A new year means new opportunities, but only if you think S.M.A.R.T.

If you’re a real estate agent looking to grow your business, you’ll need to have an effective plan of attack—clearly defined goals that are not only achievable but that will also move the needle for your business.

That’s why setting S.M.A.R.T. goals is a great way to guarantee your success in the year ahead.

S.M.A.R.T. stands for:

• Specific
• Measurable
• Attainable
• Relevant
• Time-based

In this blog, we’ll outline five simple yet powerful S.M.A.R.T. goals that you can set for your business in 2020, while offering you tools and resources that will help you make them a reality.

Create a Facebook business page today.

If you’ve already got a Facebook business page, congratulations! You’ve taken an important step in establishing a vibrant online presence, which is crucial for any real estate agent in 2020. Feel free to either skip this step, or learn a new skill like how to boost a post or how to use Facebook Live.

If you haven’t yet set up a dedicated Facebook business page, don’t worry: it’s actually incredibly easy.

Before you get started, be sure to have a few things ready first:

• A personal Facebook account (if you don’t already have one)
• The contact information for your business
• A professional headshot (here’s how to take one yourself)

From there, open up a new browser window and log in to your personal Facebook account. Then, watch the video below for step-by-step instructions on how to set up your Facebook business page.

Once you have your business page set up, you can start connecting with more people, advertising to new prospects, and effectively monitoring the results of your social media efforts.

Set up a CRM this week.

If you’re going to build meaningful relationships with your clients—the kind that result in referrals and repeat transactions—you need to systematize your communications. That means creating a CRM or other contact database.

When you have the names, contact information, and other details about your clients collected in a single location, you’ll be better suited to follow up with them. You can record the results of individual conversations and use it to guide your future outreach. In doing so, you’ll create a more holistic, rewarding experience for your customers.

Of course, this also gives you the opportunity to reach out around milestones like birthday, anniversaries, and anniversaries of closing on a home. This keeps you top of mind and makes you the go-to agent in the eyes of your clients.

So, how do you set up a CRM?

There are a lot of options (free and premium) with various features and levels of sophistication. But, believe it or not, you can set up a basic contact database in less time than it takes to eat your lunch.

Read our blog, How to Set Up an Effective Contact Database in Under 5 Minutes, and cross this first S.M.A.R.T. goal off your list right away.

Contact your biggest advocates once a month.

Once your CRM or database is set up, you’ll want to begin reaching out on a regular basis to the people on your list of contacts. In addition to following up with prospects and checking in with clients you’ve worked with recently, you’ll want to show a little extra love to your biggest advocates.

A lot of people refer to this group as “raving fans.” Agent, speaker, and Inman influencer Sean Carpenter calls them his “bullseye.” Whatever you call them, these are the people who want to see you succeed almost as much as you want to yourself. They’ll be the first to work with you repeatedly or to refer someone to you.

Download a PDF sample of American Lifestyle to stay in touch with past clients.

Sean Carpenter recommends contacting these people personally at least once a month, which will keep you top of mind for any new business opportunities.

Start by making a list of these people. Then, print out this blank monthly calendar and write down those names—one per day on each day you plan to be working.

Hang this calendar page in your workspace as a reminder to call the people who are the most invested in your business. Don’t ask them for referrals. Simply see how they’re doing, ask what’s new with them, and inquire if there’s anything you can do to help them.

You might not see any immediate results from this approach. But over time, you’ll reap the rewards of this consistent outreach. Set up your system now and be grateful later on.

Create at least one strategic partnership.

Partnerships are incredibly valuable for real estate agents. They allow you to connect with more people, save money on marketing costs, and, most importantly, provide more value to your clients.

In other words, partnerships are a great way to increase the reach and impact of your business without spending a fortune. That means agents who don’t have partners are doing themselves and their customers a disservice.

The good news is that setting up a partnership is a lot easier than you might think. In fact, you’re probably already working with vendors who could easily become strategic partners—and they’d be more than happy to if you’d only ask!

The details of the partnership you create will depend on your goals, as well as what you’re able to offer. To get an idea of what an effective partnership might look like for you, check out our recent webinar, How to Create Profitable Partnerships for Your Business. (Don’t worry: it’s completely free to watch!)

Win 5 transactions by implementing a 12 Direct campaign.

In order to keep your database full of relevant leads who become satisfied clients, you’ll need to have a steady source of local prospects to work with.

Geographic farming is the most effective way to turn strangers into leads and leads into clients. The key is to have a system in place for growing brand awareness in your community.

A lot of agents practice digital farming through targeted advertisements on Facebook or Google. While that’s certainly effective for many people, there’s real money to be made through high-quality direct mail outreach.

The proof is in Gary Keller’s best-selling book, The Millionaire Real Estate Agent. In that book—which we’d highly recommend that you read in full—Keller outlines how agents can earn one listing for every 50 people they target by direct mail for 12 months. This is called the “12 Direct” approach. Using Keller’s math, you can reasonably expect to convert five leads into transactions by consistently targeting 250 people in your farm for 12 months.

ReminderMedia offers our clients a turnkey system, with relevant, timely postcards that brand you as an expert. We do all the work in designing, customizing, and mailing out postcards to a target group of your choosing (defined by location and demographics).

You can choose to mail individual cards out to your farm or sign up for our monthly 12 Direct program—ensuring you’ll connect with the people in your farm at least once a month.

From there, you can build on your newfound brand awareness with door knocking campaigns, community events, and other efforts that will ensure you earn the new business you’re after.

To learn more about how all this works, check out our free webinar, Geographic Farming: Planting the Seeds of Client Relationships.

Whichever goals you choose to set for yourself this year, remember to make them specific and achievable. Keep them relevant to your larger business plan, but ensure you’ll stick to them in the weeks and months ahead. And, most importantly, take action today!