Following the KW Expansion Model, EZ Referral Network founders Mike Zinicola and Greg Erlanger combined their strengths to build multiple high-performing teams across Ohio.
There was a time in Mike Zinicola’s career when he had $2.78 to his name. A successful attorney in Columbus, Ohio, Mike had left his practice to pursue a promising investment opportunity in Tampa, Florida. The deal didn’t work out.
Thirty years old and broke, Mike found himself scrounging for loose change to call his parents back home. Over at the nearest pay phone, a passing stranger noticed his distress. She stopped to offer Mike a hug — along with a $5 winning lottery ticket, telling him to cash it in to get something to eat. It was an act of kindness Mike says he’ll never forget — one that gave him a sense of hope that everything would be okay.
Today, Mike Zinicola is co-founder, with Greg Erlanger, of one of the most powerful real estate businesses in Ohio. Based in Cleveland, the two built the EZ Sales Team and EZ Referral Network with an emphasis on servant leadership, driven by the needs of their agents. Their approach has helped them retain top talent and create a network of real estate teams across Ohio, with sales of more than $3.4 billion since 2008.
The Need for Role Models
Mike grew up in a modest household in Cleveland, with an abundance of love and a strong sense of community, but few examples of economic success. “If Fortune were to evaluate families not on how much money they have to give and spend and receive, but rather the amount of love that they give and receive, we would have been on the Fortune 500 list,” Mike reflected. Though he didn’t have financial role models to follow, Mike says he was motivated to excel professionally.
He pursued his law degree with the aim of working his way into politics. But when he came out as gay in 1982, just as AIDS deaths were on the rise, Mike says Columbus wasn’t ready for a gay politician. Though he felt law wasn’t his true calling, he committed himself to his career and got involved in AIDS prevention, founding the Columbus AIDS Task Force and serving on the Ohio Department of Health advisory committee on AIDS.
Included among Mike’s legal clients were real estate investors, and he soon realized his interest in real estate exceeded his interest in law. “I looked in the mirror one day and I said, ‘You know what, Mike? You’re a sufficient attorney. Do you want to be a “sufficient” anything?’ But that’s all I was going to be, because I didn’t have the passion for it,” Mike recalled. He got his real estate license and immediately knew he’d made the right choice. In his first year in the industry, Mike sold 13 homes, setting a record in his regional brokerage. It took four years for another agent to break Mike’s record. That agent was Greg Erlanger.
Opportunities Beyond Limits
Over time, Mike and Greg held strong as top-performing agents at their regional brokerage. But as they grew their respective teams, they felt hemmed in by their environment. “There was no one there helping us get to the next level,” Mike recalled. The two started exploring other options and sharing their findings. After a meeting with a Keller Williams® associate in 2008, Mike and Greg agreed they could both achieve their goals at KW.
Though not yet business partners, they both made the jump to Keller Williams, where they were offered the opportunity to attend Family Reunion. It was an experience that would change the trajectory of their careers – and their lives.
While attending a breakout session at FR, they listened to a KW® Mega Agent talk about having reached $150 million in sales the prior year, Mike recalled. That’s when he and Greg looked at each other and shared an aha moment. “We were hoping to do $40 million, so that we could beat some of the bigger agents in the area,” he said. “We weren’t thinking about hundreds of millions of dollars.”Mike and Greg realized they’d been thinking way too small. The speaker went on to talk about building a team with a partner who complements your strengths, and using leverage to fill in other roles.
Walking back from that breakout, the pair understood they had a winning combination. Both were focused on growing their teams, and they shared the same vision: to become number one in the state of Ohio. By combining Greg’s know-how in marketing and technology and Mike’s expertise in real estate negotiations, they would have an unfair advantage in the marketplace. Their partnership was underway.
A Focus on Innovation
Like so many real estate professionals, Greg Erlanger started his career in a different industry. Greg worked in corporate America for a decade, selling data networking to Fortune 500 companies. He enjoyed sales and the tech industry, but after making his first real estate investments, he knew he’d found his niche.
Greg got his real estate license and set to work using his background in tech to create hyperlocal, niche websites that drove business to his small team. At the time, it was a cutting-edge approach that resulted in more than $8 million in sales in his first year.
Yet after joining a KW® market center and partnering with Mike to create the EZ Sales Team, Greg says they didn’t see the immediate uptick in production and volume they had expected.
“When we took a step back, we realized there were a lot of things we were failing forward on,” Greg said. “We were working together on too many things,” he recalled, and they were duplicating their efforts. They decided to divide and conquer, with each focusing on their respective areas of expertise.
Working with a coach was a game-changer. Mike remembered how “For the first three or four years, we were hovering in the $30 to $50 million range, and we weren’t breaking through.” Greg said their coach helped them identify their blind spots and increase their business by almost 100%. They continued to grow year over year, selling more than $320 million in real estate in 2023.
An Agent-First Approach
Following the KW Expansion Model, Mike and Greg replicated the success of their first Cleveland team to create a network of real estate teams across the state. Their process starts with identifying a great team leader, then giving them the tools and support they need to grow. Mike explained, “When they build their team, they build it on the same values and concepts on which our Cleveland office was based.”
In addition to providing training on Keller Williams models and systems, the partners offer a unique value proposition that supports agents on an individual level. Through EZ Media Productions, agents are empowered to build their own brands and expand their reach. Associates have access to an in-house video and podcast studio, professional media staff, plus training on how to create compelling social media content that sells homes, attracts leads, and strengthens brand recognition.
As agents themselves, Greg says he and Mike are constantly thinking about what an agent needs to succeed – and stay. “One of the things I love about Keller Williams is the concept of agent focus,” Greg says. “We work for them; they don’t work for us. We know that if we don’t provide them with the agent services that they’re looking for, they will fire us and go to a different team.”
This approach is what has allowed the EZ Referral Network to grow to more than 135 agents, and Greg says they’re especially proud of their ability to retain great talent. “We’re large because we don’t have a hole in our bucket. There will be no reason for them to leave if we continue to strive to service their needs and help them perform at a high level for their clients.”
Mike and Greg attribute their success to sharing the same vision and goals, and most importantly, to adopting a limitless mindset. Mike said, “Keller Williams taught me the concept of unlimited thought. I didn’t have to stop at 40 million. We could build things bigger. That’s the single best thing Keller Williams did for me.”
Watch the full KW Real Estate Role Models EZ Referral Network profile @kellerwiliams on YouTube.
