The first conversation with a buyer or seller is no longer the beginning of the relationship. In many cases, it is closer to the middle.
By the time someone reaches out to an agent, they may have already spent weeks researching neighborhoods, looking at listings, reading reviews, scrolling social media, watching videos, comparing agents and brokerages, and increasingly, asking AI for answers.
They are coming into that first conversation with questions, opinions and often a pretty good idea of what they think they need.
That changes the job.
Real estate has always been a relationship business, but the relationship now starts much earlier. Consumers are doing their homework before they ever pick up the phone. The question is whether what they find gives them a reason to trust you.
For agents, that means thinking beyond the moment a lead comes in. The work you do to build your reputation, share your expertise and stay connected to your market is shaping those first impressions long before you know a prospective client is looking.
Your reputation gets there 1st
One of the things I talk about with our agents is the importance of standing out in a market where consumers have more choices and more information than ever.
A referral that once might have led directly to a meeting now often leads to a search. Before a prospective client responds to an introduction, they may look at an agent’s website, social media, recent transactions, reviews or interviews.
That is not a sales funnel in the traditional sense, but it is absolutely part of the client journey.
I see this play out with our agents all the time. An agent may have spent years building a reputation in a market, only to have a prospective client form an opinion about them in minutes based on what they find online.
That is why I have become increasingly focused on consistency. Your brand is not what you say it is. It is what people experience and ultimately what they say about you when you are not in the room.
One simple exercise I encourage agents to do is to search for themselves the way a prospective client would. Look at your website, social channels, recent press, reviews and listings together. Does the picture they create reflect the agent you are today and the business you want to build? If not, that is a good place to start.
Information vs. insight
The amount of information available to consumers today is remarkable.
A buyer can research recent sales before speaking with an agent. A seller can look at competing listings and estimate a home’s value from their phone. AI can summarize a neighborhood, compare properties and answer questions that once required a conversation with a professional.
I don’t see that as a threat to the role of the agent. I see it as a challenge to raise the value of what we provide.
We have been encouraging our agents to use technology to make themselves more effective, not less involved. If a tool can save an agent an hour on research or administrative work, that is an hour they can spend with a client or understanding a market more deeply.
A consumer can find the median sales price in a neighborhood. What they cannot get from a data point is an experienced perspective on why that number matters to their particular property and goals.
Information is abundant. Judgment is not.
That is where I think agents should focus their energy. Rather than trying to simply provide more information, ask yourself what context you can add that a consumer cannot easily find on their own. A market statistic becomes much more useful when you can explain what is driving it, how it compares to what came before and what it could mean for that particular client.
This October, Inman turns its focus to AI and its rapid rise in real estate. During Artificial Intelligence Month, we’re digging into the startups shaking things up and the established players folding AI into their offerings.
AI and the human element
My view on AI has remained consistent: Technology should enhance the human experience, not replace it.
Our agents are using AI to research, organize information, create content and work more efficiently. That is a good thing. But there is a line. AI can help a consumer get to the right question faster. It cannot know the person behind those questions.
A buyer might ask whether a property is fairly priced. An experienced agent knows to ask what “fair” means to that particular buyer. Is this a long-term home? An investment? Is timing more important than price? What are they willing to compromise on?
Those are human questions.
As these tools become more capable, I think the agents who benefit most will be the ones who use them to create more time for listening and advising. If AI can help you prepare for a client conversation, use that advantage. Then spend the time you saved understanding what the client actually cares about, including the things they may not know how to articulate yet.
Trust is built before the transaction
The biggest mistake we can make is thinking trust begins once a client signs an agreement. It doesn’t.
Trust is built through interactions that may have nothing to do with a transaction. It is the agent who shares a thoughtful market observation when there is nothing to sell. It is the person who gives an honest answer even when it may not help them win the business.
As we have grown, I have watched our strongest agents build businesses by being deeply connected to their clients and communities. They are not simply visible. They are useful.
That can be as simple as sharing a market insight with your sphere, answering a question thoughtfully or making an introduction that has nothing to do with a potential commission. Those small moments demonstrate how you think and how you show up, and over time, they become part of the reason someone trusts you with a major decision.
The goal is not to convince someone to hire you before they are ready. It is to give them enough evidence of your expertise, character and value that when they are ready, you are the obvious person to call. Real estate has always been a long game. What has changed is that the game starts earlier, and consumers are forming opinions about us long before we ever meet them.
Technology will continue to change how people research and make decisions, but the fundamentals remain the same. Clients want an advisor who listens, tells them the truth and can put information into context.
The first conversation may happen later in the journey, but it is still an important one. Our job is to make sure we have earned the opportunity to have it.
The views and opinions expressed here are those of the contributor and separate from the Inman newsroom.
Rainy Hake Austin is president of The Agency in Los Angeles. Get connected on Instagram.
