Okay BusBenchBabes, we are back with another birthday celebration episode! Beth is celebrating another trip around the sun, and we talked about everything that happened for Beth this year in life and business. Not gonna lie, this is an emotional conversation. It’s vulnerable, it’s real, and you might need to grab a box of tissues like we did. Beth also shares all she is looking forward to for the year ahead, and some of the lessons she learned along the way during this year. We hope you join us in celebrating Beth this week. Let’s dive in!

It’s hard to believe but fall is here, kids are back to school, and the fall real estate market is upon us. There are still many people worried about rising interest rates affecting the real estate market. However, despite higher rates, the market remains competitive with strong buyer demand and limited inventory. Most homes are still selling quickly, often with multiple offers.

While more buyers are showing interest through purchase loan applications, they're still 20% shy of last year's numbers. That means less competition for those hunting for their dream home right now. But here's the twist—when interest rates decide to take a breather those cautious buyers on the sidelines will likely jump back into the game. Brace yourself for a resurgence of multiple offers and high prices.

On the podcast this week, we’ve got a special guest, Annie, a top producer in the Kansas City metro area. We'll be dishing out insights, comparing market vibes, and spoiler alert: The sky's firmly in place in the world of real estate. Let's dive in to all the things!

Have you been on the Realtor summer break, slacking a little more than you should be and now the kids are already going back to school and you are not where you want to be with your real estate business? We are heading into the fall real estate market at full speed, but don’t freak out yet, you’ve still got time to put your foot on the gas to make sure you’ve got business this fall and winter. At the BPR Experience we planned ahead to take it easy this summer and enjoy the beautiful Minnesota weather, but we continued engaging with clients, sending out emails and prepped the business ahead of time so when we took our foot off the gas, we were able to stay front of mind for when our clients decided they want to make a move. This week we’ve got all our tips for preparing for the fall real estate market to make sure your business is on track and you have a paycheck come January.

It’s hard to believe, but we are in the final weeks of summer in Minnesota. Fall is right around the corner and if you are considering putting your home on the market before the year is over now would be a great time to get things moving to get your home on the market. We are still seeing very limited inventory in Minnesota and many parts of the country so if your home is priced well and prepared well it should sell quickly. Working with an experienced Realtor can make all the difference in having a successful strategy for marketing and selling your home.

One of the biggest things we will advise sellers on is making improvements that maximize your curb appeal and highlight outdoor spaces, especially this time of year, can really help buyers envision what they are buying before Winter arrives. Organizing and decluttering is another very cost effective way to highlight your living space. Also making sure that any needed maintenance and repairs are done so you don’t hit any snags in the selling process. 

2023 has seen interest rates remain relatively high and inventory has remained low so while there are some challenges to buying and selling the sky isn’t falling and a trusted professional will be able to guide you through if you are ready to start the process. This week we’ve got all the tips and tricks to get you ready to sell your home. Let’s do this!

Hey BusBenchBabes! This week we are doing something that we’ve never done before. Back on our anniversary episode we gave away a one hour coaching call to one of our listeners and Amy was gracious enough to agree to using the call on the podcast! So this week we have on Amy Anderson. Amy is a Realtor, a military spouse, a mom, and she and her family recently made the move from California to Arkansas. We talked to Amy about a variety of topics and we covered everything from building a real estate business in a new state, overcoming imposter syndrome, social media strategies, email list building and so much more! This was a really fun conversation. Amy was so great to talk to and we absolutely loved doing this, so we hope you enjoy it as much as we did, and we hope you will join us in cheering Amy on in her new journey! Let’s dive in!

Are you ready to buy your first home? First of all - Congratulations! Buying your first home is one of the biggest purchases you are ever going to make and while it is super exciting it can also be intimidating and overwhelming if you aren’t sure where to start. It is important to have the right professionals by your side to help guide you through the process. A great Realtor will hold your hand from beginning to end, and help to get you into a house that works well for you and your needs. In addition to a great Realtor you’re going to need an awesome lender. Your lender can make the process smooth and easy and help you figure out how much house you can afford and make sure you are getting into a mortgage that works well for you. This week we are going to walk you through all the steps to buying your first home and things that you should think about as you begin this process. We love first time homebuyers and we are so excited for you as you begin this journey! Let’s dive in! 

Happy Birthday Kristi! If you’ve been following us for a while you know Beth doesn’t mess around with birthdays so we are celebrating Kristi Clinton with a special episode this year and it is packed with excitement! Kristi is off living her best beach life right now in Holbox with her hubby Ryan, who also happens to be the producer of this podcast, but we are here celebrating this special birthday podcast episode with you. We did a year in review and asked Kristi about what she thought her year would look like versus how it actually did and got to know a little more about this creative entrepreneur. She shared about her highlights from the year, and what she's learned and how she celebrates the joys of getting older and views them as a gift.

Just in case you missed it over the last couple weeks, Meta has introduced a new social media app called Threads. It’s made a pretty big splash as a competitor of Twitter and while we normally recommend everyone not to go chasing the latest shiny thing we are actually pretty excited and intrigued about this new offering from Meta. There is no denying they are trying to overthrow Twitter with this release and while it is very similar in appearance and function there are some fun and interesting differences that currently make it stand apart. It’s definitely started out with a different vibe and while that could change right now it feels pretty casual and fun. It doesn’t come without some drawbacks of course, but it really does look like it has some promise and it is probably worth a look. This week Kristi is going to break it down and give her thoughts on all of it. Let’s dive in!

Real estate is a relationship business, and we don’t just mean in the buying and selling process, or lead generation. Building meaningful connections between real estate agents can make all the difference in your success in this industry. Surrounding yourself with others that are doing what you want to be doing, and are successful can be incredibly beneficial to your long term goals. This week's guest is Chad Jeske and he is the ultimate connector. Chad is the Owner and Publisher of REAL Producers Twin Cities. REAL Producers is a social network that features the top 5% of real estate agents in the Twin Cities to help them connect and socialize and they also release a monthly magazine publication featuring top producing agents. Chad is amazing at helping others connect, and make meaningful relationships. He is passionate about what he does. We are also so so excited to announce that our very own, Beth Petersen Randall, of The BPR Experience here in the Minneapolis area  is currently featured in REAL Producers! This is a great conversation and we can’t wait to share it with you. Let’s dive in!

Can you believe we are already half way through 2023?!? We can’t either! This year has been flying by, and this week we are going to check in on our goals we set for the year and assess how things are going. We have had so much success and excitement this year, and a lot of positivity at the midpoint of the year. We were hoping for some ease and flow this summer and so far things are mostly going as planned. We hope that’s the case for you, but if it isn’t that’s okay too. We place so much pressure on the start of the year, but there is no reason you can’t evaluate where you are at now, reassess things and adjust your plans and get back on track. This week we are going to share where we are both at personally and professionally and what the rest of the year looks like.It just might inspire you to do the same! Let’s dive in!

Here in Minnesota owning a lake home or a cabin is the ultimate dream for a lot of people, and even if you are located in another part of the country there is generally still some sort of equivalent dream wherever you are from. Actually making this dream a reality might be easier than you think if you have someone in your corner providing you with the right advice, and guidance on how to come up with financing, and how to make this work for you and your lifestyle. There are a lot of ways to pull it off, and things like using it as a short term rental, or AirBnB are becoming more common so that you can offset some of the expense of ownership. There are also a lot of things to consider when purchasing a cabin or a lake house and considering all the pros and cons so that you can ultimately make a purchase that really works for you. Today we break down all the ins and outs of purchasing a cabin, or vacation property and how you can make it a reality. Let’s dive in!

Branding and marketing in real estate have come a long way in recent years as agents are focusing more on showcasing who they are as a person beyond relying on just sold and for sale photos.

Developing a personal brand is a game changer for a real estate agent because it truly builds the know, like and trust factor that is crucial to marketing yourself as a Realtor.

We love to see this change and we are going to continue shouting from the rooftops on how this can continue to evolve with the times. One of the big misses we are still noticing is teams not allowing their agents to have a personal brand for fear that they will end up leaving the team.  

The hard reality is that agents only stay with teams for so long anyways, so we say let them develop their brand as long as they represent the team in a positive way. 

 This week Beth interviews Kristi about operating a personal brand within a team, the mistakes we both see, the successes and disappointments we've seen firsthand and how to correct them.  

This episode might piss off a few (or more!) team leaders, but we are all about bringing you the facts - so let's rip off the bandaid and do this. Are you ready for some truth? Let's dive in!

Summer has finally arrived in Minnesota, and we couldn't be more thrilled. If you reside in a state with cold winters, you understand just how precious our summers are. Even if you're tuning in from a warmer state, you're likely experiencing the joys of having your kids out of school, engaging in sports, planning summer vacations, and indulging in various activities. With so much happening, it's easy for the calendar to fill up quickly, and before we know it, the fourth quarter will be upon us. As small business owners, it's crucial for us not to neglect working on our businesses while we're busy working in them and enjoying our best lives during the summer.

This week, we'll be sharing our summer bucket list and discussing some strategies to ensure a productive summer while also finding a balance between work and leisure. So let's dive in!

The summer real estate market is here and in full swing, and while the interest rates are still a huge topic of conversation we are seeing buyers and sellers getting into the game. Some of this is out of necessity but also there are a lot of people who were trying to wait out the interest rates and have just decided they have waited long enough and it’s time to make a move regardless of the rates. We are still in a sellers market due to the lack of inventory, but if that starts to shift things are going to start to balance out, and that could really cause the market to heat up. While the news is so often putting a negative spin on things and hinting at a big dip in the market we are just not seeing the signs of that happening. Many homeowners are sitting on a boat load of equity and are able to sell easily if they experienced some sort of hardship, and with that we are looking at good health in the market. This week we are covering all the hot topics and trends we are seeing out there this summer and getting you up to speed on all the things you need to know and be discussing with clients this summer. Let’s dive in!

When it comes to buying or selling a home, understanding mortgage interest rates is so important. Interest rates have continued to be a big topic of conversation this year as the real estate market continues to evolve, and rates play a significant role in determining the affordability of homeownership. Whether you are a buyer or seller, understanding mortgage interest rates can empower you to make informed decisions. By shopping around, considering credit worthiness, and analyzing down payment options, buyers and sellers can successfully navigate the home buying process.

On today’s show we have Jason Trout of JMT Mortgage to discuss everything about mortgage interest rates and the impact they are having on both buyers and sellers. Jason is one of our very favorite brokers to work with in the Twin Cities and he does a great job running through all kinds of scenarios you could encounter, and how to prepare yourself, whether it’s your first time buying a home, or you’ve done it many times. Jason is a true pro, and we love sitting down to chat with him about all things mortgages. Let’s dive in!

Back in March we attended the EXP Fast Forward conference in San Diego, and while we were there we heard a Realtor speak, and he wasn’t talking about real estate, sales, or marketing, he was talking about imposter syndrome. That Realtor’s name was Mike Proctor, and he’s a top producing agent on the Whissle team in San Diego, and while Mike is an amazing Realtor, what we believe is the truly important work he is doing is talking about imposter syndrome, vulnerability, mental health, and parenthood. His message is not one that is being shared all over, and it is certainly not one we hear being spoken from the stage of a real estate conference, and we hope that Mike is changing that. We talked with Mike about how imposter syndrome impacted him, and how he worked to overcome it, mental health and being in sales, fatherhood and family life, and so much more. This was a super vulnerable conversation and we are so grateful to be able to share this one with you. Let’s dive in!

It’s pretty safe to say that script practicing, and lead generating are not most Realtors favorite things to do. We want to flip that script on its head (pun intended!) so that rather than treating this like some other drudgery you have to do, you can make it a positive and impactful part of your business. Picking up the phone and calling someone has become something of a lost art, and that is exactly why doing it is such a valuable skill, and like any other skill it takes practice.

Client interactions in real estate are everything, and having consistent communication with buyers and sellers is one of the reasons why someone will potentially choose you rather than someone else. It’s a contact sport after all! On this week's show Beth is going to give her tips and tricks for how to develop a positive mindset around scrip practice, and lead generation, and what you should be doing to help develop those skills. Let’s dive in!

Back in March we attended the EXP Fast Forward Conference in San Diego and we finally got a chance to sit down and do a podcast about it last week for a recap. The conference was packed with incredible guest speakers and we enjoyed our  time connecting with Realtors from all over the country. The keynote was the author of Atomic Habits, James Clear. We learned all about habit formation, habit stacking, and the power of small habits, and it was so inspiring to hear about how small actions done consistently can net a big result. There were so many other great speakers discussing everything from Geo farming strategies and tactics in real estate as well as developing a content strategy for Geo farming, categorical farming, lead generation, and email marketing as well as plenty of real estate specific topics. We really just can’t say enough good things about the conference and it was both educational and enjoyable. We can’t wait to share our thoughts with you so let’s dive into this EXP Fast Forward Conference recap!

The most important thing for the marketing of any business is consistency. Consistency is the driving force behind your brand ultimately reaching your ideal client. It doesn’t matter what platform you are using to reach your audience, consistency is the key. We believe that email marketing is the most impactful and reliable way to move your business forward. You don’t own your Instagram, you don’t own your TikTok, but you do own your email list. Oftentimes when we start talking about e-mail marketing the first question is "Where do I start?” This week Kristi goes through a nurture sequence, otherwise known as a marketing funnel. A funnel is the process of converting traffic using a freebie, coupon code, ebook, or whatever your lead magnet is. After the free content has been delivered a series of automated emails will follow that will educate about your mission, who you are and how you can serve this new prospective client. This is the heart of any good online marketing strategy. Kristi walks through a step by step guide on how to do this on this week's show. Let’s dive in!

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