Christopher Zoller is an agent with EWM Realty in Coral Gables.
Every week, we ask a Miami real estate professional for their thoughts on the top three stories from the week before.
This week, we talked with Christopher Zoller, an agent with EWM Realty in Coral Gables who, along with having been in real estate for more than 30 years, is a member of the Miami Association of Realtors board of governors, a Master Brokers Forum member and a top producer, with $12 million in sales last year alone.
Miami Agent (MA): What advice would you give to new agents who want to attain top-producer status?
Christopher Zoller (CZ): It’s a couple things, and they’re the same ones that were given to me 30 years ago when I started. The first one is – talk to lots of people every day. Get on the phone, call your friends, call your relatives, call your associates, call your Chamber of Commerce contacts, and talk to them about real estate, talk to them about what you do, talk to them about the market, talk to them about what’s happening. Be out there every day.
Number two is – always be honest. You’re going to get asked a lot of questions; if you don’t know the answers to the questions, don’t make it up. Just tell them, ‘You know, I don’t know that one, but I can find out and I’ll get back to you.’
MA: Our coverage of online marketing and syndication sites always generates interest from readers; do you focus on online marketing in particular?
CZ: I don’t personally focus intently on it. I think, as with any other communication campaign, you need consistency and clarity, whether it’s a postcard in the mailbox or email. I think one of the best uses of the Internet is reaching out to your sphere of influence through emails. But I also think in choosing carefully what you put out there, and remembering that there’s a very short attention span no matter what media people are looking at. I suspect that a good use of photography and/or video in a relatively concise format, and getting it out to every one of the sites, whether its Realtor.com or any of the other big sites. Our association, for example, you put one listing up, our association blasts it out to the world; so if you content is good, it’s going to go out there.
MA: Have you found that buyer preferences remain a strong factor in what homes your clients ultimately purchase, or is inventory too tight for preferences to have much impact?
CZ: What we’re finding now is that though the buyers are very picky, they’re beginning to learn they have to be less picky, and what they’re focusing on now more than anything else is location. Every one of my buyers is focusing on location, which comes first and foremost. It’s a quality of life issue. It’s all about how much time they have to spend in their car.
Who inspires you? A managing broker? A fellow agent? Nominate great candidates for our Viewpoints feature. Contact us at: editor@southfloridaagentmagazine.com