How to Choose a Real Estate Recruiting Company (pt. 2)

This is the second of a two-part blog series on how to choose a real estate recruiting company. If you haven’t read the first part, you’ll want to check that out first because it covers everything from determining a budget to interviewing the companies.

Now that you’ve interviewed some real estate recruiting companies, how do you make the decision on which one to choose?

Here are some questions I recommend you ask yourself to help guide your final decision (this is assuming the companies’ pricing fits your budget):

1.) Who is my point of contact at the company and am I comfortable with that person?

 ·      If you don’t know who your point of contact will be or you haven’t spoken with that person, do so before making your decision.

2.) Is there a contract or minimum commitment and am I comfortable with that?

 ·      Some companies have contracts while others don’t. And, some companies have minimum commitments while others don’t. Make sure if there is a contract and/or minimum commitment, you’re comfortable with it.

·      You’ll also want to ask if there are any scenarios under which, if the results aren’t there, you can cancel early without penalty.

3.) Does the company offer any guarantees?

 ·      Companies that stand behind their work should offer one or more guarantees. They might guarantee the number of recruiting appointments, offer a satisfaction guarantee, or offer some sort of guarantee about the quality of the appointments.

·      If a company offers zero guarantees, consider that a red flag.

 4.) Did the company provide any references or testimonials?

 ·      If a company doesn’t provide references, it could be because they’ve agreed to keep their clients’ identities confidential. So, a lack of references isn’t a red flag, particularly if a company doesn’t have a contract or minimum commitment. But, if a company has a lengthy commitment or contract, then you’ll at least want to speak with a couple past clients if possible.

·      Every company you interview should provide testimonials either in the proposal or on their website. And, the testimonials should have the full names and companies of the individuals who provided them. If someone agrees to give and have a testimonial published, they shouldn’t have a problem with attaching their name and company to it.

5.) Which company do I feel the best about?

 ·      This is both an objective and subjective question. Objective meaning which company gives you the most value for your money, has the best terms, and/or offers the best guarantee(s). Subjective meaning which company impressed you the most during the interviews, made you feel the most comfortable, aligned with your values and desired approach to recruiting, and so on.

If after asking yourself these questions you still don’t have a clear winner, I always recommend going with the recruiting company that has a low or no minimum commitment. That way, you can give them a try and then pivot quickly to a different company if the original company doesn’t provide the desired results.