Her Real Estate Clients Made Her Cry — So She Made a Show About It | Stephanie Xelowski

Summary

Stay Paid Podcast Episode Summary: "Her Real Estate Clients Made Her Cry — So She Made a Show About It | Stephanie Xelowski"

Podcast Information:

• Title: Stay Paid Podcast
• Host/Author: ReminderMedia
• Episode: Her Real Estate Clients Made Her Cry — So She Made a Show About It | Stephanie Xelowski
• Release Date: June 16, 2025

Participants:

• Hosts: Joshua Styke and Luke Acree
• Guests: Stephen and Cody Smith from Acree Brothers Realty
• Special Guest: Stephanie Zalowski, a top-producing luxury realtor based in San Diego

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1. Introduction to Stephanie Zalowski

The episode opens with Joshua Styke and Luke Acree introducing Stephanie Zalowski. Stephanie is highlighted as a distinguished luxury realtor in San Diego, renowned for her negotiation prowess and expertise in marketing and mortgage lending. With over a decade in the industry and a background in banking, she approaches each deal as a teacher, coach, and advocate for her clients.

Notable Quote:

"With over a decade in the industry and a background in banking, Stephanie approaches every deal as a teacher, coach and advocate for her clients." [00:16]

2. Stephanie’s Career Journey

Stephanie shares her professional journey, starting in the mortgage industry right after college in 2003. She worked for Countrywide until the 2008 economic downturn forced her to reevaluate her career path. In 2013, she relocated to San Diego, transitioned through corporate roles, and ultimately returned to real estate, where she has thrived for nearly a decade.

Notable Quote:

"I ended up leaving Phoenix, where I was born and raised, and moved out here to San Diego in 2013. Worked corporate for a couple of years, and then I got back into real estate." [03:34]

3. Creation of the "Behind the Lockbox" Podcast

Stephanie discusses the inception of her podcast, "Behind the Lockbox." Initially hesitant due to fears of low listenership, she decided to launch the podcast in 2021 amidst shifting market conditions and the aftermath of COVID-19. Her goal was to create a platform for networking, collaboration, and sharing authentic stories from the real estate field.

Notable Quote:

"This came out of... I needed something creative. I just kind of went all in. I started doing the research." [05:07]

4. Purpose and Content of the Podcast

"Behind the Lockbox" serves as a humorous and honest space where real estate agents share their wildest experiences, challenging transactions, and the often unseen aspects of their work. Stephanie emphasizes the importance of networking and collaboration, debunking the misconception that promoting fellow agents is short-sighted.

Notable Quote:

"The nature and center of it is really humor and bringing our agent friends together and just talking and laughing and having a good half hour, 45 minutes with each other to just... decompress." [07:34]

5. Misconceptions About Real Estate Agents

A significant portion of the discussion centers on common misconceptions about real estate agents. Stephanie highlights that many people believe agents simply "turn on lights, open doors, and get big paychecks," overlooking the intricate work and negotiation that occurs behind the scenes. She criticizes companies like Redfin for contributing to these misunderstandings by simplifying the agent’s role.

Notable Quote:

"There's a big overarching misconception of what we really do, how we get paid, and how much actually goes into it." [07:55]

6. Handling Difficult Clients and Setting Boundaries

Stephanie recounts a particularly challenging client who was verbally abusive during a transaction. This experience underscored the importance of setting boundaries and recognizing when a client relationship is detrimental. She advises agents to prioritize their well-being and not feel obligated to endure toxic interactions.

Notable Quote:

"If your client is treating you that poorly... you don't need to take it." [13:21]

7. Communication Policies with Clients

The conversation delves into strategies for managing client communications, especially after traditional working hours. Stephen Acree shares that sometimes urgent negotiations require late-night conversations, emphasizing the unpredictable nature of real estate deals. Cody Smith adds that flexibility is necessary, but it's also important to manage time effectively and set realistic expectations.

Notable Quotes:

"I'm negotiating the deal for us, me and my family at 9 o'clock at night because it's what needs to be done to get the highest price." [17:40]

"I'll always respond, but I might not answer the call. If you get a call at like 7 o'clock... I'll just text. I'll always respond back like, hey, I'll give you a call in an hour." [18:23]

8. Social Media Strategies and Content Marketing

Stephanie elaborates on her approach to social media, aiming to lead with authenticity and humor. She emphasizes the importance of integrating her personal Instagram with her podcast, creating cohesive content that resonates with her audience. Stephanie acknowledges the challenges of balancing educational content with relatable, personal posts and the exhaustion that comes with maintaining a consistent online presence.

Notable Quote:

"I want to lead with authenticity and humor. What you see is what you get with me." [25:30]

9. Tracking and Following Up on Social Media Leads

The discussion shifts to the technical aspects of leveraging social media for lead generation. Stephanie shares her methods for tracking social media interactions using tools like ManyChat and maintaining detailed records in her CRM. She stresses the importance of persistent follow-up, referencing Ryan Serhant's philosophy of continuous engagement until a lead is converted or explicitly declined.

Notable Quote:

"I will follow up with you until you tell me to go F off." [31:53]

10. Closing Thoughts and Action Items

As the episode wraps up, the hosts encourage listeners to introspect on the expectations they set with clients, highlighting that clear communication and intentional boundary-setting are crucial for successful client-agent relationships. Stephanie and the hosts reiterate the importance of going above and beyond while maintaining personal well-being.

Notable Quote:

"What is the expectation that you're setting with clients? You need to be thinking about it intentionally." [38:20]

Action Item:

"Take action on what expectation you're setting with clients today." [38:41]

Connect with Stephanie Zalowski

Listeners are invited to follow Stephanie’s podcast, "Behind the Lockbox," available on Apple, Spotify, and YouTube. She can be reached under the name Stephanie Zalowski, spelled with an 'X.'

Final Quote:

"Please go and follow and support at Behind the Lockbox. We are on Apple, Spotify and YouTube." [36:43]

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Conclusion: In this episode of the Stay Paid Podcast, Stephanie Zalowski offers an authentic glimpse into the realities of the real estate industry, the importance of honest communication, and the power of leveraging social media for business growth. Her insights, combined with the hosts' and guests' experiences, provide valuable lessons for agents aiming to elevate their professional practices while maintaining personal boundaries and well-being.

Transcript

[Joshua Styke]

Foreign welcome to Stay Paid. I'm Joshua Styke.

[Luke Acree]

And I'm Luke Acree.

[Joshua Styke]

And joining us today, as always, Stephen Acree and Cody Smith from the Acree Brothers Realty team, the number one team in Lynchburg, Virginia. Welcome, gentlemen.

[Stephen Acree]

We're back.

[Joshua Styke]

We're back.

[Stephen Acree]

Another episode.

[Joshua Styke]

Back at it. And our special guest today is Stephanie Zalowski. Stephanie is a top producing San Diego based luxury realtor known for her sharp negotiation skills and deep expertise in both marketing and mortgage lending. With over a decade in the industry and a background in banking, Stephanie approaches every deal as a teacher, coach and advocate for her clients. And her thoughtful strategy and passion have made her one of the most trusted agents in her market. Stephanie, welcome to Stay Paid.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

Thank you so much for having me.

[Luke Acree]

It is incredible to have you on the show. We, we first met what, in Vegas at bam?

[Stephanie Zalowski]

Yes, yes.

[Luke Acree]

So great conference. That was such a good conference too, because it wasn't a ton of people. I think maybe 5, 500 maybe. But incredible lineup of speakers. And I'm not just saying that because I was one of them, but I am saying it because I was one of them. No, but incredible lineup of speakers of just like that you could get next to. And then you looked around at the audience and it felt like the audience could be the speakers because it was so many high producers like yourself and people who are serious about the business. And those are the best conferences to be in. I don't know if you feel the.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

Same, but I definitely. Well, and I said to Eric on the way out, you know, I've been to a lot of real estate conferences. I was previous previously with Sotheby's years ago. So I used to go to like the big G and E events and you know, sometimes those conferences just get so big and you're doing all these breakout sessions and you're not really taking anything from it, if that makes sense. Like they're telling you what they're doing, but you're like, okay, but like, how did you get there? And this was the first conference and I said this to Eric that I was like, oh my God. Like I actually got tangible stuff. And we were in the mastermind, like the VIP the day before. That's where you and I really got to meet and spend some time.

[Luke Acree]

That was really good.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

That was amazing because we had much smaller breakouts and that was only like what, 50 or 75 people total, like in that room. And so like, it, it was just, it was amazing. So I'm excited.

[Luke Acree]

Shout out to Eric the broke Agent over at bam. But he did a really cool thing where he had these tables, like four different tables, and it was like eight people or so to a table, and you did, like a rotation. So you spent, you know, 20 minutes or so on a topic that was. That was really awesome. I mean, you are. I feel like you crush it on social. Your podcast is amazing. So I'm really excited to talk about all that stuff, but I want to hear a little bit of just your background, how long you've been in the industry.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

Yeah.

[Luke Acree]

What has this year look like for you? Because I know it's been a little bit of a harder year.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

Yeah, I mean, man, we've. We've had a couple hard years, if I'm being honest. So I actually, as you kind of read in the bio, I started back in the mortgage industry right out of college. College in like, 2003. And then I worked for Countrywide. Dare I say the name. Nobody judged me. And graduated college in 2007. As we know, our economy tanked in 2008. They took me from underwriting and, you know, doing all the subprime craze to foreclosure, and I was like, this is not life. This is not what I want to do. So I ended up leaving Phoenix, where I was born and raised, and moved out here to San Diego in 2013. Worked corporate for a couple of years, kind of, you know, basically moved out here, found a job. You know, had to kind of do that in my late 20s. Um, and then I got back into real estate. I met someone, and they're like, why are you not, like, back in residential real estate? So I've been doing this again full time for almost 10 years, so.

[Joshua Styke]

Geez.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

And you're.

[Luke Acree]

You. You still like it. Which is a testament. I mean, I know a lot of.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

You know, it's like some days I, you know, look around and I'm like, do we need to think about the choices? I mean. No, I'm just kidding. I do, I do. You know, I could never go back to a cubicle, right? Like, I could never go back and sit and, like, work for somebody. It's as much as people think, like, they get, you know, freedom and, you know, get to pick their schedule and all that stuff. I mean, we really don't. But there is freedom to it. You know what I mean? And there is no glass ceiling, which I really love. Being a woman, you know, we get to kind of, you know, your income dictates is dictated by how hard you work. So.

[Luke Acree]

Yeah. So you created behind the Lockbox podcast, which I feel like is, I mean, I. Stories. Yeah, amazing. Like when I got like, I've been on some awkward podcast and yours was like, very refreshing. It was very easy, very conversational to you.

[Joshua Styke]

Did you have to give like a craziest story, like finding a. A dead body?

[Luke Acree]

I shared a wild story about Stephen.

[Stephen Acree]

Oh, he did not.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

There was like, you were like, you know, you're. You were. Couldn't find your clothes or something. Steven naked on a roof. Yeah, it was really weird.

[Luke Acree]

Like he was showing the, you know, the father in law of the person buying the house. It was weird.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

It was weird. It got weird quickly, you know, Josh.

[Luke Acree]

How gullible are you? It's written on the. On the ceiling.

[Joshua Styke]

Very gullible.

[Luke Acree]

Yeah, there you go. Uh, but tell us a little bit about what the podcast is about and then, you know, I want to get into how you're thinking about, you know, this year because, you know, we've had a few discussions around it and marketing and stuff like that. But why the podcast? Why did you start it?

[Stephanie Zalowski]

Yeah, you know, this came out of. I had wanted to start the podcast for probably four or five years, and to be very frank, I just didn't really have the balls to do it. You know, it's scary, right? You're always like, who's going to listen to me? Like, you know, whatever. And in 2021, you know, that's when the market shifted. Or 22, that's when the market shifted here in San Die. Um, and I just kind of was like, I need something else. I need something creative. I need to be with my friends. You know, we're coming out of COVID you know, a little bit at that point. And I was like, I, this is the time to start something. I just, I, I am a creative person by nature. And so I just kind of went all in. I started doing the research. I literally bought all the equipment myself. I really was deep diving into looking at what other successful podcasts had done. How were they doing it? Reading blogs, like, you know, all the things. So, like, I know more about audio and equipment than I ever wanted to know. So, you know, there's that. But, you know, I think in the beginning it was a little nerve wracking, if I'm going to be honest. People, I don't think really got what I was doing. They very much were like, why would you promote other agents on your podcast? Which in my opinion is so short sighted. Because we need to network and collaborate, you know what I mean? And what we see and what we go through, whether it's what it's like to be a female in the industry and how you need to be safe when you're meeting people you don't know or, you know, finding squatters and doing drugs in a house that you're going to show, and you're like. And you go running out, you know.

[Luke Acree]

Like, that's really normal in Lynchburg, Virginia.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

Oh, well, it is here. So. So, you know, nothing really shocks me at this point, you know, but whether it's like, crazy, wild stories like that, I don't know how graphic I can get. If you guys listen to the podcast, you'll hear, like, people find some wild, disgusting things, or, you know, with all the nar stuff. Like, we started talking about commissions because people really didn't understand how we got paid. I just had a conversation with a friend of the family last week, and he's like, oh, my God, like, how much do. How much did they pay you? And I'm like, who's they? Like, I pay people. Like, what are you talking about? You know what I mean? So there. There. It took, like, forms that I didn't know that it was going to take, which I really love. But the. The nature in the center of it is really humor and bringing our agent friends together and just talking and laughing and having a good half hour, 45 minutes with each other to just, you know, decompress about everything that we go through and the things that we see.

[Luke Acree]

Yeah. What do you think the. We got asked this question the other day on the podcast. It's like, the biggest misconception that people have about your industry because of all the stories that you have now and what you've been. I'm curious, like, what do you think the biggest pain point is that real estate agents face with the perception that the. That clients. Consumers have about real estate agents.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

Yeah. I mean, there. I think historically, you know, there's maybe. Okay. It's one of those things where I think for a long time I thought that. That people were like, oh, you just turn on. You know, you get these. The sense of. People are like, you just turn on lights, you open doors, you get these big paychecks. You're not doing a whole lot. Which, again, was another piece to the podcast that we talk about, of everything that we do that goes into a deal, how we're not paid till it closes, all these things. Right. So I think that there's a big overarching misconception of what we really do, how we get paid, and how much actually goes into it when it comes to negotiation, how long a deal can take, all those things. I don't think that people really understood. And I think that the Redfins and, you know, the Purple Door or whatever that company was and those kind of companies really came through and put kind of a damper on things where they're just like, you know, you. It's. It's just one of those things that you get what you pay for. You know what I mean? So if there's an agent that's not really doing a whole lot, you're going to get what you pay for in terms of negotiation, how the deal goes, price, all those things. So I think the biggest misconception is really what happens behind the scenes, because for the longest time we did such a good job at not kind of shielding our clients from all those things. Right. Like, don't you guys agree? Like, you, you don't want to show them the drama. You don't want to show them the arguments. It's going back and forth and you want to have everything smooth. Well, with that sometimes comes people being like, what did you really do to earn this money? You know what I mean? So there, there's. I think there's a misconception with that going on.

[Cody Smith]

We sold our first house with Stephen I. And then got involved in real estate. I was like, holy smokes. I had no idea what you guys probably went through during that transaction. Yeah. Working with Cody, that wasn't supposed to be sold. And let's not get into it.

[Luke Acree]

You know what? I think that, that actually, I think is a good thing out of the commission change that just happened, that's going to be an influence in the industry, is forcing the buyer's consultation and forcing the education of the buyer that you're paying me. Because I really do believe, you know, obviously, salespeople, we like the path of least resistance.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

Right.

[Luke Acree]

And there was a tactic of sales for at least half the industry where what they would do is they would tell Stephanie, hey, Stephanie, you actually don't pay me. And they would. Exactly. Your dog agrees.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

She. She didn't like it either, you know, yeah, you.

[Luke Acree]

You don't pay me. And then what they do is they don't even talk about how they get paid. They just go. They just go show you a bunch of houses. And they're hoping by osmosis over time, we just relationship and just become one. And it's just like, you get to the closing table, it's like, oh, yeah, and I get three. It's literally how most. I should say most. Half of the industry was selling. It was time of together.

[Stephen Acree]

Yeah. It's turned out to be for our industry, honestly.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

Yeah.

[Stephen Acree]

Yep.

[Cody Smith]

Yeah. Because we put in place even a standard that you have to have a buyer's consultation or a listing consultation, you know, before anything.

[Luke Acree]

So.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

So I love.

[Luke Acree]

Allows you. If you think about it like when you're new, I kind of adhere to the philosophy that you should take every deal. And the reason why I say that when you're new is because you gotta learn somehow. And unfortunately that's another pain point in the industry one won't get off on is the licensing.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

We could go off on that forever.

[Luke Acree]

Exactly. So you learn from taking all these deals and you learn who you don't want to work with and you learn like the painful transactions. That's where you really learn. And then if you do a buyer's consultation, the main thing you should be doing is going, do I actually want to work with Stephanie? Because can I actually help Stephanie?

[Stephanie Zalowski]

Yeah.

[Luke Acree]

And you become a top producer when you start saying no, no, no, no, I'm not going to start saying no work with you. I refer you to my competition down the road and allow them to work with you. I heard a great story on Dave Ramsey where he talked to this auto mechanic guy and he said, you know, I just learned over the years there'd be some clients that would come into my auto mechanic shop and I'm just like, oh, they're going to be terrible. So I had a stack of my competitors business cards on my counter and I was brilliant. Yeah. He goes, I would give them my competitor's business card and say, hey, I actually can't handle this, but this is a perfect job for so and so.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

That's hysterical.

[Luke Acree]

I don't know if I ethically agree with it, but it's great.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

I mean, you know, I think I 100 agree with that though. And we've talked about this on other episodes of the podcast where, you know, we did kind of a whole. It was more like a woo woo episode, if you will. But it was very much about like saying yes, saying no, when to say no. And again, you do need to take every deal when you're new, not only because you want, you need the money. I mean, again, we don't get paid till we get paid. So like it's, it's 100% commission is a, is a painful place to be in the beginning, but I think that there's an element to learning there for sure. And also. But not just learning within the deals, but you are able to learn. Like, look, I've had one in particular very, very abusive client to where I actually blocked them from everything. Like, I will never work with these people again. It was, it was traumatizing. Like, I, I'm not gonna, I won't go into it here. But like, it was, it was actually really wild where if your stomach is hurting every time the phone rings or you want to throw up or like, they just scream at you guys, you know, we're not here. Oh, and it's not worth it. It's just not worth it.

[Luke Acree]

Do that made them a horrible client. Just so the audience can know, like, you know, I mean, yeah, please, Cheryl.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

Yeah, I can tell all they, you know, we were the fourth listing agent. And which is great when you get to that point, as you guys know, right? Because then you're like, I'm going to sell the sucker. Which I did sell it. Let me just tell you. However, there was a lot happening behind the scenes. They were going through a divorce that we later found out. You know, they weren't reasonable on price. And to be quite frank, I mean, they. She was just in, she was just abusive. And when things were going like, verbally.

[Luke Acree]

Because the reason why I'm asking for the details is because if I'm in the audience, I'm thinking to myself, how do I know if this is just what I have to put up with as an agent?

[Stephanie Zalowski]

You don't. Or you don't verbally abusive screaming at you. You know, I would try to talk to her about what the other side was asking for and she would just berate me. I mean, scream on the phone, cuss all these things. And like, look, I cuss a lot, but like, obviously never to a client or like something like that, you know what I mean? Like, and it was just, it got to the point where I just had to hunker down and get through it because we were in a long escrow and we only really got through it because of the buy side because he wanted it so badly. But it, it just when, when a client is treating you that poorly or if your stomach is really hurting and you know you're sick every time you have to answer the phone, you don't need to take it, you know, it just, it got to the point. But I understand when you're new, you want to get through that. And I was only five years in at that point. This was 2020 when this happened. And so, you know, I still then. But also there's Some sickness. Do you guys agree with, like, us being entrepreneurs? They're like, oh, no, I'm going to close this. You know what I mean? Like, I've gotten this far. I'm seeing this through. So, like, there's that element too. But I think, you know, I agree with you when it comes to buyers and sellers. Like, if I get an outbound call or an inbound call. Sorry, not outbound. That would be me calling inbound. I need more coffee, guys. It's so early here on the east, on the West Coast, I don't think about that.

[Luke Acree]

You're right, it is early.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

Yeah. It's 8:00am Like, I was like, I can do this. Anyway, when I get a phone call, it's, you know, I'm always like, oh, how did you find me? Like, you want to ask those questions? I'm like, hey, you know what? And I, the last person I said, like, I said, let's meet for coffee. I want to make sure I'm the right fit for you. And she said to me, oh, yeah, I would love that. It was almost like it hadn't occurred to her that maybe she had been calling a few agents and we met and we hit it off and I adore, she's great. But you need to kind of set those boundaries and set that takeaway close to.

[Luke Acree]

Because when you immediately enter into the equation, I think in buyer psychology of I might not work with you.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

Yeah.

[Luke Acree]

Then they go, well, what do you mean? I am good enough for you. I'm not good enough for you. So it's like you enter that in, you have to do it tactfully. I'm curious, you guys thoughts on this. And I don't know how even Stephen, how you and Cody think about this is. Do you allow clients to communicate to you after. Let's just pick a time, say 8 o' clock at night. But for some, might be sooner. Like, what's your cutoff? Do you respond? Do you set expectations that you won't respond? What's your philosophy there?

[Stephen Acree]

I don't. Just because we're in such a fast paced market and I always tell my wife this. I'm like, b, we just actually put our house on the market and got it under contract. And I'm.

[Luke Acree]

Who was the agent?

[Stephanie Zalowski]

It wasn't, it wasn't Stephen.

[Luke Acree]

It wasn't Stevie. He didn't sell his own.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

This is awkward. This is awkward.

[Luke Acree]

You need to keep in touch with yourself, bro. So you don't, you know, lose the client. Send yourself a magazine. Anyway, sorry, Keep going. Yes. You answer their phone calls at any time at night?

[Stephen Acree]

Yeah, well, it just depends on the situation. Right. Because like I'm negotiating the deal for us, me and my family at 9 o' clock at night because it's what needs to be done to get the highest price. And speed matters so much in this business. It's not even funny. Back to your point is like Stephanie's just there's so much in the background that people don't understand. There's a lot of intuition that's involved with it. But yeah, I have to negotiate at some points because I'm like, babe, if this was your, if this was our family, what would you want us to do at this moment? Right. And I need to negotiate this deal. So I don't set an expectation necessarily with that because I'm on the phone sometimes at 9 o' clock and then sometimes I don't take calls.

[Cody Smith]

Yeah.

[Luke Acree]

Okay, let's go to you, Cody. What's your opinion on it?

[Cody Smith]

Yeah, so it's not a black and white answer. That's something for me. I'm a black and white person, so I'm very. Yes or no, so. But real estate, there's so much gray that answers are very great because it could matter from person to person. It is situational. But what I do, number one, what we do as a team is we have a group text with me, Steven and our transaction coordinator in it. That way, if Steven can't respond, I can respond or I can call. So it's not all dependent really just on one person. And then number two, I let my clients know that I'll always respond, but I might not answer the call. So if I get a call at like 7 o' clock is dinner, bath times. I've got two boys, so like it's very chaotic.

[Joshua Styke]

Oh, I thought you made your bath time.

[Cody Smith]

Bubble bath, that's her on, but no bath and all that. So it's very chaotic. And in most cases it's not that important to take that call right then. So I'll just text. I'll always respond back like, hey, I'll give you a call in an hour. Is it urgent? And I like 9.5 out of 10, they said, nope, not urgent. Give me a call in an hour for sure. Don't manage your time that way. For someone starting out, answer every call. You know your first. Yeah, answer every call. First year, answer every call. But once you understand the business and what the intuition of what is urgent and what is not urgent, in most cases you can control your time. But it still needs to be responded to.

[Luke Acree]

Yep. Love that. What about you, Stephanie? What's your opinion on it?

[Stephanie Zalowski]

100 agree. And it also depends on the client for me. Right. You know, I mean, there's so many clients. Like, they'll text me and be like, oh, My God, it's 9:00. I'm so sorry. And I'm like, no, it's cool. I'm up. I'm watching Bravo. Yes. I'm a Bravo junkie. And I'm like, sitting there and it's fine, you know. But then there are other clients where if, again, this hasn't happened in a long time, but if, you know, they become. Where they're crossing those boundaries and they're becoming, you know, they're texting you too much or calling you and it's 11 o' clock, and you're like, are you kidding me? Then I will set that boundary. You know what I mean? But I have literally only had to do that one time because again, it's situational. If I'm in the middle of something or frankly, you know, if it is someone that's a little borderline, and I'm like, hey, I'm at a dinner and I'm really not. And I'm like, can I. You know, you just say, can I call you back? And they're like, yeah, yeah. So again, I still answer stuff because again, I'm just a little bit psychotic like that. And I also just like to take care of stuff in the moment so that it's not waiting for tomorrow. But at the same time, you know, it just depends because, again, it's usually not urgent, you know, so basically all.

[Luke Acree]

Of you guys are. It's. It's basically nuanced in the sense of you will answer or not answer. The one devil's advocate I would throw in is I think you're probably missing a. Maybe you're doing this and I'm just not interpreting correctly. But you're missing an opportunity that if you set the expectation and then actually talk to them at nine now, you've gone above and beyond.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

That's true.

[Luke Acree]

And so it's like if you at the beginning of the thing go, hey, this is, you know, what my working hours are. This is what I do. And then you still answer the call or you still respond, boom. Now you've done the unexpected and gone above and beyond, and you've set the tone for him. It's kind of the conversation you've been having with Tim about his commissions. Yeah, it's like, I was an agent on Steven's team was getting lower commissions than he deserves. And I said, it's not that you're. You're giving your commissions. That's the problem. Like, it is. You shouldn't. It's that you're not even trying to get the 3% that you deserve. So you're losing on both ends because you're not getting the appreciation from the client that you just sacrificed. They're thinking, yeah, this is normal, you know, 2.5 or whatever. And it's like, no, no. If you're gonna give them, you know, that percentage, at least make sure they know that, hey, I'm. I'm 3%. And then once you give it, because then you reap that reciprocity and that appreciation. I see it very similar for like, I think you actually need to answer the calls and go above and beyond. But not from a sales or. I would call it a client experience journey. You need to set the tone of like, oh, no, this is how it functions. But I'm going above and beyond.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

I like that. I think you're right. I don't. Yeah, yeah.

[Cody Smith]

I wouldn't say that. It just doesn't happen too often. You get called after 8. I would say, yeah. So I'm in all your text messages.

[Luke Acree]

I know.

[Cody Smith]

And I answer them. So, yeah, that's what I would say. And then if they call at 9 and it's not urgent, I just text, hey, you're free at 9am tomorrow. So. But I guess you could do it pre. If you really want to. But for me, it hasn't been that big of an issue to control my. I would love.

[Luke Acree]

I hope people in the comments will tell us what they do because I know we had Garrett Maroon on the show. Who love Garrett. Right. He's top producing agent, I guess, kind of close to you guys, right? Hampton Roads or something like that. But he like swears by. I do not answer, you know, calls, you know, whatever during family time or anything like that. He puts it on his voicemail. He swears by. You often wonder, Garrett, let me know if you listen to this. Is that actually true? Are you just saying that? Yeah. Seriously, what you said on his podcast.

[Stephen Acree]

He was working with a commercial agent and he's buying a bunch of real estate. And Pat said he talked to the guy and the guy told him, you know, I don't answer my phone after five on family time. And Pat immediately cut him. Right. And then three years later, the guy calls him. He's like, hey, how's things going? He's like, hey, they're going great. I'm buying a bunch of real estate. He's like, oh, why don't you contact me? He's like, well, you don't work after five brothers. You have to be. You have to be available to people.

[Luke Acree]

Yeah.

[Stephen Acree]

And it is urgent in real estate most of the time. Like, if you're negotiating a deal, you have to communicate after hours. It's just impossible to get them the price that they want unless you're driving up the leverage of attention.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

Yeah.

[Luke Acree]

You almost could turn that into a sales tactic for you at your listing presentation or buyer's consult, where a lot of agents will not answer at all times. I will be available at all times. You could leverage it that way, too, you know, but as long as you're leveraging it towards the sale, I like the client experience above expectations, better in my mind. But you could leverage it. Otherwise it gets so chaotic. But go ahead, Cody.

[Cody Smith]

I was gonna say it's ultimately about. You want your, like, what business to look like. Like the. He lost out on Pat. Pat David. I'm sure he's ticked to that, but maybe he's not. Maybe he didn't want that big of a world. So in my opinion, that's what I would look at it like. Yeah, I think you just limit yourself by doing something like that, where you can control.

[Luke Acree]

That's a great point.

[Cody Smith]

And help your business. So that's what I would say.

[Stephen Acree]

I want the money.

[Cody Smith]

I don't think it's the money.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

Same. Same.

[Luke Acree]

Oh, so we got. We got a normal person in Cody and two psychopaths and Stephanie and Steven.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

No, that's pretty much right.

[Luke Acree]

I love it.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

It's pretty much right. Also, I don't have kids, you know, so I can't be like, oh, I. It's bath time. Like, because it would be my bath time. And then that would be weird, you know, so it's like, you know, Gwen apparently doesn't count as a kid, I'm told by my brother. So, like, you know, anyway.

[Luke Acree]

Yeah, well, you could stick. Stick them in a crate. So I don't know if you can do that for kids. You could, but, you know, and it's called a crib. Yeah, exactly.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

Okay, let's.

[Luke Acree]

Let's switch gears just a tiny bit because I want to get a little bit tactical here at the end as we wrap up, because I feel like you do a great job on Social.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

Thank you.

[Luke Acree]

And just your personality, what you put out there, all that stuff. Can you talk, tell us kind of how you think about social, what you're posting, how what you would encourage agents to be doing right now on their social media. Should they start a podcast, should they not? Like, how are you thinking about marketing in that way?

[Stephanie Zalowski]

Sure. So I have really begun this year specifically to double and triple down on social. It's always been kind of there in the background. Look, I'm an elder millennial, so I struggle with social a little bit. I did, and I've really kind of changed my thought around it. I, as you know, I joined REAL in January, and so I'm with Paige Steckling and kind of her team and her group and.

[Luke Acree]

And incredible.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

Like, love social so much. Um, and, you know, with the podcast, because I'm posting so much content there, I really wanted to kind of make things come together. Right. Because the podcast has its own Instagram and then I have my Instagram, and so they marry together. I collaborate with the two a lot, you know, that kind of thing. Um, and so, look, I'm not a door knocker, especially in this area. It's just like certain other parts of San Diego, but La Jolla, like, it's just kind of not really something that's, you know, done in certain areas. You can, but like, you know, there's gates or you won't get answers or whatever. And I'm not a cold caller, never have been. It's just not my thing. I'm very network based, always have been. Whether it's networking with other agents, you know, making my five calls a day. You know, I'm just very much of that. That's how I was trained. It's just kind of where I go. So I started thinking about social in that way. And I know a lot of people that are crushing it on social media. And I just wanted. I'm someone who just wants to lead with, like, authenticity and humor. Like everyone has always said to me, like you, it's written all over your face. And it's true. Like, what you see is what you get with me. And I think that that can really also come out on social in the best way. So because of the podcast and, you know, just because of the times we're in, I've really started to triple down. And social is free. Takes time. Takes a lot of time. But, you know, I've started using coffee and contracts this year, which is another great vendor shout out to anyone we've had.

[Luke Acree]

Oh, my God, she's amazing.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

I love her so much. And I'm actually going to sign up for the affiliate program and really start kind of promoting it because it's been. It's helped me so much, and it just takes the pressure off of like, what. What do you need to do? Right. And, you know, going to BAM and just hearing what people are doing on social, how they're, you know, thinking about things, how they're coming up with ideas to shoot, content, things like that really, really helped me. And just being a part of Bam X, right, And just kind of hearing the things that they're doing. So it's kind of educating yourself in all areas. It's free, but it takes time. But if you want to do that and you want to level up, this is what you need to do. Right. And so, you know, with. With all of that said, there's also an element to, you know, in a tough market. We had kind of talked about this a little bit, I think on my podcast. Maybe it was off air. I don't remember when we said this, but, like, this is not the time to pull back. This is a time to double and triple down. And is it painful at times? Yes, monetarily, right. But, like, you got to pay to play and you have to spend to make money. And so that's just. I am living in what I call Delulu and I'm just full steam ahead. You know what I mean? In fact, that's.

[Luke Acree]

That's a great strategy. Take a word like delusional and just, you know, spice it up. Delulu. I'm just living in Delulu. I'm not delusional.

[Stephen Acree]

So my struggle point with, like, social is always this, the trackability of it. So, like, we highly track all of our numbers. Every single lead source comes from all that good stuff. How do you, how do you approach that? Especially, like, when you're getting started? Because, like, we're. We're pretty much just getting started with social, like going full fledged into it. We have a goal of six transactions organically, straight through, you know, social media message. Right. That kind of thing. But I don't know how to analyze tracking, trackability on social. How do you, like, go about that?

[Stephanie Zalowski]

There's a few different ways. So I. I'm sure you guys have heard of ManyChat. Have you implemented ManyChat yet?

[Stephen Acree]

We had it at one point. We don't have. Yeah.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

Okay. So what I'm doing is like yesterday I put up a post. I'm not sure if Luke, if you saw it, but it was about. There's a thing here in San Diego called owner alert. So if somebody were to fraudulently record title on your property, which can happen just like they can steal your identity. If you're signed up with this, just like a Experian alert or something, it'll alert you like, hey, did you do something? Did you rerecord your title? Did you give a grant to Etho? You'll be like, no. And then you can immediately go and try to get it fixed. Right. So with things like that, what I did is I posted that green screen video and then I put comment alert and I'll send you the link. And in many chat, if somebody comments in the back end of that, I can see who I've interacted with. And like, let's just say. And you can set up different automations for the DM where you can then follow up with them, put them in an email like there you can get really nuanced with it. I haven't gone that deep yet because what I'm doing is if it's not somebody that I don't, if it's someone I don't know and they comment, I'm going in manychat and I'm basically extracting that and I'm putting it into my CRM. If I get their email or their info or I'm going and you know, connecting with them in the DMS and starting to kind of, you know, connect with them there. And I'll make a note of that on a separate spreadsheet.

[Stephen Acree]

So you, in terms of like how your growth of your database basically goes, like how many people I pulled from social are added to my sphere in CRM.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

Okay, Yep, yep. And that's how I'm gonna start looking at it. That's how I'm gonna start tracking it. Excuse me. So it's, it's still like I said, I really just started in January, like tripling down on this. And so it hasn't been like a flood of people yet, but there are some. And what's, what's been the best though is that it's really my SOI more than anything. And then of course in Instagram you can look at your analytics. Like I just posted a trial reel the other day and I'm waiting to look to see. So I basically shot what the analytics were when I first posted it out to just like on my page. And then I did a trial run on the back end. So I'm, I'm kind of doing all these different things. But I'm also working with people who are know about this stuff, who are doing this all the time so that I can ask Questions and then learn and start doing it that way. So there's different things you can track. And I have made a separate spreadsheet for things. If I want to be like, okay, this person came from Instagram or if they reach out to me somehow I'm always like, how did you call? Let me know. And then in the CRM I'll put that down so that at the end of the year I can say, okay, so many people came from social, you know, that kind of thing. Circle back to me next year and we'll see how, how well I really tracked everything because this is like four months in. But there's definitely ways you can do it with the analytics in the back of Instagram. Many chat things like that.

[Stephen Acree]

So how do you approach follow up then with that? I love the idea of, okay, If I add 10 extra people to my database, I know that there's going to be growth, right, Because I'm making connections. But what is the follow up to make sure they're actually a client that actually a sphere right in your CRM.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

That'S happening in my CRM. So like when I add anybody in there, there's different things that I can put within the CRM to make sure I follow up. I'm also the follow up boss. Like I will follow up with you until you tell me to go F off. You know what I mean? So like, even if you don't answer, and I took that from Ryan Serhant in the very beginning of my career. He is also somebody who follows up, follows up, follows up, follows up. And I'm, I'm just coming from the corporate world and just kind of being good in that realm. That's something I'm really good at. So that's not really an issue for, for me. But if it is for people who forget, definitely make sure you have a CRM that is plugged in and that you're able to kind of, you know, do that kind of stuff. I had the Compass CRM previously when I was with them and so I'm actually transitioning everything over right now, actually this week as we speak. So it's things for me like, I just don't forget. Like I again, I have everything written down, whether it's on my computer, my notes app, whatever. But I'll let you know when I, when I kind of transition over how that's going.

[Cody Smith]

Sounds like you'd be great at cold calls.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

I hate it though.

[Luke Acree]

Actually.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

Yeah, I hate it. You don't need it.

[Luke Acree]

You don't need a cold Call when you're great at relationships. It's kind of the. Gary Vee had that famous talk at one point where it was clipped up all around where he said, what's the ROI of a cup of coffee? Meaning, you know, if you go to a cup of coffee with your friend, your mom, what's the ROI of that? Like, go with a friend, a cup of coffee. It's like impossible to measure the roi, but nobody would sit here and go, it's not worth it to have a cup of coffee with a friend.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

Yeah.

[Luke Acree]

Because of the relationship benefit that comes from it. And so social media is kind of on that same vein in that avenue of a cup of coffee. It's like, you're never going to probably get a one to. I shouldn't say never. You will get one to one, but it will be the rarity. It's more going to be a. Just like you have a cup of coffee with a friend, just like you have a phone call or a text message. They also see you on social and it's just a way for them to know you, like you and trust you. And so because it's free, you have to be doing it. The real thing, I think is the hard part in my mind is how do you put out content that is both real and educating? Because. And this is where our struggle has been in. And Jimmy Burgess.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

It's a struggle for everybody.

[Luke Acree]

Yeah. We just had Jimmy on the show. Jimmy goes. I've been told by my friend. Friends. What do you say? I'm really good at educating, but I'm really bad at connecting.

[Joshua Styke]

Yeah.

[Luke Acree]

Or something like that.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

It was like, it's not easy to have both those muscles. It is not.

[Cody Smith]

Yeah.

[Luke Acree]

Yeah.

[Cody Smith]

Because he's at you, not with you.

[Luke Acree]

Yeah, that's exactly what Jimmy said. He's like. And I find that's my problem too, is like, I'm good at putting out content that's, let's say, educational, but then nobody relates. And people don't want to be, you know, educated 24 7. So they want to get to know you.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

And I'm struggling with the inverse of that. Like, when I. So I met with. I did content stuff with Neil Dingra. Do you guys know Neil?

[Luke Acree]

I love Neil.

[Joshua Styke]

Yeah.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

Okay, so I did two days with him in Vegas and like, him and I text and I'll send him stuff and be like, what do you think about this video? Like, he's just amazing. Like, I'm just so grateful for the people like Paige and you and Neil and everyone that I've been able to meet. Honestly, this all started at Bam. So Eric, I owe him. Which, by the way, I need him on the podcast. But anyway, yes.

[Luke Acree]

Come on your show.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

Yeah, he will. He will. It's, you know, it's. Neil was like, your content is hysterical. Like, you're relatable and people love, like, watching your stuff, but you're. You're missing the educational piece. You know what I mean? So then for me, I didn't want to ever come off to, like, you said, talking at you or just, like, awkward or whatever. Like, I'm pretty good on camera. I'm pretty comfortable. Like, it's not something that's, you know, it's okay, but that's where I'm struggling. So it's hard. It's hard to do both things all the time and to be consistent with that because you have to show your personal side, your dog, your, you know, educational, local tips. Like, I mean, the list goes on. And I'm, like, a lot. I'm exhausted from just one April content calendar. You know what I mean? So, yeah, I'm exhausted posting one a week. I know.

[Luke Acree]

Yeah, you can sell. It's like we're the elder Millennials, too. It's just like, social media is hard.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

I mean.

[Luke Acree]

Oh, you are, aren't you?

[Stephanie Zalowski]

Yeah. Yeah. Okay. Well, you know, I just turned 41, so I'm with you. I feel you.

[Luke Acree]

Yeah, you're right there.

[Stephen Acree]

Yeah.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

It's exhausting. It's exhausting. Whatever we are. I don't know, but she's tired and, you know, it's just a lot like.

[Luke Acree]

She needs the bath.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

She needs a bath.

[Luke Acree]

This is the third mention of baths on this episode.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

Calls at 5:00pm yeah.

[Cody Smith]

Yeah.

[Joshua Styke]

Well, Stephanie, this has been amazing. Thank you so much for coming on the podcast today before we close out. Let people know how they can connect with. With you.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

Yes. Thank you so much for having me, guys. This was amazing. You can find me at Stephanie Zalowski spelled with an X. Like X ray. I know it's a little challenging, but I'm sure we'll put it in the show notes. And please go and follow and support at behind the Lockbox. We are on Apple, Spotify and YouTube.

[Joshua Styke]

Awesome. Love it. Thank you, Stephen and Cody, and thank you all so much for listening. You can dive in to the show notes for this episode, get the links that Stephanie mentioned there, as well as the video [e-mail] and if you like this episode and want to show your support, go to YouTube. Drop us a like on the video and subscribe to the Reminder Media channel. If you want to get a hold of me or Luke, you can email [e-mail] and of course, you can follow us on Instagram as well. We are at staypaid podcast for this episode of Stay Paid. I'm Joshua Stike.

[Luke Acree]

Guys, I'm Luke Acre. Stephanie, thank you so much. Definitely go check out her podcast. It really is good. You have a natural ability on podcast.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

I've thank you so much.

[Luke Acree]

And I've been on a few podcasts and yours was not awkward. It was actually very, very good. So shout out to you. Go check that out.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

Thanks, guys.

[Luke Acree]

Action item for this episode. You know, there's plenty of ways we could probably go with this, but I think the action item I would give all of you is what is the expectation that you're setting with clients? And have you even thought about that? Because it starts there, setting expectations. Because people, you know, ultimately relationships live or die by meeting expectations or not meeting expectations. And you need to be thinking, when your buyer's consultation happens, your listing, presentation, whatever it is that you're doing, what is the expectation you're setting? And you just heard from three top producers, and they have a slight, you know, variance on how they do it. So there's not necessarily a right way.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

Or no or none. Me and Steven are like.

[Luke Acree]

But the key is, the key is you must actually think about it intentionally and go, hey, what am I? Because I don't want you to end up in the situation that I told you guys about with Tim, where it's like you're giving some commission and you're not even reaping the benefit of giving that commission because you didn't. You weren't intentional about how you set it out in the beginning. The same for answering calls after 5:00.

[Stephanie Zalowski]

Clock.

[Luke Acree]

That's perfectly fine. No worries at all. But make sure that you set some expectation with your clients so you can reap the benefit of going above and beyond for them. Remember the difference between top producers, mediocre producers. In every business, it's top producers. Take action. Take action on that today.