Perhaps the greatest luxury of all is the luxury of time. So, take time out for just a moment and give yourself a break. Take a moment to reflect with us and appreciate the abundance of opportunity we all have, right now, as luxury real estate marketing professionals. Take the time to restore your equilibrium and regain a balanced perspective, by appreciating and savoring what is great about the world in which we live, today.

Recently, we noticed a family of three blue jays in our back yard that seemed to be following us as we strolled in the yard. So, we decided to give them some of our cat’s crunchy food. They were most appreciative.

After several days, we began to gain their trust and “friendship”. Now, they look for us wherever we are in the house and implore us to meet them on the deck where we regularly feed them at the same time of the day. They come right up to the window and squawk until we notice them and grant them their request. But, sometimes they just hang out with us. The connection we feel with these creatures almost makes us feel like we are in a Disney animation movie.

Communing with nature is a way to transcend time. Sharing experiences like these over the phone or at lunch with friends or family feels wonderful. But, instantly sharing this experience electronically with thousands of new friends and business connections we have made all over the world via social media just about staggers our imagination.

The medium of our blog and the awesome venue of our Language of Luxury Groups on social media allow us to enjoy more relationships than we have made in our entire life prior to this amazing time of super-connectivity.

Isn’t this true abundance and luxury?

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Did Google just disrupt the real estate data status quo?
by Zoltan Szendro - CTO, EVP, Co-founder RealBird Inc.

Google just announced that they revamped the search capabilities on their Google Maps service and now when consumers search for homes for sale, Google maps matching real estate listings using data from their Google Base database.

This is a big one. Bigger than it might look at the first glance as I will explain it below (The disruption). It is also one of the most stunning timing that I have seen since the founding of RealBird. Just a few month ago - in April 2009 - we released our first version of the private labeled RealBird Property Search service for real estate agents, brokers and other related real estate professionals, a service that is using the very same Google Base real estate database as the just released search tool on Google Maps (4 Million+ listings syndicated by agents, brokers, technology providers like us, FSBOs and MLSs to Google Base). While Google Base was available as a search engine for consumers before, it was not part of the flagship Google products until now. According to Compete.com, Google Maps has over 50 million unique viewers a month vs. some 300K on the Google Base domain name. That is almost a 200X jump - a major step in terms of syndicated real estate data visibility.

Check out RealBird Property Search

Google recent announcement shows Google’s dedication to their Google Base real estate repository and hence, underwrites the value of our own RealBird Property Search. I usually try to avoid using very large words in our blog posts, but I think, we, at RealBird and our members just participated in a major step of the creative disruption of the real estate data distribution model. With our RealBird Property Search product - the only one on the market currently as far as I can tell - we enable you to be in the forefront of this new real estate search experience. I am very excited about this new development at Google so I may be using big words when talking about our service as well. One of the reasons is, that over the last few months, RealBird Property Search is proven to be working great as a business building tool for our members and also because it is exciting to see that Google herself justified the efforts that we invested in building the industry’s first private labeled real estate search engine for agents and brokers using data from Google Base.

First, let’s talk about the disruption that I believe is happening, then I talk more about how Google’s new consumer facing real estate search tool relates to our offering for real estate agents.

Did Google just disrupt the real estate data status quo?

I think so.

Check out RealBird Property Search

Step 1 - A few years ago, agents and brokers started to distribute (syndicate) real estate listings to 3rd-party consumer facing portals such as Google Base, Zillow, Trulia, Oodle and many others (even to international sites like Viewr.com ) using either direct MLS syndication or 3rd party providers like our service, the RealBird Listing Publisher I consider this to be the first step of disruption. Listing brokers - smartly - started to understand that with consumers spending more and more time on the Internet, the listings that are “seriously looking for buyers” need to appear on as many destination sites as possible. The obligation to home sellers as a broker is to provide all means of marketing the property. Zillow, Trulia and many others built their business (partly or mainly) around the aggregation of all of these listings and providing a superior user experience to their visitors. Listing syndication outside of the MLS is Step 1 in the disruption process.

Step 2 - Many, many home sellers now understand that in order for their listing to sell as fast as possible and at its best price and with the best terms, they need Internet exposure. They know or care little about the details and legal complexities of real estate advertising (IDX, association and MLS rules, business code etc.). They expect their listing to be marketed honestly and at its fullest while their financial and other interests are also considered. It has become the reality already for the last few years (see Step 1) but now that Google is fully embracing syndicated real estate listings within their flagship service, this will be even more pressing on listing brokers. While Zillow, Trulia and other great companies created a great brand in the real estate industry and also among consumers, Google - with their leading worldwide brand - incorporating syndicated listings into one of their flagship products will certainly bring exponential attention to the new era of listing advertising. Everybody (!) who uses the Internet knows about Google. Their US monthly consumer reach - only on their map service  maps.google.com) - is over 50 million according to Compete.com.

Imagine two listing agents going to a listing interview with exactly the same credentials, experience, professionalism etc. One who wants to keep the listing information in house (in the MLS only etc.) and one who promises widespread distribution via syndication, including presenting the property on Google Maps search. Guess which one will get the listing.

As more consumers will be aware of this option (associating value to syndication due to the undisputed brand and reach of Google) the more demand there will be on listing agents and brokers to let the information “free”. The more listing brokers and agents welcome this brave new world, the less power will be in the hands of those who are protecting the status quo. Eventually, this pressure will trigger all the way up to the associations and MLSs and more and more of them will syndicate listings to trusted 3rd parties such as Google, Zillow and Trulia etc. Many of them are already doing it. This is the era we just entered with Google’s announcement. Google just raised the importance of listing syndication outside of the MLS with several magnitudes. And that leads to the final step of this process.

Step 3 - Data quality. Once MLSes start distributing to Google Base and other destinations and/or more quality assurance tools are developed, data quality will no longer be an issue. MLSes will eventually do this based on their pressure from their participating brokers, who are pressed to do this by their very own home sellers - the real driver of the industry. We are not yet there, at step 3, this may take a few more years, but Google’s new service, just made it sure that this time is coming.

So how does Google’s announcement about their revamped real estate map search and the RealBird Property Search relate to each other? Who are they for?

Google and RealBird real estate search based on Google Base Check out RealBird Property Search

Data source: Both are using real estate listings from Google Base as the source of property information.

Private labeling: The standard Google Maps real estate search delivers traffic to listing brokers directly, cutting out buyer representation all together. It connects home buyers searching Google with listing agents and brokers. On the other hand, the RealBird Property Search is completely private labeled for you. ALL inquiries are forwarded to you so you can eventually convert interested visitors into home buyer clients for YOURSELF. This is a major difference between the two. Google simply redirects to the listing agent/broker website, the RealBird Property Search redirects interested parties to YOU.

Who are they for? The new Google Maps search option is mainly for consumers who visit Google to search for information. It certainly benefits listing agents and brokers with incremental exposure but has close to no value for home buyer representatives. On the other hand RealBird benefits both sides of the real estate transaction. Via the RealBird Listing Publisher - you as a listing agent or broker can syndicate your listing to the Google Base database quickly with minimum effort. With the RealBird Property Search service, you can also provide search tools to home buyers utilizing the same data as Google does, hence you can generate business on the buyer side as well. Just to emphasize it again, the RealBird Property search is not a competing product of the new Google offering, but rather, it packages the same features (and more) into a private labeled, branded service for you, supporting values and benefits on both the listing agent and buyer representative sides.

User interface: Google’s version is targeting their regular portal visitors and listings are mapped on their Google Maps interface. It can be embedded just like any other maps, but it can NOT be private labeled by you. The RealBird Property Search (using the same data) is completely private labeled with your theme, photo, company name, address, email, social networking accounts and just to emphasize it again, all leads are forwarded to you and client accounts for saving searches and listings are also associated with you.

Search engine performance: This is one of our favorites. The RealBird Property Search was designed from the ground up to deliver exceptional performance. We are proud to say that due to the software architecture that we developed, your visitors to the RealBird Property Search get the exact same lightning fast search results as the people visiting and searching Google directly.

Widgets and deployment: Google Maps can only be embedded as a standard map without the search form, without private labeling and the widget carries practically no value to you on the home buyer side, because all click-throughs go the respective listing agent or broker. The RealBird Property Search  can be embedded in many different forms, including full screen version, live search tool in blog posts, (e.g. in ActiveRain post), blog sidebar widget and more. Interestingly enough, Google’s search form is still very basic and lacks one of the most powerful features that their Google Base service provides: the keyword search. With the RealBird Property Search, you can create fine tuned, niche, pre-set search widgets such as ocean view homes, equestrian ranches, short sale properties or whatever you can come up with that makes sense in your market.

Some examples and buzz from existing users

1. Tutorials by RealBird here on ActiveRain
2. Member success story: RealBird flies to the top
3. Member success story: ActiveRain + RealBird = Google Page 1 result

How to get your own RealBird Property Search

Just create a free account on RealBird and your service is set up and ready to be used in minutes.

Zoltan Szendro - CTO, EVP, Co-founder
RealBird Inc.

This is part two of our previous post on quality cues. Quality cues are indications of quality in packaging, displays, product features, collateral materials, website design, messaging, etc.The more quality cues you can offer in your luxury real estate practice the more your personal or company brand will become distinctive.

Luxury Real Estate Marketing Tip

When marketing luxury real estate, use as many quality cues as possible to connect with your clients emotionally. Messaging is extremely important. We cringe whenever we read how a home “boasts” some feature like an infinity pool or a state of the art entertainment room. Instead, reach for the emotional connection with potential buyers.

For example: Communicate the sense of relaxation and relief they will feel when they plunge into the pool after an exhausting day, or the enjoyment of watching movies and eating popcorn with their friends and family.

And, take a cue about quality cues in messaging from a mass marketed coffee brand that overcomes the perception of being too big to care about customers—Tully’s coffee.

In part one; we mentioned that we purchased a 12 oz. bag of Gelson’s Finest coffee at Gelson’s market. A gold clasp that helped reseal their package was an important quality cue. That same day we also purchased a 12 oz bag of Tully’s coffee. Tully’s is available at over 5000 markets. We like their Decaf House Blend.

Tully’s quality cues are right on their package and on their website. It’s more in their messaging than in their graphics. For example, on the package you can read that “coffee is our passion”. Here is their call to action: “Enjoy a cup and celebrate the wonderful complexities of our pride and joy”. On their website, you are asked to “Taste Our Obsession”.

There are many Tully’s coffee stores. We spotted one in Seattle on our last visit there. To make a deep emotional connection with customers, Tully’s lets you know that “Community is their Commitment”. Tully’s is proud to support many local organizations that focus on children’s educational development and health.

Here’s yet another quality cue in Tully’s messaging: Their description of the decaf blend is “smooth, inviting and buttery”. These are emotional quality cues followed by the word, in bold—BALANCED. These words resonate with the values of coffee aficionados and thus become quality cues.

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Allow me to introduce you to Absorption Rate.  Before your mind wanders off into numbness, let me also tell you that this is one of the most practical metrics or measurements you can learn for your market or for subsets of your market.  And better yet, it will only take you a few minutes to learn it.  Although the manufacturing segment of the economy has been using this metric for decades, real estate, for the most part still doesn’t.

OK, so what is Absorption Rate?  Simply put, it is the rate at which a market absorbs or eliminates inventory.  Markets are always changing: new inventory is being added and old inventory is being sold or absorbed.  Absorption rate helps you to take that fluid, ever-changing market and bring it into a measurable snapshot that you can use to advise your clients.

When I was still in college I took a class on managerial calculus (I know… YICK!) and one of the only things I remember from the class was a small section on inventory modeling.  It seems that one of the practical uses for higher mathematics was to allow industry to determine the precise level of inventory to stock.  Stock too much, and the company tied up cash or debt in sitting inventory and carrying costs.  Too little, and the company would lose sales by not having the products on hand.

Now let’s take the logical step and apply it to real estate.  Suppose you had a builder as a listing client.  Using absorption rates for various price points, you could wisely advise him on which price points to focus on in order to maximize his sales.  Or suppose you were going on a listing appointment and you were able to advise your client of the number of month’s inventory of homes like his that are currently on the market.  Would that information be valuable in winning the listing?  Of course it would be!

What if you were working with a buyer, negotiating for his dream house.  Imagine if you were able to communicate to the seller’s agent that there was over a year’s worth of inventory currently on hand for that particular price or type of home?  You could easily give the listing agent the information he needed (and probably didn’t know) to help him persuade his client to consider your buyer’s offer.

Well, believe it or not, it’s easier than you might think to have those numbers.  All you need to know is how many of a certain price or type of property sold in the last twelve months, and how many of that same price or type of property is currently on the market.  For example, let’s say that in the last 12 months there were 8,000 homes of a certain price or type sold.  Currently, there are 2,000 on the market.  That means that the current inventory level turned over, or sold, four times in a year.  (8,000 / 2,000 = 4.0)

Now, divide 12 (the number of months in a year) by 4.0 (the inventory turnover rate) and you have 3.0 (the absorption rate) to put it into months.  The absorption rate is 3.0 months.  That means is there is currently a 3.0 month inventory of properties of that certain price or type on the market.  See how easy that was?  But I’ll make it even easier.  Our company created an Absorption Rate Calculator for you to use and it does all the math for you.  Just plug in the two numbers, press the button, and voila… the absorption rate!  Now how cool is that?!  Let me know what you think.

CRAIGSLIST and OTHER FREE CLASSIFIEDS

Craigslist is an amazing place to post advertisements for your services with a link pointing to your website. You should try it! Also, writing little articles in your Blog about what you do not only will be good for Search Engines, but they can be used on Craigslist, Backpage, and on Article Submission sites.

DON’T FORGET TO PUT LINKS TO YOUR WEBSITE! 

Never waste a Blog Posting by not having links pointed back to your website. Without links you shouldn’t be wasting your time! Think of every link you place online as a vote for yourself. If your search term is “Colorado Springs Real Estate” and you have that term set up as a link pointed to your site, as top agent Brandon Smith does at ColoradoSpringsHomeSite.com, the more links like this that appear on the web, the higher your Google ranking will be. One by one, post by post, week in and week out, think about how you can insert the keywords and keyphrases you want people to find you when searching in Google and other Search Engines.
 

VIDEO IS REALLY REALLY EFFECTIVE! 

Think about the Video idea as well. Create your own little commercial. Using a Webcam or a little Flip Videocam is so easy now.

The best part is that it doesn’t need to be long. In fact it’s better if it isn’t. When I scan through videos and audio podcasts, I’m looking for bite-size nuggets that won’t take too much of a bite out of my day, because I just don’t have that much spare time. Think 30 seconds to 2 minutes. Talk directly into the camera about what you do for a minute. You can do that. Keep doing takes until you have “the one.”
 

YOUTUBE IS FREE AND GOOGLE LOVES IT (THEY OWN IT)! 

Once your completed video is on your computer and you’ve done any editing you wish to do, upload it to YouTube for Free. If you don’t have a YouTube account, set one up now. It will take just a few minutes. Once you have uploaded successfully to your YouTube account, I will point you the way of putting it on your website.

Just think how amazing it would be if you would record 30 second spots for each page on your website. Google likes to feature YouTube videos on Page 1 of their search results. If you took just a minute to add the main search words that you would want people to find your video with in YouTube, you may be rewarded for your efforts with Page 1 placement. (It happens all the time!)
 

FOCUS ON YOUR LOCAL MICRO AREA INSTEAD OF THE BIG METROPOLIS 

Perhaps trying to throw a whole swath over a big marketing area (let’s say “Dallas”) are not going to be as effective as focusing like a laser on the actual smaller community that they really want to market to, like “Plano, TX.” There are thousands of people all trying to get that big market key search term placement on Google. To get that will certainly cost you a lot in paid premium search engine placement. By focusing smaller, your competition for that high Google placement is reduced significantly.

KEEP BLOGGING! 

If you have been blogging, Congratulations! DON’T STOP! It’s not a “get rich quick” type of operation. Think of it as a mountain building exercise and each post is a shovel of dirt. One by one you will create your mountain until it towers above all others in your field who are not putting in the time, or who only put money into the Pay-Per-Click programs.

This again is an example of the Assets vs. Liabilities theory talked about by Robert Kiyosaki in Rich Dad Poor Dad. Premium Pay-Per-Click campaigns are Liabilities; once they’ve been clicked on, they’re gone! Building your own empire online of Blog Postings containing links pointing to your website can stay up forever, and their exponential nature can build and build and bring you the benefits for years to come!

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Brett Miller is founder of HoopJumper Websystems, home of Great Small Business Websites and Great Real Estate Agent Websites and has helped hundreds of small business owners become the Master of Your Own Doamain™. Find out more at www.HoopJumper.com

In branding terms the fastener is a “Quality Cue”. Quality cues are indications of quality in packaging, displays, product features, collateral materials, website design, messaging, etc. The more quality cues you can offer in your luxury real estate practice the more your personal or company brand will become distinctive.

We thought of our client when we were shopping for coffee at Gelson’s, an upscale market chain in Southern California. Gelson’s recently came out with their store brand of coffee, called Gelson’s Finest. We trust the quality of Gelson’s as a market. So, we were willing to try it because we were certain that they would not put their name on sub-par coffee.

Usually, when a market puts their name on a product it is a way to increase their profit margins and the quality may be less than the known brands. The packaging is also less attractive than the name brand packages. Gelson’s added a couple of quality cues that encouraged us to at least try their new coffee. The packaging is first rate. And, they included an attractive gold clasp to help seal in the freshness instead of the usual bendable plastic strip that wraps around the folded top of the opened coffee bag. How convenient! And, the coffee is good!

As a luxury real estate marketing professional, what are your quality cues?

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So let’s review for a minute. People have been needing shelter and housing since the beginning of time, and every day people need housing…and the financing to buy it!

And the one thing that never changes: People still prefer to do business with those they know like and trust.

In today’s market, this golden rule still exists, but what has changed is how we have had to create new ways to serve those same customers in a “different” marketplace.

So although the market and the marketplace have changed drastically, there are those professionals who understand that service survives any market fluctuations and ultimately thrives in what others refer to as a “bad market”. Here are a couple of great leaders that have turned their production from drab to dazzling by filling a need:

Meet Denise Buser:

Realtor Denise Buser, a 13 year veteran real estate agent knows the challenges of immigrant families trying to start a new life in our country. Her own family relocated from Italy to this country and struggled with the many nuances of trying to have the great American dream…home ownership.

Denise saw a need to help other ethnic families in her Long Island area and opened a specialized real estate division catering to minority buyers and sellers. She is the first in her area to offer these special services through Casa Latina Royal Real Estate Company, catering to the Spanish speaking and multi-cultural borrowers in her marketplace.

This franchise specifically targets multicultural communities and includes any and all ethnicities. They have agents that speak Polish, Spanish and the list goes on.

Denise says, “Often there is a misconception that these families can’t afford homes, and that is so wrong! They need guidance and help to get themselves prepared to buy, and when you invest in them, the rewards are staggering! We help them establish better credit, help them budget to save money each week, and even help them organize their business books so we can get them to qualify for loans in the future. I could never do this without my lender partners who are willing to invest in this niche for future production.”

Denise added; “I work with my lender partners to set them up for buying by strategizing the appropriate ways for them to responsibly buy a home. FHA has proven to be the best thing in the world for many of these people, who often can save the 3.5% down and if this tax credit comes through the flood gates are going to open up! That’s why they are here in America…to own the dream and their referral network is endless. If you help one family, you get the whole neighborhood!”

She went on to say, “But without my lenders, I can’t do anything for them…it’s a true partnership! If we didn’t have a powerful partnership with the same objectives, my deals wouldn’t go anyplace!

Denise says they now have families in their pipeline that she and her partners have in process to repair their credit, or as they recover from short sales they are working together to get them in affordable housing as next year’s buyers. They want to spend the rest of their life in their home, and my lender partners help me do that…we all win!”

Cleary, Denise and her lending team have penetrated a niche that is paying off now and into the future.

Eric Zantonelli, loan originator from Stillwater, Oklahoma works with his agent partners to help them bridge the buying gap if the agent’s prospects don’t have the FHA down payment. Eric studied and became well versed in utilizing the USDA Rural housing program which, in his opinion, is one of the very best loan programs around. He found that most consumers, as well as most real estate agents, knew very little about this special financing program.

Eric counsels his agents to consider this RURAL program when buyers who qualify simply not have the 3.5% to put down that FHA requires and the property meets the USDA location guidelines.

He says, “An important time sensitive benefit for using this program is that USDA has not updated its maps since the year 2000 and there are now brand new neighborhoods in some larger towns that still qualify, that will not once the maps are redone.”

To secure prospects for this special financing, Eric says, “I have been using call capture and financing signs to help Realtors show people how they can buy their (agent’s) listings, that may be located just outside of the larger population areas, and still are within meet USDA location guidelines, with no money down. My agents are happy, their buyers and sellers are happy and everybody wins!”

By being a resource for financing opportunities that are less well known, Eric’s realtor partners are comfortable in knowing he is working on their behalf to secure the best financing for their customers and clients. Eric says, “Realtor loyalty is hardly an issue when you can truly be a resource to your team that helps make transactions happen”.

There are hundreds of ways to be of service in today’s market, as customers are buying and selling every day. I’ve been writing and studying   agent and LO success stories for several years and one thing is clear: Realtors that establish strong alliances with expert loan originators save money, and make more sales!

For more articles on Realtor-Loan Originator Relationships, visit www.TerriMurphy.com

Terri Murphy, author, speaker and consultant to the Mortgage Industry can be reached at: Terri@TerriMurphy.com or www.WomensWisdomNetwork.com

When working with a buyer prospect, they must posses what I call the three Cs of a buyer:

1. Commitment
2. Compromise
3. Competitiveness

A Champion Agent expects commitment from the client.  Most trainers will tell Agents to ask buyers, “Are you working with another Agent?”  That really isn’t the right question or wording.  The word working has too broad a definition.  Working could mean they met an Agent at an open house; they are receiving property matches from them; there is an Agent who farms their neighborhood.  The word working doesn’t mean they will buy and sell with that Agent. 

The proper question is, “Are you committed to another Agent?”  The prospects will either know exactly what you mean, or they will ask you for your definition of committed.   Either way, you gain clarity and avoid wasting your time with a prospect that could be disloyal in the end.  A clear recipe for disaster is investing your resources in a prospect that has a low or limited return.  Not only are the odds long for a commission with this type of prospect, but also you will often beat yourself up later over not recognizing a poor prospect sooner because you didn’t convert them.  This can affect your attitude, which will lower your confidence and production.  Gaining commitment at a high level from a prospect is the only way a Champion Agent invests their time.

A Champion Agent only works with clients who are willing to compromise.  If a prospect has the objective of achieving an “I win; you lose” type of transaction, your job will be far more difficult as their Agent.  If they are unwilling to compromise in what they want in a home, you both will be looking a long time for the “perfect” home.

A Champion Agent counsels their clients that there are no perfect homes; that most people end up with about 80% of what is on their wish list in terms of amenities; that he or she is working to find the best possible home, based on their needs, wants, and desires, given the current market conditions and market competition.

A Champion Agent makes sure the prospect is willing to be competitive.  Many buyers are hoping to be the exception rather than the rule.  They want to be the one buyer to buy that home at 80% of the asking price, when the market average is 95%.  They are unwilling to offer full price to anyone, even when there is a lack of inventory of homes, a large volume of buyers wanting homes, or market conditions dictate otherwise.  A prospect or client who is unwilling to be competitive or take competitive action when the circumstances dictate will increase your time invested, increase frustration, lower client satisfaction, and lower the probability of your compensation.

Establishing early in the prospect cycle whether the prospect has the three Cs enables you to make better decisions regarding with whom you invest your resources.  It also allows you to avoid the traps of the typical Agent’s service approach that borders on desperation.

It is true; some consumers like to set traps for unsuspecting agents. Armed with an attitude of sincerity and motivated by the opportunity to secure a new listing, every agent needs to avoid the traps set by expired home owners.

They say: If I can’t get $XXX,000 for my house, I can’t afford to sell.

This statement sounds innocent, but sets a major condition for taking the listing. A pre-set price without clarification or reasons is a trap to avoid. I suggest you simply reply: I am just curious, how did you determine that price? The objective for your curiosity is to ‘peel-back-the-onion’ or to reveal the expired seller’s motivation for having a pre-set price, not to mention the expectations that may exist with that price. Because the property has expired from the market, the price was probably rejected by the market. (But always keep in mind the possibility of location and condition as reasons for a property expiring.) Peeling back the seller’s motivation is key in determining your next step. An expired seller’s motivation for pre-selecting a price can range from: simple greed to having a second mortgage to another agent priced the home to the seller looked on-line at Zillow to the price reflects current tax assessed value to the cost of their new home or future lifestyle costs. Once you determine the motivation or reason behind the price tag, you can select your next step in successfully listing or walking away from the seller. Without peeling-back-the-onion, you may foolishly spend your time and money AND emotional energy. Avoid the trap of motivational ignorance.

They say: How come you did not sell it while it was on the market before?

There is nothing innocent about this statement, and it likely makes every agent cringe. This is the ‘blame trap’ and caution needs to be exercised. There are two clear directions an agent can take to avoid the pitfalls of the blame trap: One is to address the emotional feelings of failure of the expired seller. I suggest using the ‘feel-felt-found’ strategy. I understand how you feel. I have spoken with many other sellers who have felt the same way. What they found is once we go through the factors that impact a home successfully selling, they understand why all buyers and agents may not see or show every home on the market. Would you be able to meet this evening or tomorrow to discuss these factors? The second strategy is to directly address the factors or reasons all agents and buyers do not see every home. I suggest an introduction like&There are several reasons that every buyer or agent may not see or show a home for sale. All of the reasons are related to five factors: Price, Location, Condition, Amenities, and the Exposure your home was receiving while it was on the market. I like to follow-up this statement with a series of questions related to the results of the previous agent’s marketing. How many showings did you have? How many open houses did you have? And, how many lookers were at the open houses? Did you have any second showings? Did you have any offers? My intent should be clear. I am taking control of the conversation and collecting valuable information as I show real interest in the expired seller’s home. Avoid the blame trap.

They say: Can you send me some information on your experience first?

This request comes in many forms and I call it the ‘pre-condition trap’. It may be worded as: Can you send me the price you think you can sell my house for before we meet? Another way the ‘pre-condition trap’ is used is when a consumer suggests you drop off your market ahead of time. And the most common ‘pre-condition trap’ is, how much do you charge? In an attempt to be respectful of the seller’s wish, I immediately close for a time when they will be home, giving me the opportunity to meet them and quickly review the information they have requested. It sounds like this: I have a brief resume of discussion points on my brokerage and my personal experience. When would you be available for twenty minutes? Avoid the pre-condition trap.

They say: Have you ever sold a house in my neighborhood?

This is a challenge for the majority of agents. After all, we can only have a definitive number of sales in a year’s time. More important than the direct question is the motivation behind the question. The seller’s motivation for asking will determine your response and course of action. You may want to ask: I am just curious, did your last agent have a lack of knowledge about your neighborhood? Or, Are there some benefits of living in your neighborhood we can use to market your home? Or, Are you asking if I can service a listing in this location? Do not dodge the question, but do ask for clarification. Usually, only one agent will dominate a neighborhood and it is probably the expired agent. I call this the ’statistically improbable trap’ and it can be tricky if you are not prepared. Avoid the statistically improbable trap.

They say: How about if we just list it with you for a month and try it out?

The ‘test-drive trap’ is very common among expired sellers and we cannot blame them for being a little cautious. After all, they may have endured a six month contract with zero showings and very little contact with their previous agent. Embrace the ‘test-drive’ with empathy and a guarantee. Here is a possible response: I understand that you want to be cautious about entering another long contract. How would you feel about a ’seller service guarantee’? If we do not provide the service you are expecting, we will cancel the contract — no fees? This response is not for every agent. If you do not intend on servicing the listing and providing a list of service points with a guarantee, then you will need to respond differently. Avoid the test-drive trap.

They say: I am frustrated that our house has not sold yet.

This is not an objection. This is a statement of feeling. Use empathy and paraphrase their feeling. But, do avoid the possible trap of becoming their counselor. Remember, you run a real estate business not a counseling center. You want to establish yourself as their real estate market expert, not the human emotions expert. Try this: I understand how you feel. I have spoken with several other people that have felt the same way. They have found some comfort in understanding the current market conditions. When would you have twenty minutes for me? This should sound familiar; it is the ‘feel-felt-found’ strategy. Avoid the counselor trap.

They say: I don’t think our agent did their job.

Remember OUR Code of Ethics and stay true to its spirit and avoid the ‘mud-slinging trap’ at all costs. Try a response like this: What did your last agent do that you liked? And follow with, How could have the last agent improved their performance? This is a great opportunity for you to hand-craft a marketing program for your new listing. The expired seller is giving you their personal list of dos and don’ts. What could be more valuable when listing a home? Take advantage of this opportunity. Avoid the mud-slinging trap.

They say: My last agent was not able to sell our house in six months, what makes you think you can?

Repeat after me: We are not interchangeable parts! And believe it! As many different and unique brokerages as there are, there are equally as many levels of training and agent proficiency. I like to answer this question with a simple statement: When can we sit down and compare what you experienced over the last six months with what I am offering? Or, There are three basic reasons I think I can secure a buyer for your home. When can we sit down and discuss them? Remember: Not all agents are created equal, and we all need to develop our personal Value Proposition. Avoid the interchangeable-parts trap.

They say: My last agent did not do much to sell my house. I think I am going to try it myself.

The ‘give-up’ trap is a signal of readiness for a hungry agent who wants to work side-by-side with a motivated seller. And treat this opportunity just that way: It sounds like you are motivated to sell your home and have some ideas on how to get the job done. Am I right? Would it be all right if I stop over tonight to discuss your ideas and possibly make a plan for your home? The key is to dignify the seller’s ideas and see if they fit your marketing plan. It may be as simple as having the seller preview the flyers, MLS input, photos and 800 recording prior to the list start date. Some sellers just want to be empowered. Do it! Avoid the give-up trap.

Tip from the Coach: When a consumer offers an objection in the form of a statement or question, the consumer has an underlying motivation, reason or concern. The key to successfully handling all objections is to reveal that consumer’s motivation.

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Coach Cheri Alguire has helped hundreds of Real Estate Professionals take their business to the next level of success. If you would like to submit some objections for an upcoming article, or would like to know more about Coach Cheri’s coaching programs, go to http://CoachCheri.com

For those of you struggling with technology, this isn’t a “get out of tech jail free” message.  I still believe technology plays a huge and vital role in our industry and if you can adapt it into your business even in a small way, you will be ahead of a majority of agents.  In this article, I am referring to a very small and select group of agents.

I recently attended a party with some agents who worked with me at my Prudential brokerage in Tucson and ran into a fantastic agent whom I have great respect for.  She and her husband have been in the industry for over 25 years and have sustained a lucrative business.  When she asked what I was up to I, of course, immediately started ranting about the new technology solutions I am helping to build and launch and how she could benefit from them.  I saw the glaze and the immediate shut down.  Then it dawned on me, this agent was the one for whom I kept a 3X2 foot paging system at my front desk for 5 years after everyone else had moved on to cell phones….  She still has the last couple MLS books printed for nostalgia.  She is highly resistant to change and my in-house tech team was constantly on her personal computer fixing something trivial or finding lost emails.  Driving across town to deliver documents vs. faxing or emailing was much more comfortable for her.

This agent, and many more out there like her, has the ability to grab a HUGE niche market.   I find it very interesting that technology has spawned this Niche market that didn’t exist just 5 years ago…. The new “Non-Tech” Consumer who is surrounded by a tech world.

There are many buyers and sellers who are just like these agents but fear admitting to their “new found” techy agents that they really don’t want to use Docusign to sign contracts.  They have no desire to login to anything anywhere! These clients have to ask family members and friends to pull down and print emails and efaxes because they don’t even own a personal computer. They have no idea why anyone would want to text, or for that matter, Tweet and they just recently got their first cell phone.

These non-tech agents are not all older either.  Some are in their 30s and 40s but, a majority are in their late 50s and 60s.  They have been scolded for not updating their profiles on MLS and scoffed at because they don’t have a website, CRM, LinkedIn, MySpace etc.  So, what do they do? They go out and buy and attempt to set up all these tools and fail miserably or end up having to pay someone lots of money to do it for them. Reality is, they will NEVER use it and it will always be subpar making them look a lot less professional than they are.

How can these agents capture this great niche? By marketing to the idea that they are NOT TECH SAVVY AND DO BUSINESS THE OLD FASHION WAY.   You could have a lot of fun with this marketing strategy by doing a series of old fashioned postcards and ads with images that demonstrate how we used to do business in our society.

Leaders and managers, stop trying to force feed technology onto these agents and embrace the fact that all you have to do is help them get systems in place to get their snail mail contact database onto labels they can copy and get their monthly newsletter or recipe postcards in the mail to their sphere and a geographic farm that best represents their tech abilities such as retirement communities, older established areas etc.

All you non-tech agents get on your rotary phone and book some lunch dates and tee times with these consumers and grab this opportunity.   The referral opportunity is fabulous because a lot of these consumers have friends and family just like them.  It may not be a cash cow and bring you 200 closings a year, but it will be a great steady business that is in tune with your comfort zone.