Building a Winning Team: How to Find and Hire the Best ISA
Many agents reach a point in their career where they have to ask themselves if they want to continue managing every aspect of their business alone or if it’s time to bring on specialized support. Specialized support can take on many forms, but we find that one of the most impactful ways to scale your real estate business is to hire an Inside Sales Agent (ISA).
A well-chosen ISA handles lead follow-up, client outreach, and appointment setting, freeing up time for you and your team to focus on what you do best: nurturing client relationships and closing deals. The right person in this role can make all the difference, but we don’t blame you if the hiring process feels daunting.
Finding the right person comes down to implementing a strategic hiring process to avoid common pitfalls and ensure a strong, long-term fit. If you’ve reached the point in your career where an ISA is a necessary addition to your real estate team, then keep reading to learn how to find the right person for the job.
Step #1: Developing Your Hiring Plan
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We often find agents diving straight into resumes and interviews, but it’s important first to take a step back and concept your hiring plan.
Define the Role: Take a moment and write down everything you want this role to take on, including day-to-day tasks and quarterly responsibilities. In general, a good ISA uncovers leads and turns them into legitimate selling opportunities. Such tasks include lead qualification, follow-up, cold calling, appointment setting, and CRM management.
Set KPIs and Goals: What does success in this role look like? Common KPIs include the number of leads contacted received/created, qualified lead introductions to agents, appointments set/executed, and the conversions associated with each step down the sales funnel.
Will you hire locally or remotely? Local hires, while more expensive, integrate more seamlessly into the team, benefit from in-person training, and have a much stronger familiarity with the market, which can be invaluable when prospecting and nurturing buyers. Remote hires offer access to a broader talent pool, are more affordable, and can often provide more scheduling availability.
Sasquatch Quick Tip: We find that the most successful ISAs are local and in-office at least three days a week. Face-to-face training and relationship building is crucial to maintaining team culture and accountability!
Step #2: Craft an Effective Job Description
Don’t underestimate the power of a well-crafted job description! This is your candidate's first impression and is crucial to attracting the right talent. Be specific about the responsibilities and skills you’re looking for (anything you wrote down in step #1) so that the scope of the role is clear… and don’t be afraid to add a bit of personality! In fact, we recommend that your job descriptions reflect the culture of your team in tone.
The ideal candidate should possess strong communication skills, sales experience, CRM proficiency, and be able to work well independently. If you’re hiring locally and your team gets together for a team lunch or happy hour, include this in the description so that you’re screening for cultural fit too. Finally, don’t forget to specify whether the position is remote or in-office, and call out any necessary experience in real estate to attract qualified candidates.
What’s the Difference Between a Licensed vs. Unlicensed ISA?A licensed ISA can legally discuss contract terms, provide advice, and offer more detailed property info. This is valuable if you want your ISA to be more hands-on with clients and involved in negotiations. An unlicensed ISA focuses more on lead generation and appointment setting and is typically less expensive than a licensed ISA. State regulations vary on what an unlicensed ISA can discuss with clients. In some states, they’re not allowed to discuss listed properties. A pretty important detail to note if you plan on your ISA fielding inbound inquiries! Which to Choose? Ultimately, the choice between licensed or unlicensed depends on your business needs and budget. If your ISA will handle detailed client inquiries or property details, licensed is the better option. For strict lead management and appointment setting, an unlicensed ISA may be more cost-effective, provided they adhere to state regulations. Closely check your state's regulations before deciding and be sure to include this qualification in the job description. |
Step #3: Find Candidates
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Once your job description is ready, it’s time to promote it so that the right candidates will see it. Here’s how:
Leverage Your Network: The best ISAs come through referrals. Local connections often lead to higher-quality, longer-lasting hires, so make some noise! Post about it on social media, join a real estate Facebook group and post in the discussion, talk about hiring in your conversations, and leverage your brokerage’s internal communication channels.
Job Boards: While local platforms are key to success, it never hurts to post the job on traditional job search platforms like LinkedIn, Simply Hired, and Indeed to maximize your talent pool.
Tip: If you’re not receiving enough applications, pay to boost the post.
Promote in Newsletters: Another powerful tactic to garner more views is to include a call-out in your client e-blasts. This taps into your larger sphere of influence and can attract candidates who are familiar with you and your business. Another advantage to sending your own roles in your e-blasts is to show your network that your business is growing!
Sasquatch Quick Tip: Out of every 100 resumes received on Indeed, typically only 3-5 are worth setting up a phone screening. Be diligent, patient, and don’t give up!
The Most Effective ISA Hiring Plan
Hear us out…the below steps may sound like a lot of work, but a structured process will help you find the right fit, thus saving you time (and money) in the long run. Here’s our recommended step-by-step approach:
Resume Screening: Review resumes for relevant experience in real estate, sales, or client outreach. Look primarily for CRM proficiency (bonus points if they mention by name the CRM system you use) and past sales experience, including the ability to efficiently handle a high volume of leads.
Sasquatch Tip: If you have a high volume of applicants and want to automate this process, look into resume screening tools like SkillSyncer or Resume Worded to expedite this step.
Phone Screening & Role-Play: If you see a qualified resume that excites you, the next step is to set up a phone screen. During this time, evaluate the candidate’s fit, communication skills, career experience, goals, and availability. Give them time to ask you questions about the role and be transparent about the challenges (make it clear that the first year is very hard!), including the need for resilience and phone-based tasks. Then, explain that compensation is a base salary plus bonus and will be based on performance (more info on that below!). If you feel confident in the candidate’s answers, ask them to stay on the phone for a 20-minute role-play exercise. Send them a FSBO script (you should have this prepared ahead of time) and inform them they can’t let you off the phone until they’ve asked all the questions on the script. This will test their ability to work under pressure, overcome objections, and think on their feet, while giving you a better idea of their communication style and a first-hand experience of what your clients and leads will be experiencing.
In-Person Meeting: If the phone screen/role play goes well (and you’re hiring locally) have them come into the office for a face-to-face meeting. During this time you can get to know one another better, have the candidate make calls in front of you using a provided call list and script, and share real-time feedback to assess their ability to adapt. (If remotely, simply conduct this step via video chat). This task allows you to further evaluate their skills, including what resilience they show in the face of rejection—all crucial traits for a successful ISA. At the end, allow them to ask more questions about the role so you can assuage any concerns they may have.
Photo cred: Unsplash
Team Member Interview: Have another team member (if applicable) interview the candidate to ensure cultural fit and a collaborative approach. Having a second opinion is helpful in discussing weaknesses and will help you more fairly compare candidates. This step also helps keep your other team members invested in new incoming team members - because they helped choose them!
Sasquatch Tip: We encourage you to conduct the full interview process with a minimum of two candidates (three is ideal) to inspire confidence in your chosen hire.
Offer: Once the candidate confidently passes all stages, it’s time to extend an offer! In the offer letter, make sure to reiterate expectations, KPIs, compensation (more info below), start date, and any required training. Provide a clear pathway for the candidate’s seamless integration into daily work and being a valued member of the team.
Compensation Guidelines
Naturally, competitive compensation is crucial for attracting top talent. Inside sales agents are typically paid a base salary plus bonuses based on performance. The salary you offer will be market-specific (and vary according to other factors described above), but at a top level, here are our recommended compensation guidelines:
Base Salary: $24,000–$30,000 per year (adjust for local market as needed).
Bonus Structure: 5%–10% of GCI after closing, or $50–$150 per appointment conducted. (At Sasquatch, we recommend that bonuses not be tied to appointments booked, as this often leads to low-quality appointments and cancellations.)
On average, ISAs with no previous experience typically make $40,000–$65,000 per year with salary and bonus included, whereas more experienced ISAs make $60,000–$80,000.
Ready To Do This?
It might sound like a lot, but following these steps and being thoughtful with your new hire will set you up for long-term success. With a strong ISA, your team will have the support it needs to handle lead generation and follow-ups effectively, allowing you to grow your business.
If you’re looking for additional support in ISA hiring or training, Sasquatch Agent Ops offers a full suite of coaching and project management services. We can help you find, hire, and train the perfect ISA for your team. Contact us today to learn more!