It's me again asking more questions.

I have tried to compile my list of people that I can contact when I do get my license. I am worried that a lot of them aren't condo buyers/sellers, which is where I want to focus.

I have a list of 30 people that I am confident would work on my behalf, but I also am uncomfortable creating business with my friends. I actually find this difficult to do. A couple of my friedns said that they would not use me because they don't want to mix business and personal(I don't blame them)

What other ways can I create a S.0.I., and how do you get new contacts info without being too agressive?

Just wait until members of your SOI go and do business with another agent! It has happened to me more than once. One in particular listed with another agent, but would then call me for advice!

You must go waaaay beyond your SOI if you want to be successful. I highly recommend you have a consistent lead generation system in place.

How do I create that?

Pick 1 or more ways you like to tap people. Some cold call, others door knock, some call expireds, others FSBOs. Some do mailings. Some blog, others tweet. Whatever you do do it alot and give it time. It can be anything where you identify to people on a regular basis, letting them know you are the one they need to call when they have a question about real estate.

This forum has threads on all of these mentioned above.

There are many ways to generate leads, which you can read ad infinitum elsewhere on these boards.

However, regarding the specific SOI question...

DO NOT go into this field expecting business from your friends. DO, however, go into the field expecting to get business from your friends' friends.

I highly recommend that you get and read Jennifer Allan's books (see http://www.sellwithsoul.com/ for info); she explains quite well how best to work your SOI, and certainly much better than I ever could. Yes, you want people to remember that you're in real estate, but you absolutely do not want to be pushy about it. Her general theory is that by simply being a friendly person who stays in regular contact, there are plenty of opportunities to talk about how things are in real estate.

Whatever you do, don't send out mass "I really love your referrals!" types of emails. You'll only alienate the people who should be helping you. And you really don't need to do that at all. I've found that people tend to enjoy talking about real estate, even if they aren't planning to buy or sell themselves. It's those casual conversations that will come to mind when one of their friends, neighbors, or family members is thinking about buying or selling.

The other thing I recommend doing is to EXPAND YOUR SOI as much as possible. Simply put, just get out and meet people. Get back into that club whose meetings you stopped attending. Meet up with your former co-workers for happy hour. Accept every dinner party invitation you possibly can. Last weekend I got two new leads simply by attending a dinner gathering, and now we're Facebook friends (on my personal, non-business page). They aren't going to be buying/selling for some time, but when they're ready, I'm willing to bet that my spending a few hours chatting with and getting to know them are going to be a better guarantee of their business than any number of leaflets, postcards, or door hangers they get in the meantime ever will. Plus it was fun anyway.

Keep in mind that the SOI technique is not always quick, so other lead generating methods are often necessary until you have a well established referral network. Once you've got some experience under your belt and can demonstrate that you're truly successful in your new field, you might be able to convert a few of those friends who would never work with you into clients as well.

Do not worry about the size of your SOI when you start. Some new agents have a significant advantage starting out by having a large SOI but a small or medium one will not kill your real estate career, it just means you need to work harder to get estabilished.

As Andy Perkins said your SOI exists to refer you to their friends.

As others have already mentioned, do not worry if your SOI is not very large when you are first starting out. Like Workitsmart said, you will have to go far beyond your SOI to generate the leads necessary to sustain your business, so for now I would focus on creating a good lead generation system.

Don't worry about how big your SOI is now, worry about how to grow it!

Two suggestions...
Working with a coach to build your buisness and SOI makes can make all the difference. They change the way you think.

For example...
Everyone you meet or have contact with has potential to enter your sphere. The best agent I know knows everyone he ever met. I love to watch him work the room, any room, from resturant to carpool line. He scans the room identifing first everyone he doesn't know and taking note of ones he does.

His first priority meet the ones he doesn't know. He naturally makes the rounds talking about everything but Real Estate. Others will sing his praises...Who was that "masked" man?

Second, he warmly greets everyone he knows by name and that includes the ones he just met on his way out. He uses names to help him remember and because we love to be remembered by name.

It is cool!
Wallace

Your SOI should grow every day from everyone you meet. Always remember that.