This edition I'm diving into strategic partnerships and business exits.

In addition to co-founding ProInsight, Justin hosts Think Bigger Real Estate and wrote The Upstream Model.

Justin built his entire business around a non-obvious insight: the biggest opportunities in real estate aren't about getting more leads. They're about strategic partnerships with retiring agents.

That led to ProInsight, a platform that optimizes real estate businesses for acquisition and sale. 

There’s just one problem with marketing a platform like that. No agent waves a banner announcing their retirement. They’re terrified of losing that last deal. So Justin had to get creative.

Non-Obvious Insights from our Conversation:Market Your Mistakes."Some of the ways that people trust you the most is when it's not all sunshine and rainbows. It's like [saying], ‘We brokered a deal. Here's what went really well. Here's what we would not do again.’ " -Justin Stoddart

Brutal honesty works. And it’s going to be necessary over the next few years. Agents are bombarded by polished, professional marketing. Many are downright jaded.

Be open about…

who your offer isn’t built for

where it doesn’t work so well

what mistakes you made along the way

Not behind closed doors…right in your marketing. Think of it as taking Sandler-style consultative selling and scaling it to a bigger audience.

Emotions Are Niches.

Justin faced a big challenge. 

How do you find the right prospects when the things that make them right are invisible in traditional data?

He couldn’t buy a list of “agents burning out and worried about retirement.”

Justin’s breakthrough was that emotions are their own niche. And to find the emotions, you find the pain.

“Those real pain points, [where agents will say] ‘That's me, I loved raising my kids in rainy Oregon, but man, I want to be in Arizona where I can golf nine months out of the year.’ 

So for us, it's really kind of hitting on the pain. Like [saying] Is this you...Is this something you've experienced? That then opens people up. Cause once you have their attention [we can say] Hey, there actually is a solution for you. We've actually built technology that facilitates this process." 

Just because an agent is getting older doesn’t mean they’re right for his platform. By speaking to the emotions, he speaks most deeply to the agents his platform serves best. A friend of mine called this “emotional niching.” 

Create a Marketplace, Don't Just Sell Services.

"We're actually certifying what we call exit strategists... we're training them on identifying people who would want to sell. Once you hold the inventory, then you can go find a buyer for that business."

I’ve heard VC’s say they avoid double-ended marketplaces like the plague. They’re great in concept, but devilishly hard to get right. 

Justin is avoiding that by creating a certification program for "exit strategists.” Essentially building a network of affiliates who find deals and get paid.

When they work, certification programs create exponential reach without exponential effort. Affiliates do the prospecting; Justin provides the platform and takes a small piece of each deal. A smart solution to a tricky growth challenge.

Want to go deeper? Click on the audio file above to listen to the full chat, also available on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

Or Hit Reply and tell me what you think…

Would you sell your database when you retire?

Would you recommend this strategy to younger agents looking to grow faster?

Steal This:

Make a list of 5 mistakes you could talk about openly in your content. A situation where your offer didn’t work. A client who was a poor fit. An experiment that failed. 

Quick Links & Resources

ProInsight

Think Bigger Real Estate Podcast

The Upstream Model

Massive thanks to Justin for being generous with his time and insights! Make sure to connect with him, check out his podcast, send him guest ideas.

And especially if you know of anyone interested in becoming an “exit strategist,” connect them to Justin. 

Talk soon,

-Matt

CEO - MicroFamous

Author - MicroFamous

PS When you’re ready, here’s one way we can help…

Done-for-You Content Service - From Michael Maher and Lars Hedenborg to Jeff Cohn and Marki Lemons-Ryhal, we’ve been the content team behind many of your fellow real estate coaches, speakers and authors. 

We turn conversations into videos, podcasts and newsletters, with zero overwhelm. With our system, that content creates real authority, influence and impact for our clients.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit rethoughtleaders.substack.com