As a real estate agent I’ve used Buyer Agency agreements for most of my 24 year career. In 2006 when I moved to Colorado, my broker at the time required it for every client that went under contract. I’ve personally sold or been involved in the sale of over 500 properties and those were about 60% sellers and 40% buyers. So I’ve done a lot of presentations and became pretty good at explaining exactly what I do while helping the buyers and sellers understand what I expect from them. My hope in writing this is that you will be able to take away one or two nuggets that will help you articulate your value as an agent so you can close more sales thereby helping more people.
Step 1: Getting the Appointment
A whole book can be written about this topic alone. I find that being mentally prepared before I ever make contact with a buyer or seller is very important. I have both inbound contacts ( people who call, text, email or message me through social media ) and outbound contacts that I reach out to. I follow a basic non-threatening approach to these contacts but I’m very intentional to ask for an appointment at various points of the “conversation”. Early on I’m trying to build rapport by asking questions about their needs along with their motivation and experience. I’m NOT trying to sell my services on first contact. I’m trying to find a way to meet in-person or virtually. Here are a few reasons why people meet with me.
- They want to see a home
- They want to know a property value
- They want buying or selling advice
- They want investment advice
- They want financing advice
I offer something of value for free in return for meeting with me in a non-threatening and low commitment way.
Step 2: The First Appointment
This is where I begin to establish my real value. I’ve already established why they are willing to meet with me during the appointment setting contact. Now it’s my turn to better understand their need and show them how I go about meeting their needs. I always have a professional presentation prepared for the meeting. I am also personally prepared by visualizing how I want the appointment to go, dressing professionally, arriving on time and sending text reminders when I’m on the way to let them know that I’m on my way.
Even if I’m just supposed to show them a home as the first appointment, I suggest meeting 20 minutes prior to the viewing at a public location nearby so we can meet and I can go over some necessary information required by the state.
Set the Tone: When we meet I always start with something positive to say about them, the day, the neighborhood etc. I want them to have a positive experience and I want to continue building rapport. I quickly try to frame the meeting by letting them know that I have a plan/process that we need to go through. I present them the materials that I have prepared for our meeting. I ask questions and clarify their needs/motivation before moving to the next phase.
The Presentation:
- How I work – I explain my job as an agent before I ever give them the Object of Value. This is a combination of things that I help with as part of the benefits of working with me. You can use your agent brochure, a buyer agency agreement or company disclosure as part of this process. I make it clear that I have the experience and knowledge to help combined with the heart to genuinely care about them and their needs. I ask questions of them throughout this section to make sure they understand.
- What do I expect from them – In return for all that I do as a professional, I let them know what expectations I would have from them if we decide to work with me. These are things like communicating through me as their agent, being on time for appointments and being diligent and responsive to requests that are going to be a part of the transaction.
- Object of Value – After I’ve established what it would be like if we worked together, then I give them the object of value. This can be anything from a CMA, listing sheet on a property for sale or staging advice. I explain that at this point they are still not obligated to use me. We will establish a working relationship in writing once we mutually decide to work together.
- Ask for the business – If I decide that I want to work with them, then I ask them if they would be willing to work with me. It’s a natural progression that happens as we build trust.
Note: Using a Contract to Buy and Sell along with a buyer agency or listing agreement to explain the buy/sell process is a great way to establish value because at various steps I clarify that it’s my job to manage the transaction and make sure that all parties are in compliance along with knowing what to do when situations occur