Celebrity Real Estate Broker Madison Hildebrand ('03) Coaches Seaver College Students on How to Close a Deal

With a sprawling seascape and just enough proximity from Los Angeles proper to be considered a coastal oasis, Malibu is a highly sought after location for people to plant residential roots. Taking advantage of the exceptional real estate market surrounding Pepperdine University, Corinne Novell, assistant professor of teaching of marketing at Seaver College, provided her business professional selling class a one-of-a-kind experiential learning opportunity.

Corinne Novell (left) and Madison Hildebrand (right)

On April 1, Novell’s students joined Madison Hildebrand, celebrity real estate broker and Seaver College alumnus, at one of his Malibu listings to learn practical skills about real estate sales. 

A revered industry expert, Hildebrand is currently the founder and president of Malibu Life Inc.—a leading luxury real estate team in the city—and is often recognized for his time on the screen as a star of Bravo’s reality show Million Dollar Listing Los Angeles, appearing on the program for 10 seasons. Last year, Hildebrand accepted the invitation to speak on campus at one of Novell’s courses and was eager to work with a new cohort of Seaver students, this time on location. 

“As an alumnus, it’s important for me to stay involved and now share what I’ve learned throughout my career. Some of my most memorable experiences from my time at Pepperdine were opportunities just like this,” says Hildebrand, who graduated from Seaver College in 2003 with a degree in advertising. “When students can ask real questions and see how things work day-to-day, it makes the path ahead feel clearer and less intimidating.” 

Hildebrand opened the morning by sharing his journey into the real estate business. He addressed the challenges that occur within an ever-changing industry driven by ebbing trends, while fielding questions from students relating to mentoring, real estate, and skills for success. Taking advantage of the location before them, Hildebrand also offered the students a full tour of his Malibu listing. 

Afterward, students split up into groups to practice a mock sales pitch. Gathering into separate areas of the home, each group was given a different mock buyer profile with specific interests and tastes. Acting as the mock buyer’s agent, the students practiced tailoring their sales approaches to fit their given client. Following a thorough debrief, they received feedback about the effectiveness of their pitches. 

Hildebrand with members of Novell's business professional selling class

“Working with Madison, a respected luxury real estate industry expert, was a perfect fit for students to learn about large and complex sales in a specific application of professional selling,” Novell explains. “Success in selling requires ‘muscle memory’—a familiarity that only comes from opportunities for applied practice. Experiential opportunities in the field where students can apply tools they learned in the classroom are key.”

Among Novell’s students present at the beach house session was H. L. McCullough, Seaver senior and current president of the student government association. He expressed appreciation for honest discussions about what it takes to succeed as a real estate agent, specifically, the necessity of using one’s intuition to quickly understand and adapt to the buyer. 

“Meeting with Madison Hildebrand and learning about personal selling in a real-life context was a truly transformative experience,” says McCullough. “Having the opportunity to engage in a real-world selling scenario made it one of the most memorable experiences of my four years at Pepperdine and highlighted the strength and support of the Pepperdine alumni network.” 

Student Jasmin Sertel noted: "This experience reinforced many of the concepts that we've been learning in Dr. Novell's class. In particular, the importance of relationship building and understanding the clients’ needs.”

As she takes steps toward her career after graduation, Seaver junior Liza Shevetovska remarked that the overall session “gave a new level of understanding of what different careers entail.” She concluded, “it was an inspiring opportunity to network with a Pepperdine alumnus who paved his own path of success.”