Courtney Poulos, founder of SERHANT. CA and team lead of ACME | SERHANT. in Los Angeles, says the real estate industry has a "mirror problem"—agents are perceived as overpaid paper pushers, and the industry bears responsibility for that image. Poulos, who is completing Harvard University's Advanced Management Development Program (AMDP) at the Graduate School of Design, believes agents fail to see themselves as senior-level executives, unlike lawyers or other professionals. She cites a client who tried to negotiate her commission below marketing costs as evidence of widespread disrespect.
Poulos points to a lack of effective messaging as a key issue. She notes that agents often market to each other—posting sales for peer approval—while failing to explain their actual value to clients. Drawing from a session with communications expert Carmine Gallo, she advocates for audience-centric messaging that focuses on what matters to clients: data analysis, risk management, negotiation, and sustained relationships. "We protect our clients. We navigate. We clarify. That is the message," she says.
To address this, Poulos is developing workshops and seminars, starting with a session in Orlando this week, open to agents at all brokerages. The goal is to help agents build messaging that resonates with clients, the press, and regulators, reversing the narrative of undervaluation. "If we can clarify that we are experts... then we start to reverse the narrative," she says, noting the housing market has positive developments despite negative headlines. The initiative aims to rebuild public trust and elevate the profession's standing.
