Remember your first love? Remember the attention you bestowed upon the intended recipient? Although the emphasis will be slightly different, catching the eye and attracting an experienced agent will take a similar effort. However, to maintain the relationship, the prevailing tone of all your overtures must be based in trust.

Prior to wooing and pursuing, you must determine whom you want to attract. Which qualities are most important to you? If you are interested strictly in production numbers or are targeting personality traits, then you can isolate those agents who possess what you're looking for, thereby creating a "shopping list" for yourself. 

The length and depth of your list will correspond to your recruiting needs. For instance, if you need five people, a list with only five names will not net you the required results. If you need five people, court at least 25 to 30, or more, depending on the rate of conversion you and the marketplace have historically demonstrated.
 

The best place to start your search is within your own office where your relationships should be strong. Enlisting the help of your sales staff may provoke an "it's not my job" attitude if the reason for recruiting is not properly explained. Pre-empt any underlying fears of inadequacy your staff may feel by discussing the differences between surviving versus thriving and progression versus stagnation, and, thus, the need for growth.

Brainstorm with key people in your organization to determine the qualities you want to emulate and perpetuate. Refer to your shopping list, and eliminate those who don't possess the prerequisites.

Now you have a supportable reason for soliciting specific people, which will give you a focus. Also, once you are clear on your reasons and the necessary outcome, sharing this mission with potential hires will seem easy and natural, and sharing this is mandatory. Telling people why you have chosen them should be revered as a compliment intended to bolster their self-esteem and self-worth. 

Be systematic and genuine in your attentions. Using contact management software is the simplest way to monitor your progress. It is important to track the number of times you contact someone and the type of contact. The more you learn about your prospect, the more points in common you'll be able to discover. Once you establish common bonds, rapport and trust can develop, and this is the premise of a durable relationship. 

As you embark on your courtship, bear in mind this is not a love 'em and leave 'em flippant interlude. You are looking for a long-term commitment. Thus, if you do not behave in a long-term fashion to your current sales team, change! Caress your team with positive reinforcement at opportune times. Start courting them again. Treat everyone fairly. For instance, send a thank you note to each prospect on your shopping list every time they sell one of your listings. Also, write your sales associates thank you notes each time they create a new pending contract.

Make a deliberate effort to go where you can be with your prospects. For example, if an agent you want to hire is at an open house, go to that open house and create an opportunity for intimacy. And remember to shower this exact same attention on your existing sales crew. Plan your time and actions carefully.
 

There are ample occasions for you to make the extra effort to demonstrate your level of concern and involvement with each of the people named on your shopping list. For these people, you want to position your firm as the alternative choice for them when they have outgrown their current real estate office. 

However, as with a courtship, there is a difference between being pursued and being hounded. Contact people with a purpose. Once a month is a minimum while once a week may lose impact and be dismissed because you may be rushing or forcing a premature relationship. 

It is important to understand why the need to recruit is so crucial. Statistically we know that 20% of the people do 80% of the business, leaving lots of people doing very little. Those who are not productive quit, eventually. In fact, studies show that 80% of the agents you have with your company today will be gone in five years. So for a bare minimum, you must recruit just to maintain production, and if you want to grow in quantity and in quality, you must recruit to replace and recruit to expand.

Recruiting is at the core of future success. Being able to attract agents who will enhance the office climate you have created is not easy, but with the right attitude it can be a lot of fun. As in any courtship where you show your best side, also make it your true side and always deliver what you promise to ensure a trusting, and therefore respectful, and lasting relationship.