When you finished your real estate agent training, did you have that “now what” feeling? If so, you’re not alone. There’s a lot to process in the beginning of your career.
At Keller Williams, first-year agents don’t have to experience that “now what” feeling for long. That’s because KW and local market centers offers critical tools and training that help new agents advance from day one. KW’s resources don’t just provide a launch pad; they help new agents build a sustainable real estate business for the long term.
As a Keller Williams® agent, you’ll have access to self-paced and live, online courses that provide further education on leads, listings, and leverage. You’ll also have the opportunity to attend in-person events that feature inspiring and informative speakers, along with breakout sessions tailoredthat you can tailor to your real estate journey. At KWRI headquarters in Austin, Texas, onsite training sessions are offered year-round, while closer to home, you’ll find a rotating calendar of classes at your local market center.
“KW has historically owned the training and coaching of agents,” says Mike Ray, executive leadership director of Keller Williams® Realty Southeast. “They have maintained brick and mortar franchise locations that offer new agents a place to go and learn. The training, the coaching, the accountability are all standards that new agents find at every KW® location. Add in our commitment to maintain culture and community that connects new agents, and that separates Keller Williams from other brokerages brands.”
An agent’s first-year educational path is critical, according to Ray. It’s imperative to build a foundation on creating and growing a database, completing representation agreements, setting business goals, and more — because real estate school doesn’t actually teach these practical, everyday skills.
Ray says, “When agents commit themselves to this learning path, it has the additional benefit of developing the habit of being learning-based.” It’s a habit Ray says is a crucial component of ongoing success.
The KW organizational model is designed to help ensureenable that success. Keep reading to learn more about the resources available to you as a new agent.
Stay Head of the Real Estate Class With Keller Williams University
Keller Williams University (KWU) is designed to help KW® associates expand their real estate skills and businesses. The educational arm of Keller Williams offers multiple programs, including foundational and advanced courses, trainer certifications, professional development opportunities, and more — all of which are available to KW-affiliated associates.
Robert Bell, KWU’s director of training, encourages new agents to enroll in Ignite, KWU’s flagship program, as early as possible. This foundational course covers the skills needed to become a real estate expert, propels agents into immediate productivity, and prepares them to grow in any market, at any stage of their career. Bell says Ignite also helps new agents build their network and provides a more broad-based understanding of a real estate agent’s job.
“If you only do one thing as a new agent, get into Ignite.” Bell says. “Ignite gives a picture of what your day-to-day is like when you embark on this career and helps you get structured and get going. I’ve talked to agents over the years who met friends and colleagues that they came up with through that first Ignite class.”
Ray agrees. “Courses such as Ignite take new agents through the process of establishing their ‘Big Why’, building a database, working with buyer and seller basics, and working with KW technology.”
As a KW® agent, you can access KWU through multiple channels. With an extensive library of on-demand, self-study courses, you can simply login to KW Connect and take KWU with you wherever you go. You have the option to stay close to home and hone your craft at your local KW® market center, or attend KWU’s in-person events at KWRI headquarters in Austin. You’ll also find KWU represented each year at Mega Agent Camp and Family Reunion.
Keep Your Real Estate Skills Sharp With Onward BOLD®
The real estate industry is constantly changing. The key to becoming — and remaining — a successful real estate agent is to keep up with these changes.
Onward Business Objective: A Life by Design (Onward BOLD) is tailor-madedesigned for Keller Williams® agents, prospective agents, and leaders at every experience level. Onward BOLD includes six, one-day classes taken over a six-week period, and annual attendance is highly recommended. Expert KW MAPS® Coaches facilitate the series at individual market centers.
Bell says BOLD’s “secret sauce” is that it gets agents into action quickly. The program also acknowledges people’s fears around sales conversations.
“(BOLD) goes straight into, ‘We’re going to do it together, support each other, come out of it great, and cheer each other on,” Bell says.
BOLD teaches you skills to turn leads into business more efficiently, become a productive agent, and create a sustainable, predictable, and profitable real estate business. You’ll learn to improve your sales presentations, open houses, and events; build your personal brand; create social media content; boost your lead generation; and see more results in less time. No matter your level of experience, there’s always more to learn.
Ray says that the skills obtained in BOLD can help you with more than just real estate. The 10 BOLD Truths taught in the program are powerful because they can be applied to your business habits, such as daily lead generation and time-blocking, and to your personal life.
Build Your Own Real Estate Community
You’re never alone when you’re a Keller Williams® agent. In addition to KW’s educational resources, you’ll have access to KW Communities. Communities provide you with opportunities to improve your craft and find others who have similar interests, skills, and even struggles.
Ray notes that KW Communities is great for developing niche skills through mentorship in the KW Commercial®, KW® Luxury®, and KW Land® communities, but it’s also helpful for making personal connections, whether between young professionals, past and present military personnel, or people who connect culturally.
“Communities in skill-based areas, like Commercial, provide additional training, coaching, and support,” Ray says. “Other communities, such as KW Military®, provide business referral options for agents, and support for agents looking to identify with other agents that have similar backgrounds, cultures, lifestyles, and beliefs.”
For example, the Inclusion and Belonging community can help you learn how to build a thriving business as you examine the policies and practices that have led to the current homeownership gap, such as unfair housing practices and exclusionary zoning. You can also learn how to implement strategies that ensure fair housing for everyone, and discover how unconscious bias could impact your real estate business.
Today, many clients are looking for more than just a real estate transaction. They’re seeking an expert to help them manage their real estate portfolio, strategic planning, and investments. The KW Real Estate Planner® community could help you become the expert they’re seeking. Here, you can pick up advanced industry knowledge from expert community leaders, which can help set your business apart. As a KW Real Estate Planner, you can learn how to develop strategic property plans and get referrals from advisors in your market, such as CPAs, retirement communities, financial planners, and trust attorneys.
Meanwhile, KW Clarity® provides a community of fellow agents who understand the difficulties of growing a business while remaining alcohol and substance-free. This caring community provides a safe space for KW® associates to network around any struggles they might have as they expand their career in a world that often favors drinking and substance use. Some of KW Clarity’s benefits include monthly national support calls, a national recovery resource database, local meetings, and biannual sober networking opportunities at Family Reunion and Mega Agent Camp.
KW Communities deepen relationships among our agents, and strengthen our culture.
Let KW’s Technology Take Your Real Estate Business to The Next Level
As your real estate business grows, you’ll get busier and may need help staying organized. Being a KW® agent gives you access to platforms that will keep your educational resources and business tools all in one convenient location.
KW Command®, KW’s proprietary real estate platform, is designed to help you operate your business more efficiently. You can use KW Command to manage your contacts, automate communication with your clients, make referrals, track transactions, run performance reports, create marketing and social media campaigns, and more.
The KW Command platform also integrates with other KW tools, such as the KW App and KW Marketplace, so you can have a centralized system to streamline your workflows and enhance productivity.
Within KW Command, you’ll find KW Connect, your destination for resources and training designed to support your professional growth and business success. The platform’s Learning applet is where you’ll find KWU’s on-demand courses, plus articles and videos. You can save and download these materials to use at any time, and track your progress. KW Connect’s search functionality lets you look for specific content across different categories, while the Events applet offers registration information for KWRI-hosted in-person and virtual training events, such as workshops and summits.
When it comes to supporting new real estate agents, Ray says, “It’s my experience that KW’s new agent support has been praised across brokerages for the organized and purposeful systems in place to help them start building their businesses.”
Conclusion
Keller Williams was built by agents, for agents, and it’s KW’s goal to provide agents with the critical resources they need to succeed in their real estate career. When you join a KW® market center, you’ll find exceptional education and training opportunities, and support for building and managing your business.
Bell says, “Training is one of the key pieces of value that weis provided at every one of our market centers.” It’s designed to be available to every agent, he says, because when every new agent has the tools they need to succeed, we all succeed.