What to Put in Your Bio When You Have No Experience
Have you ever used, er, creative writing skills to fill out a resume for a job that you weren’t quite qualified for? It’s ok if you say yes; in many fields, demanding experience requirements, using partial truths or even outright fabrications is the unfortunate norm thanks to unrealistic hiring expectations. Seriously, how many twenty to twenty-five year old PHP engineers have 10+ years of working experience in the field?
For real estate agents who are just starting out, writing your real estate agent’s bio can seem like a similar predicament. Where other real estate agents are describing themselves in glowing terms as they list their overwhelming collection of accolades and achievements, real estate agents who are just starting out can easily feel disadvantaged.
Considering how important a good bio is when you’re a real estate agent, you can’t exactly pass up on writing one just because you don’t have the right amount of experience. A good real estate agent’s bio can kickstart a career, but not having one can be equally damning in the field. So what are you to do in this situation? Let’s take a look!
How to write your first bio
Now, seeing as how you have little or no experience, we’re going to have to get a little creative. Since you can’t just list the previous places you’ve worked and how many homes you’ve sold like other real estate agents can, you’re going to have to focus on other aspects of your professional life and reputation.
Once you get your feet wet, you might realize something: this isn’t quite as difficult as you anticipated! If you focus exclusively on the experience that most real estate agents include in their bio, it’s easy to forget the fact that the entire purpose of your bio is to convince clients of your ability. Experience is a good way to do that, but there are other ways to achieve the same goal. Let’s take a look at some of these ways!
Focus on the future
One great way to draw attention away from the fact that you don’t have much experience is to focus on your future. Instead of talking about everything you’ve done so far, you can talk about what you plan to do, and what you’re well on your way to having done. Whether you’re projecting huge sales in the future or listing empirical steps towards your goals, optimism is your best friend when writing a bio.
A great place to start is your sales projections for the future. Even if you’ve only got a few months of experience under your belt, discussing the sales you’ve already made and using them to paint a bright picture of the future is a great place to start. When you have a limited amount of experience, this is a great way to get clients on board with your vision.
Another way in which you can “borrow from the future” in a manner of speaking is by getting into the specifics of your goals for your real estate career. Are you planning on specializing in a specific niche of the real estate market? Be sure to mention it! Want to work on your portfolio to include homes for homebuyers with disabilities? Include it!
Include professional certifications
While you might not have a ton of experience in your field, there’s a good chance you have a few professional certifications. This can include any number of qualifications, from a college degree to a real estate license to a certificate of completion for a real estate agent training seminar. If it sounds impressive, include it in your bio!
When it comes to writing a bio, you can never go wrong by including a college degree. Even if the discipline you majored in has little or nothing to do with real estate, the simple fact that you finished college is a great way to reinforce your image and instill confidence in your potential clients. It makes you look intelligent too!
If you didn’t go to college, there are plenty of other options as far as qualifications are concerned. Any additional training you’ve received since you started working in the field is more than welcome here, in addition to mention of your real estate license. If you don’t have many such certifications, you can always take a course online or at a local venue.
Don’t shy away from discussing your personal life
Another great way to fill in the gap in your bio left by your lack of professional experience is to discuss yourself. When home buyers or sellers set out looking for a real estate agent, they aren’t just looking for the best choice from an empirical point of view; they’re also looking for a real estate agent that they can relate to on a personal level.
If you’ve got hobbies, don’t shy away from adding them to your bio. If you’re into film photography, throw a mention of that hobby in. If you enjoy surfing on the weekends, be sure to mention it. Even if your hobbies are a little bit less “cool” than these ones in a conventional sense, the simple fact that you’re passionate about things besides real estate will often be enough to ingratiate you with potential clients.
Additionally, you can never go wrong by adding a few mentions of your family and close friends. People love working with someone who values their personal relationships, and making it clear that you value yours is a surefire way to improve your image in the eyes of clients. Talk about the ways in which you spend time with the people closest to you; we guarantee you won’t regret doing it!
Emphasize your character
Finally, it’s usually a good idea to emphasize your positive character traits in the body of your real estate bio. Things such as personal integrity, good work ethic, unimpeachable time management and other professional virtues are all welcome here, so long as they paint you in a positive light with your clients.
The first thing you’ll likely want to mention is your personal integrity. This is your willingness to preserve your reputation and the interests of your client even when it doesn’t further your short term financial or career goals. Mentioning situations in which you’ve demonstrated outstanding moral character and professionalism will never fail to hit the mark. In fact, many clients would rather work with someone who is honest and sincere than someone who is merely experienced!
Other professional virtues are also excellent additions to your bio, as long as it reflects on you in a positive way. Do you always show up on time? Throw that in there! Are you unfailingly transparent, always informing buyers and sellers alike of any and all factors in the deal? Be sure to mention it! In addition to helping create a positive image, this will also help weed out clients with devious intentions.
Conclusion
Considering the glowing professional record most real estate agents boast in the bios, it’s understandable that you might be a bit intimidated by the prospect of writing your own bio. Hopefully, this article has given you some hope for the future, giving you inspiration on how to write a bio that gets you the clients you rightly deserve. We wish you the best of luck!
