every agent should be doing), what she would do differently about her schedule if she could start her real estate journey over again, what she doesn't want any agent to sacrifice, what she still has doubts about, how she talks herself up after experiencing those doubts, and more.

How to Choose the Right Growth Strategy

Have you ever felt like there are so many voices in our industry telling you about so many options to grow your business?

It often seems like everybody has the best idea, or the one idea, or the new idea, or even the coolest idea.

Now, I know... part of the challenge with real estate is there are so many different ways we can get clients.

Don't worry, if you're feeling so overwhelmed by the idea of choosing a method to grow your business that you don't even know where to start, I'm here for you.

In this episode, I share why you need to cut through the B.S. in your growth strategy, the gardening experience from my childhood that is the perfect metaphor for trying to do all the things when it comes to your business growth strategy, examples of different growth strategies you can use, how to determine which growth strategy is right for you and your business, and more.

Community Events

Lana Rodriguez is a Latvian immigrant who's been running her real restate business out of Colorado Springs, Colorado for the past seven years with over 1,500 families served.

In this episode, Lana shares her real estate journey from being a solo agent to currently running a top five team in her city, the social media platform that is actually her main CRM, what her team looks like now, how her accent made her self-conscious when she first began networking, where her first sale came from after she moved to a city where she knew not a soul, the three reasons, she utilizes client events to keep leads flowing, the type of events she hosts and when, the five steps to hosting client events, the two things she says you must have and do in order to be a successful real estate agent, the two things she doesn't want agents to sacrifice when building their business, how TikTok has been a game-changer for her business, and so much more!

Three Goal Setting Traps to Avoid to Build a Business and Life You Love

Welcome to the first official episode of season two of the badass women of real estate podcast!

In this season opener, I share what you can expect from season two. Plus, I cover the three most common goal setting traps agents fall into, and what to do instead, so you can stay off the real estate roller coaster.

Sink or Swim 

Meet Crystal Tost. She started her Calgary real estate career in 1997, not looking to make it just a regular job. After 15 years in the business, Crystal began to build Tost Realty Group with her husband and business partner Tyler Tost. Now with 20+ years of experience Crystal is one of the most experienced real estate agents in Calgary, Canada.

Authentically Raw

Meet Veronica Figueroa. She's the leader of the Figueroa Team in Orlando, Florida, USA. Hear how she wouldn't let her teen pregnancy prevent her from pursuing a career and life of abundance.  

10 Social Media Mistakes made by Realtors (& how to stop making them)
Sara Kalke reviews the major missteps made by realtors on social media and offers ways to overcome each one. Learn practical techniques to better engage with your clients, reach new ones and build a realty brand you’re proud of. 

DOWNLOAD SARA'S SOCIAL MEDIA TIPS 

Beyond Beginner's Luck

Meet Kylene Emery. Closing in on her first year in real estate based in Spokane, Washington, she’s demonstrating tremendous courage and having the success to show for it. She shares with Sara Kalke about leaving her stable job in higher education to pursue realty and why she has no regrets. 

Kindhearted Realty
Meet Elisha Lopez. She's a veteran of the Florida real estate market, leading the Ocala Realty World team and coaching real estate agents. Elisha shares with Sara how working with a kind heart and focus on helping others can result in success.

Expectation Gap
Meet Amy Youngren. She's a realtor and the founder of North Group in Toronto, Canada. She shares with Sara Kalke how staying grounded in reality not fantasy, can propel personal and career achievement. 

Build your 2020 Business Plan

Sara Kalke guides you through building your business plan for 2020. She shares three pillars to success in real estate to live a life you love. 

Changing the Narrative
Meet Hedda Parashos. She's a realtor and the owner of Palisade Realty in the San Diego, California area. Hedda shares with Sara Kalke how shifts in life, the economy and real estate industry can be harnessed for massive success.

Racing to Real Estate 
Meet Nicole Nicolay. She's a realtor and partner with The Engel Group based in California, USA. Nicole shares with Sara Kalke how she embraced her natural abilities and learned to not just value but leverage them for realty success.

Personal Development 
Meet Maria Quattrone. From her office in Philadelphia, USA she shares with Sara Kalke how focusing on her own personal development produces gains in her professional life. 

Picking Your Why

Meet Michele Cummins. She’s one of the top 5 individual Re/Max agents in Western Canada and owner of the Cummins Real Estate Group in the Fraser Valley, British Columbia, Canada. She shares with Sara Kalke how she identified what pushes her to excel in life and realty. 

Maximum Courage

Meet Sara Kalke. She’s a RE/MAX Titan award winner and sells an average of 100 homes a year four years running. She’s usually the host of the podcast, but today she’s taking the guest chair to share how to face down fear and build up your courage.

Eight Life Pillars
Meet Betsy Pepine, the head of Pepine Realty in Florida. Her team is ranked #72 in the United States and is listed on the Inc 5000 fast growing companies. She shares with Sara Kalke how to failure-proof your life by expanding from only a few pillars of career, love and family to many more. 

No Such Thing as Work/Life Balance

Meet Zandra Ulloa, the top 1% San Diego realtors with $350 million in real estate sold. She explains to Sara Kalke how finding a work/life balance isn't possible - instead focus on building a support network.

Micro Commitments
Meet Debra Beagle, the managing broker/co-owner of #1 Re/Max Team in the World. Sara Kalke chats one-on-one with her about the grit it takes to keep showing up day-after-day with enthusiasm.