I Just Taught AI to a Room Full of Realtors. Here’s What I Wish Every Agent Would Do Next.
I just spent 45 minutes on stage at the California Association of Realtors’ REimagine! Conference & Expo talking about AI and social media. We covered new tools, opportunities, and ways agents can use technology to grow their businesses.
And as I walked off that stage, I couldn't stop thinking about one thing.
How many people in that room will actually use what they learned?
I've been speaking at real estate conferences for years, and there's something I've noticed. Agents are genuinely excited about technology. They want to improve their businesses. They take notes, ask great questions, and leave presentations feeling inspired.
But then Monday happens.
There's a contract that needs attention. A buyer wants to see three houses. Someone needs a price reduction conversation. Your phone hasn't stopped ringing since 8 a.m., and suddenly that notebook full of AI ideas is sitting somewhere on your desk.
Sound familiar?
Here's what concerns me. While you're waiting for the perfect time to figure out AI, another agent in your market might already be using it to create better content, communicate more consistently, and free up time for the things that actually bring in business.
And six months from now, those small advantages could add up.
The Difference Between Knowing About AI and Actually Using It
Think about two agents who attended the same conference.
They heard the same presentations, watched the same demonstrations, and walked away with the same information.
One agent spends the next few weeks researching everything they heard about. They subscribe to a few newsletters, download some apps, and watch another handful of tutorials. They know the names of all the latest AI tools and can probably tell you which ones are trending.
The other agent goes home, opens ChatGPT, and spends 20 minutes figuring out how to turn a common buyer question into a useful Instagram post.
The first draft isn't great. It's too generic, sounds nothing like them, and includes a few things they'd never actually say to a client.
So they tell ChatGPT what's wrong with it.
They give it more context about their market. They explain how they would answer the question in person. They ask it to try again.
And eventually, they have something worth posting.
Neither agent has become an AI expert. But one of them has started developing a skill that could make their business more efficient.
That's the difference I want agents to understand. You don't become better at AI by knowing more tools exist. You become better by learning how to work with them.
I've seen this same pattern with social media, video marketing, CRMs, and just about every other technology that's entered our industry. The agents who make progress aren't necessarily the ones who understand everything first. They're the ones willing to experiment before they feel completely comfortable.
You Don't Need Another AI Tool. You Need a Reason to Open One.
Every week, there's something new.
A new AI assistant. A new video generator. A new platform promising to automate your entire business.
It's exciting, but it's also exhausting.
And I think a lot of agents have fallen into a trap where researching AI has become a substitute for actually using it.
You know what it reminds me of?
Collecting Pokémon.
Except instead of trying to catch them all, we're trying to download them all.
I've talked to agents who have subscriptions to tools they haven't opened in months. They keep hearing about what AI can do, but they haven't figured out how to make it useful in their own business.
My advice is to stop worrying about having the latest technology and start thinking about the problems you already have.
Are you struggling to post consistently on social media? Are you spending too much time writing listing descriptions? Do you have hundreds of contacts in your CRM that you haven't communicated with in months?
Those are places to start.
My team and I experiment with AI across our businesses because we're constantly looking for ways to improve how we work. Some experiments turn into useful workflows. Others don't. We've learned that a tool's value becomes much clearer when you're trying to solve a real problem instead of watching someone demonstrate what it might do.
I've also been exploring Meta's AI technology and its potential for content research and creation. For transparency, I work with Meta and help lead its Real Estate Advisory Board.
But whether you're using Meta AI, ChatGPT, or another platform, the tool itself is less important than what you learn to accomplish with it.
And you can start with something incredibly simple.
Here's What I'd Challenge Every Agent to Do This Week
Think about the last question a buyer or seller asked you.
Maybe someone wanted to know whether they should wait for interest rates to drop. Maybe a seller couldn't understand why their neighbor's house sold in three days while theirs has been sitting for three weeks.
Or maybe a first-time buyer asked you something so basic that you almost forgot how confusing the process can be for someone who's never purchased a home.
Those conversations are valuable because they tell you exactly what people in your market want to understand.
And they're often better starting points for social media content than whatever happens to be trending that day.
So here's my challenge.
Open ChatGPT or another AI tool and tell it:
I'm a real estate agent in [YOUR CITY]. A question my clients keep asking me is [INSERT QUESTION].
I want to turn this into a social media post that would actually be helpful to buyers and sellers in my market.
Before writing anything, ask me three questions about my experience with this topic. I want the content to reflect my knowledge and perspective, not generic real estate advice. Once I've answered, give me three interesting angles for the post. Help me choose one and turn it into something conversational that sounds like me.
Don't invent market statistics, personal experiences, or local facts. Flag anything that needs verification.
Here's why I like this exercise.
Most agents open an AI tool and immediately ask it to write something. Then they're disappointed when the result sounds like it could have come from any agent in America.
But when you make AI ask you questions first, the process changes.
You're bringing your experience into the conversation. You're giving it information that isn't available in a generic prompt. And you're learning how to guide the tool instead of simply accepting whatever it produces.
The first result still might not be perfect. That's okay.
Tell it what you don't like. Explain what you would say differently. Keep working with it until the content sounds like something you'd actually share.
Then verify the information and publish it.
You don't need to create 30 days of content. You don't need an elaborate marketing strategy. Just make one useful post.
And next week, do it again.
The Part of AI Nobody Can Do for You
There's something else I want agents to understand, especially when it comes to marketing.
AI can help you write faster. It can help organize your thoughts, generate ideas, and identify things you might have overlooked.
But it doesn't automatically understand what makes you a good real estate agent.
It wasn't there when you helped a nervous first-time buyer get through a difficult inspection. It doesn't know how you handled a complicated negotiation or why a particular seller trusted you to represent their home.
Those experiences matter.
They're what separate you from the thousands of other agents posting the same market updates, listing photos, and motivational quotes.
And if everyone starts using AI to create content without adding their own perspective, we're going to end up with an internet full of real estate agents who all sound exactly alike.
Nobody needs more of that.
The opportunity isn't to let AI replace your voice. It's to use AI to communicate your experience more effectively.
That also means taking responsibility for what you publish. Verify market statistics, avoid misleading claims, follow Fair Housing requirements, and make sure your content complies with applicable advertising and AI disclosure rules.
AI can help you prepare the message, but your judgment is still what makes it trustworthy.
What Happens Six Months From Now?
I want you to imagine something.
For the next six months, you spend just 15 minutes a day experimenting with AI.
Some days you use it to create content. Other days you ask it to help organize a marketing campaign, improve an email, or think through a business challenge.
You'll have days when it gives you something useful immediately. You'll also have days when the results are so bad you wonder why you bothered.
But over time, you'll start recognizing what works.
You'll get better at explaining what you need. You'll learn which tasks are worth using AI for and which ones still make more sense to handle yourself.
And eventually, you may find yourself completing certain tasks in a fraction of the time they used to take.
Now imagine spending those same six months watching other people demonstrate AI without ever making it part of your routine.
That's the difference I'm talking about.
Six months from now, you could have six months of experience using AI. Or six more months of experience hearing about it.
Neither path requires you to become a technology expert.
Only one requires you to start.
Why We Built Our AI Workshops Differently
One of the things I've learned from speaking at conferences is that even the best presentation has limitations.
I can show you what AI is capable of. I can demonstrate workflows and introduce tools that might completely change how you approach certain parts of your business.
But I can't sit beside every person in the audience and help them figure out how to apply those ideas to their specific situation.
And that's often where the real learning happens.
It's the moment you try something and it doesn't work. When you realize you don't know what to ask next. When you have an idea for your business but aren't quite sure how to build it.
That's why we created our AI workshops at A Brilliant Tribe.
We wanted to give agents a place to move beyond demonstrations and actually practice using AI for their businesses.
We meet four times a month and work through real estate-specific applications, from content creation and marketing to automation and everyday business workflows.
Sometimes that means introducing something new. Other times it means helping someone work through a problem they've been struggling with for weeks.
You can ask questions, experiment, make mistakes, and learn alongside other agents who are figuring this out too.
And you don't have to show up knowing what you're doing.
That's the whole point.
I don't expect every agent to become an AI expert. But I do believe every agent should have the opportunity to understand how this technology can help them work smarter and serve their clients better.
One Last Thing Before You Close This Article
If you take anything away from what I've shared, I hope it's this.
Don't wait until you feel ready.
Don't wait until you've watched every tutorial or found the perfect tool. And don't convince yourself that you're too far behind to catch up.
You're not.
But you do have to participate.
Open an AI tool today. Give it a real problem from your business. See what happens. Maybe you'll create something useful in 15 minutes.
Maybe you'll spend those 15 minutes figuring out what doesn't work.
Either way, you've started.
And that's more valuable than another notebook full of ideas you never get around to trying.
The agents who benefit most from AI won't necessarily be the ones who know the most about it. They'll be the ones who figure out how to make it useful.
I'd love to help you become one of them.
Ready to Put AI to Work?
Join us at A Brilliant Tribe for four live, hands-on AI workshops every month. Bring your questions, your ideas, and the things you've been trying to figure out.
We'll work through them together.
$25/month. Cancel anytime.
Frequently Asked Questions
What's the best way for a real estate agent to start learning AI?
The best place to start is with a task you already do regularly. Instead of trying to understand every available AI tool, choose something practical, such as writing social media content, preparing client emails, or organizing marketing ideas. Use an AI assistant to help complete that task, evaluate the results, and make adjustments. Repeating this process helps you develop skills you can apply to other parts of your business.
Can AI actually help real estate agents get more business?
AI can support activities that contribute to business growth, including content creation, lead follow-up, marketing, and client communication. For example, an agent who spends less time preparing marketing materials may have more time for prospecting and building relationships. However, using AI doesn't automatically generate leads or transactions. Its value depends on how effectively you incorporate it into your business.
How can I make AI-generated real estate content sound more like me?
Give AI information about your experiences, opinions, and communication style before asking it to write. Rather than requesting a generic post about buying a home, explain a real situation you've encountered with a buyer and how you handled it. You can also ask the AI to interview you before drafting. The more relevant context you provide, the better the opportunity to create content that reflects your perspective.
Do real estate agents need to pay for AI tools?
Not necessarily. Many AI platforms offer free versions that allow agents to experiment with writing, brainstorming, research, and other everyday tasks. Before purchasing subscriptions, spend time understanding which features are genuinely useful to your business. A paid tool is only valuable if it solves a problem or improves a workflow enough to justify the expense.
Should real estate agents disclose when they use AI in their marketing?
Disclosure requirements depend on the type of content, the platform, and applicable laws and regulations. Using AI to brainstorm ideas or edit written content may be treated differently from publishing realistic AI-generated images, audio, or video. Agents should review platform policies, brokerage requirements, and applicable advertising rules. Regardless of disclosure requirements, all marketing should be accurate, transparent, and compliant with Fair Housing laws.
Where can real estate agents get hands-on AI training?
A Brilliant Tribe offers four live AI workshops each month focused on practical applications for real estate professionals. Agents can learn about AI-assisted marketing, content creation, automation, and business workflows while asking questions and working through real challenges. Membership is $25 per month and can be canceled anytime.
