With more than 25 years of experience in real estate sales, brokerage, management, and training, Walt Frey has vast experience related to every aspect of the contemporary real estate career. Since entering management in the mid-1970s, he has personally opened 20 sales offices and trained more than 6,000 agents as the director of training for a national real estate company.

As a senior instructor for the RS Council, he has conducted the Certified Residential Specialist program nationwide since 1984. An active industry leader, Frey serves on many committees including the Board of Governors of the Residential Sales Council.

Frey is the president of WALT FREY SEMINARS, a Real Estate Mentoring Organization, and is an active member of the Contra Costa Association of Realtors. He resides in the town of Alamo, Calif. , a San Francisco suburb, with his wife of 20 years, Susie; his son, Garrett; Jake, his 135-pound Alaskan Malamute; two cats; five rabbits; and a duck named Herman.

Frey, a grounded, centered individual who knows what he wants and what he likes. conveys his commonsense approach to the real estate business with clarity, logic, and irrefutable reason. His specialty in training is the CRS program and technology, including courses for non-techies. Frey's concern for the future of real estate is that Realtors recognize now that tremendous change is under way in consumer relations.

"The paradigm is shifting. Realtors must realize that the rules are changing," Frey says. "Most Realtors are still using the old-fashioned marketing and sales techniques and hoping they still work. But now consumers know they can obtain information without Realtors, and they are fed up. They want to do things in a new way. Realtors who fail to recognize this phenomenon will be passed by."

Find out how Frey believes the Internet will affect the real estate industry and why in this exclusive AgentNews interview.

A.N.: What do you mean when you say the paradigm is shifting?
W.F.: A paradigm shift generally follows the advent of a "disruptive" technology. The Internet is an example of disruptive technology, something that changes the way we do things, which results in a paradigm shift. Fax machines weren't designed to fight with Western Union, but now, all of a sudden, when was the last time you sent a telegram? When was the last time you used a typewriter instead of a computer? The Internet is something that is changing our industry, and it is hard for Realtors to understand the effects.

A.N.: Why?
W.F.: Paradigm shifts are difficult to see coming. Let me give you an example of another industry that ignored a disruptive technology and what happened. When quartz watches were invented, the Swiss inventor said he invented a watch without springs or winding mechanism, and his company was so unimpressed, it didn't even bother to patent it. At the time, Switzerland had 70 percent of the world's production of watches and 85 percent of the profit. Well, the watch caught the attention of Texas Instruments and Casio, and inside of 10 years, Switzerland had less than 25 percent of the watchmaking market. That is a paradigm shift.
A year ago, Bill Gates was in a meeting, and everyone was taking about push technology and Java and all of that stuff. Gates supposedly blew up and said, 'What about Windows? Why aren't we talking about Windows?' Well, these new technologies aren't competing with Windows, but unless Microsoft considers them as part of a new paradigm, Windows' days will be numbered.

A.N.: And the lesson for Realtors?
W.F.: The lesson for Realtors is that the consumer is not going back to the old ways of doing things. The 'Net is disruptive technology, so you had better be ready for a paradigm shift. You can't compete with the Internet. It doesn't fight with you. But the fact is, people are starting to use it. And once they go over the fence, they aren't coming back to the old ways.

A.N.: How are consumers using the 'Net?
W.F.: The Internet gives people a lot to look at, a lot of free information, so they can narrow the field before they choose an agent. And before they call a Realtor, they are investigating who that person is. Realtors who learn how to build trust and make it as easy as they can for consumers to obtain this information will be the new leaders in the industry. The trick is making that connection of trust on the Web. Realtors must think in terms of marketing who they are and what they can do, rather than what their rank is.

A.N.: Why has the Internet failed to be an effective marketing tool for many Realtors?
W.F.: Realtors have been brought up to market themselves and their homes by running a blind newspaper ad to force the consumer to come to them. They are marketing on the Internet in exactly the same way. But what is different about the Internet is that the consumer is fed up with that approach. One study concluded that consumers of the future would stop going to open houses because they hate being pounced on by the Realtor once they are inside. The consumers went on to say they preferred to do their research on the Internet before they call a Realtor.

A.N.: Can you give an example?
W.F.: It's like buying a car. You hate walking into the showroom because you know it is going to be you and 10 salespeople. But isn't it great to go to a car show and look around because no one bothers you? Then when you are ready, you talk to a salesperson.

A.N.: How can the Realtor market themselves more effectively on the 'Net?
W.F.: Personal trophies don't have much value to the consumer. What does matter is your philosophy, what you stand for, testimonials, how you treat people. Consumers [ask themselves] before they make contact, 'Am I going to like this person?' The problem for Realtors is that they have never had to communicate who they are before. They can tell you when they have been in the top sales rankings in their offices, but not much else.

A.N.: How do you develop trust on a Web page?
W.F.: Take the time to develop a statement about yourself. And this isn't something you can make up or get out of a book. People see through it when it isn't genuine.

A.N.: If Realtors are making money, isn't it hard to convince them that a change is coming?
W.F.: Yes, so I talk in terms of conversion rates. This is something I teach in our CRS classes. The old way was, you run a classified, blind ad with no address in the paper. The conversion ratio of those calls are 25-to-1, to turn into a transaction. In other words, 25 people will call, and out of those 25, one will buy the property. A sign in the yard is a 20-1 conversion ratio, when someone calls the office from the sign. That is a better conversion rate because you have the same number of transactions and five fewer people to fool around with. Now, if you put the address in the newspaper, the conversion rate becomes as good as a sign in the yard.
Now let's take open houses. The conversion rate for an open house is 10-to-1. The best of the conversion rates are in referrals, which are 2 out of 3.

A.N.: I think I see where you're going. On the 'Net, Realtors can improve their conversion rates because they can provide all of the information about a listing, along with pictures, the address, testimonials, etc.
W.F.: Exactly. I was saying this in one of my classes, and one woman told me she double-ends for both buyer and seller. She does it by hanging the price off the sign, which is rarely done. She said her conversion rate is 9 out of 10 of her own listings. That's fantastic! Another woman in the class said derisively, 'You can't get many calls.' And she replied, 'So what? I don't want a lot of calls. I want one person who will buy.'

A.N.: So the moral is...
W.F.: Don't keep it secret. The rules have changed, and Realtors are trying to play the old game. If you give the consumer what they want, your conversion rate will go up. It's as simple as that.

A.N.: And back to the 'Net?
W.F.: The consumer is going to investigate properties on the 'Net, but they're still going to use a Realtor to help them negotiate the deal, preview the home, etc. They will interview several Realtors and pick the one whose style they like to write up the contract. Consumers who have bought homes this way report that when they meet the Realtor face to face, it's a different type of meeting because the trust is already there. That's something else that has changed.
Here is what Realtors need to understand: There is a new consumer paradigm. Consumers are first gathering information, then they're researching who can help them, and third, they're choosing a Realtor.

A.N.: Why is the Internet such a difficult concept for Realtors to grasp?
W.F.: Realtors think the Internet is another form of marketing -- like postcards, the classifieds, radio, and television. But those forms of media come at the consumer. The difference on the 'Net is that the consumers come looking for you. You'd better have something good, or they'll go to someone else.

A.N.: What is the best way to communicate with this new consumer?
W.F.: Don't play the withholding game. Don't make consumers give their names and addresses before you send them your "hot tips." You may have the best Web page, but if the consumer doesn't know who you are and what you are willing to do, you won't be the one they pick. You need to provide them with something of value without any strings attached.
We can learn something from our kids who are online. Kids use four or five aliases when they go to chat rooms. If you screw up, you can recover by coming back in with a new name. So they can always have a fresh start. Consumers want the same option until they want to make themselves known. When you have a Web page, people don't come back to you unless they bookmark you. If they like you, they will come back, but only if your content is informative, entertaining, and helpful.

Published: January 13, 1998

Use of this article without permission is a violation of federal copyright laws.

Blanche is a renowned author of five real estate books. Her newest, Bubbles, Booms and Busts: Make Money In Any Real Estate Market, McGraw-Hill, was rave-reviewed by The New York Times. She was also selected from hundreds of real estate experts to contribute to Donald Trump's book, Trump: The Best Real Estate Advice I Ever Received: 100 Top Experts Share Their Strategies, Rutledge Hill Press, and is featured on page 68. Order Now Review - Honors In 2006, Blanche was selected among scores of candidates to author two consumer real estate guidebooks for the National Association of Realtors: The NAR Guide to Home Buying, and The NAR Guide to Home Selling, Wiley & Sons. She is currently planning two new books for the NAR and its members.       Known for her keen insight into real estate industry issues and for her ability to make complex subjects easy to understand, Blanche is a sought-after keynote and continuing education speaker. Real estate organizations from MLSs, to brokerages, to franchisors, to associations hire her to provide up-to-the-minute analysis of real estate industry news and advice on how to improve revenues. Her passionate delivery, peppered with stinging wit, is a huge hit with audiences and fans. Don Klein, CEO Greater Nashville Association of Realtors, Blanche Evans, Richard Courtney, president 2007, GRAR "The GNAR membership meeting last week featured Blanche Evans as the keynote speaker. Her comments and insights resonated extremely well with those in attendance and we have had many requests for copies of her PowerPoint Presentation. She was a terrific part of the membership meeting and convention program!" - Don Klein, CEO Greater Nashville Association of Realtors Coverage from WSMV, Nashville - 8-14-2007 That Interview Guy - Get Inside The Head Of Today's Generation 2007 AE Institute Session - To purchase 2006 AE Institute Session - Parts 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 HouseValues Mastermind call - Parts 1 2 Blanche's fireside chat with Jeremy Conaway, HAR - Click here. For more articles by Blanche, click here.