The Client Base of One

As the ideas for Independent Agent came together, I realised that I needed to create something that would work for me if nobody else liked my great idea. I had heard a few ‘business builders’ talk about their ‘Client Base of One’ – in my case this was me. 

While having a focus on growing and building a business, it was really important that Independent Agent would work for me should I need to go out and sell. 

I really liked (and truth be told still do like) the idea of ‘Puhoi & District Real Estate’. This could work for where I live and what I know. It would create a boutique offering for the local community.

Independent Agent would have to be able to support that brand should it need to. This was the fall back idea. As it happens, this has not been required (although I still get upset when new ‘for sale’ signs come up on my road…’that could be me!’).

Beyond the branding flexibility, what was I thinking about?

• A non-corporate culture.
• Brand freedom, meaning an ability to own-brand.
• Remote work being the norm. Embracing communication technologies.
• A competitive pay scale to reward salespeople.
• A great business, a people business. Something that I can be proud of, that does the right thing, that is full of ‘my kind’ of people – people I want to work with.

Most of this comes naturally, while the hardest hurdle was how to figure out how to have unique brands under the same agency. When you start going into a personalised service you get into expensive territory.

How do you create an attractive offering that rewards sales people, and at the same time offer a quality and highly personal service.

These two ideas in fact pull against each other.

The answer is automated systems that are designed to cut down the need for extraneous communication – particularly emails and phone calls. Every ‘back and forth’ doubles the costs of a single transaction, and halves the effectiveness of the process. To do this, while still remaining very much a human business was the challenge.

My mind does not always think in ‘systems and processes’. Fortunately before I even made my final decision of exactly what I wanted to do, I already had some help.

Next week I will introduce you to Kim, our Operations Manager who has been here from the very beginning.