My entire life has been about sales and customer experience. I take great pride in the relationships that I have built and maintained in my career.
I am extremely excited to take my skills into a new career path of real estate and soon release estate development. I know that the secret to my success will continue because of my great clients. I believe in the customer first philosophy and to provide a level of service that will lead to many leads and referrals. This is key to my new business and plan to make the most of my new career.
[Podcast Transcript Using Artificial Intelligence]
Umar Hameed 0:01
Are you ready to become awesomer? Hello everyone. My name is Umar Hameed, I'm your host on The no limit selling podcast where industry leaders share their tips, strategies and advice on how you can become better, stronger, faster. Just before we get started, I've got a question for you. Do you have a negative voice inside your head? We all do, right? I'm gonna help you remove that voice and under 30 days guaranteed not only remove it, but transform it. So instead of the voice that sabotages you, there's one that propels you to much higher levels of performance and success. There's a link in the show notes. Click on it to find out more. All right, let's get started.
Umar Hameed 0:41
Hey, everyone. Welcome to another episode of The No Limits Selling Podcast. We have Layne Britton with us here today. He's a team leader. He's a realtor. He's a business guy. Welcome to the program.
Layne Britton 0:53
Hey, thank you so much for how we meet today. I'm really, really feel honored to be here.
Umar Hameed 0:57
Superb. How many years you've been in the business.
Layne Britton 1:01
So this is currently I'm just about in for eight years. So 2000, late 2015. I got into...
Umar Hameed 1:08
You starting to get the hang of it. I love it. So what made you decide to come into real estate? What were you doing before?
Layne Britton 1:14
So I was 16 years in the car business prior to real estate.
Umar Hameed 1:19
General sales manager or a sales guy?
Layne Britton 1:21
Yeah, so sales general manager, general sales manager and business finance office as well for a while, but kind of just tried to get all the different areas under the belt. And then you know how to, you know, have a daughter, she was growing up way too fast. And I was spending way too much time at the car dealership. And I was selling luxury cars to a bunch of realtors and I was really kind of promoted, or prompted, I guess you could say by a few customers saying, you know, "You should think about this, right?" And I did.
Umar Hameed 1:52
Because for a lot of realtors, there's two types of realtors. There's realtors that are like, "I was an office person, I was a business person," but never a salesperson, they come into the business, and they expect it to magically work. And then you have people that were salespeople coming in, it's like, "Oh my God, instead of selling like 100,000 automobile, I could sell a million dollar house and make a lot more commission," and you get to put your sales skills to use. So when you came in what was the first year like?
Layne Britton 2:20
No one I was really fortunate just because I was 10 years here in Victoria, at a luxury car dealership. And so I had a lot of great clients that I built wonderful relationships with
Umar Hameed 2:32
Brilliant.
Layne Britton 2:32
And I literally leveraged my database in my first year more money in my first year in real estate than I made in my best year in the automobile industry. And just went, "Wow, you know, this is this is awesome." And it's just been an upward trajectory since then.
Umar Hameed 2:49
How many transactions that first year?
Layne Britton 2:51
So first year was 18 transactions.
Umar Hameed 2:54
Hold on. Stop right there. That's freaking awesome, dude.
Layne Britton 3:00
Yeah.
Umar Hameed 3:00
Please go on. Then, then how did you? Where are you now? How did it progress?
Layne Britton 3:04
Yeah. So you know, the first few years were just like me slugging it out, you know, hustling around, doing what you do, right? prospecting, networking, just really trying to again, like I just hammered on my sphere mostly started getting into some online lead generation got into, you know, got a great platform for my website through Real Geeks.
Umar Hameed 3:27
Nice.
Layne Britton 3:28
Really started working those leads. Spending more time on social media, you know, those kinds of things, everything was really kind of very organic. I tried not to spend a lot of money, but at the same time, you know, you spend money because you think well, that's, that's the next next thing I'm gonna grab...
Umar Hameed 3:43
Right.
Layne Britton 3:43
...I'm gonna grab, I'm gonna grab. So, you know, I made a lot of money in my first year, which is really awesome. That's a lot of money to make that money. And every other year from there, you know, I've been able to expand the business with, you know, keeping that spend, you know, more on a scale? Yeah.
Umar Hameed 4:00
How many transactions this year are you going to do?
Layne Britton 4:03
Well, between the three of us on the team, I would say we're probably going to be 120 plus.
Umar Hameed 4:10
Nice.
Layne Britton 4:11
All the time we also haven't done.
Umar Hameed 4:13
Brilliant, Were you part of the team before and then started your own team? Or did you just go from solo to starting your own team?
Layne Britton 4:20
Yeah, it was kind of funny, because I knew a lot of the managing brokers, when I went and interviewed for positions were for places to put my license. And, you know, I was approached by a lot of people going, you know, why you should come on the team, you know, learn the business. You know, I just didn't like the commission splits, you know, to be honest with you.
Umar Hameed 4:38
Yeah.
Layne Britton 4:38
And I really took a lot of that into my thought process when I actually did eventually build my own team because I run a team much different than, you know, your traditional kind of team would be.
Umar Hameed 4:52
Tell me how a traditional teams run and then we'll take a look at what you're doing.
Layne Britton 4:56
Sure. Yeah. So a traditional team you're expected you know, you've got a lot of accountable Well, Janya, you know, you might be getting some, some leads put through to you, whether they're through an ISA or through or not. And you have to do the work. But you know, you know, the average here, you know, they can take up to 70% of the of the commission, you're getting paid 30% You still got to pay your fees, you still got to pay your brokerage fees, your you know, all that
Umar Hameed 5:19
Training education, all that stuff. Yeah.
Layne Britton 5:21
Yeah, absolutely. So, I mean, those were one of the things that, you know, I thought, you know, geez, you know, if I'm going to be investing into this, I've always been a big believer in investing into myself. So I just said, you know, what, I think I'm going to do it on my own. And that's going to be my catalyst to be able to afford to be able to start a team.
Umar Hameed 5:39
Nice. So how would you describe the culture of the team? And like, what's the vibe like?
Layne Britton 5:46
You know, what, it's kind of funny, because, again, too, in a traditional team kind of sense, you know, you would be okay, great, you know, you're getting some stuff covered, or whatever. I've got two members on the team. Trevor was the first that joined with me. And he came out of the car business, so we actually work together.
Umar Hameed 6:05
Nice.
Layne Britton 6:06
And, you know, so I tried to give him all that I all the knowledge that I picked up in the first few years, and you know, he's in a different area than I am. But it's an area that I did spend a lot of time and did a lot of transactions in. So he lived there, and was great, because we're like, okay, you know, we can kind of expand this, this area. And then when we decided to leave our previous brokerage, I ended up bringing an we'll two other members with me. And so we were up to four. And then with her deep, she, again, is in a different location. So we were able to kind of, you know, work this, basically, triangle of the South Island trade.
Umar Hameed 6:46
Nice.
Layne Britton 6:47
So it was really nice, we had this great coverage. And we do work very much like a family team. And you know, we just kind of more work like colleagues than really a team, but we have a great connection together with how we do business. And then, you know, I started thinking about, you know, how can we build a team, and I just really had a hard time with thinking, "Okay, I'll bring somebody in," you know, give them a small salary, pay them, you know, 30%, or a deal transaction fee? Because it didn't really know. And I still don't know how to find that person, right? And how will it fit in. So with one of the other people that was on a team, you know, there was just so much of an urge for her to be able to be her own self that, you know, I helped her with rebranding with setting up her business, you know, and everything else it got. So we just, I just went from kind of a team leader to a support.
Umar Hameed 7:46
That's what a leader does. Absolutely.
Layne Britton 7:47
Right. And with my assistant, Tracy, who is incredible, and she is a huge part of my business, she was able to be there to kind of help on that administration end on a lot of the...
Umar Hameed 7:48
Nice.
Layne Britton 7:48
...kind of paperwork ,clauses, things like that, because she was actually a former conveyancer. So she was the one that was going over all our contracts, making sure everything's right and doing compliance, so perfect assistant to have. And then, you know, with the new brokerage that we're with, you know, I'm really excited because instead of building a team, I've now been able to build this wonderful group of affiliate agents.
Umar Hameed 8:25
Right.
Layne Britton 8:25
And now, I'm leveraging my time to create better agents. And those agents are now you know, it's contributing to my income, which is amazing. Like, it's just, it's a phenomenal thing to be able to help somebody but be better at what they do in their business and work of their business and life and everything else like that, and be able to make an income from it. So...
Umar Hameed 8:52
Nice.
Layne Britton 8:52
...I'm pretty blessed.
Umar Hameed 8:54
So let's kind of break down in a real estate. One of the areas is networking, you've been to networking events. So what mistakes do typical realtors make when they go networking at you know, the local chamber event? Or the local newspaper? What do they do? And now, how do you do things differently to get more more business out of those events?
Layne Britton 9:15
Yeah, so when I do stuff like that, I'm not looking at it as business like, you know, I don't go there to sell my business. I go there...
Umar Hameed 9:21
Nice.
Layne Britton 9:22
...to create a relationship, you know what I mean? And through that, I've been able to, you know, really get a sphere that I can literally turn off all my lead generation everything and I'd still probably do 30 to 50 deals a year just based on referral.
Umar Hameed 9:40
So let's pause you right there, I was talking to an agent, really successful agent a few days ago. And he said, you know, when he first started, he'd be sitting in the car with his, his team leader, and they'd go in to do a listing presentation, and this is what his team leader would say, "Come on, dude. Let's go make some friends." And he truly meant it. He went out there, let's figure out what's going on for them. Let's make friends. And if we ended up getting the business, all the better, but the goal was never to, we're gonna get them to sign the document and do this, just like you said, a networking, let's just go meet people and make friends and then go with good intention, good things happen.
Layne Britton 10:17
Well, and you know, I just think that it's definitely it's always been relationships over transaction for me.
Umar Hameed 10:24
Yes.
Layne Britton 10:25
Even even in the car business, you know, I have managers that just would be like, "What are you doing? Why, you know, you gotta sell, sell, sell." And I'm like, "You know what, that wasn't the right car for them. But you know, I made a great friend, they're the client that doesn't put any money in our pocket." And guess what, that person would refer so many people to me to come in and buy the cars that I would sell. Because I really helped and I really have their best interests at heart.
Umar Hameed 10:49
And people can feel that right.
Layne Britton 10:51
100%. And that's where I really just felt that if, like, if I was going to do this, I want it to be different. And, you know, that's kind of my tagline, too, is, you know, doing things different than getting great results.
Umar Hameed 11:06
What mistakes do typical realtors make in networking?
Layne Britton 11:09
Well, again, too, I think that they're just looking at as a just a business only, you know, like, transaction, a transaction transaction. And you know, like, in the car business, I would always say, you know, make the, make the friends and the stickers will come on the board. You know what I mean? That's....
Umar Hameed 11:27
Absolutely.
Layne Britton 11:27
I'll stick around every time. But in real estate, I always told people, I said, "Look, you know what, I'm not going to sell you a house, okay? I'm going to educate you on the market, I'm going to educate you and find you products that fit to what you're looking for. And I've only known that because we've now developed a relationship and I know what you need in what you want. And you know, what you're going to what's acceptable, what's not. So I've listened to you twice as much as I talk to you, I'm going to translate that into a bunch of products. But when you walk through the door, I'm going to know just by the way that you look at it, that this is something that is going to work for you." And you're gonna have that emotional feeling that connection. And then that's where I stepped in and do my job. And that's negotiating out the best terms and conditions that I can possibly get for you. And you know, from there, you know, that's the relationship part of it.
Umar Hameed 12:23
Yeah.
Layne Britton 12:24
"I can sell you on me, I can sell you on what I can do to sell your house. That's fine," and that's the marketing and everything else. But if I was prospecting, I would never be saying, you know, like, hey, this is what I do on a daily basis, I'd be like, "Hey, you know what, I just want to get to know a little bit about you. See what your motivations are? Timelines, you know, what you love about your house? What you would love to see in your next house? You know, what's important to you? Is it is it a school catchment? Is it that you want to have recreation close by? Is it because you're aging, and you need to have a hospital that is going to be able to be there or a pharmacist or clinic or something like that?" You know, really understanding your client's needs.
Umar Hameed 13:10
Is huge. Absolutely. So let's take a look at this second area, which is, by the way, do you know how to make a grown man? Do you know how to make a salesperson cry?
Layne Britton 13:20
No.
Umar Hameed 13:21
Give them a telephone. There's lots of call reluctance. So how do you see the phone as a tool and how to use it effectively? Like what would be three pieces of advice that you'd give realtors, if you're a realtor that wants to build your business? This is how you use the phone?
Layne Britton 13:37
Well, I'll tell you right now, your phone is your number one source of contacts. You've put it in there, you've got an entire business in your phone, I can guarantee you.
Umar Hameed 13:46
Yep.
Layne Britton 13:47
So use that. Now, this may sound funny, but it's for all the people that believe that when you put it out there in the universe, it comes back to you. I often will be driving in my car. And I'll think of somebody you know whether I see a car or something that reminds me of somebody, somebody will pop into my head, I literally pick up the phone, but eventhough I'm in my car.
Umar Hameed 14:08
Yeah.
Layne Britton 14:09
I use Siri to send.
Umar Hameed 14:12
Oh, yeah.
Layne Britton 14:12
And I call those people, "Hey, I don't know why you came into my head, I needed to give you a quick shout. Just wanted to see how you're doing." The amount of business alone that I've gathered just from a quick thought of somebody and reaching down and hitting a call, it's mind blowing. And you know, and it happens to all of us. It's just that we go "Oh, that's weird," you know, and don't think about it.
Umar Hameed 14:12
Or we don't do it. It's like I should call him, "Yeah, yeah. Later when I'm at home and when this is why," when you get like that internal ping is what I call it, you'll get a ping. It's like, oh, just reach out and say hello, see what's happening. And this usually quite useful.
Layne Britton 14:51
And we're going to tackle a world where you know, so many people don't make a phone call anymore, you know?
Umar Hameed 14:57
Yeah, it's a especially for the younger generation, it's the last skill. Like today I was talking to this woman. And she said, she's got a vision board. And a week ago, she put down, I want to get an opportunity to speak in public. And he said, like, two days later, one of your people called me and said, "Hey, do you want to be on the podcast?" And so today she was on the podcast, because I put it out there. And then, "Ta...da.." it happened. So universal help you. You just got to help yourself first.
Layne Britton 15:24
Accept. You just got to be able to accept that into you, right?
Umar Hameed 15:28
And I think if you're a realtor making phone calls, rather than going, you know, "Hey, Elaine, this is Umar, how are you?" And all that stuff is just like, "Hey, Lane, it's Umar, the reason I'm calling is, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. Do you have a minute?" And just getting to the point really, really quickly, helps people go, "Yeah, I do want to talk to you," rather than trying to fake a conversation.
Layne Britton 15:54
You can't fake it, you know, people will pick up on it instantly, right?
Umar Hameed 15:58
Absolutely. So one of the other areas that realtors have difficulty is, for whatever reason, the market has changed, and the house was listed at x. And that's no longer viable and the market is proving it, having that conversation about, hey, we need to change some parameters to get this thing moving. A lot of agents dread that conversation and will do anything to avoid it. What's your advice to them? How to handle that kind of situation?
Layne Britton 16:23
Well, number one, first and foremost, you develop that relationship with that person that they're looking to use for your advice. They're not going to scorn you, when you say, "Hey, you know what we went for this price." And you know, because often like when I'm with people, you know, we we give them our best, you know, number, they may want to tweak that. And you know, you got to work together, right, and you find that spot, I kind of pre negotiated ready, you know, as we start that, you know. In the market where we just had where it was just skyrocketing, you know, you could overpriced and catch up, we didn't do that we always kind of tried to keep in with what the consistent selling prices were. And then, of course, we had tons of bidding wars here. And we saw houses sell for hundreds...
Umar Hameed 17:06
Oh, yeah.
Layne Britton 17:07
...of $1,000.
Umar Hameed 17:07
Which is much better to start a bidding war than be priced too high and not have one.
Layne Britton 17:11
Correct. And now, after these last two crazy years, now we've seen this change. Of course, we've had a flood of new agents that don't know how to work in a market like this. Whereas I've seen three different changes in our market, while three different ops and you know, a couple different changes as UPS change. And so diversity is always going to be the thing. But in regards to talking to your client about that, you just have to say, you know, "You hired me for a reason, I'm here looking out for your best interests and your best interests, you know, right now means that if we want to sell this, and we want to do and complete what you're looking for, we're gonna have to make some adjustments because the market is adjusted." You know, it's conversations that are never fun, but they're necessary. So you kind of have to have that mentality of, you know, "I'm going to tell you what you need to hear, not what you want to hear," we can't just butter it up all the time.
Umar Hameed 18:06
it comes down to that relationship and how you start that relationship off with trust, and the agent really listening to their, their clients.
Layne Britton 18:15
Yep. And you know, your client listens to you, you know, you're gonna have some customers that are difficult, and that's fine. But ultimately, they chose you to represent them and their best interests, and they will listen to you. They won't take offense to it, mostly.
Umar Hameed 18:33
So you started a team, and you've got a few years under your belt, there's probably some things you did really well, and some things that you know, put it on better. So somebody starting a new team, what would be five pieces of advice you'd give them?
Layne Britton 18:45
You know, you got to really research what a team is. Okay.
Umar Hameed 18:49
Yes.
Layne Britton 18:50
And I got into like, when when Trevor came in, I was definitely not ready circumstance. And friendship was one of the motivating factors there. And we've had to kind of fumble our way through. I mean, it's just what it is. And you know, we mesh very well together, we have a great dynamic, you know, everything we do, we do a ton of social media, lots of videos.
Umar Hameed 19:12
Nice.
Layne Britton 19:12
And watching how we interact with each other and things like that. And we have a ton of fun doing it. With our deep it's a completely different situation. Again, we have a great dynamic together, we do a ton of videos together, you know, things like that, but it's different business model that we have. She mainly deals with new development, new builders and things like that. And of course, she's got a very big community that she works within. And of course, you know, she her prospecting comes very organically, whereas me and Trevor have to really kind of put ourselves out there and we're working for that everyday kind of person that we need to be in, in residential. So if you're starting a team, I would definitely look at how to really set that team up. And these are the things that you know, like I have to look internally because if I was to do it again, I would do it absolutely completely differently. And I wouldn't start it in a completely different manner. And I would run it in a completely different manner. But at the same time, I've learned so much about how I would do it.
Umar Hameed 20:10
Absolutely, you wouldn't know until you do it the first time. And on a scale of you know, if we were grading you, I'm not sure what grade you give yourself might be a B, or C. But the next time you do it, even this team is gonna get better as you go. And I think that's taking action. Thoughtful action is really, really critical. If you wait for perfection, nothing's going to happen.
Layne Britton 20:30
Never. And you know, what I look at this as, as a business, not as a job. And you know, the way that I would that I run everything right now is very process driven, we have a huge lead generation aspect of the company. And all of those leads are shared to everybody in our group, I take my share, they keep their share. That's how I run this group of people now versus having running a team.
Umar Hameed 20:56
One of the things I'd recommend, let me tell you story first, and then I'll give you a recommendation. I had a client that ran marine parts distribution company. And they had a tough time getting engineers to fix marine engines. So they ended up by securing a government grant to start a school to train technicians to become engine mechanics. And at an each graduating class, they would offer two or three of the graduates a job in their company, and the other folks got jobs in other companies. So they basically created their own market to get talent. And how it relates to you is I wonder if so here's where I think some of the shortcomings in our industry are. One of them is, sometimes sales is seen as a dirty word in what we do is like, you know, "Hey, they'll like me, they'll want to work with me," and sometimes you need to sell. Not force anybody to do anything but if you're a good salesperson, you listen, you help people get the realizations they need, and you help them get exactly the home that they want, or sell the home that they're trying to sell. So I wonder what would happen if you said, "Okay, I'm going to get people in the auto industry that have really good sales skills, and teach them this industry," and that just become the car guys. That way, you don't have to teach them how to sell you may need to teach them some other stuff. I wonder if that would work out? It would be like a, who knows? It could be a TV show reality show you could be there?
Layne Britton 22:23
Well, it's actually funny that you say that because like honestly, my one of my biggest goals that's coming up is that I'm going to eventually have basically a kind of real estate school, right? So something that, you know, after you get your license, you know, you learn all this stuff, you get your license. You have zero idea of what real estate entails. And you know, when most people go into a brokerage, you know, they get, "Oh, yeah, we got training, we got this, and they got that." So you get through the brokerage they go, "Oh, yeah, I hear, here's the website address, click and watch the videos, that's your training." You scan the room looking for somebody that makes eye contact, you're like, "Oh, my God, can you help me?"
Umar Hameed 23:01
Yeah.
Layne Britton 23:01
Can you really give me that bit? You know, that extra thing that I need? And I found that guy, which was so lucky about [garbled], it's the lovely guy. He's amazing. He's retired in Costa Rica now, total goals. Anyways, the fact is, is that I see a huge disconnect in this business, this business is set up for failure and I hate that. And that's why I leverage so much of my time for every one of my agents, you know, we have 14 now and we're growing all the time. So with those 14 agents, they can reach out to me anytime. I'll absolutely work with them on ideas, anything that you need. But to set up something where you go from getting your license to having the basics, having some setups, having some systems having some process. Getting your blinders put on so that you're not trying to grab all the shiny stuff that's...
Umar Hameed 23:01
Oh, yeah.
Layne Britton 23:03
...in front of you from a million different marketing companies. And focus on making a better agent that doesn't matter. If there's 1000, 2000, 3000, 10,000 agents in your market, that you are going to be successful, right? And success is driven by yourself.
Umar Hameed 24:11
This quote comes up from Bruce Lee, "I don't fear the man that knows 10,000 kicks, I fear the man that has practiced one kick 10,000 times." And so just teaching them the basics can build a really good business.
Layne Britton 24:26
Absolutely. You obviously you have to have some sort of personality, you have to have some sort of motivation and why to want to be in real estate. But that's...
Umar Hameed 24:34
Absolutely.
Layne Britton 24:35
...if you don't know how to execute it, right?
Umar Hameed 24:38
For sure. And so certainly having a leader that you can follow that allows you to believe in yourself is critical and I think you're that person. So before we parted company Layne, what is one thing in your life that brings you happiness? And what specific thing, not just like family. Tell me about a specific time, "I was with my daughter and, and she did whatever."
Layne Britton 25:01
Well, the most amazing day of my life was the day that my daughter was born.
Umar Hameed 25:05
Nice.
Layne Britton 25:06
I can't explain the overwhelming amount of love joy, and every emotion you can possibly feel. Like it was really the most amazing thing to me and she is the most amazing and most important part of my life.
Umar Hameed 25:21
Nice.
Layne Britton 25:22
And that's what I do this for every day. But you know, what, if I can tell you something that really makes me happy? Okay. Like, I'll tell you, when one of the agents, you know, has a win.
Umar Hameed 25:35
Oh, yeah. Huge.
Layne Britton 25:36
That is my, like, "I'm all the way." I absolutely benefit from that. I'm not gonna say.
Umar Hameed 25:43
But that's not what the joy is from. Joy from you help somebody achieve something amazing.
Layne Britton 25:47
Absolutely. And just people that are, you know, have no confidence going in, and are now just thriving, I will give you anytime you need. If I can help you get to that point.
Umar Hameed 26:02
Love that. What is one tip you'd like to share with the world that allows you to be more productive, more effective, happier, sleep better, eat better, like, what's one tip you'd like to share with the world that it would make an impact on someone's life?
Layne Britton 26:18
Really is just trying to find that balance, right? I struggle with it all the time, I will tell you because it's very busy. I own multiple companies as well. So I mean, it's it's not just real estate, but you know, honestly, trying to have an schedule in time for yourself. Not just I'm not saying like, "Okay, here's my family time," because I schedule that in all the time. Like, I mean, I schedule my daughter all the time, where I struggle, is just saying, "Hey, I'm gonna take this time for me."
Umar Hameed 26:48
Yeah. Self-care is really important. Layne, thanks so much for being on the program. Really enjoyed the conversation and best of luck on starting this school to build better, stronger, faster realtors.
Layne Britton 26:59
Thank you. I really appreciate all your time today and it was really great to be on here.
Umar Hameed 27:08
If you enjoyed this episode, please go to iTunes and leave a five-star rating. And if you're looking for more tools, go to my website at nolimitsselling.com. I've got a free mind training course there, that's going to teach you some insights from the world of Neuro-Linguistic Programming and that is the fastest way to get better results.