Why Debbie Spaulder Hired Lars Hedenborg

Debbie, how did you first hear about Lars?

I had a friend who just started coaching with you. I've also been following Lars on the internet and I've been seeing him on Vyral [Marketing] because I use them too.

Why did you decide to reach out when you did?

I've done a number of coaching programs, and I just felt like this would be taking it to a different level in terms of implementing the systems and being able to work less while doing more.

Could you describe a little bit where your business is at right now?

Right now, I'm back to basics. I'm working as an individual agent. I've had admin and buyer's agents in the past, but right now I'm starting with myself.

What does success with this program look like to you? What are you hoping to get out of it?

I want to have leveraged systems and to be able to have a business that's flourishing, and also be able to balance my personal life and my general wealth.

Why Chad Raney Hired Lars Hedenborg

Chad, how did you first hear about Lars?

Through a Vyral Marketing webinar.

Why did you decide to reach out when you did?

I'm at a point where I think that whenever I saw someone talking about how much they saved by not chasing shiny objects. We've been looking for the perfect CRM, which doesn't ever happen. I really want to focus on the 4-5 pillars of lead generation and getting my team built out.

A year ago I switched brokerages and in the last year I've gone from being a solo agent to having an office manger, buyer's agent, and listing agent. We also have a virtual assistant over in the Philippines. We are looking to grow. Our first year, we did 25 transactions. 2nd year we did 75 transactions, 113 in year 3, and we are looking to go over 200 this next year and built out into other locations. I've got to build a solid foundation first.

What does success with this program look like to you and what do you hope to get out of it?

What Lars has built here is a franchise prototype and when I got into real estate, I was looking for those systems and tools already in place. The Millionaire Real Estate Agent is great for a foundation, but I felt like some of the larger stuff, accountability, putting systems in place to hire additional people. I'm great at lead generation, but we're really trying to tighten that ship up. I'm looking for this to be a solid foundation to build a large business on top of and have everything in place so I can move forward and continue our growth.

Why Matt Stevens Hired Lars Hedenborg

Matt, how did you first hear about Lars?

Lars was on a coaching call on a Real Geeks webinar, and we've been watching those pretty intensely the last year or two.

Matt Stevens
(Meridian, ID)

Why did you decide to reach out when you did?

He hit on a particular note I'm interested in, which is stepping away from the business and automating it. I'm not an agent, I've never sold or bought real estate for another client. I've sold and bought lots of real estate for myself, and I also have a real estate team that I manage. So I'm all ready and geared up for exactly what he's preaching, stepping out of the business. I realized I do need assistance, because I have other parts of my business I'm trying to operate at the same time. It's hugely beneficial to me to partner up with somebody who knows the business inside and out and can catch me up to speed on where things are at in the industry.  

Could you describe where your business is at right now?

We have four parts to our business. We have the construction, the brokerage, which helps our tenants becomes buyers. We have a transaction coordinator and 2 buyer's agents. My wife is a licensed broker, but I manage the team. The third division is our property management division. They manage the investment properties we build. Then our maintenance division maintains those properties. We have 14 full-time employees, and we're doing about $500,000 in GCI on the brokerage side. I'd like to see that double in the next year or two.

Why do you feel Lars was the best option for you when it comes to real estate coaching?

His unique selling proposition is stepping out of the business with systems. Anyone in my office would tell you I'm hugely systems oriented, and I've built each one of our divisions to run without me. This is one division (the brokerage) where I don't have a diverse background in. It's a little harder to step away from a business you never operated in. He hit on a couple key points that resonated with me personally and I could use the help to bridge the gap.

What does success with this program look like to you?

I'm hoping to develop a solid foundation to build upon. Part of the reason I signed up with you guys is that you do already have those systems built. It's not worth my time to re-invent the wheel if you guys have already dialed it in. We have a good foundation, but I believe you guys could help beef that foundation up. I hope to see my business grow more easily and more organically.

Why Lee Barrison Hired Lars Hedenborg

How did you first hear about Lars?

Through Facebook and YouTube.

Why did you decide to reach out when you did?

I think I'm at a point in my business where I want to take a couple steps back and work on my business instead of in my business so much and have a little bit more time and freedom to myself.

Can you describe where your business is at right now?

We did 141 deals last year and our goal is 288 transactions this year, a big leap.

Why did you feel Lars was the best option for you when it comes to real estate coaching?

After doing research on a few different coaching companies, I liked his interviews with other agents, his processes, and the videos he posts.

What does success with this program look like to you? What are you looking to get out of it?

I'm looking to get out of it to where I can get out of my business and allow someone else to kind of run it. I don't know if that's a 3-year plan or a 5-year plan, but I think within 5 years I'd definitely like to be completely out of the business and just focusing either on the business or on other businesses.

Why Travis Erickson Hired Lars Hedenborg

How did you first hear about Lars?

I followed Lars when he was at RE/MAX and through other coaching things.

Why did you decide to reach out when you did?

I was with another coaching company and they were good. I liked them, but I just wanted to learn more. It seemed like he had a lot of systems that were really organized and my business is not really organized, so I wanted that. That attracted me and then I saw a lot of his videos with Frank and business trackers. That was stuff that I was kind of building out, but it was taking way too long. And I saw how quickly he drew this business so that attracted me as well. I wanted to see what he was up to.

Could you describe a little bit more where your business is at right now?

As of 2015, we had one buyer agent and then one for half the year. We did 78 sales for 21.2 million.

Why did you feel that Lars was the best option for you when it came to coaching at this point? Was there something in particular that stuck out to you?

I've been wanting to grow to a point where I can exit my business and he's done it already. I don't have the huge desire to exit right now but I want to scale my business to get to a level that they're at, like 400 to 600 homes a year. It just seemed like what I was at before was good, I could probably get there, but it wasn't as organized. It wasn't systematized. Just having the modules to work through on every aspect of his business sounded like it'd be really helpful.

What does success with this program ultimately look like to you? What do you hope to get out of it?

I want to find an organized way to run a team: a team that makes a lot more money than they thought they ever could. That has a life as well at the same time. I would like to have more time off and still be profitable. Yeah, I guess just really truly creating a real business out of it is my goal.

Why Pehr Black Hired Lars Hedenborg

How did you first hear about Lars?

I've been watching him the last year or so through Vyral Marketing. His videos were superior to a lot of the other videos I was seeing.

Why did you decide to reach out when you did?

Frank (Klesitz) and I talk once a month, and I have doubled my business since. I hired a prospector and all those things and asked him about a month ago to find someone who is building their business. He thought Lars would be good because he has built these things up and is a real systems-minded guy and I'm not. He said I need this whether I like it or not and I really need to get with Lars and get systems in place so I'm not working 18 hours a day, 7 days a week. I met with Lars on the phone a week or two ago and as I look at all this stuff, I think it's really what I'm missing. How do I get leverage, get good people to help me, and build my business? At the same time, what do I do if I want another office?

Describe where your business is at right now.

Last year, I did 65 transactions: 70% listings, 30% buyers. I had a GCI of around $400,000. I've got an assistant that works Monday through Friday, 6 hours a day. I've got a part-time buyers rep to help me prospect on the phones and go on listings. My sales volume last year was 19.1 million, and the year before was 10 million. My business is exploding at the seams, and Lars bringing all this new stuff to the table with technology we need to get tied into my next phase. I pump it out pretty good and could probably keep going, but I want to be able to continue to do what I do with less time and put all these systems in place.

After getting over the initial hurdles, what does success look like to you with this program?

I want to double my business this year. I want to do $40 million and 130 transactions, as well as double my income. I want to get it down to a science, so I can decide in my 2nd year where I want to open my second office, probably in Santa Monica.

Why Sandie Hea Hired Lars Hedenborg

How did you first hear about Lars?

It was last year some time. I got a lot of emails, but just ignored them. I did reach out to somebody that told me [Lars] was great, and then I let it go. This past weekend, I was looking through a bunch of Vyral videos, and came across Lars. I thought he was the real deal, so I started researching him and read everything about him and all his testimonials. I signed up for the strategic call and couldn't wait for someone to call me to get signed up.

What made you make that leap and reach out when you did?

I think it was his whole idea of having the B-School. After I saw the video with him and Frank (Klesitz), I went on and looked at your B-School site. I've always been a proponent of looking at this as a business, not just selling houses. It needs to be something I can walk away from in 5-7 years and still have income coming in.

Where is your business at right now?

Not where I want it to be, it's way down from where it was at the height of the market. I used to have a team, and then I didn't when the market turned down. Now I'm realizing I don't want to do this myself, and now I'm ready to get back in and build this business up like I know I can do it. I want to be able to walk away from this in 7 years. I love to travel and that's important to me, so I am in the process of hiring an assistant, and following whatever Lars says to do.

Could you explain a little more what success in this program looks like to you?

Being able to live somewhere else for a few weeks. If I want to go to the lake and stay there for a few weeks, I want to have boots on the ground here in St. Louis that can do what I've been doing for 29 years. I like to travel world-wide a lot so being able to be gone for a few weeks at a time without having to be connected to the office is ideal to me.

Welcome New Client Rick Bosl

Rick, how did you first hear about Lars?
I think I met him at an GoBundance event in Tahoe last year.

Why did you decide to reach out when you did?
I’ve been getting his emails -- his newsletters -- for a while. I talked to a colleague that was in the program. I talked to Lars and decided to make a change to plan ahead for 2016.

Could you describe where your business is at right now?
Business has been steady for a number of years, around 10 million a year in volume, but I always felt like I could be doing ten times that.

Why did you feel Lars was the best when it came to real estate coaching?
I’ve been with other real estate coaching programs before, but none of them have the detail systems that Lars has. He lays it all out there, and plus, he’s so self-running, which is a huge factor, too.

What does success from this program look like to you?
Success would be being able to step away from my business, having a self-running team. Along with that goes more money, too.

Welcome New Client Wesley Willoughby

How did you first hear about Lars?
I think just through different social networks and things of that sort I'm always kind of looking around to see who's more visible, who's got more marketing out there, those kinds of things. Also, looking for systems that are effective, so I probably came across his B-School information somewhere in that search as well.

Why did you decide to reach out when you did?
I've dug into a lot of these programs on the surface and seen pieces of each one that are intriguing as I grow my own business. In that process, I've learned some programs really focus heavily on certain topics - whether it's your sphere of influence, etc. - and then others will build out an entire business. So in looking through those things, leaning towards Lars fit more with the type of business that I wanted to grow - mainly that has a few main pillars and that has the structure and accountability behind it that are easy to just install in my business, which is probably one of the biggest challenges.

Could you describe where your business is at right now?
I closed right at 40 deals last year, pretty buyer heavy. I have a real strong sphere of influence that about 17-18 of those deals came from. A home buyer's class that I teach brings in a good amount of business each month, and a website that also performs really well. Just in the past few months, I've brought on a few buyers agents because as I've gotten busier, those pillars that are bringing in so many leads are not converting at the level that they need to be.

So, what does success with this program look like to you?
In 5-10 years down the road, I would definitely hope to be closing 350-400 deals a year and be working much less in the business on my own. I enjoy producing the business, but I've found that I really enjoy helping others produce that business. What I look to get through Lars is a lot of that accountability and tracking that I can put together and help other people build their business under me.

Welcome New Client Sandy Erickson

How did you first hear about Lars?
He was part of the Agent Success Webinar series that I bought.

Why did you decide to reach out when you did?
I connected with what he had to say. He said something outside of the norm and he has a fast-moving personality. I don't know. I felt like had had something different to offer in a way that I could also relate to.

Could you describe where your business is at right now?
I'm trying to grow, so I'm trying to get to the point where I don't have to constantly be around in order for the business to operate smoothly.

Why did you feel like Lars was the best option for real estate coaching?
I think it was a personality style that I can relate to. I need someone that's more directional than psychological. He tells you things that you can do to be successful and I need that provided to me.

Great. So, what does success look like while working with Lars in this program?
I feel like 'success' is impossible to define, but in six months or a year I want to look back and not regret spending the $1,500 per month. I want to gain leverage and make more money in my business, or if life could just become less stressful I would be happy with that as well.

Welcome New Client Pazi D.

How did you first hear about Lars?
It would have either been through a Real Geeks Hangout, or a buddy of mine sent him to me.

Why did you decide to reach out when you did?
[The program] pretty much lined up with everything that I'm looking for. Nobody else is really offering this type of coaching. I was looking for a coach and I never had a coach, so when he was talking about being able to exit the business...I don't want to be selling real estate or showing properties when I'm 45-50 years old if I don't have to.

Where is your business at right now?
From March until now, I've done 23 sides. I'm right at about $6.5M in volume.

Why did you feel Lars was the best option for you?
It was just that one thing - he was talking about being able to exit the business and truly running the business like a business, rather than every other coaching program that I've come across...the other ones that I saw were just productivity coaching, which is huge and important, but I feel like if I can run it like a business and put systems in place, then everything else will fall into place.

What does success with this program look like to you?
A little bit longer term, or a 3-5 year goal, I will be exiting the business with a team taking care of all the day-to-day stuff. Even in the interim, like in the next 6-12 months, I would say tripling my production while being able to keep a similar amount of free time. That would be success. That's the part I guess that I didn't mention, but that's huge to me. I'm at where I'm at in my business, but I take a lot of time off...I really value my free time away from selling real estate. I have no desire to sell 500 houses or 300 houses if that means that I have no life.

Welcome New Client Sandy Simmonds

How did you first hear about Lars?
I was actually looking and researching for virtual assistants, and he was doing a joint webinar with a virtual assistant company. That's how I found him.

Why did you decide to reach out when you did?
I sat and and listened to the one-hour webinar, and he's very into systems. Into having repeatable systems in place and a people-proof process, and it kind of coincides with what I did when I was in manufacturing. So I thought if someone's using systems in the real estate business it's got to be good!

Where is your business at right now?
My business is right where I wanted it to be for the past 8 years. We do about $7M to $8M in volume, I work from 8am-6pm, 5 days a week. It's a very comfortable lifestyle, but I'm in a position with my daughter right now in high school that I can grow the business and make it into a little bit more for her.

Why did you feel Lars was the best option for you?
I invested in growing the business in 2014 and failed miserably, and the main reason is I didn't have good systems in place. I knew I needed the systems, but it takes time to do it. I started researching again how I want to do my business and that's where I came across him. It's basically systems, he uses systems. I want systems in place where I can plug people into it, and as long as they're productive and they want to succeed, it's going to work.

What does success with this program look like to you?
Success would be a couple things: that I am at the goals I spoke to Lars about for the end of 2016, where I have put my business in a position to have at least a virtual assistant and maybe a dedicated buyers agent, and I'm geared up for 2017 to work less than 20 hours/week.

Welcome New Client Brian Reed

How did you first hear about Lars?
I actually saw Lars come up through another coaching organization. He went from hard knocks like we did and became quite a success story, so I saw him become pretty successful. Eventually he moved off and did his own coaching organization and saw him start taking off there as well.

Why did you decide to reach out when you did?
We've been with other coaching agencies and we've grown, but I think things have gotten a little bit stagnant. I've seen fellow realtors that have grown with [Lars] and so I thought it was a good time to get a change and a different perspective.

Where is your business at right now?
This year, we'll do about 100 transactions and $15M in volume. We started the year off with one administrative staff and two buyers agents, and now we have two administrative staff, an ISA, and five buyers agents, so we're looking to at least double it up next year.

Why did you feel Lars was the best option for you?
We're just getting started, but he's an implementer and he helps people implement things. I think we know what to do, it's just maybe not knowing what to do first. Just having somebody who's already gone through it just give us a little direction.

What does success with this program look like to you?
For us, it's about getting out of the business more - not working nights, not working weekends. Just providing a better lifestyle for everybody on our team as well, and creating a family and culture within our team.

Welcome New Client John Salkowski

How did you first hear about Lars?
I've known Lars from a previous coaching program, and happened to notice him on one of his Google Hangouts. 

Where is your business at right now?
I've treated my business like a hobby pretty much; I've been licensed since 2007, and now I've been selling 25 homes per year accidentally. Just this year I'm going to sell 60 homes just by instituting a few different business strategies. I know that Lars can take me to 200-400 homes in the next couple years with his systems.

Why did you decide to reach out when you did?
I want to be a business owner, not a real estate agent with a glorified job.

Why did you feel Lars was the best option for you?
Proven systems, it's the only thing I can say.

What does success with this program look like to you?
To implement the systems that Lars has successfully over the years. My production goal is to do 120 deals in 2016. I've done 60 deals myself this year with some help, and I think I can do 120 deals by 2016. In 2017, I'd like to double that, and be able to step out of my business by the end of 2017 or beginning of 2018.

Welcome New Client Paula Henry

How did you first hear about Lars?
I heard about him through Vyral Marketing.

Why did you decide to reach out when you did?
I watched about 20-30 videos of people who have worked with him. I've been doing the whole lead generation and team management without having the success that I should have. It seemed like he had the systems and the knowledge and success I knew I could have if I put the right systems in place.

Where is your business at right now?
I have six team members including myself, and we're at 100 transactions this year.

Why did you feel Lars was the best option for you?
For me, it was about systems. I watched a bunch of his videos and he just seemed to have everything in place. I didn't want to have to put all those pieces together by myself. I had actually signed up to B-School Online to see what he was using. You can spend all day long looking for the "one thing" but I'm using what he's using and taking it from there.

What does success with this program look like to you?
I would like to walk away from my business and not work in my business, but work on my business within a year. It's really more about quality of time: I have grandchildren and I want to spend time with them and my adult children. My daughter is my partner, so I want to pass on something that is well-grounded.

Welcome New Client Enrique Medellin

How did you first hear about Lars?
Facebook.

Enrique Medellin
(San Jose, CA)

Why did you decide to reach out when you did?
The systems he was promoting to be able to create a business we can step out of, free up more time, and increase production, which are my main goals right now.  

Why did you feel Lars was the best option for you?
I followed his content for the last several months. All of his content that he's providing all seems in line with a system that works. He provided a lot of valuable content upfront that made me a believer.

What does success with this program look like to you?
Increasing my production, being able to spend more time with my family, and have a system that runs on its own instead of me always having to be there to run the system.

Welcome New Client Jay Bourgana

 How did you first hear about Lars?

Jay Bourgana
(Brea, CA)

I heard about Lars through Jay Kinder and Michael Reese.  I saw a video of one of their events where he spoke.

Why did you decide to reach out when you did?
I am growing fast, and I know that I don’t have the processes and procedures or the system in place to grow it further.  I grew too fast without having the infrastructure and now I am taking a step back in order to take two steps forward.  

How is your business doing right now?
Part of the challenge is not having the infrastructure and not doing the hiring correctly.  I know we have the potential and are generating twice as many leads now as we used to six months ago.  The growth potential is exponential and building this infrastructure will allow me to recruit right.

Why did you feel Lars was the best option for you?
We are on the same page as far as growth and putting systems in place.  Without the right system there is no way to reach the next level. 

What does success with this program look like to you?
Success for me would be able to focus on marketing and recruiting at the end of the program. 

Welcome New Client Scott Meredith

How did you first hear about Lars?
I first heard about Lars online, on YouTube.

Scott Meredith
(Bowling Green, KY)

Why did you decide to reach out when you did?
I decided to reach out when I did because I needed more focus and I like the idea of him practicing what he preaches in his own business.  

How is your business doing right now?
We've been mostly in the land/recreation type sales, but the residential market has been so hot I feel like I'm missing out on that and I want to build a team.

Why did you feel Lars was the best option for you?
The thing he said to me that was a trigger was: "I kind of look forward to the next downturn because I'll be able to grow in the downturn and recruit better agents." That to me was a big deal. Even in a bad time, he figured out a way to do good.

What does success with this program look like to you?
Success to me is going to be when I've got 10 buyers agents in this area and I'm out of the business, looking for deals to buy and invest in. That's what I enjoy.

Welcome New Client Josh Hisaw

How did you first hear about Lars?
I knew who he was from RATE and NAEA. I did both of those as well.

Why did you decide to reach out when you did?

Josh Hisaw
(Memphis, TN)

Lars started in the real estate business around the same time I did. There's a group of people that I've noticed were on the same trajectory of sales that I was on. Mine stopped, and there's quite a few people who kept going and [Lars] was one of them. I'm having a hard time passing 150 sides.  

How is your business doing right now?
I'll be hitting 200 sides, or very close to it, this year. It's still very rocky and very bumpy. We should be doing 350 sides. We just don't currently have the infrastructure to do it right - we can only deal with people who want to buy or sell now. We don't have the infrastructure for repeat and referral business.

Why did you feel that Lars was the best option for you?
I don't know [laughs]. I knew he hadn't been in the business forever, but based on his sales I knew he was doing something right and I was doing something wrong. He's doing way more than me and he's been in the business maybe six months or a year longer than I have.

What does success with this program look like to you?
Being able to disassociate myself with a lot of the processes, because I don't want to look at them. Just to have everything under control. My sales should be doubled based off the business we're generating, and it should be running smoothly.

Welcome New Client Janice Rosenberg

How did you first hear about Lars?
Tina Caul referred me.

Why did you decide to reach out when you did?

Janice Rosenberg
(Raleigh, NC)

I've been in coaching a long time, but I know there are things I need help on including technology. You guys seem to be very "on it" with technology, so I thought I could benefit. I'm one of those people that listen when people tell me to do things, so I feel I'm pretty coachable.

How is your business doing right now?
We hit $1.1M last year, and I would like to exceed that. My long-term goal is 200 closings. I have a very good team, but I also have struggles in the set up of the team and I think you guys could help with that.

Why did you feel that Lars was the best option for you?
As soon as I went on the website, I liked what I saw and I signed up right away. Then I started getting the newsletters with really good solid information. That's how I work with my clients - I like to give information so they can benefit, and when you take care of people, they'll refer more people to you.

What does success with this program look like to you?
Having better systems in place so my team runs more smoothly, and getting myself working three days a week.