Welcome to our BRAND-NEW monthly feature, Social Bootcamp With Gogo Bethke!
Gogo Bethke from Gogo’s Bootcamp is known as the Social Media Queen of Real Estate because she built up her entire practice and team (now over 150 agents) through social media engagement. In this episode Gogo discusses what real estate agents can do today during stay-at-home to keep their business running. Also, she demonstrates first-hand how vulnerability is the key to engagement!
If you’d prefer to watch this interview, click here to view on YouTube!
DISCLAIMER: Gogo’s 30-day moneyback guarantee is no longer available.
Gogo Bethke can be reached at gogosrealestate@gmail.com and at her Instagram account.
Purchase Gogo’s Bootcamp by clicking here – Keeping It Real Podcast listeners get a discount!
Transcript
D.J. Paris 0:00
This episode of Keeping it real is brought to you by gogos bootcamp Are you a real estate agent looking for the best social media training program on the planet? Gogo Beth key is considered the top Instagram Realtor in the country. And her step by step training program will take your social media game to the next level. She’s so confident there’s a 30 day money back guarantee so you have nothing to lose. Keeping it real listeners receive a special discount, so please visit Gogo podcast.com That’s Gee Oh gee, oh podcast.com for your special discount, and now on with the show.
Welcome, everyone to another episode of Keeping it real this. We believe we are the largest podcast for real estate professionals made by real estate professionals. My name is DJ Parris. I am your guide and host to the show and today is our monthly episode with the amazing and wonderful gogo Beth key from gogos bootcamp. This is our social media bootcamp that we do every single month. Let me tell you a little bit about Gogo. If you are new to the show, gogo Beth key came to United States in 2003. To build her American dream. She was broke had no sphere of influence, no experience barely spoke English, and with only $6 to her name. So that left her with nothing else but Facebook to help build her business. And that’s where she started she created gogos real estate and a real estate career began with the power of social media gogo has sold over 45 million in residential real estate transactions. She shares the good, the bad, and the ugly side of real estate with her honest snippets into her everyday life with her 10s of 1000s of social media followers. And in the real estate community. She has earned the nickname the social media queen. She has been asked to present at all sorts of realtor events all over the country. She’s built a social media bootcamp as well for realtors called Go Go’s bootcamp. Today, she has a team and this is probably an old number of 130 agents, it’s probably much bigger now. And she is consistently growing that nationwide. Her goal is to help as many agents as possible make a name for themselves in real estate and if she can do it, a girl from Transylvania Romania with no US education and no sphere of influence, no education or no money or experience, then you can do it as well. We’d like you to follow go go on Instagram at gogos real estate. And also we have we highly recommend this is our highest possible recommendation that everyone listening signs up for Go Go’s boot camp for our listeners, we have a special website set up with a discount, so please visit Gogo podcast.com That’s Gee, oh, gee, oh, podcast.com Check out her boot camp. It’s amazing. I’ve done it. It’s incredible. You should do it as well. And now welcome once again, gogo, thanks for being here.
Gogo Bethke 3:00
Well, I thank you so much for that intro.
D.J. Paris 3:03
We’re so excited to have you, and love talking about you and your success. And you know, your business is just exploding. It’s always growing. And you’re helping so many agents with their social media. In particular, right now, when there isn’t much that anybody can do. You are in Michigan, and you guys were not deemed an essential service. as of the recording of this. Hopefully, that’ll change soon. So you’re the agents can’t do a whole lot. So what’s going on right now? What what are you what are you seeing out there?
Gogo Bethke 3:35
I mean, this is a time for social media. If you if you haven’t had the time to figure it out, like you are forced now to figure it out. Because it’s almost the only thing and the last thing standing that our stereotypes can do from the comfort of our homes. Like if you look at New York, they’re not even allowed to cold call anymore. So it’s like we can do, we can Dornoch, we can hold open houses, we can network with other agents in the industry unless it’s virtual, you know, we can do the things of the lesser things. And we can do it so long. On social media, we can, if you think about it, this is the time where people spend four hours a day in average on different social media platforms, because there’s nothing else to do but cruising at, you know, just see what’s going on. So I think this is a perfect timing, to make sure that you’re prepared for what’s coming. Because I do believe that the good times are coming. As soon as we are released back to society, we are going to have a phenomenal year. You know, our prices are still standing strong. Our interest rates are low. Our inventory is so low right now here in our neck of the woods. And I feel like as soon as we were released, and everybody can get pre approved and the rates stay where they’re at or maybe even get better than the average of the 3%. I mean, I think we are going to have an amazing year in real estate. And I just think everybody should use this time to grow their business. You know, get the stuff done that they usually don’t have the time to do build those parts of the business that will help them scale when we are finally released. And I have a couple of tips for that.
D.J. Paris 4:59
But you Yeah, let’s let’s have I have a quick thing I wanted to mention is I wonder how many people who are stuck at home which is the majority of America at this point, and are sort of feeling constricted by by their, the, the physical size of their their home. And I’m wondering how many of those people when the when all of a sudden we’re back to normal are like, it’s time to upgrade? I know I’m thinking about that. And I bet you a lot of people are too and I was thinking, maybe that’s great content for social medias to start to talk about, Hey, are you starting to feel like maybe not necessarily to say oh, by the way, if you want to buy a bigger home use me. Maybe that’s not the time to do that. But just to talk about how everything’s feeling a little tighter and more constricted now.
Gogo Bethke 5:43
Yeah, that too. And then we were talking with with Dwayne last night. Just think of all of the people. And this might not sound good, but surely isn’t a conversation at the dinner table last night? Think of all of the people who can send one another? Yes. Or they’re realizing how much they don’t like to send one another. Because when you don’t spend so much time with somebody, you’re not that annoying. But now that you have to be with them night after day after night after day, week after week after month. Like I think this might also mess with our divorce rates and that again, for sure have real estate altogether. I mean, I don’t wish this on anyone. But when you lacked half with people, it can get ugly if you don’t like
D.J. Paris 6:23
yeah, there’s going to be probably a lot of babies born about nine months from now. A lot of people getting divorces.
Gogo Bethke 6:30
Exactly. So I feel like in real estate, yes. Especially here in Michigan we are, we are shut down like we are not considered a central so there isn’t much we can do. But at the same time, I feel like when finally we get released, there are so many different angles that go into just birth, the real estate market as you said, people are gonna start having babies 1010 months from now they’re going to need to upsize. Also many people realize, you know what, I don’t have a home office, I have four children and a dog and a parent running around crazy and I need to go live like you won’t be able to do that as long as you have that assigned pace. So I feel like a lot of people are going to just, you know, change residences because of that. And then the borders and then you know this and that and new jobs and relocations because so many people has lost their jobs. So who knows what the new jobs are going to take on. I wonder
D.J. Paris 7:17
how many companies who were people go into the office I wonder how many of them are starting to realize we can do a lot of this virtually and after this all goes back to normal. Be very interesting to see how many people end up staying work from home. And so your point is, is really well said that you really do need a dedicated space.
Gogo Bethke 7:39
Yeah, yeah. And for us, I mean I’ve been with exp you know that since October 2018. So I’m like 14 months and 15 months something like that of working from home. So I’m totally used to it. And now the person I’m not used to is my husband also got a real estate license his full, full full time realtor right now. He used to work corporate America and travel all the time. So now he’s home full time. Now our children are home full time. Our dog is home full time you know so it’s like having the house full and even though just before you came on live here. Even though I told my children and they’re old enough they’re almost 11 and 13 there was enough to understand hey man is and alive. My 13 year old decided to walk like army walk up to bam bam I opened the door just before you get on your neck seriously nice. Like just because I’m in a different level of the house sounds travel. Like you can walk around like that and I’m trying to go live here so it’s like adjusting to the working from home thing. It’s an adjustment for everybody.
D.J. Paris 8:39
Even we’re all seeing we’re all seeing a lot more of people that that we’re not always normally seeing and we’re seeing a lot less of people too right it’s it’s this weird combination of you know the the you better you better really liked the people you live with because
Gogo Bethke 8:55
zactly exactly when you’re stuck with them and I can’t even imagine like in areas where they live really close to one another like New York where people live in a cute little tiny quarters like in Romania. My parents live in Romania. They’re not allowed out on the road. Yeah, like we can at least go on a bike ride we go on a hike if it’s nice and sunny out we throw football in the backyard and stuff but in Romania you’re not leaving your house unless you’re going to you have an emergency or you need to go grocery shopping but if that’s the case only one person can go right so imagine areas like that when you’re like literally stuck in another shoe box. I would probably start losing it.
D.J. Paris 9:31
Yeah, I we have some of our help. Here at our office live in the Philippines and they are not really allowed to go outside except for grocery shopping. They’re not really allowed to take walks zonna Yeah zonna who’s our our producer from she lives in Kosovo same thing. They’re not really allowed to do much so we’re very lucky that we can still get out and do a few things.
Gogo Bethke 9:56
Stay the sister lives in a high rise in the in the city. I grew up fan in the same high res I grew up in, they, they live in an apartment. And so they ended up going out to my parents house, because they live in a village and they have a yard so the children can actually go outside, but you still can go out on the road, you can be in your own yard. But if my sister stayed in the apartment, they would literally be inside an apartment all day every day.
D.J. Paris 10:17
Yeah, yeah, we’re, we’re very lucky. There’s, you know, here, it’s even though we’re now the epicenter of everything for the virus, but we’re still able to do some things. And we’re lucky, I think so.
Gogo Bethke 10:30
is in third or fourth place, too. So yes, that’d be one grocery shopping, and I had masks and gloves and all that. To germ freak, I am not a junk freak myself, I believe that this flow is pretty, it’s not the one that’s going to take me. But you know, he made me wear a glove and mask and all that. And then when I got home, I shot a quick video and I touched my hair like this with my glove. And he was like, You’re gonna have to take a shower. You have to wash your hair, you have to burn your clothes.
D.J. Paris 11:00
Well, I mean, it’s, it’s at the end, the real problem is, is we don’t start showing symptoms until, you know, for like, a week or so. So it’s, you know, nobody, you know, we we probably all have it right now. And we don’t even know.
Unknown Speaker 11:14
I hope not. But yeah, I
D.J. Paris 11:16
hope not. I mean, you and I will be fine. And and, you know, our people like without, you know, horrible preexisting conditions. And, you know, but yeah, a lot of, you know, I was thinking about like, going to visit my parents for Easter. They they’re impure. They’re in their early 70s. And I was like, and we both talked about it, and they want me to come, but they’re like, you probably shouldn’t, and I was like, You’re right, I probably shouldn’t. Because I’m not worried about me. But yeah, I’m
Gogo Bethke 11:39
not worried about me, our oldest is type one diabetic. And if you looked at the people that the mortality rate, the highest ones are diabetics. Now, I can’t specify if it’s type one diabetics, or diabetics as an overweight diabetics. I don’t know. And I certainly don’t want to find out. So that’s the other thing like we have to keep our immune challenged child
D.J. Paris 11:59
secure. Yeah. And my girlfriend has has some an autoimmune disease as well, or just sorta rather. And so yeah, so we have to keep her safe as well. So I can appreciate that. So what what are you telling your agents and all of the Go Go’s? Bootcamp, people to do right now on social media? What are the tactful ways to do it? And what are maybe what are ways not to do it? Right?
Gogo Bethke 12:20
Yeah. So I don’t think this is a time to start lead generating, I don’t think this is the time to be calling people and asking for their business. We don’t do any of that. This is the time to help one another. So there’s any way that you can have one of the things that we have done and this one is a little bit more detailed, but I tried to explain as as as good as I can, I guess if you guys look at back in 2015 1617 18, sorry, back in 2000. What was it 6789, the crash time and all that people use a lot of their equity, they will take equity out of the homes and they will go buy boats and whatever jet skis and whatever they you know, bikes and whatever they wanted to spend their money on. And so a lot of people over 820, some billion I think we use, we took out of equity and in the homes. Right now, in the last few years, 1617 1819, we have only used 200 and some odd billion. So a lot of the people right now have equity in their home. So if you have clients that may or may have lost their job, or they need some sort of a, or they’re just uncertain, and they need some sort of a help, and there’s always an equity they could tap into in their home, most of the people right now have equity in their home. So that’s also just a nice way of like touching base with them. Just reach out to them, Hey, you may not think of this, but you potentially could have equity in your home, that could be something that you could tap into, and help yourself financially in this time. So if I can help you let me know, I will be more than happy to send you a quick CMA a competitive market analysis through our MLS access, I don’t know how everybody’s MLS works, but we have an hour’s real count one, that’s called RPR. Because just plug in an address in there will give us approximate market value. So that’s one way of doing it. So then you can just say all I need from you, which is DME, or email me your physical address, I will send back a report that shows your potential market value, and then your equity is market value minus what you owe on it. And then also, we have a list of lenders that we have been working with through the years, please feel free to give them a call either one of them, see if you would qualify for a home equity line of credit, and if something that could help you in these times, and then also just feel like when you help them in need. They’re just automatic, and they will reach out to you when they’re ready to buy and sell. So I’m not asking for the business right now you’re pretty much just helping them and in this time of with our resources, resources and our connections. And then when the time has come around and they need to sell and buy I’m sure they will call us.
D.J. Paris 14:43
Yeah, that’s a great idea. So you know, that’s a real creative way to, for people to start to think about, you know, getting more immediate cash and another option. Obviously, with rates being so low, it’s a really good time to look into refinancing as well, which isn’t going to directly Put money in your pocket, but it’s gonna reduce some of that monthly spend. So right now the banks and lend lenders are really overwhelmed because there’s so much activity with refinances and and people just, you know, buying homes, despite obviously all the
Gogo Bethke 15:15
challenges were so low beta. So like if you have something you know if you’re into fives or sixes, maybe you bought years and years ago. And right now you can get it down to 3%, that you’re saving 10s of 1000s of dollars 10s of 1000s of that work, depending how much your mortgage was, of course, but a lot of money. So that’s just one way of being able to reaching back and giving back and at these times, not asking for anything in return, I strongly recommend not to push your services right now. And to people because they really had just, it’s a time of uncertainty, of course they can. If they have realistic needs, and they love, love and appreciate you and follow you already, they’re going to reach out to you no matter what. But I just don’t feel like these are the times to take advantage of people. And you know,
D.J. Paris 15:57
I have I agree and I have an idea for you. I wanted to share this with you. And you tell me if it’s a good idea or a bad idea, because I’m not sure but I think it might be a good idea. So gogo is, you know, as far as social media, she is the end all be all for good ideas with social media. So I was thinking, since real estate is hyperlocal. And we have so many small businesses out there right now that are struggling. You know, restaurants, in particular, retail shops, of course, are really, really struggling. So I was thinking, you know, since we have our listeners who work in their local communities, maybe one idea could be that you could reach out to some of these businesses restaurant, for example, that might be struggling. I know like in Chicago, our restaurants are really struggling right now. And they’re trying to let people know that no, we still have takeout, where we have specials where you can come. And I was thinking, wouldn’t it be kind of cool. If you live in an area, that area that you want to specialize in, reach out to some of these local businesses and say, Hey, I would love to do you know, a quick little interview with you, it could be five minutes, it doesn’t have to be long. I can bring you on my IG TV, you know, stream, or we can just do a one minute video and post it to Instagram, and Facebook Live and do also and we could just talk about your business. And I could just make sure that every one of my followers and listeners knows what you guys are, you’re still open if they are, I don’t know. What do you think about that?
Gogo Bethke 17:20
It’s an amazing idea yesterday or the day before, when we went grocery shopping and I was talking about being messed up from head to tail. There was a restaurant or whatever. There’s a business here locally that supplies to restaurants usually they supply fresh produce, but only to restaurants usually. Now while the restaurants are really not working, they’re doing some carry out. They’re only open from four to eight some of them and only direct carry out while the producers just sitting on this facility. So they ended up opening it up for the general public doing and I ended up going there. We heard from my father not we went there while we were there. I asked him Hey, you guys have a Facebook page. Do you mind if I promote this to mine and develop? Oh my gosh, yeah, we would appreciate it so much more about blog. If you think about it, they’re sitting on fresh produce go bad like this. It’s not it has a shelf life of a week. Yeah, you have to get rid of it. If not, it’s gonna go bad. So I literally did a quick little video as you walked out of there all messed up and all that and, and I just did like, Hey, guys, here’s where we are. This is what’s going on this place is usually not over open for the public, we showed what we got, like, for 50 bucks, we’ve walked out of like two boxes, that’s like two big full boxes of fresh produce. And they were so thankful. And then even just yesterday, and today, I ended up seeing a couple of our Facebook friends who went there, they ended up taking pictures of the product and stuff like that, and they ended up posting it. So it’s just like, it’s like a snowball effect. But then that place ended up tagging me back. And they thanked me for our services and for helping them getting the word out there. And I’m hoping that one day we’re going to need a realtor, they’re going to remember this time and they’re going to be like we’re going to call the global check. And that’s why we’re doing it is like helping one another. You know, I also believe in karma. And I believe you know, you get what you get in life. And if you can give for somebody not expecting anything in return, they will also give to you not expecting anything in return when the time comes around. So definitely reach out to local restaurants, if not in us, you could just reach out to local restaurants and be like, Hey guys, what are you guys, what is your schedule? What is your menu because they have a carrier or different menu now for carry out. It could be as simple as hey, could you shoot over your carry out menu and then I will post it on my Facebook and say hey guys, the wooden spoon is open Monday to Friday from four to eight they do carry out and here’s the carry out menu please support a local business and just provide that and then thank them and they’re going to say that they are going to share just going both ways. So now their followers going to see your post your follower is going to be there like going to see their business and they want they are tagged they can go over and follow their business plan. So there’s so many ways you can do this. You can also interview through zoom just as you sad because we can’t physically be in the same place. But you can certainly interview local businesses or the realtors whatever that helps you and then post that and just you know how To get the word out the word out whatever you want to the world to know about.
D.J. Paris 20:05
Yeah, it’s such a great idea. Now, you know, you have everybody is scared, everyone’s struggling a lot of businesses, they would love it if you reach especially like, I know a lot of a high end restaurants are really nervous, because obviously, they’re not serving and you don’t think of them as takeout places. And a lot of the ones here in Chicago have converted into doing daily specials and meals, and they only can reach their email list, which might be very small.
Gogo Bethke 20:31
Yet, so yep, they were doing business. Yeah, yeah. So
D.J. Paris 20:35
So now, you can now you can reach out to them and say, Hey, are you guys doing any anything of takeout carry allies? You know, Would you do a three minute interview with me? You know, I’ll send you the Zoom link, and you can do it on your phone? And or just send me the menu, and I’ll promote it. But yeah, those are great ideas.
Gogo Bethke 20:52
Yeah, so many ways you can do it, we also have our vendor list. So this is a good time to start building that if you don’t have one, you know how many times they ask you for a plumber. And for a painter and for a desk for a data dog walker, a mower, you know, a landscaping company like all of these things, this is a time to reach out to your friends on Facebook. Net own, you know, small businesses and support them say, Hey, would you please sign this letter, so just read an Excel sheet send them the link, they will literally plug themselves in there are vendors even give discounts to our clients. So they will give like 10% out just because they are our clients and we refer them they will do this, they will do that for free. You know, hold me value, whatever that you know that does. So this is your time to start supporting those local businesses start building your preferred vendor list. So then when the good times come around, you have your your list, because no other time when we are so busy, you don’t have the time to build and you don’t have the time to reach out to your friend who’s like, what do you do you have a cement company? That’s right. Can you tell me a little bit about that? What area you guys cover? What type of words do you guys do? Like what do you need more clients? And would you be interested if he added you to our preferred vendor list? Like that kind of stuff? And then I guarantee you, I swear every time we reach out to one of our friends here locally that has a local business, you’re like, oh, yeah, by the way, do you do commercial? Do you do inventory or thinking of building do you do blah, blah, blah, it just automatically turns into the next realistic conversation?
D.J. Paris 22:11
Yeah, and now’s a good time to, to where not just to have that vendor list. But like it’s gonna go missing. You could also interview each one of these people, you could set up a little zoom meeting, a three minute Zoom meeting, it doesn’t have to be long. And just record these these interviews. And then you can use that information as social media content. You can also just have it available in case somebody says, Hey, do you have a good attorney, we can use Yeah, you know what, I’m going to send you his information. Also, I did a little three minute things, you can see what he or she looks like how they sound, what their energy is like. And you could send that over as well. And that’ll even be so it’s now’s a great time to start aggregating all of that information.
Gogo Bethke 22:48
And also, I mean, we’ve worked with so many different vendors just on our end, you know, you might be like, you know, what, yes, I’ve worked with this title company forever, but they have messed up the last, you know, nine fires out of 10. Maybe it’s time to switch title companies, you know, I mean, so maybe this is your time to interview those other files and narrow down, who has what you need, who has the work ethic and the work style that you have. So you, you don’t butt heads in a transaction, and then just, you know, work on that, like, there’s so many different aspects of the real estate industry that you could be working on? Most importantly, yourself? Yeah. So that’s what I want to talk about, take that nap, that you usually don’t have time to do that book that you always wanted to, but never had the time take that course, that you like, Oh, if I only had the time I go through that real estate, social media training, you know, I mean, so whatever is that you wanted to do, but never had the time God just cleared off your schedule. Go get it done.
D.J. Paris 23:40
I just I got an email this morning. And I have to really give credit to Compass, the company compass. This came from a compass broker. I don’t know if compass wrote it or if she wrote it, but it was it was a her monthly newsletter, and obviously, not, you know, talking about real estate stuff right now might not be all that well received. So I almost deleted it, because I was like, I don’t ever read that stuff anyway, but I was about to delete it. And it caught my eye because the entire article was 10 things stay at home moms can or parents can do right now to keep their kids busy during this time. And it was it was like Oh, that’s really really smart. And it goes into what we were just talking about. It was useful information. It was timely. And it was not talking about real estate. It was you know, actually something people could use. I was like that was a great email and I normally I see those newsletters and I just go at who cares? And I went I know I’m not going to read that because I don’t have children but I forwarded to some of our brokers and I was like this is a good idea. Yeah,
Gogo Bethke 24:41
yeah. I mean think about it all of the parents at home like I also I just heard from one of the agents in our team that in Arizona they already done for Dave will have no more school this year. Yeah. So we it’s not official here in Michigan. Yeah, but it’s probably coming which means even if we get released back in a month or two my children’s gonna be home all day every day. You are going to have to figure out some sort of an entertainment for them. Yeah, I mean, like, especially not being able to work outside of the house, when we finally can, I want to leave, like I want to go do all the things that I wasn’t able to do physically be in another place, which means we’d have to leave my children at home, which means I have to figure out a way for them to be entertained or dragging with me or drop off at a museum or hire a sitter or you know, any like, it’s going to take some adjustment of how, how we live life and giving ideas for parents who were not used to having to entertain the children at home, like myself. That’s a great one. You like, oh, yeah, we can do that. But no, think of that. Love it, love it. Good idea. The other thing that I wanted to talk about is reviews and feedback, right? So it’s so important to have those five, five star reviews and all the different platforms because people are going to Google you. They want to make sure they if they are ready to put their biggest asset on the market and the most money they will ever exchange hands wet. They want to make sure that it’s handled properly. So they’re going to Google if you don’t have a social presence, especially with a mullet millennial, if you don’t have a Google if you don’t show up on it, you don’t exist. So it’s very important to have your reviews and feedbacks and I’m going to talk about the few sites that I that I think it’s important to have a presence on. So even though I don’t buy leads, it is very important to have a profile on Zillow because most people are going to look you up. They want to see you. Everyone’s going to Zillow, everyone goes to Zillow, they’re going to check you out. They’re going to see your production, your price range your reviews, and feedbacks, what area you cover all that. So even though I never bought Zillow leads, I still have a Zillow profile. So they can look me up on there. They see my transactions in other areas. And I do it and how many have done and my review. So I think Zillow is very important. Next one is realtor.com. They are kind of neck to neck, less traffic. But people some people just love to go to that commerce, Zillow, and then Facebook page. So if you don’t have one yet, it is the time to create one you want to business Facebook page. So then you can have reviews and feedbacks. The next one is Google My Business. So all of these you should have, and and all of these, you should have reviews and feedback. So let’s talk about Google My Business. That is probably the most important now. That is Millennials toward having babies and you know, meeting their home away from mom and dad’s basement and things like that. They’re going to Google
D.J. Paris 27:21
you. And the reason why Google My Business is the most important just to make sure everyone understands why we’re saying that is Google prioritizes, the Google My Business page listing when you’re searching for reviews, so it’s going to show up above Yelp above Facebook above Zillow, it’s going to show up at the very, very top because it’s Google’s own platform. And you know, almost all the searches done online are done through Google. So you need to create a Google My Business account. And you need to be asking for reviews there.
Gogo Bethke 27:53
Yes. So what the funny part is, I was very surprised to find out when I created this that Google will actually send your snail mail to confirm your account. I was like, Yes, that’s right. Yeah, they do. I’m like, you know, this is a joke, as of April 1, it is April 1 and
D.J. Paris 28:08
April 1, but it is not a joke. And it’s not a joke. So you’re gonna get a you get like a postcard in the mail or something. Yeah, so
Gogo Bethke 28:14
you go to Google My Business. So literally just go to Google, put in Google My Business, you’re going to find a page and there is going to be a create or join or some button on there and just follow the steps. It is really not brain surgery. Now if you’re an exp agent, because now there’s many of us out there, we don’t have physical locations. So I want you to be very careful what address you put in there. Because it’s going to be I mean, you do have to hide it from the public, but I don’t ever want you to not be able to figure it out. And now suddenly, your home address is on Google, because you don’t want people showing up at your front door. Right? Well, if that’s the case, I recommend maybe talking with a local title company or local lender or somebody else that you’re friends with that has a local office downtown somewhere that you can ask them, Hey, can I just put your address down as my physical location. So if somebody wants to me on something, or send me a book, or send me a postcard or something, then I can, you can just let me know. And I can pick it up from your office. So I talked, I talked to my local lender and my my Google, my business is actually registered at her local office, right? There just an idea, you also have the option of hiding the physical address. So let’s say if you have only an online address, you know, an online business that you really don’t need people physically, then you can also just do that and hide the physical location. But either way, you have to disclose the physical location because they’re going to send you a postcard, right? That postcard it has a five digit code, five, six, something like that digit code in there, you’re going to have to go back to Google My Business, you’re going to have to enter that that code that you received in the mail can take up to two weeks to get that postcard. And after that your Google My Business is confirmed. Now you have a Google My Business account under you’re going to have the ability to post it’s kind of like Instagram in a way where when you post your posts will I think they only stay up there for seven days and seven days. Yeah. And then they go poof, so just make sure you know periodically Get under a new post something. And then definitely use the reviews and feedback on there. So, ours automatically when Christine my office manager processes our files. After closing, we have an automated email drip campaign for past clients. So we just switch them over in our CRM program to past clients and one of the very first text message and email goes out is asking for reviews. And then you pretty much say hey, I loved working with you, I hope you had the same five star experience and I have with you again, five star experience you can just kind of putting it out there. I had a five star experience working with you, I hope you had the same kind of reminding you of like, what am I expecting you to say when you’re filling it out? Now of course, they’re gonna be honest, they’re gonna tell you how they really felt about the transaction. But I’m kind of hinting at what how I felt working with them. And now and you send them that email with the four links. So you’re gonna do your, your realtor.com your Zillow or five lanes, realtor.com, Zillow, your own personal Facebook page, your Google My Business. And Did I forget anything? I think.com Yeah, realtors, Zillow, Facebook, and Google My Business. So those four, and they all in there. Now they all require the feedback to come directly from the source. So they can just fill out one and you cannot copy and paste it into the other. Neither one of these sites will allow you to do that it has to come straight from the source. So usually what we say in that email is like, Hey, I’m only asking for five minutes of your time. You know, just so you know, our business is more to mouth. And reviews. And feedbacks are so important. When people Google us I would truly appreciate if you could take, you know, five minutes of your time, just go to the first one, fill it out, copy it, go to the next one, paste it next one, paste it next and paste it. So they don’t have to type it up four times, they can just copy and paste only have to type it up one time. So it speeds up their process. But they do have to click individually each of those links and go through the steps. So yeah, so if nothing else is built an automated email. So after closings, all of your profiles are set up properly. You include that link to your direct reviews page on Zillow, your direct reviews page on realtor.com, Facebook and Google My Business and then they can start filling it out after every closing. Now you might be ahead of the curve. And you might already have all that now it’s a good time to get video from your past clients. So yes, your home during that, then do you have a minute to shoot over a quick review video of how you loved working with us. I mean, I already know you left it with words and our sights and we appreciate it. But people some people are visual and they would really, it would really register better if they saw you actually seeing those things. And if you don’t mind just to the shaft selfie style video and send it back to us now those videos you can build into your websites you can put in you know, as a post on your social media pages right now it’s a good time to kind of just at what is it called it’s a shameless self promotion is what I what I like calling get to kind of let the world know like everybody who decided to work with you in the past, they enjoyed that experience. And here’s proof of that. And you can take those little snippets of videos and post it on your social media platforms.
D.J. Paris 33:04
Yeah, and you can also post those videos right on Google My Business. And I think that is, you know, a huge, huge thing. We’ve been doing that for testimonials for brokers who joined our company, for doing that. For the last four months, we’ve been posting those videos and watching the number of views we get on those videos from Google, my business is incredible. I you know, I don’t know how many of those people convert into clients or whatever. But boy, those videos get watched. So you obviously put them on Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, maybe even but definitely upload them directly into your Google My Business account they get they get looked at for sure.
Gogo Bethke 33:43
Yes, yeah. And it helps you I mean, it helps the other agents when they’re trying to make the decision, should I should I not join your team, right? There is PII from everybody else that decided to make that same decision, or they are happy that they did. So yeah. yourself anymore. They sold you for them.
D.J. Paris 33:59
And everyone should be paying it forward as to as well. If you’re expecting people to write reviews for you be somebody who writes reviews for the places you visit. And I just had I got sick a few weeks ago, not not related to the current condition, just good old fashioned food poisoning. But I had to cancel this trip, I was going out to San Francisco. And unfortunately, I wasn’t able to go. So the place I was going to be staying, which was very expensive. They didn’t really have a cancellation policy. And I and I let them know, I’m so sorry. I’m really sick. I don’t know if there’s anything to do with the bill. They were nice enough to give me a full refund, which was insane. They did not have to do that. And I immediately wrote them back and I said oh my gosh, I was not expecting that you guys are amazing. What can I do to support you right now? And this is right now when everything was the country was kind of shutting down. And they said if you could write us a review, and they gave me three locations Google Facebook and TripAdvisor because they’re a destination thing. And I said Consider it done. I copied and pasted into all three, I wrote them back, I said, I just did all three. And they were like, Oh my gosh, that means so much to us, you have no idea. So do that for other people as well. I mean, if you’re going to expect people to write for you do it for them and pay it forward, for sure.
Gogo Bethke 35:14
Awesome. And same, I mean, if you think about it with agents that you have worked with, like, even just go to your closing this year, those of agents that you’ve worked with on the other side of the transaction, and go and leave a review and just say, Hey, I love working with Angela, she’s an awesome agent, I was on the list in touch with the buyer side being, you know, we had smooth sailing to the closing table. And I only wish that every other agent would represent their client. And so you know, timely manner, or however you want to word it, and just send it and then now Angela receives this was like, Oh, my gosh, look what you sent me. Let me do the same. Now she’s gonna go back and leave a review on your page of how awesome he was to work with you. Even though it’s peer to peer. It’s still a review.
D.J. Paris 35:51
Yeah, it’s awesome. That is such a great idea. So not only going back to all your clients and saying, Hey, I would really appreciate if you could help me write a review. Go to all the co op brokers, the brokers on the other side of the deal the agents on the other side and say, hey, I want to and you just even if you can’t find them, call them and say, You know what, I never wrote you a review. I want to do that for you right now. How do I do that? Where do you want me to do that? You want me to do it on Zillow. Ask them they will be they will they have never got that phone call ever. So you are going to blow their mind? And then they’re probably going to say, oh, and I’ll do the same for you.
Gogo Bethke 36:23
Yeah. And then also, I mean, you know, so many are like, Oh, I don’t feel comfortable with video. Well, this is a time to start feeling comfortable. Yeah, I’m not been asked to do so you have all the time on TV and the look of your home that it’s peace and quiet, and start shooting some videos. You know, just start and it doesn’t have to be perfect. It’s just talk about whatever’s close to your heart. Talk about something that you’re so good at, in this industry that you want to help other agents to be so good at what they need to do and just shoot it and post it. Next thing you know, by the time we get out of here you to feel so comfortable with video, then you’ll be ready to just you’ll be taking videos all day every day.
D.J. Paris 37:00
And don’t worry if you don’t look perfect. People don’t respond well to perfection. They want to see what yeah. Yeah, there we go. I love it. I love it.
Gogo Bethke 37:13
So don’t take you know, don’t care about if you don’t look perfect. So here it is my imperfection.
D.J. Paris 37:18
Yeah, yeah, I have tons of imperfection myself. So I can appreciate that. But it gogo is so absolutely right. And look at the courage. She just she had the courage to do something that a lot of people wouldn’t do. Right? She just and I didn’t know she was going to do that. So that’s so awesome that you did that. But she had the courage to be vulnerable and what vulnerability, it’s the most attractive quality in another human being the courage to show who we really are. And you have this unique opportunity to do that right now. You know, you can show it physically, like, here’s what I look like without makeup, or here’s what I look like, you know, without a tooth. But you know, the point is, is that’s what people connect with, they connect with with vulnerability. So don’t worry if you don’t look camera perfect. Right? Go go and I are not camera perfect either. And, but we’re what we’re authentic, right? We’re our honest,
Gogo Bethke 38:12
when I say share the good, bad and the ugly. I mean, you know it not every time you’re going to make a commission, not every client is a walk in the park some of our walk in Jurassic Park. And that’s okay. Like you can’t, doesn’t one of my favorite jokes, because it’s the truth. You know what I mean? It so that’s why I think the secret to you know, the amount of followers that I get is because I show the good vetting the good because some videos I have my tooth in, and in some videos on searching for my tooth, because I can find it. You know what I mean? But it is the truth, though. I mean, I could try to hide it and show like how my life is perfect, but it’s not. You know, I lost my tooth in a sandwich. And now I had to get oral surgery and I won’t have a front tooth for six months. Oh, no. Because I had to do I had no bone there. So then I had to go in and they had to do a bone graft. And now I have someone’s head bone in my face like now that has my gosh,
D.J. Paris 39:02
that’s amazing. But also, but also like, it also just makes us all so much more human. And we’re all imperfect and to try to project. You know, it’s this thing that a lot of realtors, they get like a really nice headshot and then they don’t change it for 15 years, and then people go, Well, that’s an old hedge. Like you can get your headshot it’s okay to look like you it’s okay to look like a real person. It’s okay.
Gogo Bethke 39:28
It’s okay to share that you did have a front tooth for six months.
D.J. Paris 39:34
Maybe we should start we’ll start a fund to maybe to get you maybe there’s like a new like radical therapy or technology to get you a new tooth faster. We’ll have to look is a long time it was
Gogo Bethke 39:48
a long time. I mean I kind of chose this route. I could have veneers I guess Yeah, or a bridge but if I did that I wouldn’t have to mess with the healthy tooth around that I don’t want to have you know when I lost one I don’t want to have to file down three next to it. So I can have four of the same. No, and that’s the that’s the only other option. But that’s my only healthy option where I can put just the one two back in, is by waiting out for the for the bone to heal. And then they’re going to do an implant and they’re going to put a tooth on it. But that’s why it’s taking me so long to have a front tooth is because I have to wait when I had the bone graft that literally cut me open and put bone in my face. That has to heal together with my own bone to strengthen to be able to hold the implant. So that’s going to take time, and I’m okay with that you’re not, I always believe God doesn’t give you what you can handle. And finally, if you know if that imperfection if anything, people, it catches people off guard, they’re still paying attention, you know, we might have enough right here. But when I pop my tool, I guarantee you they were all like, Wow.
D.J. Paris 40:52
I love it. And again, it’s it’s courageous. And this is a business where if you can demonstrate the courage to be yourself. And if you don’t have an answer to a question, tell your client you know, I’m gonna double check. I don’t I want to double check on the answer on that. I’ll get right back.
Gogo Bethke 41:08
I don’t know the answer.
D.J. Paris 41:09
I don’t know. Yeah.
Gogo Bethke 41:12
I don’t know. But I know who does.
D.J. Paris 41:14
I know who doesn’t I will find out and I’ll get right back to you. Yeah, what an awesome place to finish up let’s let’s let’s wrap up because this this was great. And I so always great talking to go go. So I want to make another plug for two things for go go I want everybody to go on Instagram and follow her. So you find her at gogos real estate geo gos real estate. So find her just search for if you can type that in, you’ll find her no problem. We’ll also post a link right on on our, on our when we published this episode. And also I want you all to subscribe and be a member of her boot camp, this is the time to do it. And this will pay you dividends, huge, huge dividends. So definitely
Gogo Bethke 41:57
do one turns out if you get nothing out of it. But one transaction in your lifetime, which I’ve done over 60 Millions, I can guarantee you get one transaction, I can’t guarantee you unless you do the work. But if you do the work, I guarantee you’ll get not one many transactions over but one transaction, one commission would pay for the bootcamp, at least what five times over their minimum,
D.J. Paris 42:19
oh, easily. Because what she’s really going to teach you how to do is how to build a social media lifestyle into your practice doesn’t mean you have to reveal everything about your personal life, she’s gonna teach you how to communicate through social media in a way that is attractive to the people that you’re looking to, to, to, you know, to have as clients. It’s amazing. It’s a formulated system, it works. She has tons and tons 1000s of people who are already members of this group, so you should do that as well. So we have a special website set up just for gogos bootcamp, which is Go Go podcast, Geo, geo podcast.com, check it out, I never recommend any products is the only product I basically recommend. Because I’ve used it, it’s amazing. And it’s great. And it’ll help you build your business, which is what we’re all trying to do right now is stay in business and grow our business. And this is a great time.
Gogo Bethke 43:14
So thank you, thank you so much.
D.J. Paris 43:16
Thank you and go go thank you for being on our show. As per usual, you’re amazing. We’re so thrilled the listeners love you, the viewers love you and your your missing tooth.
Gogo Bethke 43:25
We all love you even more now.
D.J. Paris 43:28
They do. They do love even more. And so on behalf of gogo and myself, we want to thank the listeners. And by the way, I’m going to ask for a favorite from our listeners. We talked about asking for reviews, why don’t you give us a review, we would appreciate it even if you hate us and you think we’re the worst still write us a review because we want to know how you feel. The easiest way to do that. Go to whatever Podcast Directory you’re using, whether you’re an iTunes or Spotify or Stitcher or Pandora, or Google Play Anywhere, and leave us a review. Let us know how you feel. We appreciate it. It helps us get better, also helps attract more listeners to our show. And so we thank you for that. So on behalf of gogo and myself on the listeners, thank you for continuing to support our show. Thanks for watching and listening and gogo. We’ll see you next time. Thanks.
Gogo Bethke 44:17
Thank you. Thank you for having me. It’s my pleasure. Bye
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