PIPELINE

I feel so strongly that teams should use a pipeline report that I dedicated an entire chapter (Chapter 9) and one of the appendices (Appendix B) to the topic.  If you don’t have a pipeline report, I created one for you and make it available for free – just follow the instructions on page 87.  Since the publication of the book, I’m very pleased to report that hundreds of agents have requested that pipeline report.  Perhaps my epitaph will read, He Dedicated Himself to the Cause of a Cash Flow Report for Every Agent.

The real fun starts when I get to work with a team that has employed the pipeline tool consistently for several years.  Here are some of the benefits that these teams are enjoying:

1. The pipeline report includes a timing element. This means that the roster of deals not only reveals the amount of money involved but also the timing.  Imagine looking at your income projection, month by month, over the next year.
2. Very efficient weekly meetings. These teams spend about 15 minutes per week updating the ‘data entry’ tab which automatically updates the cash flow tab. As deals evolve toward closing, the details become more crystallized.  The team can see the progression.
3. Tracking all the way through collection. It has been shocking how poor the link between deal completion and money collection is for many firms, including (especially?) the large agencies.  The pipeline report tracks a deal until the money is hand.
4. By using the same system over time, it is very easy to aggregate information. Many times, this creates marketing messages.  “We’ve done 275 lease transactions in the valley over the last five years.”  “Our average sale transaction closes within 85 days of taking the listing.”
5. The magic powers of a pivot table enable the pipeline report to produce insights that agents use to direct their strategy. “We make $7.50 per square foot on new leases, but only $2.00 per square foot on renewals.”

I make the point in the chapter that retail operations get tremendous insight from their point-of-sale system.  They know the sales per hour, the inventory remaining on the shelf and which days have the most transactions.  We run the same size businesses and keep our list of deals scribbled on a napkin.  I long for the day: an insight-filled cash flow report for every agent!

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