A Message fromPeter F. Huntpage 2

Win-WinLeadspage 7

HUNT ERAPreferred Warrantypage 12

The official newsletter of HUNT Real Estate Corporation August/September 2015 | Issue 75

continued on page 5

The Truth AboutNewspaper Advertisingby Dan Mirsky, Director of Marketing

NAR Study Deems Newspaper Advertising Ineffective

For many years, newspapers have been a predominant

piece of most real estate advertising strategies, HUNT

included. It’s no secret that newspaper circulation con-

tinues to decline year after year. The papers will tell you

that their readership is more dedicated than ever, which

is their primary justification for charging you (and us)

higher ad rates. The truth is the effectiveness of having

a presence in the newspaper is not what it once was, es-

pecially when it comes to advertising your listings and

yourself. Sure, it may look impressive for your company

to have a multi-page spread in the Sunday paper, but is

it really attracting home buyers and sellers? Not accord-

ing to the National Association of Realtors.

In the NAR Profile of Home Buyers & Sellers sur-

vey, a yearly analysis of the demographics, preferences,

and experiences of buyers and sellers, they state:

First Step Taken During the

Home Buying Process:

42% looked Online

1% looked in Newspapers

How The Home Seller Found

Their Real Estate Agent:

38% Referral

1% Newspaper or Home Book ad

Here at HUNT, we invest in a number of impactful on-

line platforms to help market you and your listings.

Some are highly visible, like HUNTrealestate.com

and our listing syndication to Zillow, Trulia, and Re-

How to Avoid the Danger Ahead

I was invited to speak at a conference held ear-

lier in the month in New York City. There was

a parade of speakers who covered topics ranging

from the regulatory environment to lead gener-

ation and distribution to new business models.

All throughout the discussions there were men-

tions of “disrupters” to our business—

those influences from inside and outside our

industry that have the potential to change our

business, not necessarily always for the better. If

you are interested in knowing more, google

“Danger Report.” What will come up is the

NAR-sponsored study that covers 50 potential

disrupters. It will be a focus of our Leadership

Conference this year, is well done, mostly even-

handed and covers in some way all the things I

learned about at the RISMedia conference.

After going through the report, you may ask

yourself how, in this new world, can I avoid the

danger ahead?

Then David Knox came to each of our New

York Regions to address us on “How to Dou-

ble My Income.” Yes, double my income

with all these disrupters! About 600 of our

Agents and Leadership Team members learned

how we could change some of our behaviors,

learn some new dialogues and “live the lifestyle

of a person making what I want to make.”

David asked us to consider carefully our own

personal vision, to examine our feelings to de-

termine the “why” of our real estate business ex-

perience. Without an understanding of the why,

the “what” will mean little—the first step in

avoiding danger.

David then explored with us the “lots of little

things” that we all could do that can change

our career trajectory. Among them are:

1) Instead of emailing or even calling on the

phone, go directly to the house when pursu-

ing a listing opportunity.

2) Fine tune our lead generation and

prospecting skills and practice our dialogues,

first by studying proven technique (the David

Knox series accessible from your AgentAchieve

dashboard is at your fingertips), then role

playing (video yourself !), finding a mentor, and ul-

timately through first-hand experience in the mar-

ket.

3) Get face-to-face with more customers, the eas-

iest and most direct means being a well-chosen

open house—the customer actually comes to

us.

4) Build your Center of Influence and use

the CRM system uniquely available to you—

your AgentAchieve dashboard.

5) Respond to all inquiries (did you know

that 42% of all inbound calls go unresponded

to?)—most customers (72-74%) will deal with

the first customer they come in contact with.

All these little things add up to more listing ap-

pointments, essential to doubling your income.

What happens next? David explored with us the

dynamics of a successful listing presen-

tation, which begins with the first contact. Do

you have a pre-listing package that you can send

or deliver to the seller in advance of your listing

appointment? If not, review David’s video,

RL 25. Put that package with “homework” and

David’s pre-listing video in the hands of the

seller. You will already be way ahead of the

competition.

A message from Peter F. Hunt Chairman & CEO

2

Continued on page 8

David Knox comes to HUNT ERA!

Over 600 HUNT ERA agents in Western & Upstate New York attended The Art of Listing seminars

presented by David Knox. The sessions were held for our agents and guests in Albany, Syracuse,

Rochester & Buffalo and they were a great success.

David talked about prospecting for listings in today’s market and how to obtain more saleable listings

in the upcoming fall season.

Highlights of his sessions included an emphasis on “picking up the phone.” He explained how today

buyers want immediate responses to inquiries online. He talked about the HUNT Hotline and

AgentAchieve giving us an advantage in the marketplace by providing immediate and on-going com-

munication with the consumer.

David also broke down the listing process into two parts. The first being the pre-listing period when

you establish a connection and build trust with the seller. He explained the value of a pre-listing

package and how impressed he was that HUNT ERA provides such a marketing piece. The second

phase of the listing, he explained, is the actual face-to-face appointment. David broke down the list-

ing presentation into the six steps, as are outlined in the Seller Select program.

Finally, David thanked HUNT ERA for being the first company to sign up for his online and on-

demand video training. He encouraged the agents to take advantage of this exceptional learning

tool. Every HUNT ERA salesperson has access to the Knox videos at no cost through their

AgentAchieve account.

David Knox is an internationally recognized authority on real estate pricing, selling and negotiation. As a real estate speaker and trainer, David

has been honored with the highest designations and achievements in the real estate industry.

3

Career Devlopmentby Bob Scholz, Director of Training

4

Agents of the Month

Buffalo July AugustAkron Margaret Tuerk Cheyanne SeelauAmherst Judy Jack Lewis Judy Jack LewisBuffalo Metropolitan Rob Blake East Aurora Kathleen Mason Steve StarkeHamburg Millie Blasz Achtyl Lou Ann SpauldingKenTon Mark Brylinski Marsha McCarthyLancaster Jeanine Kacala Jeanine KacalaLewiston Cynthia Van Dusen Barb KiviLockport Dianne Shaw Dianne ShawOrchard Park Donna Starnes David & Diana NathanWest Seneca Janice Doktor Jennifer SennettWheatfield Mark Lemke Jennifer SchreckengostWilliamsville-Clarence Karen Baker James HoffmanWilliamsville Village Bonnie Clement Bonnie Clement

RochesterBrighton-Pittsford Richard Testa Richard TestaCanandaigua Sandi Van Camp Dawn Marie KaneGreece Rhonda McGonnell Rich OrczykPerinton John Denniston John DennistonWebster Vince LoCastro Alfred Constantino

Central & Northern NY/Carthage WatertownCamillus Joy Bush Cazenovia Thomas Tait Thomas TaitChittenango Bruce Quilter Robert FreunschtClinton Barb Owens Barb OwensDeWitt Chip Hodgkins Chip Hodgkins TeamLiverpool Manlius Gaulin Team Judy WinslowOneida Mary Pat Adams Jeanette DenneyWatertown Suzanne Krouse Deborah Manning & Shirley LitzCicero Shane Tibbitts Bees Team

Capital DistrictSaratoga Springs Dede Olds Judy VigerLoudonville Dan Lesage Joe CarusoneGlens Falls Jen Ball Jen BallSlingerlands Nina Sher Sandy Evans

ArizonaTempe Mary Montague Joseph AyattaScottsdale Julian DiLeano Wayne Gebhardt & Cathy Neilson-Ragusano

5

altor.com. Others are considered more “behind

the scenes” promotions, like our Search Engine

Marketing - which is essentially purchasing key-

words on Google and Bing to ensure when some-

one is searching for real estate in your city, HUNT

Real Estate shows up on the first page as often as

possible.

The most recent addition to our online marketing

arsenal is the HUNT Digital Listing Center.

We are the only real estate firm in any of our

markets that offers this all-inclusive and automated

marketing package to its sales professionals. By

providing you a property website, virtual tour and

YouTube video for each listing, we are incremen-

tally expanding our digital footprint with every

property you bring on the market. Here’s why it’s

important:

Sources Buyer Used During The

Home Search Process

92% used the Internet

21% used the Newspaper

Where Buyer Found The Home

They Purchased:

43% Internet

1% Newspapers

Between 2009 and 2013, real estate-

related Google searches increased by 253%

So with all of these stats from the National As-

sociation of Realtors affirming the power of

the internet, why do real estate companies

and their agents continue unmitigated

spending on newspaper advertising?

In our case here at HUNT, we have it written into

our Seller Select program that we’ll guarantee

newspaper ads for ALL new listings, open

houses and qualifying price reductions. This

has created a massive dependence on the newspa-

pers, a medium that continues to increase in price,

but wane in performance and consumer influence.

As we take on more listings, the larger our depend-

ence becomes. It also sends the incorrect message

to our customers that, regardless of what the num-

bers say, we will continue to put the most amount

of our marketing weight into a vehicle that will not

result in the sale of their home.

At HUNT, we are dedicated to winning you more

business and investing in tools that will make you

the most productive sales professional you can be.

At the same time, we’re also committed to the suc-

cess of our clients, promising them the best oppor-

tunity to get their house sold quickly and for the

highest price.

As we approach the end of our fiscal year in Oc-

tober and begin charting our 2016 marketing and

advertising strategy, we will be evaluating all of the

places we invest our marketing dollars - not just in

print, but also online to ensure we’re utilizing

sources that are trackable, have an engaged audi-

ence, are high visibility, and - ultimately - generate

more leads for you. Our goal is to use our media

dollars more intelligently, targeting buyers and sell-

ers in the places where they are most likely to look

for real estate listings and services.

Stay tuned to next month’s newsletter, your email,

and attend your weekly office sales meetings,

where we’ll be sharing more information about

our 2016 marketing and advertising strategy with

you.

The Truth About Newspaper Advertisingby Dan Mirsky, Director of Marketing

6

The HUNT Leadership Development

Program is coming!

We take great pride in developing the future lead-

ers of our organization from within. The HUNT

Leadership Development Program (LDP) is a 10-

month spaced learning program consisting of

webinars, video-conferences and four two-day

overnight sessions conducted in Buffalo. It is specif-

ically designed for those who have demonstrated a

talent and interest in leadership in any of the com-

panies or departments within HUNT Real Estate

Corporation. Upon completing the LDP, partici-

pants will:

1. Be able to describe their personal leadership

style and how to use it effectively within

the context of HREC

2. Be able to adequately define a change

process and successfully implement

an organizational change

3. Develop the necessary skills to execute

effective and informative business presentations

4. Become familiar with business plan and

action plan models used at HREC

5. Develop culturally competent behaviors

and attitudes

6. Understand the key dynamics necessary to

build and grow a “Ideal” business environment

Outside readings and projects form the basis of this

experiential learning format.

There is an application process and you must be

recommended by your supervisor. Applicationswill be available in October with the Orien-tation session taking place November 12th.If you're interested in participating, please contact

your Branch Director or department supervisor for

consideration.

Learn The Skills ToBecome A Leaderby Dan Mirsky, Director of Marketing

Renee Smith is August Employee of the Month. Renee embodies all of those behaviors that any

company would look for in a model employee. She travels a long distance to the office, yet is never

late - she is often early! To say the least, Renee is responsive and attentive. After sending an email

on a weekend, and expecting a reply on Monday, Renee usually responds very quickly. She is

always willing to help anyone at anytime. During the recent move in Manlius we were dealing

with dozens of different vendors and a multitude of different problems. Alongside Dave Pendergast

and Jackie Carr, Renee was there to make things happen, and always with a smile.

Employee of the Monthby Charlie Hunt, General Manager of Rochester Region & Director of Corporate Relations

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Win-Win LEADS...

Everyone wants a “good” lead. Together let’s become experts on lead management and conversion.

Time is a money. You can only be in one place at one time, so use your extended HUNT family to help

you earn more. If a customer is looking for a property outside of your area of expertise, or even within

your own metropolitan area, let Grace Bindemann know. She will place the customer with one of the ex-

perts in that area and you will earn referral compensation. We do ask for participation on your part. In

order for us to select the agent that best suits the client and make sure we provide a “good” lead to the as-

signed agent, provide the same information you would want if you were receiving a “good” lead. We

need the client’s name, address, phone number, price range, email, time frame and motivation. If you

prefer, you can speak with the assigned agent first to make sure you are comfortable with our selection.

You can place these referrals with Grace and she can find an agent in one of our HUNT offices in Buffalo,

Rochester, Syracuse, Watertown, Albany, NY or Phoenix, Arizona.

If we have to go outside of our HUNT family, we can do that, too. We can use our relationship with the

Cartus broker network and select a broker and agent from almost anywhere in the country to provide

listing or sales services. Rest assured, you will still get compensated.

Remember, employees - including Core Services employees - can earn a bonus by providing leads to

HUNT Relocation, too.

Relocationby Mary Croglio, Director of Relocation

8

Now you arrive at the house. More little

things:

1) Dress professionally—we live in a casual

world. You can be exceptional just by dressing

like a business professional.

2) Get rid of the smells—don’t overpower

the environment.

3) Follow a simple guided approach to the

goal of securing the listing:

a. Build rapport and trust. Ask conversa

tional questions and take notes. Again,

refer to RL 25 in David’s series for an

effective “seller counseling interview”.

b. Present our “6 Steps to Success” Seller

Select listing presentation.

c. Close for their commitment to list with you.

d. THEN present the CMA!

You may be saying to yourself that you could

never do it that way. All the seller cares about is

what we think he can sell for and how much our

commission is. We’ve always strived to be

different and better at HUNT. Following

the pattern David suggests and we sup-

port through our Career Development

program will set you apart, create more

listing opportunities and allow you to

double your income—and avoid any dan-

ger that may lie ahead.

Last month I wrote about the Team Concept at

our Company. The essence of any team in

real estate is a strong listing inventory—

which is why we brought David in before

we had our Town Hall meetings on form-

ing and operating teams successfully.

Watch for the date for this meeting in

your Region coming up this fall. I assure

you—there will be nothing like it in the

industry.

A message from Peter F. Hunt cont.Chairman & CEO

9

News Around the Regions

Our Lewiston Branch has been busy with events! On July 24th, Lewiston

had our first Thirsty Thursday at Water Street Landing in Lewiston.

August 14th we had a HUNT Family day at Fantasy Island.

Williamsville/Clarence celebrated Mary Ann Kopp's

retirement! She was with the company for 23 years as an

Administrative Assistant. She was an absolute integral part

of their office and she will be missed greatly! We wish her the

best as she enters this new chapter of her life.

Williamsville/Clarence welcomes their new Adminis-

trative Assistant Luanne Castronova. Welcome to the

team, Luanne!

Buffalo/Niagara

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It may be the end of summer, but Rochester is still HOT! HUNT agents continue to list &

sell and put sales on the board. Our new agents are contributing to the numbers and we are

proud to say all are ramped up and producing.

Larry Maggulli was recognized in 2014 by ERA for being in the Top 3 worldwidefor # of units sold! He was awarded the esteemed Circle of Success Leaders Circleaward. Last year, Larry and his team sold 174 units. This year they are on track to do an as-

tonishing 300 units! This translates to an impressive 90% increase in sales-Way to Go!

The Rochester Region has on-boarded several new agents in the month of August. It was a

banner month! We look forward to welcoming several more to our rosters in September.

We would like to Welcome the following to our team:

Doug Osterling-Perinton

Jonathan Zongor-Perinton

Russell Militello-Perinton

Allen Burnett-Brighton/Pittsford

Erik Olton-Brighton/Pittsford

Heather Burgio-Brighton/Pittsford

Derrick Phelps-Greece

Rochester

West Seneca Office

Deb Zych has been nominated for a seat on the BNAR Board

of Directors. She is the only HUNT agent on the slate and would

be appreciate your support - and your vote - this October. From

Deb: "I have had the good fortune to have worked in the real es-

tate industry for the past 15 years. During that time, there have

been up and downs, and many changes in the industry, especially

in the field of technology - with more exciting changes to come.

With my varied experience as an associate broker, office manager,

recruiter, and now sales agent, I bring a wide range of experiences to the table and would be

honored to share them with the membership. I will work hard for your interests, and would be

honored to have your support."

Buffalo/Niagara cont.

News Around the Regions cont.

11

Career Developmentby Bob Scholz, Director of Training

In his book “Who

Moved My Cheese?”

Spencer Johnson ex-

plores the results of our

resistance to change.

The story of Sniff and

Scurry and Hem and

Haw has valuable les-

sons for real estate pro-

fessionals.

What has changed?

Certainly leads have

changed! Where we find leads and how we con-

vert them has shifted, just like the cheese in

Johnson’s book. In the book, Hem and Haw ex-

pected that the “cheese” would always be in the

same place whereas Sniff and Scurry where

constantly working and learning where the

“cheese” might be if it was moved.

Hem and Haw were so complacent in their be-

lief that things would not change that they even

allowed their running skills to dwindle, making

them ill prepared for the changes that were to

come.

So what does this have to do with real estate?

Well, frankly someone has moved our leads!

Floortime, call-ins and sign calls, where the leads

used to be found has shifted to the internet. At

first, many of us acted like Hem and Haw and

ignored this paradigm shift. We expected that

the leads would always be there and in the same

way. We allowed our skills of finding converting

leads to weaken.

Soon, as the leads were moved, some wished

they would go back to the way it used to be. Oth-

ers just complained about “who moved the

Leads?” There were, however, some real estate

professionals that ventured into their new maze

to find the leads. They eagerly accepted the

changes without resistance and soon found the

new source of leads.

So what can you do? If you are still Heming and

Hawing, it’s time to take your career into your

own hands. It’s time to embrace the changes,

rather than resist them. You can learn new skills

for finding and converting the leads. Put on your

“track shoes,” attend training and acquire the

skills you need to make these new leads work for

you.

Accept your tools like LeadRouter, Agen-

tAchieve and the HUNT Hotline that help you

not only find where your leads were moved, but

what to do with them once you have found

them.

Want a quick pep talk? Read the book, “Who

Moved My Cheese?” and you will obtain insight

in the danger of change resistance, or simply

watch the video at:

https://youtu.be/91YxXk3fmw8

Welcome to HUNT!

We would like to welcome the following newly licensed agents from across the company:

George Hasiotis - Scottsdale

Jacqueline Higgins - Scottsdale

Candelaria Del Rocio Munoz - Scottsdale

Galina Babayeva - Scottsdale

Suzanne Yale - Hamburg

Kevin Buchanan - Metropolitan

Amanda Hyman - Hamburg

Angela Nolan - Lancaster

Nina Jack - Amherst

Melissa Brown - Amherst

Alshathley Shaibi - Metropolitan

Luanne Castronova - Williamsville/Clarence

Khristin Nowaczyk - West Seneca

Patricia Caine - Metropolitan

Trena Etherton - Williamsville/Clarence

Daniel Haick - Wheatfield

Felipe Branford - Metropolitan

Karen Aichinger - East Aurora

Maria Ortiz Lucchese - Saratoga Springs

Derrick Phelps - Greece

Erik Olton - Brighton/Pittsford

Johnathan Zongor - Perinton

Virginia Mann - Manlius

Tara Hash - Manlius

Heather Burgio - Brighton/Pittsford

We would also like to welcome the following experienced agents fromacross the company:

Patricia Shultes - Saratoga

Rebecca Leverette - Loudonville

Whitney Rosati - Clinton

Patrick Hummel - Liverpool

Rebecca Abukhdair - KenTon

We have partnered with Ameri-

can Home Shield (AHS) to offer

unparalleled protection to your

clients, giving them access to the

most innovative home warranty

in the business - the ERA Home Protection Plan.

You’re probably aware of how important a home warranty is for your

buyers, offering them peace of mind and relief from the expenses of un-

expected breakdowns. But did you know it’s just as important to offer an

AHS Warranty to your sellers?

Homes that include an AHS Home Protection Plan SELL

FASTER and for MORE MONEY than homes sold without a

home warranty!

To assist you with all of your home warranty

needs, we’d like to introduce you to Jaida

Patrick, our new Account Manager at Ameri-

can Home Shield. She can answer any ques-

tions you have about the ERA Home

Protection Plan issued by AHS, including how

to market them to your clients, price compar-

isons, understanding the coverage options

available, and much more.

Jaida will be sending you periodic email re-

minders about the benefits of selling an ERA

Home Protection Plan to both your buyers and

sellers. She is also just a phone call or email

away.

The Preferred Home Warrantyof HUNT Real Estate ERAby Charlie Hunt, General Manager of Rochester Region & Director of Corporate Relations

Jaida PatrickAccount Manager

American Home Shield

866-225-7906jpatrick@ahslink.com