There are many
things that agents do regularly that puzzle me. In this article, we are
going to look at two practices, standard for many agents, that don’t
make sense. My hope is that if you recognize yourself, you can change
your practices now and improve your business in the process.Why do agents
take listings for less time than six months?
We see agents regularly
taking 30-, 60- and 90-day listings. They take these listings
when the average time on the market in their area is, for example,
107 days. Do these agents truly believe that they can beat
the market? Beating the real estate market is like beating
the "house" in Las Vegas. What are the odds of beating
the house in Vegas? There is a reason why the casinos are so
big and opulent -- the casinos regularly win. Taking a listing
for less time than your market average is like going to Las
Vegas and thinking that you are going to win big. The odds
of even a highly skilled agent regularly beating the market
are very low. Don’t let your desire to take the listing interfere
with your desire to turn a profit.
Set a standard, based
on your market, for length of listings, and stick to it. Tell
the seller that a shorter time frame won’t work for you. Walk
away from the listing if necessary. It’s better to do it now
than 90 days from now, when the listing expires. In 90 days
you will have invested time, money and emotion for 90 days.
Cut your losses now, at the listing appointment.
Your other option
is to have the seller give you a 90-day price. A 90-day price,
to me, is a price that would guarantee a sale within 45 days
even if swarms of locusts took over your town, or if the region
were hit with an earthquake, flood, fire, famine or other Biblical
disaster. In other words, the chance is 100% that the home
would sell fast, no matter what. My philosophy was always 90-day
listing/90-day price. Give the seller the option to choose
one. Don’t allow them to have the 6-month price with the 60-day
listing.
Why do we spend two
hours on a listing presentation?
Think about it: what
are we saying in all that time? Do you think the client is
really interested in spending two hours listening to us? Shouldn’t
we be more prepared and get to the point going in? My belief
was always the less said, the better. The longer my presentation
went, the weaker it became. I think that most people would
rather be spending time with their families than talking with
a realtor.
Here are the four
things to focus on in a presentation. Share them; ask for the
order; and get out.
Find out the client’s
desires and expectations.
Convey the value of
the home.
Show the client the
value and benefit of working with you.
Ask for the order.
There is truly no
reason to be there the amount of time that we are. If we spent
even 15 minutes on each section -- which is too long -- we
would be out in an hour. I can’t tell you how often I was thanked
by the seller for being in and out in 30 minutes or less. I
had people who listed with me because of my respect for their
time. A week rarely went by in which I did not hear "The
last guy was here for two hours. I appreciate your respect
for our time." Most sellers are not interested in the
fluff and hype. Leave that for the other, less skilled agents.
Find out their desired and motivation. Tell them the truth
on the price of their homes. Tell them what you are going to
do. Ask for the business. It truly is that simple. Condense
your presentation, and stay on track.
These are just two
practices that have puzzled me for a while. If you see yourself,
I urge you to change. For the sake of your clients and your
time, commit to changing today. You will get more listings
sold if you have a longer listing period. You can take more
listings if you spend less time making the presentation for
each one.
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