Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Natalia Paulino. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Natalia, appreciate you joining us today. How do you feel about asking friends and family to support your business? What’s appropriate, what’s not? Where do you draw the line?
A common mistake that people make is the expectation that friends and family should or need to support your business. It’s this expectation like if a friend doesn’t talk to you for a week or months, then they’re not a True friend. The reality is that we all have our own lives. What looks busy to one person may look different to another. We all have our own responsibilities. That could be running a business or running a family. Both are full time jobs that require us to go all in to be successful. When a friend or family member doesn’t seem to support your business at the level of your expectations it might not be entirely intention. They might just be too caught up in their own life and maybe you might want to make time to ask them, “Hey, how’s life going? What’s new? How can I support you?” We might gain a new perspective to understand that they might be going through their own struggle. We open the door to connect and build a stronger relationship. Sometimes those who care the most might have good intention to not support our new business venture because they believe with good intention they are trying to help us from making a mistake. Is it so wrong to care enough to say, “Don’t do it! What if it fails?” I used to think “Hell yeah!” I needed someone to say “You got this! I’ll support you!” Then I realized no matter what others said or did to show support, what mattered the MOST was what I was going to do to be successful. Finding the inner strength, building the inner mindset and habits to be build a successful business is way more important than who you THINK is meeting your expectations of support.
Natalia, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
I’ve lived in Brooklyn, NY for 13 years and ventured into Real Estate 8 years ago. I started my business right before finding out I was going to become a first time Mom. I went through a time of deciding if it was the right time and if I could make it work. The good news is that I work with a brokerage that not only offers training in selling homes, it offers training in business management and personal development. I was able to create a plan and schedule to make it work. I was grateful for a business that allowed me to blend work and family life. My daughter has attended showing, open houses, inspections and final walk throughs – I’m also lucky to have a very well behaved child. What sets me apart from a lot of agents in my field is that I am focused more on the customer experience than just the sale. I am focused on the relationships in the process. Selling or buying a home – not a property – is an emotional journey. I am really good at understanding others and realizing when I need to push and when I need to put on the brakes. I can easily see when someone is hesitant from the natural nerves that come with one of the biggest investments most people will make in a lifetime. At the same time, I am aware that there are life events that can arise during the process that require us to pause, reevaluate the deal and decide what move to make next. I’ve never had a problem telling a client, “Maybe this isn’t the best move for you at this time, but that is for you to decide.” Not every agent will do this. I have been a witness! Because they are too focused on the sale and check at the closing table. I am most proud of the quality of my work. I treat every listing like a Million Dollar listing. Currently I’ve been a part of deals starting at $240k which was a HDFC coop up to $2M townhouses. Each client still received the white glove treatment. I can appreciate someone paying $240k for a 600 sqft apartment. I’m still going to treat them like my $1M+ clients.
Where do you think you get most of your clients from?
Referrals have been the best source of new clients for me. A referral is someone saying that they the know, like and trust me. I am grateful for my friends, family and other agents (out of my service area) that have referred me business. When you focus on building strong relationships with others, you’ll be surprised how they show up for you without being asked.
We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?
My audience started with just family and friends. I was against social media, but thought I could use it to stay connected with friends and family when I moved from Texas. I started to gain traction when I started posting videos of homes for sale and clips of my day. The engagement from my friends and family attracted the algorithm which brought more friends/followers. I started receiving engagement from other real estate agents which lead to more referrals with people moving to NYC. When I noticed the pattern I started to be more intentional with my Social media and started paying attention to more successful profiles. I noticed that content didn’t need to be over scripted or perfect (hiring a company to do it). You can get there at some point, but you don’t have to start there to be successful. It’s important to create connection by giving a little of yourself and not just your business. Sharing content that creates emotion and let’s your audience get to know you is what counts. People decide to do business with people they like or share common values or interests. Think of social media as free marketing because you do not have to pay for ads to build an audience. You can have an amazing product, but if no one knows about it, you won’t make any sales. We live in such an advantageous time where we have the opportunity to speak to many even while we sleep. Have you seen videos that have millions of views and comments? The more people that know you and the service you provide, the more business you can acquire.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://nataliayourrealtor.com
- Instagram: @luxury_nycrealtor
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/natip917/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/natalia-paulino-realtor/
- Youtube: @nataliayourrealtor
