Arriving here as a student in 2002, Sam Guo has gone from success to success in his time at Ray White Broadbeach, integrating himself into a community that has come to associate his name and his partner-in- crime Julia Kuo with nothing but trust, efficiency and service.
Having been recognised as one of the best pair of agents not only in Queensland, not only in Australia but across all the international franchises of Ray White, we took one half of this dynamic duo aside to ask him about his experiences as part of the Ray White family. Sam Guo, number one agent in residential sales in Queensland for 2016 and number one internationally for the group, takes the time to relate just how and why Ray White is his agency of choice.
Family values that last
Established in 1902, there's no denying that Ray White is one of the oldest and most well-known names in the real estate industry. Even now, it holds on to that long history, with Brian White heading up the board as joint chairman and third generation member of the original founding family.
Often with timelines as long as this (not to mention the sheer breadth of geographical coverage that Ray White boasts), the original ideals behind a company tend to be lost and forgotten. Sam explains that this is not the case with Ray White. Indeed, holding onto that feeling of closeness is a defining feature of the company in the real estate landscape.
"I've dealt with some family businesses before - Ray White is quite different. The scale is quite big, and it has a long history. So they have a really established family and corporate culture," Sam says.
"You feel that it is quite warm; everybody works together."
Personal and professional success
As positive as a strong family culture is to the success of a company, the reality is that people also want to have the opportunity to progress. The real estate world is extremely competitive, so having the chance to develop professionally is a big factor in your overall success. These are chances that Sam says come thick and fast in his position at Ray White.
"They give us these opportunities all the time - seminars and training."
However, Sam also goes onto to describe how he is supported in his personal life as well. A high-impact, high-stress position such as that held by a real estate agent can sometimes result in people feeling tired, worried, and burned out. Stress in the modern world is almost a fact of life these days - but Ray White refuses to allow the work-life balance of their staff to end up being pushed to one side.
"They support people where they work - you work hard, but you need to have a balance as well," Sam explains.
As part of the Ray White family, agents are frequently given the chance to kick back and relax; in fact, the company actively encourages it among the more senior staff members.
"Myself, for example, I like to have holidays twice a year - they actually like that. They basically said that it's a great example for the young agents. You can become a successful agent, and you can have a good lifestyle," describes Sam.
Part of the community
In Sam's eyes, it is these successful, well-balanced agents that are the key to the overall success of the company as a whole.
"They want integrity, they want good people ... a good brand needs good people to support it," he says.
However, this is something that flows both ways. Sam describes how the well-known name of Ray White dramatically improves his ability as an agent, mostly due to the trust that people put in him from his association with a transnational, highly-acclaimed company.
"When they go to different places they say 'oh Ray White, we know them, they're everywhere.'"
"They like to rely on a good brand - it means good quality and good service. It means safety, and security."
As a result of this reputation, Sam finds that his work as a Ray White agent becomes that much easier. He makes particular mention of his work with buyers originally from overseas, especially those from China, who come to Sam for his expertise, Ray White's reputation and the fact that they can receive a service well beyond that of merely buying and selling homes.
"Helping [overseas buyers] to contact the school for the kids, their driver's license, even if they get sick, which doctor we refer them to. If we can help, we would."
"They will feel like there are a lot of challenges in front of them - language, law, legislation, everything. To provide the service and help them understand a lot of things and tell them in their own language - I think that will help them a lot, and they will feel so much more confident."
As a result, Sam finds himself not only able to further himself down his career path, but provide an important service to new residents of Australia who, without this assistance, may have found themselves up a creek without a paddle.
Overall, Sam says that his time with Ray White has been nothing short of fantastic.
"I choose to join Ray White, because they can provide a better environment and room to grow professionally and as a person," he explains.
"Ray White makes you feel like you are improving every day."
The chance to assist your community, the ability to grow professionally and the right corporate culture to maintain a strong lifestyle inside and outside of work; it's clear that Sam has made a good choice in deciding to work with Ray White in Broadbeach.
