The Alimond Show
Welcome to The Alimond Show --join us as we share our entrepreneurial guests' stories, uncover their secrets to success, and explore the unique paths they've taken to build thriving businesses in our community.
In each episode, our host, Aliyah Dastour, sits down with a diverse group of local business owners, from the corner cafe to the boutique shop, from tech startups to family-run enterprises. We peel back the curtain to reveal the trials, triumphs, and transformational moments that have shaped their entrepreneurial journey.
Discover the passion, perseverance, and innovative thinking that fuels these businesses, as well as the challenges they've overcome along the way. Whether you're a budding entrepreneur seeking inspiration or simply a curious listener interested in the stories behind your favorite local spots, The Alimond Show has something for everyone.
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The Alimond Show
Jorden Booth - Real Estate Agent
Ever find yourself at a career crossroads, uncertain if the path you're on is the one you're meant to travel? Jorden Booth's narrative will resonate with anyone who's faced that fork in the road. As a graduate in interpersonal and organizational communication, Jorden envisioned her career unfolding quite differently. Fast forward to today, and she's a vibrant part of Pearson Smith Realty, weaving her communication expertise into the fabric of her real estate success. Our chat with Jorden is a candid exploration of her serendipitous journey into the world of realty, a profession she now navigates with a blend of tenacity and heart.
What sets Jorden apart in the bustling arena of real estate? It's her unwavering dedication to client empowerment through education. She uses her social media savvy to create digestible content that demystifies the intricacies of buying and selling homes. In this episode, Jorden shares her strategies for tailoring the client experience, from cozy coffee shop consultations to home visits that capture a buyer's unique style. As we peel back the layers of her approach, it becomes clear that Jorden isn't just selling houses; she's crafting personalized pathways to her clients' dream homes. Her story is a potent reminder that sometimes the best destinations are found off the map we've drawn for ourselves.
My name is Jordan Booth, I'm with Pearson Smith Realty, I'm a part of the Fox Homes team and what I offer my clients is education and empowerment. I am all about putting the consumer first, making sure that they are empowered, that they understand the decisions that they're making, and just letting them really be a part of the process.
Speaker 2:Awesome. Can you tell me a little bit about your story as a realtor, Like how did you get to this point? Did you always know that this was something that you wanted to do?
Speaker 1:No, I, um, I've got a degree from George Mason. I graduated in 2016. My degree is in interpersonal and organizational communication, so I always wanted to be like belly to belly with people. Um, a lot of my peers decided to go into marketing and PR and that like just wasn't me. I kind of knew I was going to end up in some sales job of some sort. I was waiting tables at night after I graduated and I was like miserable. And I was like mom, dad, can I come home? And they were like sure, but you have to have a paycheck.
Speaker 1:So I actually started like in the field as a receptionist for Lynn Hall Realtors, which is a smaller boutique brokerage based out of Gainesville, so it was just like minutes from home. It worked. It was part-time, I loved the staff Like I grew up babysitting for the, then like brokers, right. So like I knew them pretty well, pretty personally, and I just kind of like fell into it. They were like, do you want to get licensed? And I was like, well, I mean, I'm not like sure, like I don't not want to get licensed. I was still waiting tables at night, got my license in September of 2016. Took me a while to sell a house, but then June of 2017, I had four closings that month and I was like, okay, this is what I want to do, um, and I just like I loved it. I loved the process, I loved learning about the process, which has just kind of like helped me. Um, yeah, I just kind of like stumbled into it.
Speaker 2:I love for sure Like not this was not part of the plan, yeah, but it was not the plan. And now, as far as I know, you said you love to help your clients and educate them and always help them with the best decisions that's going to fit for them. Does that play any part in your social media? When it also comes to marketing yourself and educating them.
Speaker 1:Yes, tell me about that. Yeah, so I actually have like a bunch of like short form videos that are just like FAQs, right, like what's a home inspection and why do I need one? What is title insurance? Do you prefer to walk through a house that is staged or are you more of a blank slate kind of a purchaser Sellers? What are like the number of like top five things that you can declutter to get top sales price for your home? So I do a lot of that, just as like a push for education, I guess, if you will.
Speaker 1:Having said that, like I'm not the agent for everybody either, like some people love that and like want, like the warm hand holding and like the we're gonna sit down and talk about everything. And there are other people who are like yeah, no, I literally just wanna sign the paperwork, send it to me and we're good. But I would say, like my average client is more of like let's meet for a coffee and go through this, or like can I come to your home and get a sense of your style before we go look at million dollar houses, because I could be wasting everybody's time on a weekend. I really like to personalize the process.
Speaker 2:No, I love that and I love that style that you have. I think it's always nice to sit down, have coffee, get to know a person you know just like interaction and I totally get it that everybody's different. There's different realtors and personalities for everybody. Yes, you know, so I totally I like your style and I'm sure there's people out there.
Speaker 1:Yeah, some will, some won't, so what? Um yeah, you know, life's short. I'm doing what I love and I'm able to provide for my family. So, at the end of the day, like no complaints here. It wasn't the plan, but I got here. I feel like I'm where I'm supposed to be and ultimately, that's what matters. Yeah.
Speaker 2:Now, who are you outside of being a realtor? What do you like to do? What are your passions outside of this? People have hobbies.
Speaker 1:Sounds like you're busy. I have a two and a half year old and 10 month old, so I'm very busy, yes, um, but we golf, we play pickleball, um, I'm the oldest of five kids and we are all still in like the gainesville, haymarket, manassas area, so I'm seeing my family on the weekends. My uh, my husband's family lives literally walking distance from us. My brother-in-law lives one street over in our neighborhood, so we're like really close. It's like your little town of people.
Speaker 2:Just go across the street, there's grandma, grandpa. Here's what.
Speaker 1:We kind of created like a family compound without the land. How fun Works for us, yeah. So, like my hobbies are kind of just being surrounded by family, your family and your kiddos yeah, making pizza, going for picnics at the park.
Speaker 2:And, hey, those are great experiences that you're going to give your kids, and they're going to look back and be like mom, tell us how to make these pizzas and we were surrounded by family, like that's so important.
Speaker 1:Hanging out with our dogs. We got a chocolate lab and an Australian shepherd.
Speaker 2:Okay, very active dogs.
Speaker 1:There's a lot of energy in my house, girl.
Speaker 2:No, I love it. Yeah, what advice would you give to anybody who's struggling with marketing, like? What advice would you want to give to them? Like, you know what, turn that camera on and just do it.
Speaker 1:Yeah, just do it. I it sounds kind of like morbid to say, um, I put off video for years. I didn't even want to do like brand photography for years, and then I realized like we all end up six feet under. Like, as horrible as that sounds, that's just the truth, right? Like put yourself out there. I've been trolled one time and that one time I was like, oh my God, I made it. Like I think that you just nobody really cares, like truly, like you're overthinking it.
Speaker 1:Put yourself on camera, rip off the bandaid and just start doing it. If you pump out enough content that one video where you fumbled ends up so far down the line anyways, like, just stay persistent. I promise you, like the people who care they're watching, like you're reaching the audience that you're supposed to reach. If, promise you, like the people who care they're watching, like you're reaching the audience that you're supposed to reach if you just keep the content coming. And that has been like my biggest lesson. Like I've only been doing this for a short while and I can tell you like those first few weeks where I was doing it, I was not proud of that content, but you couldn't even find it now because it's so far down. Yeah, exactly, exactly. So just do it. Yeah, no, absolutely, yeah, and I, and also, like I don't think it has to be as complicated or as expensive as people make it seem like there's opportunity everywhere. And if, like your iPhone camera can handle it, yes, absolutely.
Speaker 2:It really can.
Speaker 1:It really can, so just start.
Speaker 2:That's great advice for anybody who feels intimidated, like I don't have the best camera, just start, just use your iPhone. Yeah, yes, love that. Now tell me what are some current challenges that you feel are happening in the real estate industry and how are you overcoming them?
Speaker 1:Um, that's a great question actually, because I think there are a lot of challenges in the industry right now, like the NAR, commission lawsuits and commission compression. I'm not really seeing it as a challenge, though I'm seeing it as opportunity. Okay, I love change.
Speaker 2:It drives my husband nuts because I'm always like should we?
Speaker 1:paint again. But I think that there's a lot of opportunity in challenge, and so I'm excited for what this year will bring. I'm excited to like, adapt and overcome. So yeah, I mean that's not like a direct answer to your question, but that's how I feel about challenge. I'm a problem solver. That's what I do.
Speaker 2:And it's all about perspective. That's a great way to look at it, because sometimes we can be a little bit scared of change and feel a little overwhelmed. So just having that positive outlook that you have, I think, will help immensely Thank you.
Speaker 2:Yeah, absolutely. And now, have you had any memorable moments with any of your clients when it comes to them being a first-time buyer? Anything in particular like they were shocked about the area that they lived in? Anything in particular like that? Oh, about the area that they lived in. Anything in particular like that?
Speaker 1:Oh my gosh, like I could tell you so many stories. I actually just did a video on this about, like my number one like buyer's remorse complaint that I get from people is that they're unfamiliar with the areas that they're buying in. Like they get there and they're like this is not what I expected. Like a lot of people during the pandemic bought property sight unseen and were like fleeing in droves from like cities and so they were going to Warrington Front, royal Linden, marshall and they got there and they were like, wow, this house was a lot cuter online. Oh man, so yeah, I've got stories for days about that. If you could share just one particular one maybe.
Speaker 1:One particular one? Does it have to be first-time homebuyer?
Speaker 1:No it doesn't it can be in any. So in one particular buyer's remorse, I was representing an investor who wanted to do Airbnb and we were looking out in the Linden Front, Royal Marshall area, and I don't know if you're familiar with how like Airbnbs work, but A little bit Okay. So when you're purchasing an Airbnb, they've got like all these like third party sites like AirDNA that will tell you like this is what your approximate like rental participation will be. This is what you should list it for every night. Well, that's like really great in theory, right, but those are like theoretical numbers.
Speaker 1:So in this particular case, like he was just insistent, like I've done this before, it's fine, I don't need to walk it, I don't get the gravel drive, the steep mountain, none of that mattered to him because, like he was so hyper fixated on numbers and data and you know I'm a very like boots on the ground person. So I'm there, I'm sitting in videos, I'm like I just so you know, like if I booked this Airbnb and it was snowing out, I would turn around and ask for a refund, like going to be transparent with you. And, um, he did it. You know, like we moved forward and then he saw the place and he was like, oh my gosh, he was a young investor, he had done it before, but he was young and I think it was just kind of like eyeopening experience for him to be like.
Speaker 1:This is why we listened to our buyers, agents, right, Like it's okay that you wanted to buy this for Maryland. It's okay that you wanted to do it this way People do that all the time. Okay, Like that is not uncommon in our industry. But like when he showed up to like paint that house and stage that house and make that house livable, he was like what have I done?
Speaker 1:he was surprised yeah, it was not what he had expected from all of his analytics online so that can just show that sometimes it's not best to go yeah, my way or the highway, but that's okay. We learn from these things absolutely absolutely, and he's he's great people and I still work with him to this day.
Speaker 2:But I think that was.
Speaker 1:I was actually a great lesson for both of us. It was a good lesson for me to say like, hey, if I really have feelings about this, like ultimately it's not my decision, but it's important that I am detailed and I outline these things and I'm weighing pros and cons for my clients and making sure that they're listening and adhering to those. Um, it ended up working out for him. But it was just like one of those things where I was like I don't want to say I told you so, like I don't want to say that.
Speaker 2:Yeah, all right. Thank you for sharing that story. Appreciate that. And now, do you have anything like any events coming up with you, or where do you see yourself in the next five years that you want people to know about?
Speaker 1:Oh my gosh. I mean we have a team event coming up at the winery. Cool Sure. We're doing a client appreciation event May 19th at Bull Run Winery from 1130 to 630. There's going to be fun vendors, food, wine, the works, videographer. It'll be family friendly. It'll be awesome. We're looking forward to it Love that.
Speaker 2:For any of our listeners. Check that out. Yeah, all right. And then my final question here is if you could leave our listeners with any type of message. Anything that's in your heart, on your mind, could be in regards to your industry, your life, family. What would that message?
Speaker 1:be Going back to what I said earlier. Just do it. Stop overthinking things, whether it's getting into marketing, whether it is making the decision to buy the house, whether it's making the decision to sell the house and move to the beach. Like you get one life, make the most of it. I know that it's not always easy, but do the damn thing. Yes, just do it. Amen.
Speaker 2:Well, thank you so much for your time and for taking the time to speak with us.
Speaker 1:Thanks for having me, of course.