Sally (pictured) has three decades’ experience and now mentors others through her firm Agent Rainmaker – including many who have reached 50% margins and above. However, despite the very real possibilities, only one in five of the agents the organisation recently surveyed said 50%+ would be possible for them over the next 12 months.
Sally said with the rental market booming, now was the time for letting agents (many of whom are also landlords) to make the changes needed to increase profits, grow their business, and as a result, begin enjoying more personal freedom. In the main, this can be done without charging their landlord clients more, but by offering a more wide-ranging service and running a more efficient business.
“We all know running an agency is an incredibly demanding job,” she added, “and with the pandemic restrictions now largely lifted, agents are telling us they’d love to take more holidays and have more time away from the business to pursue other goals and hobbies.
“In fact, these aspirations were twice as popular as goals such as being able to retire early, enjoy a larger pension pot, reduce hours or work more flexible hours.
“All of the signs for the future of the industry are positive – with one in four telling us they feel optimistic and two in five feeling excited. Plus, almost 40% of the agents we spoke to are either recruiting now or planning to within the next six months.
“But there still seems to be widespread hesitancy around profit margins, and a myth that 50% isn’t achievable. Reaching that target is absolutely possible if you go about it the right way, and it also affords agency owners the sort of personal freedoms that they’re probably not enjoying now if they’re spending all of their time bogged down in the day-to-day grind, rather than stepping away and reviewing how the business could run more efficiently and effectively.”
Sally’s top five tips to boost profit margins:
1. Don’t DIY – taking on more staff or outsourcing certain tasks may seem like an expense, but it gives you the time and opportunity to evaluate what’s going well and what needs work within the agency, what your plans are, and how you can achieve them.
2. Upsell – think about the other services you can offer as added value, whether it’s rent collecting, refurb services, staging…there are countless options and these extra offers will set you apart from your competition.
3. Analyse your services – charging a monthly fee may seem like a win but have you worked out how much time you’re spending completing the tasks and whether this means you’re actually making a profit?
4. Seize opportunities – think about the ways you can grow your business, for example by acquisitions or affiliations.
5. Feel the fear and do it anyway – I’ve lost count of the agents I’ve worked with who’ve realised it’s their own fears which have been holding them back. Once they begin making decisions regardless of the fear factor, their business begins to fly.
Agents have the unique opportunity to find out much more about growing their business via Agent Rainmaker Live, the annual event described as ‘Glastonbury for the lettings industry’.
Running this weekend (10th to 12th September), there are just a few last-minute tickets left to access the packed programme of expert speakers, real-life success stories, and much more at the Marriott Hotel in Heathrow, London.
Sally adds: “We’re thrilled the event is able to return this year, as we know it makes a real tangible difference to the business of everyone who attends and takes on the tips shared. When we first came up with the idea of Agent Rainmaker Live, we didn’t want it to be a stuffy conference or boring training event – so whether it’s dancing in the aisles, or presenters arriving on stage on scooters, we go the extra mile to make sure it’s entertaining as well as educational.
“Many of the agents we’ve worked with to totally transform their business (and their life) will be in attendance so it’s a unique opportunity to network with people who are now hitting those higher profit margins - and making a real success of their agency with tips that you too could implement.”
To find out more, click here
