A day in the life

As a Business Develop Manager, no day is ever the same. And no day is ever simple. To be honest, nobody wishes for a call from somebody looking to sell them a service or product. The same can be said of a Pattinson Auction BDM who is not trying to sell anything, simply give away a free and useful service.

Being completely field-based, my day starts like most people who work within an office environment, all be it mine is from the dining table at home. Catch up on all emails, browsing through those many which have to materialise through the night hours, some with positive responses to my approaches, some with not so positive responses. As we all know, in sales we have to take the knock backs with the handshakes. For every “no”, simply means you are closer to the next “yes”.

Once my emails have been replied too, I head for the door to jump in the car and make my way to my first appointment. Not too far today, a forty-minute drive to an agency with three offices, and which recently joined our growing network.

The diary of a BDM varies from day to day in this role. Some days I base my self at home and pick up the phone to my Partners and follow up on Prospects. Other days I am out and about, conducting onboarding sessions that help introduce the staff who use our facility to its workings. Catching up with established Partners to discuss the next auction property opportunity. Or dropping in to show my face to a potential new Partner.

One at the newly Partnered Agent, I get to work with the presentation which covers all aspects of our service. Questions answered and logins to our portal shared, I then depart. The car acts as my haven to catch up on emails and voicemails when between appointments, and to also keep in touch with my colleagues at Head Office. I am the face of the facility we provide but am backed up by a whole host of experts who support our Partners and their clients.

The next stop is a market town not too far away where I have two Partner Agents to visit and who are working alongside us. One is a confirm appointment to discuss potential auction lots, the next is a drop in to visit the new Branch Manager. New lots identified and referred across, and an appointment to arrange for onboarding at the second, and the two visits are wrapped up in less than 45 minutes.

Moving onto the next town and I am already at lunchtime. One thing to be said, time certainly does not drag in this job. The opportunity to meet people, speak with people and genuinely make friendships with clients allows me to enjoy what I do.

A bite to eat, a scroll through emails and catch-up calls made, it’s now time for me to get out and walk the streets’. This part of the job some people may find intimidating. Walking into estate agency branches without an invitation. More often than not agents are receptive and welcoming. Unfortunately, some are simply rude – but that’s how it is, and simply put those down as a “no”, and one closer to the next “yes”.

In as little as two hours you can visit as many as ten estate agents. Some engage in conversation there and then. Some are happy to arrange for a scheduled meeting at a later date, and others are simply left an intro pack. Whichever it is, I have the outlook that every introduction is positive.

The final confirmed appointment of the day is another training session. This is though not for a new agent to our network, but an established Partner who has two new members of staff. I am met with encouragement from both participants in the training as they are both well versed in auction, having previously worked for agents who used other auction outlets. It would be easy to become protective of all agents in my area and be offended if an agent chose another or refused to change from another auction service provider to me. I personally believe that we all need competitors as it helps us evolve, and it also means you are not alone in speaking about the service you provide – all be it, with a different colour brand.

The training session finished and some time sat in the car on the WIFI catching up on my scheduled tasks. This generally involves catching up with Partners in another part of the region I cover and also confirming that marketing materials have been delivered safely.

The drive home is filled with phone calls both in and out of my phone. The afternoon signals a flurry of activity, as often our online auctions finish in the PM, this means calls are put into agents confirming their lots have sold, and a request for an invoice is made – definitely the fun part.

Conversations with two of my fellow BDMs confirm that we have had another positive day as a collective, and we are all buzzing knowing that we are achieving sales for our Partners and their clients. Great, as it means I will have more shopping voucher rewards to deliver to lots of happy negs.

Tomorrow will bring another day of variety, and conversation.