We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Ted Kritikos a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Ted, thanks for joining us today. Looking back at the decisions you made early in your career, particularly whether to join a firm or start your own, do you feel you made the right choice for that stage of your career?

When I was preparing to enter the real estate industry I didn’t know what to expect. I spent the better part of the last decade in tech at venture-funded startups, so I wasn’t sure how well I would fit in at a firm in a legacy industry. That uncertainty lasted until I found Compass.

Compass is now publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange, but not long ago it was a New York startup not too different from the ones I found myself working at prior to my career in real estate. I instantly recognized and fell in love with the company’s culture and tech-oriented approach to real estate; it was the perfect fit, and I’m fortunate to have landed here.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

My name is Ted Kritikos and I’m a residential real estate agent with Compass. Though I always say “I go where the referrals bring me”, I specialize in residential home sales on Long Island’s North Shore.

Prior to real estate, I spent a decade as a top producer at Manhattan-based marketing agencies and software companies, where my clients ranged from multinational corporations such as Oracle, SAP, Samsung, and Twitter, to small businesses and direct consumers.

My background at the intersection of sales and marketing has afforded me a unique set of skills that puts my real estate clients at an advantage. Whereas most agents are disconnected from marketing—relying on an intern or office marketing manager to create plans for their clients—I possess the in-depth marketing expertise to personally develop and execute holistic marketing strategies that drive results for clients. This, paired with real estate expertise and a long track record of consultative sales and negotiation, is what sets me and the clients I represent, apart from the pack.

Can you tell us about what’s worked well for you in terms of growing your clientele?

For me, beyond any particular strategy or tactic, it’s about building a strong professional brand that’s consistent across everything I do. This is the foundation that everything else builds off of.

Whether I’m publishing to social media or grabbing a cup of coffee at the local shop – I want those I come across to see me as an expert in my field. To achieve that, I must not only do my homework, keep current with industry data and trends, and communicate that to audiences, but also make very conscious decisions about everything from what I post online to how I dress.

I’ve found that if you have this foundation you can effectively apply it to everything from a targeted email marketing campaigns, to social media advertisements to grow your client base with success. The key is knowing your stuff, understanding who you are trying to reach, and making sure your brand is consistent with that audience.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

One of my favorite lessons in resilience goes back about 6 years. At the time I was trying to break into a large Silicon Valley tech company and close a deal.

After about a month, I was able to get in touch with the decision maker but her answer was “no”—so I stayed in touch. Over the next 12 months I made it a point to reach out on a consistent basis with relevant information; I didn’t just send an email for the sake of sending an email, but waited until there was something to share that was timely, relevant, and would truly resonate with the contact. The messages often went unanswered by the decision maker, but they were a constant reminder that client or not, my team was there to serve as a resource for her. That approach of not being pushy and making it a point to serve as a helpful resource paid off because about 14 months after initial contact (and many “nos” along the way), she emailed me out of the blue to say she appreciated my messages over the last year. She said they were now ready to begin reviewing proposals, and they wanted our team to be the first in the door.

Long story short, our team took the opportunity and ran with it; we developed a fantastic strategy, nailed the pitch and won the client.

My biggest takeaway from this experience is if you truly have the prospect/client’s best interest in mind, and you work hard to prove your value, “no” does not mean “no”; “no” simply means “no, for now.” If you remain consistent, remain visible, and work hard to position yourself as an asset, you can still win and win big after “no”

Contact Info:

• Website: https://tedkrealestate.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tedkrealestate/