1. “The Richard Smith Team”
22503 Katy Freeway Suite 28, Katy TX, 77450
Phone: (281)994-4240 Fax: (281)840-6881 C/O: Richard Smith
Strategic Planning Outline
Overview:
Whether a business owner or Realtor, you should spend time every year reviewing honestly your success
and failures of this year, and coming up with a strategy to get where you want to go next year. This is the
format we use for each division at LeaderOne. You should take this seriously and have someone you
respect review it when finished. In so doing you will see pitfalls before you fall into them and
opportunities you did not even envision.
1. Write a two to three sentence mission statement for your profit center.
A mission statement should be short, to the point and should flow off the tongue easily. You want it to be
simple, easily memorized, and motivational to you or your staff.
a. Develop a one-year goal statement. Must be measurable and have Metric.
2. Write a one-two paragraph vision statement.
Describe what your area looks like when hitting on all cylinders and talk about hitting key milestones
on the road to hitting your 1 year goal. For example, I see our office with 10-full time sales people by
the end of the first quarter and us dominating the local purchase market. I see us recruiting from our
competitors…..etc
3. List departmental strengths, weaknesses, threats and opportunities.
Keep in mind, Strengths and Weakness are internal/Threats and Opportunities are external. Be honest
here and think carefully, some great ideas come from just doing this simple exercise. Here is where
you analyze your past in detail and access your competitors and the environment we will be working
in for 2014. Use this format:
Strengths
1.
2.
3.
Weaknesses
22503 Katy Freeway #28 ♦ Katy, TX 77450
Ph: 281-994-4240 ♦ Fax: 281-840-6881

2. “The Richard Smith Team”
22503 Katy Freeway Suite 28, Katy TX, 77450
Phone: (281)994-4240 Fax: (281)840-6881 C/O: Richard Smith
1.
2.
3.
Opportunities
1.
2.
Threats
1.
2.
4. Write a plan to achieve one-year goal statement
a. List Tactics and Activities. Each one should include a Metric and timeline. Focus on the activities that
drive your business.
For example:
Tactic #1 – Use Direct Mail to acquire course buyers
Metric – Sell 1500 courses by end of year
Activity #1 – Mail 100k mailing January 2nd
Activity #2 - Mail 50k piece on April the 15th
Activity #3 – Do a 25k test new format in July.
Activity #4 Tactic #2 – Obtain 5 new listings a month
Activity #1 – Mail out 1000 postcards to farm area
Activity #2 - Test 2 neighborhoods
Tactic #3 –
Activity #1 ……
5. Create your 2014 sales forecast broken down by month
Project a result that balances your optimism with your past performance. This is where getting a
second set of eyeballs really helps. Start with your sales based on closings per month and then base your
expenses off of past history. Include costs of advertising or any other tactics you listed above. Be honest
and factor in the market being down in 2013.
22503 Katy Freeway #28 ♦ Katy, TX 77450
Ph: 281-994-4240 ♦ Fax: 281-840-6881

3. “The Richard Smith Team”
22503 Katy Freeway Suite 28, Katy TX, 77450
Phone: (281)994-4240 Fax: (281)840-6881 C/O: Richard Smith
6. Create your 2014 department expense budget by month(for managers more than Realtor’s)
a. Remember, you will be doing this with your existing P&L numbers. You should have all
expenses and sales allocated appropriately to your different divisions if you have them.
That’s it. The more time and effort you put into it, the more accurate and balanced will be your results.
When done, you should have a clear plan with a clear one year goal, 3 or 4 key tactics that will get you
there and the activities with timelines that will achieve the tactics. Finally, you will have a good idea of
your cash flow and expenses and when and where you will re-invest. Best wishes!
Richard
22503 Katy Freeway #28 ♦ Katy, TX 77450
Ph: 281-994-4240 ♦ Fax: 281-840-6881

4. “The Richard Smith Team”
22503 Katy Freeway Suite 28, Katy TX, 77450
Phone: (281)994-4240 Fax: (281)840-6881 C/O: Richard Smith
Strategic Planning
One of the most important things I do as President of my company is strategic planning. I have each of
my division managers create their own plan by a simple formula we use and then we go over it and
strengthen it until the plan is something that we both can agree and adhere to. This gives a balanced view
of next year and creates ownership of their division-since they signed off on the gameplan.
It is not really much different than the process I used when I was just an LO. Regardless of the company
you work for, you are still responsible for your success. You are an entrepreneur by default if you are a
commissioned salesperson and you benefit from the same thought and strategic planning for YOU, INC.
as I do for my company.
Here are some additional tips for planning your 2014 year:
-
-
Get real with your production. One of the first mistakes of strategic planning and budgeting is
assumptions that have no basis.
Figure out what activities drive your business and then figure out a way to track those activities.
For us, it is calls and follow-ups. By tracking the number of PQ’s and the number of follow up
calls we can track our momentum and volume and work on improving weekly.
Look carefully at 2014 and figure out where your business comes from-20% Referral 70%
friends/family? Set a goal for what percentages you would like to see at year end 2014 then break
that down into the weekly and daily activities that will ultimately get you there. Begin with the
end in mind.
Have someone check it over-someone you respect. My managers benefit from me looking at their
plans. When I was an LO, I wish I would have had a mentor or coach to run my plans by.
Stick to your plan. More plans fail because they were not adhered to then because the plan was
bad.
Almost any sort of value added marketing done consistently will produce results. If you give time to the
plan the chances are, you will come up with a great gameplan. The key to it’s success will be whether
you work it or not!
Richard
22503 Katy Freeway #28 ♦ Katy, TX 77450
Ph: 281-994-4240 ♦ Fax: 281-840-6881