The winners of the Rawson Property Group’s National Association of Realtors (NAR) competition, were recently announced at the Rawson Property Group’s three regional Bi-Annual Franchise Awards Ceremonies, which took place at the end of July. This is the second year in a row that Rawson will be taking their top performers to America.
“Since its inception”, said Tony Clarke, Managing Director of the Rawson Property Group, “this competition has generated a large amount of competitive spirit and hard work because of its truly outstanding prize - a trip to Orlando, Florida to attend the NAR Conference and Expo - an opportunity to not only find out the latest industry information and trends but to build a network of contacts, with other delegates from South Africa and around the world.”
The performance-based competition which comprised of seven categories, said Clarke, was open to all Rawson franchisees and sales/rental agents (as well as franchises as a whole) and saw countless top performers in residential sales, rentals and commercial sales battling it out for those top spots.
A total of 21 trips (inclusive of flights to and accommodation in Orlando, Florida) to the NAR Conference and Expo were awarded to the top 1, 2 or 5 performers in various categories (most categories held multiple spaces); and the remaining tickets were bestowed by means of lucky draws.
The NAR Conference and Expo, says Clarke, is a highly esteemed annual event that takes place every November and sees real estate professionals from all corners of the globe come together. Over four days, more than 100 education sessions are presented by internationally-recognised speakers and trainers, while industry expects discuss timely topics and critical issues of value to the estate agency industry.
“In addition to this, he adds, “there are 400 industry vendors who present the latest innovative tools for real estate professionals, countless special events and networking lounges that provide unlimited networking and referral-building opportunities.”
This year’s theme is “Discover Your Magic” and it is geared towards helping all those attending to discover and utilize the potential they possess, empowering them to take their business to the next level.
“It is estimated”, said Clarke, “that an astounding 20 000 members and guests are expected to attend this year’s expo.”
Schalk van der Merwe, franchisee for Rawson Properties Somerset West, who was one of the members of the Rawson delegation that attended the NAR conference in San Francisco last year, said that what impressed him most was how sophisticated and advanced the American estate agents had become in the use of information technology, especially for marketing and liaising with clients.
“A whole range of excellent marketing packages were available to them and almost without exception they were using them effectively,” said van der Merwe. “I was particularly impressed by the quality of the photographs on their websites and their ability to use social media in their marketing efforts.”
“The learning possibilities and skill-building opportunities are endless at the NAR Conference and Expo,” said Clarke, “and I can’t wait for this year’s delegation to experience all of what this fantastic event has to offer. 2012 will be my third visit to the NAR and I can honestly say that each year just keeps getting better and better.”
Following their strong delegation in 2011, the Rawson Property Group is leading the industry in attendance to the NAR this year with an impressive group of 37 attendees. For the first year ever, the Group will be taking their entire management team along.
“As far as I know,” said Clarke, “we are the only real estate agency offering this kind of incentive in South Africa today and I cannot begin to explain what a positive impact it has had. Due to the success of this year’s competition we have already launched next year’s NAR incentive, where there will be a further 25 trips up for grabs.”
