Mega Agent Expansion: Go Forth and Multiply!

Before a packed audience last week, co-founder and chairman Gary Keller explained the origins and opportunities of the next evolution for real estate teams – Mega Agent Expansion.

“Simply stated, Mega Agent Expansion is taking your administration systems and team and your lead generation systems and team to an additional location,” he said.

Keller said there are three big reasons to expand:

1. To increase profits;
2. To expand the vision for your business so you can attract and retain more and higher quality talent;
3. And to deepen your bench.

Keller interspersed his comments with stories about the early years of Keller Williams and the lessons he and the company learned. “In Austin, we had two market centers and I resisted adding any more.”  Eventually, he awarded new market centers in the area to other owners. “What’s interesting is that our business grew at the original.” The expansion didn’t diminish the growth potential, in fact, it enhanced it.

Keller told attendees not to give themselves a ceiling. “This is a wealth-building seminar. If you don’t want to build wealth you can leave.”

Based on his conversations with agents, operating principals and team leaders, Keller identified the four “myths” people experience when they think about Mega Agent Expansion:

1. “I’m an agent, not a businessperson.”
2. “Expansion is for companies, not agents.”
3. “I can just make more money with my current team.”
4. “My plate is so full with my current business that I don’t see how I have the bandwidth or resources to do this.”

Keller debunked the myths one by one. “This is a big, big opportunity,” he said.

For attendees wondering when to expand, Keller offered a basic rule of thumb: net income of at least $100,000 and an organizational structure to support expansion.

“Income doesn’t determine when to expand,” he declared. “It’s when you have someone to do the job. The real question is ‘what are you expanding?’ Expansion should be a natural extension of your lead generation and administrative expertise.”

Keller recounted CEO Mark Willis’ rise through the ranks at Keller Williams. Willis was at a market center in Austin, Texas when Keller asked him to meet for Mexican food. At one point during the meal, Keller literally slid a folder across the table with the keys to an office in San Antonio. Willis accepted the challenge, and after he proved himself there, Keller made him the Regional Director. And when Mo Anderson was ready to transition into a new role with Keller Williams, Willis was ready to step in. “Three great hires made all this possible: Sharon Gibbons, Mo Anderson and Mark Willis,” said Keller.

While expansion may show moderate gains in the first two to five years, the next few years might be very challenging. “You’ll get pummeled, which will be hard, but then you’ll experience a geometric progression and launch into explosive growth,” he said. “Keller Williams didn’t turn a profit for several years, but then we reeled off nine years of growing 40 percent or more each year.”

What’s the path to Mega Agent Expansion?

1. First you expand in your city, which has the convenience of the same MLS.
2. Next you expand into a different city in the same state, which probably means a new MLS.
3. Next you expand into a different state, which means not only a different MLS but probably different licensing requirements.

Addressing owner/brokers, operating principals and team leaders in the audience, Keller encouraged them to seize, rather than resist Mega Agent Expansion. “This is already happening,” he said. “The mega agent is already validated and they’re going to recruit agents to your office. I’d get on the phone and call top producers in your area and ask if they want to expand into your market center. Imagine if you have 20, 30 or 40 expansion teams operating out of your market center? If you have 100 expansion teams earning $100,000, that’s $10 million a year.”

Keller brought the message home by interviewing a panel of Keller Williams mega agents who have already started expanding into new markets: Adam Hergenrother, Ben Kinney, Brian Gubernick, Brandon Montemayor and Jason Lindstrom.

“This is the ultimate destiny,” Keller said. “It’s a distribution network for top-producing agents.”

At the conclusion of the panel, Dianna Kokoszka, CEO of KW MAPS Coaching and KWU, and Kristan Cole, vice president of Mega Agent Expansion, introduced the Explorer-level and Expansion-level membership benefits, which include Webinars, monthly training calls, exclusive breakout sessions and masterminds opportunities.

Check with your regional leadership to see when the Mega Agent Expansion Launch Tour is coming to your region!

Click here to find out more: http://mykw.kw.com/kwintranet/getSite.action?id=1342