I look at every failure as a learning experience so there’s never any challenge in “overcoming” it.
Andrew is the founder and CEO of PropertyClub, a NYC based real estate startup that’s focused on shaking up the real estate industry by rewarding buyers and renters with cash and crypto rebates and rewards. Prior to founding PropertyClub Andrew held various roles including that of director of leasing at some of NYC’s top real estate brokerage, where he managed teams of up to 30 agents.
Where did the idea for PropertyClub come from?
I was in the industry and realized that most startups trying to disrupt the business had no idea what the real pain points were or how to solve them. It took me a while to make the jump from sales/marketing manager to startup CEO as I had this misguided idea that I needed to code to run a tech startup.
What does your typical day look like and how do you make it productive?
I’m not much of a morning person so I try to start my workday off with something more mechanical- answering emails and taking calls. I’ll follow that up with a team meeting (either with my developers or my marketing team depending on the day of the week) and then I’ll jump into the tougher work around lunchtime. I’ll usually wrap the day up with out of office meetings or events unless we’re in a development sprint in which case I’ll do a quick meeting/recap with the team at the end of the day.
How do you bring ideas to life?
I’m very involved in the process and have a knack for project management and UX design so we’re able to go from idea to prototype relatively quickly.
What’s one trend that excites you?
I’m really intrigued by buyer commission rebates. It’s something we’ve just started exploring, but it looks very promising as it solves a lot of the problems with inefficiency and high fees in real estate. When all is said and done it can provide tremendous value for homebuyers as well as agents.
What is one habit of yours that makes you more productive as an entrepreneur?
I read a lot and do a ton of research on the industry so that really helps when it comes to making decisions on what direction the company should go in.
What advice would you give your younger self?
Don’t listen to others.
This is probably contradictory to the spirit of teamwork and collaboration, but in my experience, my instincts are generally good and I’ve wasted a lot of time trying to account for unwarranted concerns due to others giving me bad advice.
Tell us something that’s true that almost nobody agrees with you on.
Talent and results matter more than effort or college degrees.
Almost everyone values degrees and effort, but at the end of the day, both are useless if you don’t get results.
As an entrepreneur, what is the one thing you do over and over and recommend everyone else do?
I work 7 days a week. If you want to make it as an entrepreneur you’ve got to put in the work.
What is one strategy that has helped you grow your business?
We recently started doing a lot of digital advertising and SEO. Everything from content creation to PR, and the results have been great so far.
What is one failure you had as an entrepreneur, and how did you overcome it?
I look at every failure as a learning experience so there’s never any challenge in “overcoming” it.
What is one business idea that you’re willing to give away to our readers?
A professional services model for real estate. It’s something that makes a lot of sense as it would lower costs for consumers.
What is the best $100 you recently spent? What and why?
Nothing of note recently.
What is one piece of software or a web service that helps you be productive?
Invision saves us so much time when it comes to prototyping and designing new features. I’d probably rather have my team running without an email account over not using invision. It’s saved us countless hours.
What is the one book that you recommend our community should read and why?
I’m a big fan of Tolstoy. War and Peace and Anna Karenina are simply masterpieces and everyone should read them at least once (just make sure you buy a modern translation to truly experience the beauty of Tolstoy’s prose).
What is your favorite quote?
I’m a big fan of Steve Jobs’ Here’s to the crazy ones.
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Carlyn runs the day-to-day publishing operation here at ideamensch and interacts with our awesome customers and entrepreneurs. She is likely editing this with a cat on her lap.