With Gillian Frost, Business Manager, McGrath Central Coast.
From a management perspective, Gillian Frost sees Frameworks as a way for agents to find what they need to keep moving forward and learning without taking up a lot of their time. By pulling together all the resources of the group, she believes they can direct staff to find what they need quickly and easily, especially via the online version - Frameworks Digital.
Gillian says, “Real estate agents are really busy. When they come in to the office to look for something, they're usually looking for something very specific and they want to find it very quickly. If there are 20 or so documents that they have to scroll through to find what they’re looking for, it becomes a time consuming exercise. Frameworks Digital enables them to click on Connect and then Phone Calls (as an example) to find a topic or some dialogue to get them started and then be on their way."
As the McGrath Central Coast team is spread across multiple locations, having one place where everything is consolidated in logical order and easy to find allows everyone to share the resources they need to perform their jobs efficiently and effectively.
McGrath Central Coast are very protective of their brand and expect all staff be protective of it too. Gillian says, “I think being on brand is demonstrating that everything is of the same quality and standard as the McGrath brand itself, from the way we present ourselves to the resources we use."
Experience tells them that people are attracted to McGrath as a potential employer because of the strength and reputation of the brand. It is generally these same qualities that attract clients to them as well. Therefore it is absolutely crucial that everything they send out has the same quality look and feel that is associated with the McGrath brand across the board.
Gillian says, "Across the organisation, our agents run their own business within our business, so being on brand allows everyone to leverage off that reputation. Everyone works under our umbrella. We provide the leadership, management, training and guidance, but sales agents decide on the direction of their business. Frameworks was built to help them run that business under our umbrella and give them very clear ideas of what we want our brand to look like and how we think they can emulate that in their business."
According to Gillian, the agents who perform best have a real sense of purpose. When they call, they have something they specifically want to share with people; something they know will be of benefit and interest to them, whether it be a result, something that’s happening in the local market place, or something that could affect them in some way such as a legislative change in the investment property sector.
Gillian says, “Mat (Steinwede) is a prime example of an outstanding agent. He’s still out there listing and selling. He's still prospecting.
"Even after all of these years, you'll still see Mat sitting on the phone or out there talking to people. He is very aware of what's happening in the market and any changes he needs to make in terms of his own style. He almost doesn't need a reason to call these days because he's been calling for so long. It's almost like receiving a call from a friend."
Working with McGrath Central Coast, all agents receive the benefit of being supported by a professional in-house business support team to ensure they have the time to concentrate on what they do best – list and sell real estate and look after their clients.
There are three sections to the business support team:
McGrath Central Coast's front office managers are involved in the process of helping agents get the listing up and running. This includes ensuring they have the right information and documentation they require for the sale, including all compliance documents. They also check the accuracy of all documents, such as ensuring the Agency Agreement has been filled out correctly and that the contract includes all necessary details.
It’s no coincidence that their marketing always looks stunning and professional. Gillian says, “The agent liaises with the marketing team to brief them on the property they have just listed. Our marketing team has access to some incredible channels, such as Campaign Track as our marketing templates. The team writes and books the ads, organises the Internet component, liaises with the photographer about the photos, and runs everything by the owner for their final approval.
They ensure everything happens quickly and seamlessly, removing a lot of time and stress from the agent. We are very lucky to have this level of professional marketing support here at McGrath Central Coast."
All McGrath Central Coast clients have access to their in-house mortgage brokers, Oxygen. Gillian says, “We have brokers in each office who are available to assist clients organise the right home loan finance to suit their needs. The advantage to agents is that they can streamline the process for clients as we offer a one-stop shop service, which is seen as an attractive proposition by clients.
"Another benefit to agents is that they can take comfort knowing their clients’ lending needs are in order (subject to approval of course)."
One area that agents must carefully observe at all times is compliance. Before the property is listed, agents must provide details and comparisons around their pricing to justify how they arrived at a figure. Then once the property is on the market, they must ensure their price range or the price they're displaying is in line with the Agency Agreement.
Gillian says, "As a new starter with us, you will learn about compliance in detail as part of our comprehensive onboarding program."