Corporations spend tens of millions of dollars for 30 seconds or a minute of your time on a daily basis. And that’s only advertising coming from your TV. But no matter the medium, most products sold are considered impulse buys. Businesses use all types of methods these days to get people to buy their products, with many techniques hoping to capitalize on curiosity or a sudden urge.

That method isn’t the best for everyone, however, and Realtors should be at the top of the don’t-do list. The benefits of customer care and concern and the power of long-term relationships and morality are too often ignored, and forgotten is the residual income an extended relationship can build.

Times are tough, but making earnings the focal point of a business opportunity can threaten an agent-client relationship. Take time to discover the needs of your client and his or her family. What best suits their needs might not lead to the biggest commission check but could lead to something better down the road as word gets out. Sometimes the client isn’t sure what they want, so it’s up to you to act as a guide.

Communication is crucial, because a client can get overwhelmed by all of the things that transpire in the process of buying and selling a home. As an agent, your information is like a lifeline to your client. Don’t just give your client a sales figure to put the house on the market for. Be able to provide multiple examples of similar local houses that have sold and that are presently on the market.

Continue Reading

Hey guys, remember the first time you called a girl to ask her out? You probably picked up the phone and set it down a few times before working up the guts to make the call. You knew what you wanted to say but weren’t sure how it would come across. It was the ultimate cold call, and the cold reality of rejection was the scariest thought.

Even though we live in a time when texting and tweeting seem to be taking over the conversation, phone calls and face-to-face meetings provide a nice touch. For real estate agents, that’s especially crucial because after you get a lead, you need to establish a relationship with the person seeking a home in order to close the deal.

This takes personality, preparation and motivation. If you’re part of a lead-generation system such as HouseHunt.com, the person you’re going to talk to has an interest in purchasing a house, so there’s instantly something to work with in that regard. But rather than jumping right in with bottom line stuff such as price parameters, make it more personal by asking about the importance of neighborhoods and schools and if they’d like to live close to where they work.

Following a script can be helpful, but be sure it’s not robotic. Jotting things down that you want to touch on also is important and makes a great reference point as the conversation continues. A successful sales call often begins hours before you ever pick up the phone. Before each call, invest time in the homework you’ve done. Review what worked well on previous calls and make sure you know at least a few things about the needs and interests of the person you’re about to call. -