WEBVTT
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Before we jump into today's episode, I interview dozens of top producing agents every month.
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And I know you probably don't have the time to listen to every single conversation.
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So we do the listening and note taking for you.
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We pull out the best ideas and strategies we're hearing and regularly send you the ones we're putting to work in your business.
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It's completely free.
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Just go to undercontractnotes.com.
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That's undercontractnotes.com.
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Now let's get into today's conversation.
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Hey, and welcome to Under Contract, where I sit down with some of the top real estate agents and team leaders in the country to talk about how they've built their businesses, what's working right now, and where they see the industry going next.
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Today I am joined by Herman Antonov from Minnetonka, Minnesota.
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Herman, thanks for coming on.
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I'm really excited to have you.
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Thanks for having me.
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Excited to be here.
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All right, let's jump right into it.
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Let's start at the beginning.
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Take me back.
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How did you get into real estate?
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Um got into real estate through Craigslist, pretty much.
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Um, it was about uh 14 years ago.
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My uh um part-time gig was building WordPress blogs, and uh I was just putting up a Google AdSense on them.
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So more people visited them, more clicks I got, more revenue you know came in.
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And uh uh right around 2010, 2011-ish, when uh oh it happened right after that.
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Uh I noticed there was a spike in searches uh for like rent-to-own, contract for deeds, owner financing, how to buy a house after a bankruptcy, and so on.
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Um so I started creating content, you know, for that.
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We're just writing blogs, noticed that there is an uh the large inflow of leads asking me questions.
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I wasn't licensed, I had no idea what they were talking about, but at some point my mom goes, Well, you know, go get licensed and help these people.
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Um great advice, by the way.
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Yeah, so then I got into that niche and kind of just stayed in that you know, bad credit uh owner financing space uh that wasn't occupied.
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Like nobody wanted to touch those leads.
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And for me, you know, I thought that was the best thing that ever happened.
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So here I am.
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That's amazing.
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That's uh very cool.
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You kind of come from the world that I I was in, the internet marketing world, uh, with the blog posts and whatnot.
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It's interesting that you sort of discovered a demand first and then said, Well, I need to go get my uh license so I can provide a solution, correct?
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Uh for the for the people I would look for.
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So um, so when was that?
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Was that too you said around 2010?
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About 2010, yeah.
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Mom uh she was dabbling into real estate.
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They uh with her ex, they worked on a little bit of you know foreclosures, share of sales, you know, things of that nature.
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They were buying up, you know, duplexes, and then uh yeah, then uh I started getting into it and uh trying to learn.
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And right there was like perfect timing um for the perfect audience.
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At that point, I didn't really understand what it was, but uh got one deal done, second deal done.
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I'm like, okay, I think I can do a couple more of these.
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Well, it looks like you've done uh quite a few since then.
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So now you're 15 plus years in the in the game.
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Uh, if you don't mind me asking, what does the business look like today?
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Do you have a team uh if you're comfortable sharing, how much production are you doing these days?
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Yeah, so uh I do have a small team.
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Um like we we uh operate 100% like a team.
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Like we're not uh a mini brokerage by any way.
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Um so a lot of us are working in the same sphere, the same type of you know, leads, the same um, you know, clientele from the same community.
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Uh we have evolved since then.
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Um, I mean, we still do a little bit of you know owner financing, you know, things of that nature, but uh we moved a lot into the sphere marketing.
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Um so I find that uh that is a little bit easier.
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Um but uh yeah, so we've got uh 18 agents on the team, uh, a couple of new agents that we're training in now.
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Uh, but uh every year we add a few and we ask a few to go um purely on production basis.
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So we're kind of trying to keep the agents at you know 12 to 20 deals a year.
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Um and uh you know you have to burn through a few um to get to where you want to be.
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Um so annually, um I think we're right around you know 200 to 220 uh transactions.
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Um and uh yeah, so uh I have shrunk my personal production down.
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Um I I personally I like to just lead gen.
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That's probably my favorite part of the of the business.
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Um, but uh yeah, right now like we're doing things on Instagram.
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Um I'm starting to lead gen there, which uh I was never a big you know huge fan of uh social media stuff.
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Uh but you know combining it with AI 11 labs and uh ChatGPT like you know stuff is kind of starting to um snowball a little bit.
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Um but yeah.
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I love that.
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Well, do you mind if I uh ask a little bit about that?
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Uh the you you don't have to say that a secret sauce, but generally speaking, um you mentioned Instagram.
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So uh what what is that what does that process look like from a higher level view?
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So um, well, one we started uh doing collabs with local bloggers um that have the following that have some sort of uh um theme uh that fits real estate, you know.
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Um and uh we've done you know one collab, second collab, then we did a couple more videos, like one of the videos I think went to like 130,000 views, you know.
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Um but that that was very targeted, you know, it was in Ukrainian language.
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Um the weird thing is you do the same thing in English, and then if you do two videos, one in English, one in Ukraine, Ukrainian's gonna blow out all the water, uh, but the English one is not going to go far.
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Um and that's because like I think Instagrams and social media is like they find the people they need to see faster, yeah, versus versus like a very broad audience.
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Um, so you know that happened um you know probably about a year and a half ago, and I was always like against social media, don't waste time on social media, don't don't do reos, like just just dial 20 people a day, you know?
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Um and uh yeah, I think it you know, finally like now that I've gone through that process, like I I see see some results.
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So sure.
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And do you you mentioned dial 20 people a day?
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Are you starting to see maybe that there's more leverage in some of the social media stuff?
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Uh is that is that why you're starting to kind of move that in that direction?
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Well, so I've always so like think about like you know, bet credit leads, right?
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They are looking for you, you're not looking for them.
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And then think about uh typical traditional agent who sells houses in you know the most popular neighborhood.
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There's 50 of them there.
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Usually you're calling someone, right?
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Yes, for sure.
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So I think the dynamic that I'm trying to recreate is like I want leads to reach out to us, um, versus us chasing someone.
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So because like when when you watch an agent dial a hundred numbers, you know, without any luck, like you notice how how fast their emotional happiness goes down.
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Um and versus like, hey, let's pick up five phone calls that come in because they called on a specific inquiry.
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So for us, it was down payment assistance.
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Like here in Minnesota, we had a great program uh where they were offering$32,000 towards the down payment if you're a first-generation um um home buyer.
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Oh wow.
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So so then the ads that we ran on like Facebooks and Instagrams were um like very, very I'd say, you know, straight to the point to hit the right audience.
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So you would say things like, you know, if you've been in US in the past, you know, three years, like you're assuming like you already know they're a first-generation buyer because they came to US in the past three years.
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Uh you're dreaming of buying a house, but you don't have the down payment.
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I have a way for you to get 32,000 bucks um to get you into home, call this number, you know, kind of like of the of you know, then and then you put it in Spanish and Russian, Ukrainian, you know, whatever language that you speak, uh then it it hits the audience quick.
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Uh I love this.
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Yeah, versus like if you run an ad and you call it first generation down payment assistance, like nobody knows what that stuff is.
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Sure, sure.
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Yeah, yeah, yeah, exactly.
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They so you gotta lead with the 32,000, uh, I would I would imagine.
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Yeah, yeah, yeah.
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Um now so makes total sense.
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It is quite demoralizing to call 100 people and not get any kind of uh interested parties, but having those leads come in that makes a lot of sense.
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So that's a your your lead generation, but let's talk about so leads come in.
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Something I'm always interested in is follow-up because uh people, agents uh they're all over the place, whether they're good at follow-up or not.
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What what's kind of your philosophy?
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What's your uh approach to uh following up?
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Um, you know, when a lead comes in, what happens next?
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How quickly are you following up?
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How long are you following up?
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And how do you make sure that these opportunities don't fall through the cracks?
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Well, opportunities fall through the cracks all the time, and I think that's a challenge on every, you know, on every team for every agent as well.
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Um the first thing is like you you gotta get in front of them right away.
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Like doesn't matter if you're if they're thinking of buying or selling in a year, in six months, or nine months, or in the next 60 days, like get in front of them, like book an appointment.
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Like right now, we're signing listings for March from next year.
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Oh wow.
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So like we gotta get in front of them, we have to get them um to like us, to trust us.
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Um the minute, like I don't know, I feel like I think I'm pretty sure there's statistics on it.
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Like the faster you get them offline, the more chances you have of conversion.
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Um so that's the first step.
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If we if we're not unable to get them on a showing or book us some sort of a pre-listing strategy appointment, um or just a buyer consultation, uh, we uh put them on a drip um and then keep following up.
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I mean, most of the emails that we send are a little bit like educational, like how to buy a house off-market.
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Like, here are the sources that we are um using to locate best deals.
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If they click it, open it, like we call them, like, hey, you know, did you get my email?
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What did you think?
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Um do agents follow it?
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I mean, in their downtime, you know, if you're running around like sure yesterday, I was running around doing things, and like half of my things and you know that I was supposed to do, including my follow-ups, didn't get done.
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Yeah, so they got pushed to today.
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Um, and like every agent, you know, struggles was the same thing.
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Like, we've um looked into um you know, having like bots and you know, follow-up was with leads, and I just I couldn't uh um couldn't find the right one.
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So let's put it that way.
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Sure.
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I got it.
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Okay, so um curious, this what this question is a little bit for the newer agents that are listening to, but if I dropped you in a brand new city tomorrow with no database, no reputation, and no relationships, and you had to build it all over again, what would you do first?
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I would go to a brokerage that has the most listings.
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That would be first up.
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Okay and then I would build relationships with listing agents, and I would ask them permission to host open houses for them.
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Uh, and uh I would ask them permission to post those houses on Instagram as a video walkthrough.
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Um, and I would ask to uh allow me to post them on Facebook Marketplace, and I would have probably 20 to 30 of those posts going every single week.
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I love it, I love it.
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That was a that's a great strategy and and specific too, so I like that.
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Yeah, but the minute you hear like, well, yeah, I have to do 10 open houses a week, you know, the agents drop off fast.
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But uh the beauty of it is you get you get a property to market, and if you are the same brokerage, like in Minnesota at least, um like you can advertise other agents listings, that's fine as long as they're at your brokerage.
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Um and uh Facebook marketplace, as long as you're posting them in the right groups, um, like neighborhood groups, or maybe it's a community group or whatever, um, like you are gonna get inquiries.
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That's like the fastest way, free way to generate leads, at least in my experience right now.
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Yeah, I love that.
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Um quick question, go back real quick to what you were talking about and follow-up, it just hit me.
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Uh and I meant to ask you like two minutes ago.
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But uh the um you you said that you you send out email like newsletter style, like content education.
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Is that uh education more broad, or is it does it get to a little bit more specific about your area?
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Or is it more just kind of general education?
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No, we like we wrote those emails that are I'd say they're they're localized, um, so that like they know we're from Minnesota, like they know that you know we're local.
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Um, and you know, some of the emails that go out, like they're like storytelling.
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Like, yeah, how I found you know an off-market deal uh in Plymouth, you know, Minnesota.
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Here's the exact steps that we did.
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And I understand that you're a buyer, you probably don't want to go through all this stuff.
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Call me, I'll just do it for you.
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You know, I like that.
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Well, I like the idea of telling the story and then it make it sound like it's a lot of work.
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So then they're like, I'd rather you just do it for me.
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So uh that that sets it up nicely.
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Now, this one is a little bit more tactical because I want to make sure agents listening uh walk away from these conversations with something they can actually put into practice.
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So if you were coaching an agent who's already doing some business but wants to significantly grow over the next 12 months, what's one specific thing you tell them to start doing this week?
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Uh well, get a showing partner, get yourself out of showings as fast as you can.
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Okay.
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Um, and find what you're really good at.
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If you're good at lead gen, focus on lead gen.
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If you're good at lead conversion and setting up appointments, set up appointments for other agents.
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Um if uh if you're really good at, I don't know, um writing SEO content for your website so that it gets clicks, you know, like focus on that stuff.
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Um, but get yourself out of things that take a lot of time and have um um a lot of uncertainty.
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So, like, you know, one buyers are great, a lot of buyers are still take them out on showings, but one buyer can take you on you know a seven-day trip and the other will take you on you know a two-year uh journey that never closes.
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Um, I think if your goal is to kind of just be in multiple places at the same time, like showing partners is a way to go.
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Uh, you can service five buyers in a day.
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Um you'll you're in five different spots, never disappear, you're always there, you're still running the deal, but you you know, you gotta get some boots on the ground.
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Uh listings is a different story.
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I mean, listings don't take a whole lot of um you know driving time or whatever.
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Um they take they do take you know um resources if you're doing the listings the right way.
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So, for example, our listing coordinator, um, like she does a lot of the like flyers, you know, print materials, deliver a lockbox, install a for sale sign, uh, meet with the sellers, go through the pre-listing checklist, make sure that the property is ready for uh photography.
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Um, she has uh storage with like a bunch of different like flower pots, you know, some decoration items.
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So she gets in the car, like if a house needs a little bit of you know decor, she'll bring it in, she'll arrange everything, and then uh she'll deliver a marketing package to the house, she'll put point of interest cards, you know, around the house.
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Like, hey, by the way, furnace was replaced in 2018 or whatever, whatever those value points that need to be communicated.
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Uh, so if you want to do the listings the right way and not just like throw them on the MLS, you know, um, get a listing coordinator.
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They don't have to be full-time, they can be part-time.
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Um, like, yes, you're gonna have to spend a little bit of money, but you know, if you want to be in you know 10 different places at the same time, that's that's the way to do it, at least in my experience.
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No, that was that was that was gold.
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I love that, Herman.
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Uh now let me ask you a question.
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This is probably one of my favorite questions I get to ask, and uh, this one is a little bit more about your business.
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Um, so if you could uh wave a magic wand and solve one problem in your business over the next 12 months, what do you think would have the biggest impact?
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Appointment setting.
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Yeah, yeah, 100%.
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And uh when you say appointment setting, where's uh where are you running into like you're getting leads in, but uh not necessarily being able to properly set the appointments, or where's the kind of the breakdown I'm just curious?
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Um let's let's come up with a magic list of a hundred great leads, right?
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Yep.
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And let's say you have an agent A that you're giving them to, right?
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And you're like, hey, agent A, I got uh a hundred leads for you.
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They're pretty good.
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You should call them.
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Um they are gonna go on showings, they're gonna spend time contract on contracts, they're gonna spend time on Instagram before the dialed out list, right?
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Versus if I call that agent and I say, Hey, agent A, I have three appointments for you today, 10 a.m., 1 p.m., and 4 p.m.
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And I have three appointments for you tomorrow.
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Would you go on them?
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They would drop everything, they would go on those appointments, and I would crush it, and would probably sign each one of them.
00:18:46.160 --> 00:18:47.440
That makes sense.
00:18:48.160 --> 00:18:49.519
I like that, the appointment setting.
00:18:49.680 --> 00:18:49.839
Okay.
00:18:50.319 --> 00:19:01.440
Yeah, so I think like in my mind, like if I if I think about like every agent on on Teams, I mean, I don't know, like you look at a team that sells like 500 deals, right?
00:19:02.720 --> 00:19:10.799
They probably have 85 to 120 agents doing four to seven deals a year.
00:19:11.279 --> 00:19:12.960
Yeah, somewhere there, right?
00:19:13.119 --> 00:19:15.119
So like that's how you get that volume.
00:19:15.359 --> 00:19:17.359
Um, and then you'll find teams.
00:19:17.519 --> 00:19:28.000
Um there's a couple of team leads that that I'm talking to, they got like 15 agents, and each agent's cranking out like 45 transactions a year.
00:19:29.519 --> 00:19:30.000
Wow.
00:19:30.799 --> 00:19:34.400
And and the difference there is like the appointments are done for them.
00:19:34.799 --> 00:19:35.200
Sure.
00:19:35.519 --> 00:19:40.480
Like all they're doing, like we're great, like most agents are great at shaking hands and kissing babies.
00:19:41.279 --> 00:19:48.240
We suck at like follow-up bus and CRMs and you know stuff in the office.
00:19:48.400 --> 00:19:54.000
Like we just want to go out there, meet people, talk to them, hang out with them, have a beer, go in a happy, whatever, right?
00:19:54.160 --> 00:19:54.559
Sure.
00:19:54.799 --> 00:20:08.960
So I think like you know, finding a way to just keep agents in that space is is probably the most you know life-changing opportunity that I see that I you know am working, you know, on on achieving.
00:20:09.119 --> 00:20:25.680
So well, I I look forward to hearing about when you when you do crack the code on on that, because I do think I can see that I can see that being a game changer, which speaking of, you touched you mentioned this word uh earlier in the episode, but uh we got to talk about AI for just a second.
00:20:25.839 --> 00:20:29.119
Um, what's your overall relationship with AI?
00:20:29.200 --> 00:20:34.400
It sounds like you're doing some things with AI, how are you actually using it in the business, and where do you think it's going?
00:20:34.799 --> 00:20:45.279
Yeah, so I think AI is going to obviously you know streamline a lot of things um to the point where um we are just you know shaking hands and kissing babies.
00:20:45.440 --> 00:20:56.799
Uh but uh um for us, so like we put uh a lot of the transaction coordination uh workflows on uh Zapier.
00:20:57.279 --> 00:21:02.960
Um so everything, every intake form that comes in um is automated.
00:21:03.279 --> 00:21:11.440
So I mean, if you sign a contract for the buyer, that contract has to go to um multiple parties.
00:21:11.839 --> 00:21:16.720
Um so one form basically knocks out a lot of those transactional items.
00:21:17.039 --> 00:21:30.160
Um the um 11 labs, so we're we're just like funny enough, like 10 days ago we started a new Instagram channel with which we're just doing uh video walkthroughs of homes.
00:21:30.880 --> 00:21:38.720
And you know, I tried one where like you're putting up the phone to your face and you're walking through and you're talking and then you stumble, and then you have to redo it again.
00:21:38.799 --> 00:21:43.839
Like, and it's like and I'm like, this has been 45 minutes of me just dinking around, right?
00:21:44.000 --> 00:21:45.599
And then I have to edit this video.
00:21:45.680 --> 00:21:55.039
I'm like, what a nightmare! Um, and then I see these guys on Instagram, they're just doing faceless video walkthroughs, and it takes like two minutes to what to watch it, right?
00:21:55.279 --> 00:22:03.119
Yep, and I'm like, well, it would be great if I just do a video and you know a quick Button and it just like does everything that I need it to do.
00:22:03.279 --> 00:22:18.559
So now we're shooting a video, we're throwing it into ChatGPT, and we're asking ChatGPT, hey, watch this video, and then create us a transcript for this video so that we can upload it into 11 webs and create audio file.
00:22:18.799 --> 00:22:29.200
Um, so ChatGPT watches the video, uh, spits out a transcript, transcript goes into 11 webs, audio clip gets downloaded and is laid over like a voiceover over the video.
00:22:29.519 --> 00:22:33.680
Like it takes 10 to 15 minutes probably to go through that process.
00:22:33.839 --> 00:22:39.759
Uh, but then you have a video walkthrough with captions, with a voice, and you can clone your own voice.
00:22:39.839 --> 00:22:44.160
So, like if you know if you can record yourself, it'll clone your voice, or you can come up with your own voice.
00:22:44.240 --> 00:22:50.000
Like, I want uh I don't know, warm, fuzzy, conversational, you know, whatever, right?
00:22:50.400 --> 00:22:52.480
Um, it'll it'll give you a voice.
00:22:52.640 --> 00:22:55.119
And um, so far, I mean, I don't know.
00:22:55.279 --> 00:22:58.559
I mean, I got 124 followers in seven days.
00:22:58.960 --> 00:22:59.519
That's great.
00:22:59.680 --> 00:23:00.319
That's great.
00:23:00.480 --> 00:23:01.279
So that's great.
00:23:01.680 --> 00:23:16.319
Uh but uh uh now now the goal is to get somebody um you know part-time who who just wants to walk around and shoot videos to just take a phone, do some walkthroughs, and just follow this process uh and upload them for us.
00:23:16.559 --> 00:23:20.160
Um which which is basically just um open house strategy.
00:23:20.240 --> 00:23:34.799
So if I ask permission from a listing agent to allow me to host an open house for them, I'm asking them for permission to shoot a video so we can go uh you know on Instagram and you know, Facebook Marketplace as part of the marketing package.
00:23:34.960 --> 00:23:44.559
Uh, most busy listing agents they don't have to have time to deal with any any of this, so they're very open and welcoming, and they'll actually want you to do it because there's more exposure.
00:23:44.960 --> 00:23:49.920
Uh man, Herman, you you you brought the gold in this episode.
00:23:50.000 --> 00:23:52.960
I want to ask one last question and then I'll let you go.
00:23:53.119 --> 00:23:55.759
Uh let's think five years into the future.
00:23:56.000 --> 00:23:57.920
What do you think might change about the industry?
00:23:58.000 --> 00:24:02.240
I'm I'm guessing AI's uh give it five years, it's definitely gonna make some serious changes.
00:24:02.799 --> 00:24:04.880
But also, maybe what do you think won't change?
00:24:04.960 --> 00:24:14.799
Because you hear all kinds of rumors about real estate agents are just gonna disappear to robots or whatever, which I don't really believe is the case, but I do think how we work will be very different.
00:24:14.960 --> 00:24:20.799
Um I would love to hear your thoughts on let's dream a little bit five years from now, what you what you think things will look like.
00:24:21.039 --> 00:24:24.400
I think all the transactional stuff is gonna go on AI for sure.
00:24:24.799 --> 00:24:32.079
Yeah, I can see, like let's say you're a homeowner, you've got a house listed with me, and there's some services that we provide, right?
00:24:32.240 --> 00:24:37.200
And you, as homeowner, you just click buttons to schedule your photography, so it's convenient for you.
00:24:37.359 --> 00:24:40.720
You click a button to schedule cleaning, you you know what I mean?
00:24:40.799 --> 00:24:43.039
Like that kind of stuff gets automated.
00:24:43.359 --> 00:24:50.400
Uh, all of the behind-the-scenes stuff, like you know, the contract submission, um, which we already are are doing.
00:24:50.559 --> 00:25:00.000
Uh, but I can see brokerages coming out with actual like portal, you know, with a dashboard for um homeowner or a home buyer so they can track their um transaction a little bit better.
00:25:00.240 --> 00:25:04.240
I think Compass just wrote that out uh a couple of weeks ago.
00:25:04.400 --> 00:25:10.400
Um that you know, some some internal system that they have, and I think you know, brokerages will follow in.
00:25:10.480 --> 00:25:18.079
Like we're seeing massive amount of consolidation into larger brokerages, so like real and remax.
00:25:18.240 --> 00:25:25.680
Um, I think XP acquired um a company, I forgot the name, but uh it was a franchise company.
00:25:25.839 --> 00:25:31.039
Um Compass rolling up all of these you know brokerages under their umbrella.
00:25:31.279 --> 00:25:33.279
Uh so you have these big companies.
00:25:33.440 --> 00:25:49.920
I think the question that that I have in my mind is how valuable would it be actually for small broker owners to to provide their services to agents locally versus like being part of a large corporation?
00:25:50.480 --> 00:25:50.960
Interesting.
00:25:51.119 --> 00:26:10.799
So I think there's gonna be some resurgence of like smaller brokerages that are maybe 200 to you know 700 agents somewhere there, but you kind of know the owners, you know who they are, um, you know who the upper chief operating officer is, you know who the legal is.
00:26:10.960 --> 00:26:14.240
Like um I think that will be valuable.
00:26:14.400 --> 00:26:33.759
Um, I think yes, you know, these large corporations are gonna dominate from a volume perspective, but then somebody who really wants that um interaction and actually knowing who the people are, you know, um I think that actually might come back, but on a smaller scale.
00:26:34.319 --> 00:26:34.640
Yeah.
00:26:34.880 --> 00:26:37.759
Well, that's that's a fascinating take, uh Herman.
00:26:37.839 --> 00:26:42.559
I really appreciate all of the strategic and tactical things you share with us.
00:26:43.200 --> 00:26:47.759
Uh before we wrap up, where can people learn more about you and your team?
00:26:48.480 --> 00:26:51.359
Um, well, I guess Instagram, Herman Antonov.
00:26:51.680 --> 00:26:52.559
That's my my handle.
00:26:52.640 --> 00:26:54.400
I'm not very active on that one.
00:26:54.640 --> 00:26:57.440
Um our team account is more active.
00:26:57.519 --> 00:26:59.359
It's uh the Antonov group.
00:26:59.519 --> 00:27:02.400
Um, so that one is a little more active.
00:27:02.480 --> 00:27:07.440
And then uh the video walkthroughs are Twin Cities uh home tours.
00:27:07.759 --> 00:27:09.279
Uh that's the handle.
00:27:09.599 --> 00:27:15.920
Um, you can follow us there, check out you know the videos, you know, you can be our 125th follower.
00:27:17.279 --> 00:27:19.200
You should definitely go check out this Instagram.
00:27:19.359 --> 00:27:20.480
I I'm definitely gonna be following you.
00:27:20.559 --> 00:27:34.160
I may Yeah, I'm I'm just like start just playing around, starting with this and like plugging in many chat, you know, comment this word, you know, to get a link to idea page of listings that we prepared for you, whatever, you know.
00:27:34.559 --> 00:27:36.240
Um, so we'll get there right now.
00:27:36.319 --> 00:27:41.759
We're just kind of trying to see if we can if we can get over a thousand to two thousand, and if it keeps going, why not?
00:27:41.839 --> 00:27:43.440
Let's let's keep rolling.
00:27:44.079 --> 00:27:44.720
No, I love it.
00:27:44.799 --> 00:27:48.960
I'm excited to uh check in with you later on down the road and hear how the strategy is going.
00:27:49.200 --> 00:27:52.319
So, Herman, thanks again for joining me on under contract.
00:27:52.559 --> 00:27:53.599
Uh, I love this conversation.
00:27:53.759 --> 00:27:54.960
Uh yeah, this was fun.
00:27:55.039 --> 00:27:55.599
Thank you so much.
00:27:55.680 --> 00:27:56.559
Uh thanks, Herman.
00:27:56.720 --> 00:27:58.799
Uh thanks for listening to Under Contract.
00:27:58.880 --> 00:28:03.519
Uh, if you don't have time to catch every episode, we'll do the listening and the note taking for you.
00:28:03.839 --> 00:28:12.240
We pull out the best ideas and strategies we're hearing from top producing agents and regularly send you the ones we're putting to work in your business.
00:28:12.319 --> 00:28:12.640
Uh uh.
00:28:12.880 --> 00:28:16.960
Get the notes completely free at undercontract notes.com.
00:28:17.119 --> 00:28:19.119
That's undercontract notes.com.
00:28:19.359 --> 00:28:20.880
And I'll see you on the next episode.
00:00:03.919 --> 00:00:09.119
Before we jump into today's episode, I interview dozens of top producing agents every month.
00:00:09.199 --> 00:00:12.960
And I know you probably don't have the time to listen to every single conversation.
00:00:13.199 --> 00:00:15.519
So we do the listening and note taking for you.
00:00:15.679 --> 00:00:21.679
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00:00:21.839 --> 00:00:22.879
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00:00:23.039 --> 00:00:25.359
Just go to undercontractnotes.com.
00:00:25.440 --> 00:00:27.679
That's undercontractnotes.com.
00:00:27.760 --> 00:00:29.679
Now let's get into today's conversation.
00:00:30.399 --> 00:00:43.520
Hey, and welcome to Under Contract, where I sit down with some of the top real estate agents and team leaders in the country to talk about how they've built their businesses, what's working right now, and where they see the industry going next.
00:00:43.679 --> 00:00:47.359
Today I am joined by Herman Antonov from Minnetonka, Minnesota.
00:00:47.520 --> 00:00:48.640
Herman, thanks for coming on.
00:00:48.719 --> 00:00:49.759
I'm really excited to have you.
00:00:50.000 --> 00:00:50.719
Thanks for having me.
00:00:50.960 --> 00:00:52.000
Excited to be here.
00:00:52.320 --> 00:00:53.759
All right, let's jump right into it.
00:00:53.840 --> 00:00:54.799
Let's start at the beginning.
00:00:54.960 --> 00:00:55.679
Take me back.
00:00:55.920 --> 00:00:57.920
How did you get into real estate?
00:00:58.320 --> 00:01:01.520
Um got into real estate through Craigslist, pretty much.
00:01:01.600 --> 00:01:04.000
Um, it was about uh 14 years ago.
00:01:04.239 --> 00:01:13.599
My uh um part-time gig was building WordPress blogs, and uh I was just putting up a Google AdSense on them.
00:01:13.760 --> 00:01:18.319
So more people visited them, more clicks I got, more revenue you know came in.
00:01:18.400 --> 00:01:25.840
And uh uh right around 2010, 2011-ish, when uh oh it happened right after that.
00:01:26.159 --> 00:01:36.000
Uh I noticed there was a spike in searches uh for like rent-to-own, contract for deeds, owner financing, how to buy a house after a bankruptcy, and so on.
00:01:36.239 --> 00:01:39.120
Um so I started creating content, you know, for that.
00:01:39.280 --> 00:01:45.840
We're just writing blogs, noticed that there is an uh the large inflow of leads asking me questions.
00:01:46.079 --> 00:01:53.359
I wasn't licensed, I had no idea what they were talking about, but at some point my mom goes, Well, you know, go get licensed and help these people.
00:01:53.519 --> 00:01:54.959
Um great advice, by the way.
00:01:55.200 --> 00:02:04.480
Yeah, so then I got into that niche and kind of just stayed in that you know, bad credit uh owner financing space uh that wasn't occupied.
00:02:04.640 --> 00:02:06.480
Like nobody wanted to touch those leads.
00:02:06.560 --> 00:02:09.439
And for me, you know, I thought that was the best thing that ever happened.
00:02:09.520 --> 00:02:10.800
So here I am.
00:02:11.120 --> 00:02:11.680
That's amazing.
00:02:11.840 --> 00:02:12.639
That's uh very cool.
00:02:12.719 --> 00:02:18.879
You kind of come from the world that I I was in, the internet marketing world, uh, with the blog posts and whatnot.
00:02:18.960 --> 00:02:29.039
It's interesting that you sort of discovered a demand first and then said, Well, I need to go get my uh license so I can provide a solution, correct?
00:02:29.120 --> 00:02:30.800
Uh for the for the people I would look for.
00:02:31.199 --> 00:02:32.960
So um, so when was that?
00:02:33.039 --> 00:02:35.199
Was that too you said around 2010?
00:02:35.520 --> 00:02:36.960
About 2010, yeah.
00:02:37.199 --> 00:02:40.319
Mom uh she was dabbling into real estate.
00:02:40.400 --> 00:02:46.000
They uh with her ex, they worked on a little bit of you know foreclosures, share of sales, you know, things of that nature.
00:02:46.080 --> 00:02:53.439
They were buying up, you know, duplexes, and then uh yeah, then uh I started getting into it and uh trying to learn.
00:02:53.520 --> 00:02:58.319
And right there was like perfect timing um for the perfect audience.
00:02:58.479 --> 00:03:03.680
At that point, I didn't really understand what it was, but uh got one deal done, second deal done.
00:03:03.759 --> 00:03:06.159
I'm like, okay, I think I can do a couple more of these.
00:03:06.879 --> 00:03:09.199
Well, it looks like you've done uh quite a few since then.
00:03:09.360 --> 00:03:13.120
So now you're 15 plus years in the in the game.
00:03:13.280 --> 00:03:16.159
Uh, if you don't mind me asking, what does the business look like today?
00:03:16.479 --> 00:03:21.919
Do you have a team uh if you're comfortable sharing, how much production are you doing these days?
00:03:22.240 --> 00:03:25.120
Yeah, so uh I do have a small team.
00:03:25.280 --> 00:03:28.159
Um like we we uh operate 100% like a team.
00:03:28.319 --> 00:03:32.159
Like we're not uh a mini brokerage by any way.
00:03:32.319 --> 00:03:40.800
Um so a lot of us are working in the same sphere, the same type of you know, leads, the same um, you know, clientele from the same community.
00:03:40.960 --> 00:03:42.879
Uh we have evolved since then.
00:03:42.960 --> 00:03:52.479
Um, I mean, we still do a little bit of you know owner financing, you know, things of that nature, but uh we moved a lot into the sphere marketing.
00:03:52.560 --> 00:03:56.080
Um so I find that uh that is a little bit easier.
00:03:56.319 --> 00:04:04.639
Um but uh yeah, so we've got uh 18 agents on the team, uh, a couple of new agents that we're training in now.
00:04:04.879 --> 00:04:11.520
Uh, but uh every year we add a few and we ask a few to go um purely on production basis.
00:04:11.599 --> 00:04:16.560
So we're kind of trying to keep the agents at you know 12 to 20 deals a year.
00:04:16.800 --> 00:04:23.279
Um and uh you know you have to burn through a few um to get to where you want to be.
00:04:23.759 --> 00:04:31.759
Um so annually, um I think we're right around you know 200 to 220 uh transactions.
00:04:32.079 --> 00:04:38.240
Um and uh yeah, so uh I have shrunk my personal production down.
00:04:38.800 --> 00:04:41.920
Um I I personally I like to just lead gen.
00:04:42.160 --> 00:04:45.439
That's probably my favorite part of the of the business.
00:04:45.680 --> 00:04:50.160
Um, but uh yeah, right now like we're doing things on Instagram.
00:04:50.240 --> 00:04:58.319
Um I'm starting to lead gen there, which uh I was never a big you know huge fan of uh social media stuff.
00:04:58.480 --> 00:05:07.120
Uh but you know combining it with AI 11 labs and uh ChatGPT like you know stuff is kind of starting to um snowball a little bit.
00:05:07.279 --> 00:05:08.720
Um but yeah.
00:05:09.519 --> 00:05:10.160
I love that.
00:05:10.319 --> 00:05:13.600
Well, do you mind if I uh ask a little bit about that?
00:05:13.759 --> 00:05:20.720
Uh the you you don't have to say that a secret sauce, but generally speaking, um you mentioned Instagram.
00:05:20.959 --> 00:05:26.000
So uh what what is that what does that process look like from a higher level view?
00:05:26.399 --> 00:05:40.639
So um, well, one we started uh doing collabs with local bloggers um that have the following that have some sort of uh um theme uh that fits real estate, you know.
00:05:40.959 --> 00:05:51.839
Um and uh we've done you know one collab, second collab, then we did a couple more videos, like one of the videos I think went to like 130,000 views, you know.
00:05:52.079 --> 00:05:56.800
Um but that that was very targeted, you know, it was in Ukrainian language.
00:05:56.959 --> 00:06:13.120
Um the weird thing is you do the same thing in English, and then if you do two videos, one in English, one in Ukraine, Ukrainian's gonna blow out all the water, uh, but the English one is not going to go far.
00:06:13.600 --> 00:06:22.720
Um and that's because like I think Instagrams and social media is like they find the people they need to see faster, yeah, versus versus like a very broad audience.
00:06:23.519 --> 00:06:37.920
Um, so you know that happened um you know probably about a year and a half ago, and I was always like against social media, don't waste time on social media, don't don't do reos, like just just dial 20 people a day, you know?
00:06:38.240 --> 00:06:46.079
Um and uh yeah, I think it you know, finally like now that I've gone through that process, like I I see see some results.
00:06:46.160 --> 00:06:47.279
So sure.
00:06:47.360 --> 00:06:50.399
And do you you mentioned dial 20 people a day?
00:06:50.560 --> 00:06:56.480
Are you starting to see maybe that there's more leverage in some of the social media stuff?
00:06:56.720 --> 00:07:00.480
Uh is that is that why you're starting to kind of move that in that direction?
00:07:00.800 --> 00:07:04.399
Well, so I've always so like think about like you know, bet credit leads, right?
00:07:04.639 --> 00:07:07.199
They are looking for you, you're not looking for them.
00:07:08.720 --> 00:07:18.319
And then think about uh typical traditional agent who sells houses in you know the most popular neighborhood.
00:07:18.480 --> 00:07:20.240
There's 50 of them there.
00:07:21.360 --> 00:07:23.439
Usually you're calling someone, right?
00:07:23.680 --> 00:07:24.639
Yes, for sure.
00:07:24.959 --> 00:07:33.199
So I think the dynamic that I'm trying to recreate is like I want leads to reach out to us, um, versus us chasing someone.
00:07:33.279 --> 00:07:42.879
So because like when when you watch an agent dial a hundred numbers, you know, without any luck, like you notice how how fast their emotional happiness goes down.
00:07:43.439 --> 00:07:50.160
Um and versus like, hey, let's pick up five phone calls that come in because they called on a specific inquiry.
00:07:50.319 --> 00:07:52.319
So for us, it was down payment assistance.
00:07:52.480 --> 00:08:02.560
Like here in Minnesota, we had a great program uh where they were offering$32,000 towards the down payment if you're a first-generation um um home buyer.
00:08:02.800 --> 00:08:03.519
Oh wow.
00:08:03.759 --> 00:08:15.199
So so then the ads that we ran on like Facebooks and Instagrams were um like very, very I'd say, you know, straight to the point to hit the right audience.
00:08:15.439 --> 00:08:26.000
So you would say things like, you know, if you've been in US in the past, you know, three years, like you're assuming like you already know they're a first-generation buyer because they came to US in the past three years.
00:08:26.160 --> 00:08:30.000
Uh you're dreaming of buying a house, but you don't have the down payment.
00:08:30.240 --> 00:08:46.399
I have a way for you to get 32,000 bucks um to get you into home, call this number, you know, kind of like of the of you know, then and then you put it in Spanish and Russian, Ukrainian, you know, whatever language that you speak, uh then it it hits the audience quick.
00:08:46.799 --> 00:08:47.840
Uh I love this.
00:08:48.080 --> 00:08:54.399
Yeah, versus like if you run an ad and you call it first generation down payment assistance, like nobody knows what that stuff is.
00:08:54.720 --> 00:08:55.360
Sure, sure.
00:08:55.440 --> 00:08:56.720
Yeah, yeah, yeah, exactly.
00:08:56.799 --> 00:09:00.879
They so you gotta lead with the 32,000, uh, I would I would imagine.
00:09:01.120 --> 00:09:02.399
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
00:09:02.639 --> 00:09:05.440
Um now so makes total sense.
00:09:05.600 --> 00:09:15.440
It is quite demoralizing to call 100 people and not get any kind of uh interested parties, but having those leads come in that makes a lot of sense.
00:09:15.679 --> 00:09:20.480
So that's a your your lead generation, but let's talk about so leads come in.
00:09:20.720 --> 00:09:29.120
Something I'm always interested in is follow-up because uh people, agents uh they're all over the place, whether they're good at follow-up or not.
00:09:29.360 --> 00:09:31.120
What what's kind of your philosophy?
00:09:31.279 --> 00:09:35.279
What's your uh approach to uh following up?
00:09:35.440 --> 00:09:38.320
Um, you know, when a lead comes in, what happens next?
00:09:38.480 --> 00:09:39.840
How quickly are you following up?
00:09:40.080 --> 00:09:41.360
How long are you following up?
00:09:41.440 --> 00:09:44.799
And how do you make sure that these opportunities don't fall through the cracks?
00:09:45.120 --> 00:09:53.200
Well, opportunities fall through the cracks all the time, and I think that's a challenge on every, you know, on every team for every agent as well.
00:09:53.600 --> 00:09:57.440
Um the first thing is like you you gotta get in front of them right away.
00:09:57.519 --> 00:10:06.960
Like doesn't matter if you're if they're thinking of buying or selling in a year, in six months, or nine months, or in the next 60 days, like get in front of them, like book an appointment.
00:10:07.120 --> 00:10:10.720
Like right now, we're signing listings for March from next year.
00:10:11.039 --> 00:10:11.679
Oh wow.
00:10:11.919 --> 00:10:17.279
So like we gotta get in front of them, we have to get them um to like us, to trust us.
00:10:17.519 --> 00:10:23.039
Um the minute, like I don't know, I feel like I think I'm pretty sure there's statistics on it.
00:10:23.120 --> 00:10:28.080
Like the faster you get them offline, the more chances you have of conversion.
00:10:28.240 --> 00:10:30.159
Um so that's the first step.
00:10:30.240 --> 00:10:44.480
If we if we're not unable to get them on a showing or book us some sort of a pre-listing strategy appointment, um or just a buyer consultation, uh, we uh put them on a drip um and then keep following up.
00:10:44.639 --> 00:10:50.320
I mean, most of the emails that we send are a little bit like educational, like how to buy a house off-market.
00:10:50.399 --> 00:10:55.679
Like, here are the sources that we are um using to locate best deals.
00:10:55.919 --> 00:11:00.240
If they click it, open it, like we call them, like, hey, you know, did you get my email?
00:11:00.320 --> 00:11:01.440
What did you think?
00:11:01.759 --> 00:11:04.399
Um do agents follow it?
00:11:04.639 --> 00:11:16.000
I mean, in their downtime, you know, if you're running around like sure yesterday, I was running around doing things, and like half of my things and you know that I was supposed to do, including my follow-ups, didn't get done.
00:11:16.240 --> 00:11:18.559
Yeah, so they got pushed to today.
00:11:18.639 --> 00:11:21.919
Um, and like every agent, you know, struggles was the same thing.
00:11:22.080 --> 00:11:34.799
Like, we've um looked into um you know, having like bots and you know, follow-up was with leads, and I just I couldn't uh um couldn't find the right one.
00:11:34.879 --> 00:11:35.679
So let's put it that way.
00:11:35.919 --> 00:11:36.240
Sure.
00:11:36.639 --> 00:11:37.279
I got it.
00:11:37.519 --> 00:11:53.120
Okay, so um curious, this what this question is a little bit for the newer agents that are listening to, but if I dropped you in a brand new city tomorrow with no database, no reputation, and no relationships, and you had to build it all over again, what would you do first?
00:11:53.759 --> 00:11:56.639
I would go to a brokerage that has the most listings.
00:11:59.440 --> 00:12:00.639
That would be first up.
00:12:01.200 --> 00:12:09.440
Okay and then I would build relationships with listing agents, and I would ask them permission to host open houses for them.
00:12:10.080 --> 00:12:16.159
Uh, and uh I would ask them permission to post those houses on Instagram as a video walkthrough.
00:12:16.720 --> 00:12:26.879
Um, and I would ask to uh allow me to post them on Facebook Marketplace, and I would have probably 20 to 30 of those posts going every single week.
00:12:28.639 --> 00:12:29.679
I love it, I love it.
00:12:30.000 --> 00:12:33.440
That was a that's a great strategy and and specific too, so I like that.
00:12:33.679 --> 00:12:41.919
Yeah, but the minute you hear like, well, yeah, I have to do 10 open houses a week, you know, the agents drop off fast.
00:12:42.159 --> 00:12:54.879
But uh the beauty of it is you get you get a property to market, and if you are the same brokerage, like in Minnesota at least, um like you can advertise other agents listings, that's fine as long as they're at your brokerage.
00:12:55.279 --> 00:13:07.840
Um and uh Facebook marketplace, as long as you're posting them in the right groups, um, like neighborhood groups, or maybe it's a community group or whatever, um, like you are gonna get inquiries.
00:13:07.919 --> 00:13:14.720
That's like the fastest way, free way to generate leads, at least in my experience right now.
00:13:15.039 --> 00:13:16.639
Yeah, I love that.
00:13:16.879 --> 00:13:21.440
Um quick question, go back real quick to what you were talking about and follow-up, it just hit me.
00:13:22.399 --> 00:13:24.879
Uh and I meant to ask you like two minutes ago.
00:13:25.039 --> 00:13:33.120
But uh the um you you said that you you send out email like newsletter style, like content education.
00:13:33.519 --> 00:13:41.679
Is that uh education more broad, or is it does it get to a little bit more specific about your area?
00:13:42.480 --> 00:13:44.879
Or is it more just kind of general education?
00:13:45.120 --> 00:13:55.600
No, we like we wrote those emails that are I'd say they're they're localized, um, so that like they know we're from Minnesota, like they know that you know we're local.
00:13:55.759 --> 00:14:00.320
Um, and you know, some of the emails that go out, like they're like storytelling.
00:14:00.559 --> 00:14:06.080
Like, yeah, how I found you know an off-market deal uh in Plymouth, you know, Minnesota.
00:14:06.159 --> 00:14:07.519
Here's the exact steps that we did.
00:14:07.600 --> 00:14:10.639
And I understand that you're a buyer, you probably don't want to go through all this stuff.
00:14:10.720 --> 00:14:12.399
Call me, I'll just do it for you.
00:14:12.720 --> 00:14:14.000
You know, I like that.
00:14:14.080 --> 00:14:19.279
Well, I like the idea of telling the story and then it make it sound like it's a lot of work.
00:14:19.600 --> 00:14:22.879
So then they're like, I'd rather you just do it for me.
00:14:23.039 --> 00:14:25.200
So uh that that sets it up nicely.
00:14:25.440 --> 00:14:34.399
Now, this one is a little bit more tactical because I want to make sure agents listening uh walk away from these conversations with something they can actually put into practice.
00:14:34.559 --> 00:14:46.720
So if you were coaching an agent who's already doing some business but wants to significantly grow over the next 12 months, what's one specific thing you tell them to start doing this week?
00:14:47.039 --> 00:14:51.039
Uh well, get a showing partner, get yourself out of showings as fast as you can.
00:14:51.279 --> 00:14:51.600
Okay.
00:14:52.000 --> 00:14:53.840
Um, and find what you're really good at.
00:14:53.919 --> 00:14:55.919
If you're good at lead gen, focus on lead gen.
00:14:56.159 --> 00:15:00.639
If you're good at lead conversion and setting up appointments, set up appointments for other agents.
00:15:00.879 --> 00:15:13.679
Um if uh if you're really good at, I don't know, um writing SEO content for your website so that it gets clicks, you know, like focus on that stuff.
00:15:13.919 --> 00:15:19.440
Um, but get yourself out of things that take a lot of time and have um um a lot of uncertainty.
00:15:19.519 --> 00:15:33.360
So, like, you know, one buyers are great, a lot of buyers are still take them out on showings, but one buyer can take you on you know a seven-day trip and the other will take you on you know a two-year uh journey that never closes.
00:15:33.600 --> 00:15:43.759
Um, I think if your goal is to kind of just be in multiple places at the same time, like showing partners is a way to go.
00:15:43.919 --> 00:15:47.039
Uh, you can service five buyers in a day.
00:15:47.200 --> 00:15:55.679
Um you'll you're in five different spots, never disappear, you're always there, you're still running the deal, but you you know, you gotta get some boots on the ground.
00:15:55.840 --> 00:15:57.600
Uh listings is a different story.
00:15:57.679 --> 00:16:05.519
I mean, listings don't take a whole lot of um you know driving time or whatever.
00:16:05.759 --> 00:16:12.240
Um they take they do take you know um resources if you're doing the listings the right way.
00:16:12.320 --> 00:16:30.320
So, for example, our listing coordinator, um, like she does a lot of the like flyers, you know, print materials, deliver a lockbox, install a for sale sign, uh, meet with the sellers, go through the pre-listing checklist, make sure that the property is ready for uh photography.
00:16:30.559 --> 00:16:36.799
Um, she has uh storage with like a bunch of different like flower pots, you know, some decoration items.
00:16:36.960 --> 00:16:49.360
So she gets in the car, like if a house needs a little bit of you know decor, she'll bring it in, she'll arrange everything, and then uh she'll deliver a marketing package to the house, she'll put point of interest cards, you know, around the house.
00:16:49.519 --> 00:16:56.159
Like, hey, by the way, furnace was replaced in 2018 or whatever, whatever those value points that need to be communicated.
00:16:56.320 --> 00:17:03.679
Uh, so if you want to do the listings the right way and not just like throw them on the MLS, you know, um, get a listing coordinator.
00:17:03.759 --> 00:17:05.920
They don't have to be full-time, they can be part-time.
00:17:06.079 --> 00:17:15.680
Um, like, yes, you're gonna have to spend a little bit of money, but you know, if you want to be in you know 10 different places at the same time, that's that's the way to do it, at least in my experience.
00:17:16.079 --> 00:17:17.680
No, that was that was that was gold.
00:17:17.759 --> 00:17:18.799
I love that, Herman.
00:17:19.039 --> 00:17:20.720
Uh now let me ask you a question.
00:17:20.799 --> 00:17:26.559
This is probably one of my favorite questions I get to ask, and uh, this one is a little bit more about your business.
00:17:26.720 --> 00:17:38.720
Um, so if you could uh wave a magic wand and solve one problem in your business over the next 12 months, what do you think would have the biggest impact?
00:17:39.279 --> 00:17:40.559
Appointment setting.
00:17:42.960 --> 00:17:44.559
Yeah, yeah, 100%.
00:17:45.759 --> 00:17:57.920
And uh when you say appointment setting, where's uh where are you running into like you're getting leads in, but uh not necessarily being able to properly set the appointments, or where's the kind of the breakdown I'm just curious?
00:17:58.559 --> 00:18:05.680
Um let's let's come up with a magic list of a hundred great leads, right?
00:18:06.079 --> 00:18:06.720
Yep.
00:18:07.119 --> 00:18:12.400
And let's say you have an agent A that you're giving them to, right?
00:18:12.480 --> 00:18:15.759
And you're like, hey, agent A, I got uh a hundred leads for you.
00:18:15.920 --> 00:18:16.799
They're pretty good.
00:18:16.880 --> 00:18:18.160
You should call them.
00:18:18.559 --> 00:18:27.680
Um they are gonna go on showings, they're gonna spend time contract on contracts, they're gonna spend time on Instagram before the dialed out list, right?
00:18:28.000 --> 00:18:34.880
Versus if I call that agent and I say, Hey, agent A, I have three appointments for you today, 10 a.m., 1 p.m., and 4 p.m.
00:18:35.039 --> 00:18:37.200
And I have three appointments for you tomorrow.
00:18:37.519 --> 00:18:38.799
Would you go on them?
00:18:39.200 --> 00:18:44.960
They would drop everything, they would go on those appointments, and I would crush it, and would probably sign each one of them.
00:18:46.160 --> 00:18:47.440
That makes sense.
00:18:48.160 --> 00:18:49.519
I like that, the appointment setting.
00:18:49.680 --> 00:18:49.839
Okay.
00:18:50.319 --> 00:19:01.440
Yeah, so I think like in my mind, like if I if I think about like every agent on on Teams, I mean, I don't know, like you look at a team that sells like 500 deals, right?
00:19:02.720 --> 00:19:10.799
They probably have 85 to 120 agents doing four to seven deals a year.
00:19:11.279 --> 00:19:12.960
Yeah, somewhere there, right?
00:19:13.119 --> 00:19:15.119
So like that's how you get that volume.
00:19:15.359 --> 00:19:17.359
Um, and then you'll find teams.
00:19:17.519 --> 00:19:28.000
Um there's a couple of team leads that that I'm talking to, they got like 15 agents, and each agent's cranking out like 45 transactions a year.
00:19:29.519 --> 00:19:30.000
Wow.
00:19:30.799 --> 00:19:34.400
And and the difference there is like the appointments are done for them.
00:19:34.799 --> 00:19:35.200
Sure.
00:19:35.519 --> 00:19:40.480
Like all they're doing, like we're great, like most agents are great at shaking hands and kissing babies.
00:19:41.279 --> 00:19:48.240
We suck at like follow-up bus and CRMs and you know stuff in the office.
00:19:48.400 --> 00:19:54.000
Like we just want to go out there, meet people, talk to them, hang out with them, have a beer, go in a happy, whatever, right?
00:19:54.160 --> 00:19:54.559
Sure.
00:19:54.799 --> 00:20:08.960
So I think like you know, finding a way to just keep agents in that space is is probably the most you know life-changing opportunity that I see that I you know am working, you know, on on achieving.
00:20:09.119 --> 00:20:25.680
So well, I I look forward to hearing about when you when you do crack the code on on that, because I do think I can see that I can see that being a game changer, which speaking of, you touched you mentioned this word uh earlier in the episode, but uh we got to talk about AI for just a second.
00:20:25.839 --> 00:20:29.119
Um, what's your overall relationship with AI?
00:20:29.200 --> 00:20:34.400
It sounds like you're doing some things with AI, how are you actually using it in the business, and where do you think it's going?
00:20:34.799 --> 00:20:45.279
Yeah, so I think AI is going to obviously you know streamline a lot of things um to the point where um we are just you know shaking hands and kissing babies.
00:20:45.440 --> 00:20:56.799
Uh but uh um for us, so like we put uh a lot of the transaction coordination uh workflows on uh Zapier.
00:20:57.279 --> 00:21:02.960
Um so everything, every intake form that comes in um is automated.
00:21:03.279 --> 00:21:11.440
So I mean, if you sign a contract for the buyer, that contract has to go to um multiple parties.
00:21:11.839 --> 00:21:16.720
Um so one form basically knocks out a lot of those transactional items.
00:21:17.039 --> 00:21:30.160
Um the um 11 labs, so we're we're just like funny enough, like 10 days ago we started a new Instagram channel with which we're just doing uh video walkthroughs of homes.
00:21:30.880 --> 00:21:38.720
And you know, I tried one where like you're putting up the phone to your face and you're walking through and you're talking and then you stumble, and then you have to redo it again.
00:21:38.799 --> 00:21:43.839
Like, and it's like and I'm like, this has been 45 minutes of me just dinking around, right?
00:21:44.000 --> 00:21:45.599
And then I have to edit this video.
00:21:45.680 --> 00:21:55.039
I'm like, what a nightmare! Um, and then I see these guys on Instagram, they're just doing faceless video walkthroughs, and it takes like two minutes to what to watch it, right?
00:21:55.279 --> 00:22:03.119
Yep, and I'm like, well, it would be great if I just do a video and you know a quick Button and it just like does everything that I need it to do.
00:22:03.279 --> 00:22:18.559
So now we're shooting a video, we're throwing it into ChatGPT, and we're asking ChatGPT, hey, watch this video, and then create us a transcript for this video so that we can upload it into 11 webs and create audio file.
00:22:18.799 --> 00:22:29.200
Um, so ChatGPT watches the video, uh, spits out a transcript, transcript goes into 11 webs, audio clip gets downloaded and is laid over like a voiceover over the video.
00:22:29.519 --> 00:22:33.680
Like it takes 10 to 15 minutes probably to go through that process.
00:22:33.839 --> 00:22:39.759
Uh, but then you have a video walkthrough with captions, with a voice, and you can clone your own voice.
00:22:39.839 --> 00:22:44.160
So, like if you know if you can record yourself, it'll clone your voice, or you can come up with your own voice.
00:22:44.240 --> 00:22:50.000
Like, I want uh I don't know, warm, fuzzy, conversational, you know, whatever, right?
00:22:50.400 --> 00:22:52.480
Um, it'll it'll give you a voice.
00:22:52.640 --> 00:22:55.119
And um, so far, I mean, I don't know.
00:22:55.279 --> 00:22:58.559
I mean, I got 124 followers in seven days.
00:22:58.960 --> 00:22:59.519
That's great.
00:22:59.680 --> 00:23:00.319
That's great.
00:23:00.480 --> 00:23:01.279
So that's great.
00:23:01.680 --> 00:23:16.319
Uh but uh uh now now the goal is to get somebody um you know part-time who who just wants to walk around and shoot videos to just take a phone, do some walkthroughs, and just follow this process uh and upload them for us.
00:23:16.559 --> 00:23:20.160
Um which which is basically just um open house strategy.
00:23:20.240 --> 00:23:34.799
So if I ask permission from a listing agent to allow me to host an open house for them, I'm asking them for permission to shoot a video so we can go uh you know on Instagram and you know, Facebook Marketplace as part of the marketing package.
00:23:34.960 --> 00:23:44.559
Uh, most busy listing agents they don't have to have time to deal with any any of this, so they're very open and welcoming, and they'll actually want you to do it because there's more exposure.
00:23:44.960 --> 00:23:49.920
Uh man, Herman, you you you brought the gold in this episode.
00:23:50.000 --> 00:23:52.960
I want to ask one last question and then I'll let you go.
00:23:53.119 --> 00:23:55.759
Uh let's think five years into the future.
00:23:56.000 --> 00:23:57.920
What do you think might change about the industry?
00:23:58.000 --> 00:24:02.240
I'm I'm guessing AI's uh give it five years, it's definitely gonna make some serious changes.
00:24:02.799 --> 00:24:04.880
But also, maybe what do you think won't change?
00:24:04.960 --> 00:24:14.799
Because you hear all kinds of rumors about real estate agents are just gonna disappear to robots or whatever, which I don't really believe is the case, but I do think how we work will be very different.
00:24:14.960 --> 00:24:20.799
Um I would love to hear your thoughts on let's dream a little bit five years from now, what you what you think things will look like.
00:24:21.039 --> 00:24:24.400
I think all the transactional stuff is gonna go on AI for sure.
00:24:24.799 --> 00:24:32.079
Yeah, I can see, like let's say you're a homeowner, you've got a house listed with me, and there's some services that we provide, right?
00:24:32.240 --> 00:24:37.200
And you, as homeowner, you just click buttons to schedule your photography, so it's convenient for you.
00:24:37.359 --> 00:24:40.720
You click a button to schedule cleaning, you you know what I mean?
00:24:40.799 --> 00:24:43.039
Like that kind of stuff gets automated.
00:24:43.359 --> 00:24:50.400
Uh, all of the behind-the-scenes stuff, like you know, the contract submission, um, which we already are are doing.
00:24:50.559 --> 00:25:00.000
Uh, but I can see brokerages coming out with actual like portal, you know, with a dashboard for um homeowner or a home buyer so they can track their um transaction a little bit better.
00:25:00.240 --> 00:25:04.240
I think Compass just wrote that out uh a couple of weeks ago.
00:25:04.400 --> 00:25:10.400
Um that you know, some some internal system that they have, and I think you know, brokerages will follow in.
00:25:10.480 --> 00:25:18.079
Like we're seeing massive amount of consolidation into larger brokerages, so like real and remax.
00:25:18.240 --> 00:25:25.680
Um, I think XP acquired um a company, I forgot the name, but uh it was a franchise company.
00:25:25.839 --> 00:25:31.039
Um Compass rolling up all of these you know brokerages under their umbrella.
00:25:31.279 --> 00:25:33.279
Uh so you have these big companies.
00:25:33.440 --> 00:25:49.920
I think the question that that I have in my mind is how valuable would it be actually for small broker owners to to provide their services to agents locally versus like being part of a large corporation?
00:25:50.480 --> 00:25:50.960
Interesting.
00:25:51.119 --> 00:26:10.799
So I think there's gonna be some resurgence of like smaller brokerages that are maybe 200 to you know 700 agents somewhere there, but you kind of know the owners, you know who they are, um, you know who the upper chief operating officer is, you know who the legal is.
00:26:10.960 --> 00:26:14.240
Like um I think that will be valuable.
00:26:14.400 --> 00:26:33.759
Um, I think yes, you know, these large corporations are gonna dominate from a volume perspective, but then somebody who really wants that um interaction and actually knowing who the people are, you know, um I think that actually might come back, but on a smaller scale.
00:26:34.319 --> 00:26:34.640
Yeah.
00:26:34.880 --> 00:26:37.759
Well, that's that's a fascinating take, uh Herman.
00:26:37.839 --> 00:26:42.559
I really appreciate all of the strategic and tactical things you share with us.
00:26:43.200 --> 00:26:47.759
Uh before we wrap up, where can people learn more about you and your team?
00:26:48.480 --> 00:26:51.359
Um, well, I guess Instagram, Herman Antonov.
00:26:51.680 --> 00:26:52.559
That's my my handle.
00:26:52.640 --> 00:26:54.400
I'm not very active on that one.
00:26:54.640 --> 00:26:57.440
Um our team account is more active.
00:26:57.519 --> 00:26:59.359
It's uh the Antonov group.
00:26:59.519 --> 00:27:02.400
Um, so that one is a little more active.
00:27:02.480 --> 00:27:07.440
And then uh the video walkthroughs are Twin Cities uh home tours.
00:27:07.759 --> 00:27:09.279
Uh that's the handle.
00:27:09.599 --> 00:27:15.920
Um, you can follow us there, check out you know the videos, you know, you can be our 125th follower.
00:27:17.279 --> 00:27:19.200
You should definitely go check out this Instagram.
00:27:19.359 --> 00:27:20.480
I I'm definitely gonna be following you.
00:27:20.559 --> 00:27:34.160
I may Yeah, I'm I'm just like start just playing around, starting with this and like plugging in many chat, you know, comment this word, you know, to get a link to idea page of listings that we prepared for you, whatever, you know.
00:27:34.559 --> 00:27:36.240
Um, so we'll get there right now.
00:27:36.319 --> 00:27:41.759
We're just kind of trying to see if we can if we can get over a thousand to two thousand, and if it keeps going, why not?
00:27:41.839 --> 00:27:43.440
Let's let's keep rolling.
00:27:44.079 --> 00:27:44.720
No, I love it.
00:27:44.799 --> 00:27:48.960
I'm excited to uh check in with you later on down the road and hear how the strategy is going.
00:27:49.200 --> 00:27:52.319
So, Herman, thanks again for joining me on under contract.
00:27:52.559 --> 00:27:53.599
Uh, I love this conversation.
00:27:53.759 --> 00:27:54.960
Uh yeah, this was fun.
00:27:55.039 --> 00:27:55.599
Thank you so much.
00:27:55.680 --> 00:27:56.559
Uh thanks, Herman.
00:27:56.720 --> 00:27:58.799
Uh thanks for listening to Under Contract.
00:27:58.880 --> 00:28:03.519
Uh, if you don't have time to catch every episode, we'll do the listening and the note taking for you.
00:28:03.839 --> 00:28:12.240
We pull out the best ideas and strategies we're hearing from top producing agents and regularly send you the ones we're putting to work in your business.
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Uh uh.
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Get the notes completely free at undercontract notes.com.
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That's undercontract notes.com.
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And I'll see you on the next episode.
