Online People Talking with Jen Barkan

Jen Barkan is joined by Jessie Suggs, who just celebrated her four year "workiversary" at Do You Convert! And did you know Jen also just celebrated eight years?! They recap exciting Upcoming Events including their trip next week to the 2025 International Builders' Show! This episode starts out with a new celebration of OSCs, and touches on the scenarios of burnout and rust-out, identifying it as an employee or manager, and finding solutions in an honest and genuine way. 

Tito Shout-Outs (07:15): 

• Jen recaps our recent National OSC Day celebration, and shares a heartfelt story about her beloved pup Tito who passed away a few years ago on OSC Day, who inspired their new "Tito Shout-outs," signifying the words Top Industry Talented OSC. 
• Their first shout-out is for Kendall Pashak, the Online Sales Manager with Hartford Homes! 
• Kendall's proactive work and confidence has stood out, and made an impact with her management. 

Topic of Today: Recognizing Burnout and Rust-Out (11:56): 

• Burnout happens when you feel so overwhelmed, you don't feel in control of your day or your tasks, causing you to shutdown. 
• Rust-out is typically an indicator that burnout is coming -- you're unable to go the extra mile due to time constraints, or not feeling motivated-driven. 
• Self-reflection is important when going through either of the above. 
• Looking for certain signs (as an employee or manager) is an important piece. 
• Examples of burnout: not wanting to answer the phone, feeling consistently overwhelmed with tasks, having a hard time with coachability. 
• Examples of rust-out: feeling stagnant with your process, not feeling excited to come to work, not taking initiative to present at sales meetings. 
• There's no one-size fits all solution, however having honest conversations with a coach, peer or colleague will help you gain a different perspective. 
• When you're not sure what to focus on, focus on the things you have control over. 
• When all else fails, do the best thing in that moment for the customer. 
• Prioritize creating time in your day for stress recovery. As an OSC, you're exerting energy all day long, and it's important to give yourself pockets in the day to take a few moments to breathe. 
• Sometimes it's as simple as prioritizing your lunch break, and creating boundaries and margin. Being "hangry" is a real thing! 
• Jen suggests reflecting on your favorite things about your role, and figuring out how to incorporate more of that into your day. 

Skills Check: How Your Work Space Affects Your Vibe (35:00): 

• Jessie discusses transitioning from a full-time office environment to fully working from home during COVID, and how your environment can play a role in your efficiency. 
• Jen recommends having a designated, quiet office space where you can close the door if you're working from home (or the office!)
• If you're feeling burnout or rust-out, it's ok to say something! Nothing changes without action. 

Jen Barkan and Jessie Suggs hosted an exciting LIVE episode this week celebrating National OSC Day today! This episode is jam-packed with special guests, stories, best-practices, words of wisdom -- a victory lap to celebrate all of the hard work OSCs have put into their roles the last year! 

03:43 - Mike Lyon, "The OG"

• Mike enters the chat to share the history of OSC Day, and how this special celebration came to fruition.
• He celebrates all of the hard work that has been put into prospecting this year.
• They touch on a popular quote from Seth Godin, "Pick your customers, pick your future."

09:50 - Martha Clifford, Director of Online Sales with Tuskes Homes

• Jen and Martha share a laugh over the hashtag they used to use: #oscproblems.
• Did you know Jen and Martha attended the first ever Online Sales and Marketing Summit?
• She shares her experience as an OSC the last 13 years, and what keeps the role challenging and exciting for her.
• Martha's OSC Day message: be consistent, stay curious, and your job matters! 

14:28 - Lena Burgin, Online Sales Counselor with Level Homes 

• Jessie brings up The Nationals, as Lena is up for Rookie of the Year! 
• She is so excited for the confidence she will bring this year to the role, and use what she's learned over the last year (if you know, you know, being able to answer questions. in the car or in-the-moment is a huge win for her this year)!
• Jessie shares the power of bringing joy into the role.
• Lena's OSC Day message: trust the process, because it works! 

19:21 - Haley Naebig, Director of Sales with NoviHome 

• Haley shares her experience working as an OSC at Level Homes, and how she's used her experiences in homebuilding to support clients at NoviHome. 
• She emphasizes the benefits of being "pleasantly persistent" and how the consistency has set her up for success. 
• One of Jen's favorite all-time videos is Haley on rollerblades doing a community tour, and her ability to put herself out there and ask for feedback. 
• Haley's OSC Day message: having fun shines through all of your interactions and is a great way to stand out! 

26:14 - Sam Barkan, Inside Crossover Sales Agent with Chesapeake Homes 

• While Sam currently works as an on-site, he worked and managed the online sales position while his colleague was out on maternity leave. 
• Sam shares his key takeaway: online sales is hard. He celebrates the persistence, organization and dedication of OSCs, highlighting that it's 100% of the process, 100% of the time. 
• Sam's OSC Day message to fellow on-sites: be curious about online sales, especially the metrics, and take the time to communicate and show appreciation. If you do this, the metrics will speak for themselves. 

30:34 - Reyna Estrada, National Internet Sales Director with M/I Homes

• Reyna is back from Argentina, and ready to celebrate OSC Day (she even has balloons)! 
• She began her role as an OSC in 2008, and talks about how the role has evolved. 
• Reyna works with a huge team (30 throughout 17 markets) and is proud to work with such dedicated, passionate and authentic professionals. 
• Jen touches on the role of empathy and the importance of nurturing within the role. 
• One of the biggest changes Reyna has seen within the role is the shift in priorities of focusing on lead conversion vs. wearing different hats. 
• Reyna's OSC Day message: you are appreciated, thank you for your commitment to taking care of our customers, and thank you for elevating us to excellence every single day. 

36:00 - Brittany Horner, Director of Marketing & Online Sales with Mitchell Homes 

• Brittany joined Mitchell Homes in 2019 to create the marketing department, and by fall of 2023 spearheaded the creation of the online sales department. 
• Speed to lead, excitement and prospecting has completely transformed their business. 
• She shouts out her incredible team, and all of their hard work! 

39:02 - Beth Russel, Marketing Coach with Do You Convert 

• Before coming to Do You Convert, Beth led a team at Stylecraft, and shares her experience with their outstanding team. 
• Jen and Beth discuss how essential it is for online sales and marketing to collaborate, and how often the two should be meeting and communicating. 
• Beth thanks online sales counselors for producing data integrity that marketing and sales leaders rely on so heavily. 
• Beth encourages marketers to listen to online sales counselors, integrate them into the process, and really understand what their day-to-day looks like. 

44:23 - Skills Check! 

• As you celebrate National OSC Day -- share your victories! 
• Use #nationaloscday so we can help celebrate your wins as well. 

Jen Barkan is joined by Jessie Suggs, who kicks off this week's episode with advice and lessons learned from her recent milestone -- running a marathon! Jen shares exciting announcements surrounding new training opportunities, including an available Online Sales Coach position with DYC.

For this week's episode, Jen Barkan and Jessie Suggs are joined by a very special guest, Adyanee Perkins with StyleCraft Builders An award-winning online sales counselor, Adyanee shares her best practices for prospecting, overcoming objections, and approaching the new year with preparedness and specific goals. She also talks about embracing the phrase "intrapreneur" and how it has shaped her career journey.

Topic of Today: The Importance of Being Prepared and Setting Goals (07:35): 

• Jen shares the importance of being prepared in the face of the unexpected 
• The two welcome a very special guest -- Adyanee Perkins, Online Sales Counselor with Stylecraft Builders! 
• Adyanee shares her background with the military and in criminal justice, and the beginning of her journey with Stylecraft 
• They talk about making a difference, and being a part of the brand experience 
• Adyanee's word of the year for 2024, and for 2025! 
• She shares common objections at this time in the year, and shifting the focus to helping customers be prepared for when they are ready 
• Jessie shares the strategy of "pause, agree, pivot" and not being afraid to ask questions
• Adyanee shares her process on prospecting, and how she has seen this affect Stylecraft as a whole 
• She shares the phrase "intrapreneur" and how she has taken ownership of follow-up and going the extra mile 

Skills Check! (35:52)

• Send us an email at [email protected]! 
• What is one goal or skill you wanted to improve this year to grow your skill set? 
• Is there someone from the industry you'd like us to have on the pod to talk to?

Join us as Mike Lyon, Jessie Suggs and Amanda Martin take over OPT for a holiday episode! They cover ECI's Top New Home Sales Tips for 2025, the DYC 2024 Holiday Gift Guide items to check out, and share some important skills to check yourself on as we enter 2025! 

Jen Barkan is joined this episode by special guest Rodrigo Segnini, Vice President of Sales and Marketing with Stylecraft Builders in Texas. Jen and Rodrigo discuss their unique journeys to the homebuilding industry, how Stylecraft has transformed its online sales team to now be on pace for a 70%+ contribution rate, and advice for sales leaders when it comes to expanding online sales. 

Jen and Rodrigo Discuss: 

• Rodrigo's sales background, and incredible growth within Stylecraft 
• Advocating for online sales teams and the impact of data and reporting 
• Stylecraft's superstar online sales team and its growth over the years 
• The benefits of having an Online Sales Manager and why this position was created at Stylecraft 
• The introduction of long-term follow-up processes and the incredible sales influence this had -- resulting in an additional 60 sales in one year
• Rodrigo's advice for leaders getting pushback from sales on managing online leads 
• Effectively shifting company culture when setting up a brand-new online sales team
• Advice for online sales specialists on always thinking outside of the box and looking for ways to get out of your comfort zone 
• Key takeaways for online sales leaders 

Skills Check! (39:20)

• Jen recommends taking the time to go deeper with data this month, and pull a full audit 
• Make sure that your messaging is accurately reflecting what the lead source is 
• Reviewing email templates and follow-up processes 
• Have you done everything you could do with follow-up leads?

Join us as we celebrate one year of OPT and releasing the 2024 Homebuilder Online Follow-Up Survey ("Secret Shop") results with a special live episode recorded November 6th. Jen Barkan is joined by Mike Lyon and Jessie Suggs to present key takeaways from our most comprehensive shop to date. The secret shop is designed to show homebuilder follow-up from the customer's perspective. 

Topic of Today: Secret Shop Results! (4:15)

• The origins of the online follow-up survey (and a fun fact about an auto dealer survey!)
• Logistics of how the shop and our partnership with Clear Evaluations 
• Recapping response times and the year-over-year improvement -- 72% picked up the phone and made a phone call after the online submission
• Initial response time key takeaways -- 44% of builders responded in under an hour 
• How many times in a month were the online sales specialists touching leads?
• Personalization decreased year-over-year -- 29% of builders sent a video email 
• How are online sales specialists opening the door for the organization in the live phone shop greeting? 
• Opportunities for improvement in qualifying areas of the live phone shop 
• Slowing down and taking your time through qualifying customers on the phone 
• Jessie and Mike's take on the percentage of online sales specialists who were able to overcome objections 
• Summarizing the handoff process (it's a hand-off, not a hand-hold!)
• Speed-to-lead is the biggest differentiator 
• Key takeaways for improving each element of the secret shop 

Jen Barkan is joined by Amanda Martin (with an appearance from Jessie Suggs!) to recap the recently dropped Q3 Online Sales Benchmarks! Detailing data coming in from over 50,000 leads, they recap lead volume changes, what increased and what decreased, and new metrics that are in this quarter's Benchmarks! They also give actionable items for putting insights gained from the data into strategic plans. 

Topic of Today: The Q3 Benchmarks! (05:50)



• Amanda discusses her passion for numbers and why she values the Benchmarks 
• They recap the lead-to-appointment, appointment-to-sale and online sales contribution numbers -- notably a 4% increase in the online sales contribution
• Detailing how many sales specialists and markets go into the Benchmarks 
• Decreases in the lead-to-appointment and appointment-to-sale metrics 
• What can online sales specialists do to keep pushing when lead volume is down? 
• Notable trends among leads, and overcoming today's objections 
• Tips for improving the lead-to-appointment metric 
• Focusing on the qualification of the leads and driving quality appointments 
• Trends among top-performing teams and individuals 
• Outlining key takeaways as we move toward the end of the year 

Skills Check! (25:11)

• Write down a goal of what you can do (that's within your control) to affect the numbers 
• How quick can you be to get a lead on the phone?
• Making sure you're qualifying accurately and sending leads to the correct community 
• Identifying holes in your handoff process 

Jen Barkan is joined by Jessie Suggs for this episode, recapping their recent trip to Chicago for the 2024 Online Sales & Marketing Summit! They recap their first time at the event, and the trends they saw this year. They also welcome a very special guest, Jen's son, Sam Barkan! Sam attended Summit this year as a builder attendee, and shares his unique perspective. Sam works with Chesapeake Homes in Virginia, currently working as an online sales specialist, with experience as an on-site sales specialist. 

Topic of Today (6:36): Special Guest, Sam Barkan! 

• Jen recap's Sam's background in both online and on-site sales 
• Sam discusses the biggest differences he notices between the on-site sales role and the online sales role 
• They chat about the amount of opportunities there are in online sales to positively impact people and make a difference for them 
• Sam shares his "Aha!" moments from attending Summit 
• Key takeaways he's planning on implementing as an online sales specialist 
• They cover time blocking, and how to take small steps to put items you've learned into action without it being overwhelming 
• Jessie encourages those who have attended to thank their leadership for investing in them 

Skills Check! (24:33): Knowing Beyond Your Numbers Heading Into Q4 

• Jessie encourages everyone to outline what success looks like -- to you and to your company -- to be able to forecast what you can contribute in Q4 
• Go to your leader, ask what your total Q4 sales goal is for October, November, December, and forecast what you can contribute based on your metrics 

Jen Barkan and Jessie Suggs sit down for episode #24, and today's topic is embracing the transparency of online sales and shifting the focus from defensiveness to opportunity when a slower market can lead to finger pointing. 

Topic of Today: 5 Ways to Embrace Today's Challenges in Online Sales (5:03)

• Jen and Jessie have heard several stories about OSCs getting pushback, and going into defense-mode 
• When things begin to slow and nervousness kicks in, finger pointing can ensue 
• Instead of getting defensive, let's embrace this and look at it as a challenge! 
• Which is worse, the pain of discipline, or the pain of regret?
• #1: Be able to confidently explain your role and what you do 
• #2: Know your metrics inside-and-out 
• #3: Have you done everything in your control within your CRM?
• #4: Stay in front of your peers 
• #5: Communicate proactively 

Listener Question Of The Day (32:16): "What is the difference between an adequate employee and a valuable employee?" 

• This question is based off of a great book titled 12 Habits of Valuable Employees: Your Roadmap to an Amazing Career
• Value employees look to maximize resources, create new efficiencies in everything they touch, eliminate obstacles and proactively solve complex problems 
• What are you doing beyond checking the boxes?

Skills Check! (37:30) 



• Jessie encourages you to take action on at least one thing from today's episode you'd like to implement 
• Update your metrics on a weekly basis and make adjustments accordingly 
• Know the word on the street! What is the customer vibe?