Posted by Daniel Ripper on September 21, 2008 at 9:57am
Hey I just got back from the 5 Star Convention and I must say that I wasn't really impressed. It was a madhouse with about 90% agents and the rest being servicers, AMs, etc. I did however make some good contacts, pressed the flesh, and gotten an idea or two that I will put into place. I wanted to get others thoughts on who attended and what their opinons on the whole thing was. Let me know!
The conferences are always worth attending. But you need to have a plan to accomplish certain specific goals during your time there.
- make appointments to go see banks you already have offsite
- make appointments to go meet new banks
- find and talk to other agents who close more homes than you do
- go to the classes and pick up anything different than you already know
- look at the other agetns marketing materials
- take an extra day to relax in a different city from where you live
fyi: taking the bank people to lunch or bring bagels/doughnuts to their offices is much cheaper than taking them to dinner/drinks later (MUCH CHEAPER)
There were an awful lot of people there and it was very difficult to meet anyone on a personal basis. Our first class begin an hour and a half late while we waited for the massive lines of people to check in on the first morning. On the bright side, there was much to be obtained from the various sources if you perservered. It was worth attending.
We had a great time in Dallas. I have been to more that 10 of these type of REO conferences. This particular conference was poorly ran. Way to many attendees, the space was way too small. Having the expo in another building away from the main part of the conference was ridiculous. The meeting rooms for greeting the banks were way too small. The registration lines were ridiculous as well, far too few lines, and far too many people waiting far too long. Very bad planning this year, very poor. Conferences in previous years went much better. Five Star grossed over 4 million, not bad.
By the way, conferences are not where you get listings...this is where you searhc out ideas and techniques to streamline your business. Learning shortcuts and methods to shorten your learning curve.
Set up appointments way in advance and meet with the banks offsite, at their offices, or at a restaurant of their choice. Remember, while asset managers can transfer listings, pre-marketers assign them. Focus on that.
Yes, I did attend! I agree it was a madhouse. But did make contacts, picked a few brains (LOL) and for sure got a few ideas:) Did attend a few of the certification courses, which I think are waayyy overrated, but we shall see!
I didn't attend this year however, let me just say, the conventions best attribute is making connections. In the REO business, connections are key to your success. If people don't know you, more importantly if they don't know the work you do, then you will not be successful.
With that being said, let it rip, I would love to hear about your experience as well and what you thought about it.
Comments
- make appointments to go see banks you already have offsite
- make appointments to go meet new banks
- find and talk to other agents who close more homes than you do
- go to the classes and pick up anything different than you already know
- look at the other agetns marketing materials
- take an extra day to relax in a different city from where you live
fyi: taking the bank people to lunch or bring bagels/doughnuts to their offices is much cheaper than taking them to dinner/drinks later (MUCH CHEAPER)
By the way, conferences are not where you get listings...this is where you searhc out ideas and techniques to streamline your business. Learning shortcuts and methods to shorten your learning curve.
Set up appointments way in advance and meet with the banks offsite, at their offices, or at a restaurant of their choice. Remember, while asset managers can transfer listings, pre-marketers assign them. Focus on that.
With that being said, let it rip, I would love to hear about your experience as well and what you thought about it.