In 2020, COVID-19 impacted every aspect of our lives. At Michael St. Jean Realty, we pivoted our business and adapted quickly as things changed month-to-month. As we look back now, we can see the bigger picture.
Here’s what 2020 really looked like for our team:
Starting Off Strong
Our team had big plans for 2020. The year started off great, with record sales and results in January and February. March was on-track to be the best March ever for our team. I’d been aware of COVID-19 since around December, but never imagined it would become such a problem in Canada. As we got into March, it started creeping up on our team’s radar as it hit our national and local news.
When COVID-19 First Hit
In mid-March, like many people, I was in a bit of denial. Our team was pushing ahead, focused on work, and executing sales as usual. We were insanely busy. But then, I started to see that people were getting nervous; clients started disappearing on us, staff started asking us what they should do, and people became wary of meeting.
Taking Proactive Action
We quickly burst into action. We started planning for a world where we may not be able to engage in business due to government order and/or a world where we would need to facilitate all business without ever physically meeting our clients.
Our leadership reviewed all of our business practices, marketing techniques, processes, and resources to see if there were any missing pieces or areas of concern. We came up with a multi-pronged plan that would ensure we could continue operating in any scenario where we would be permitted.
Our COVID-19 Transition Plan
The safety of our staff and our clients was our number one concern. We have always believed in utilizing the latest technology in everything we do and are proud to be on the cutting-edge in regards to our systems, training, software, and digital marketing.
We have a very diverse business, whether that be in the product we sell, geography we service, or in our marketing. I was confident that, in any scenario, we would be able to adapt.
We implemented our transition plan immediately knowing that we had a matter of days at best to make these changes before the government made new announcements.
What surprised me — or didn’t surprise me — was how little we needed to change. We were already so far ahead of the pack in how we operated our business, that 90% of what we did pre-COVID-19 remained the same. We made a few adjustments in our processes and were all set fairly quickly.
Adjusting to the State of Emergency
The next week, the government announced that everyone was to stay home and initiated a state of emergency. My number one concern was that we wouldn’t be able to work at all, even though I believed that buying or selling real estate was an essential service. How do you stop someone from moving? People were losing their jobs — what if they needed to sell? What if someone needed to find a home? I felt pretty confident that the government would include us on the list of essential services, and thankfully, they did.
We adjusted quickly and seamlessly to our new remote work environment and utilized the tools we had already been using in a bigger way. Our team stuck together and worked hard to help our clients.
Pushing Forward as a Team
Instead of retreating in fear (like many others), we pushed forward and took advantage of this time to improve our business. We found better and more efficient ways of servicing our clients and moved ahead with all the marketing initiatives that we had planned.
Our agents worked harder than ever before, and in many cases, put their own health at risk to service their clients. I’ve never been more proud to see how everyone adapted, worked hard, and put themselves out there.
During the depths of the lockdown, we re-tooled our entire brand with new marketing and a new website. We also launched our “Thank You” campaign with over 100 billboards, bus shelter ads, and TV commercials thanking our essential workers.
Hard Work Pays Off
As the economy started re-opening, all the work we put in during the lockdown began to pay off. Following the lockdown, we took on a record number of new clients.
In a climate where most professionals in our industry saw sales stagnate or decline, we had our best year EVER for the sale of re-sale homes.
In the last six months of 2020, we doubled the size of our organization to meet this new demand and prepared for what we knew could be bumpy months ahead.
I want to thank everyone at Michael St. Jean Realty for not just ‘holding it together’ in 2020, but flourishing. I also want to thank our clients and the communities we serve for supporting us. We look forward to helping you in your real estate journeys in 2021 and beyond.
This is just the beginning.
— Michael St. Jean
