You know the answer. We get all kinds of claims every day. We’re more aware of the myriad of scams each day. I’ll bet our ‘doubt’ meter keeps going up because of it.
What This Means to You As a Salesperson
You know trust is an issue with us salespeople and clients. Here’s one way we unwittingly erode it, instead of building it. We spend lots of time memorizing scripts. We reply on verbal acumen to convince our clients to do what we want them to do. Unfortunately, just telling them doesn’t create trust and confidence. Many salespeople are glib with the stories and promises. So: Showing them, in contrast, provides credibility and proves your professionalism.
How to Do It: Your Case Study
The best way to create trust is to back up your claims with third-party substantiation–in writing and/or in pictures.
Example One: Take pictures or videos of a home you listed prior to your preparing it for sale (interior and exterior). Then, take pictures or videos of the home after you’ve done all that preparation. Now, show the sales history of the home: Days on market, number of offers, sales statistics. This proves your point: That your expertise, advice and work to show that home at optimum pays off.
The Contrast
Example two: Show a home that wasn’t prepared for sale (listed by someone else, of course). Show the result: Days on market, number of shows per week (if you can get those figures), offers, and final list and sale price.
If You’re New, Borrow Someone’s Success Story
Let’s say you’re reading this, and you’ve only been in real estate sales two minutes. You don’t have any listings yet! Not to worry. Simply find a home history (example one) in your office and ask to use that history to show how your office optimizes sales prices.
Actions Speak Louder Than Words….
Or, in this case, a picture is worth a thousand words. Put your true stories–in pictures–in front of people. Now, you’re believable.
Note to Managers and Trainers
How to assure your agents are using proof, not just claims: Get your newer and challenged agents together and do a training on providing this credibility. The assignment: Each attendee is to bring in one example of each case study–along with enough copies for each person in the group. Go over each example and comment. Now, agents see how this works and will have several examples to use in their portfolios.
Tell Me What You Think
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