Sit and talk with Pip Klein of Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Green Team about buying or selling a home and you get the feeling that she’s been in this business her whole life. However, Pip didn’t get her license until 2011, and there has been no stopping her since. Read on to find out why she has such a strong connection with the brand.
Tell us a little about yourself. How long have you been in real estate and how did you find yourself at your BHGRE Green Team ?
I got my license in 2011 – I was in between jobs – and had started working for the Green Team as part-time marketing coordinator. But besides having an extensive background in publishing, special events, and sales/administration, my broker, Geoff Green, said I had something else: a listing! (my late parents home was on the market). So he encouraged me to get my license so I could sell it myself and before I knew it I was off and running. So without having planned it, I entered into a great new career at an age when my peers were looking to retire. And now, with a decade+ at the same firm, our new affiliation with BHGRE offers an exciting new chapter with innovations in technology and marketing that will continue to grow my business.
What do you love most about being a Real Estate professional?
It may sound like a cliché – but I truly love matching people to the right property and knowing that I was able to help them achieve their goals. I personally live in a converted barn so I know what it’s like to live in a non-cookie cutter space. If someone wants the standard I’m fine with that, but I like to get to know people and dig deep into what they are really looking for so I’m not just sending them an auto search of listings that don’t match what they don’t want. I truly like to CURATE what I send them… and FIND it! As for sellers – I’ve had the unusual opportunity of helping historic properties find a new home – most notably a 1773 Revolutionary War era double property that thanks to the right buyer (although not mine) rescued an important local landmark and turned it into a successful enterprise. I remember the tag line in my description: MAKE HISTORY, MAKE AN OFFER! It worked!
What does the Better Homes and Gardens® Real Estate brand represent to you?
Ironically – I worked in the late 80s at the BHG NYC magazine office for about 2 years… I was in Sales Promotion – developing creative ideas for the sales staff to present to advertising agencies. That job was fun and combined creative writing and thinking out of the box. I even got to go to a week-long orientation in Des Moines and experienced Meredith Corporation first-hand. Our floor also had a “Test Kitchen” so it was an appetizing job (LOL)! It was also the year I ran the NYC Marathon and got to train thanks to a liberal lunch hour policy! When it was announced our office was becoming associated with BHG, in a crazy full circle way, I felt like I was returning “home!”
Tell us how being part of the BHGRE® network impacts your work and helps you build relationships with your clients.
I think being a part of the network gives you instant recognizability – as it conjures trust and reputation. It is exciting that other top magazines as well are part of the company as that expands the reach of both the database and the recognition we associate with as a brand.
What is your favorite BHGRE tool and how have you used it in your business?
I was excited to be able to try the Pinpoint program just last month as I had two excellent sales to promote. My JUST SOLD went to 100 targeted local addresses; and my new million dollar listing was a JUST LISTED where I mailed to about 800 – casting a wide net in the metro NYC area. Just today I found out that my “random” mailing list included a friend of the seller! Both properties were in the Distinctive Collection… It will be interesting (and hopefully lucrative) to assess the results of these targeted mailings. I also returned to XpressDocs and ordered 200 more flyers so I could continue my own marketing efforts. The turnaround was quick and hopefully will also bring some results.
Pip Klein
Mobile: 845.216.1293
Email: PipKlein@gmail.com
Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Green Team
7 Main Street | Warwick, NY | 10990
