Estate Agents – When do you give up chasing your lost listings?
We all hate losing a listing to the competition … cheap fees, overvaluing, silver tongued BS merchant that over promises etc .. the same reasons I lost listings 25 years ago are the same reasons today … and let’s be honest, sometimes it is wise to walk away on overvaluing or cheap fees .. BUT .. what strategy have you got to get them back?
This is so important with the market tempering in many locations in the UK
The vast majority of listers reading this might make a diary note to call the week before the last of the sole agency (and if we are being honest) .. might ring once (if we are lucky) .. twice if its a slow week … only to see it swap agents to another BS agent a few weeks later.
So what I am suggesting?
Ring them up .. constantly and get them to ultimately say no for a second time
Getting your ‘lost listing vendors’ to say no a second time, is critical to improving your overall level of new instructions.
Too often Valuers / Listers say no on behalf of that lost vendor and it costs them on them big time in the long term in regards to them hitting their listings targets (and ultimately their commission)
To start .. can I ask how many times do you call a ‘lost vendor’ during the initial sole agency agreement with the competitior, without them return your call, before you resign to say you are never getting it? Once, 3 times, 4 times, 7 times … 12 times?
All I am telling you is to don’t stop calling until they reply with a definitive no!
When you stop calling before your prospective listing says no, you are in fact saying NO for them and that’s not your role as Valuer. It’s not your role to say no for your prospective listing. If a lost listings vendor is going to say no, then it’s your job to get them to say ‘no’, not the other way round.
You don’t know why they are not calling you back or replying to your emails.
Too many good listers assume it’s because the house sellers are not interested in their agency to the sell the property.
So let me give you a couple of tips .. if after the 5th or 6th phone call, even though you know they have your number in their phone (leaving a couple of voice messages .. saying bland stuff like ‘Hi is Chris from XYZ Agents .. Just wanted to touch base, see how things were ….’, and the prospective vendor hasn’t called you back. Do this …
Let them know you’re going keep trying until they get back with you. Leave a voice message that says;
“Mr Bloggs, I have left you a couple messages and I don’t want to keep bothering you, but it’s my responsibility to keep in contact with you, so we can get you moved to [insert name of town and type of property they want to buy which you know as you asked at the original free val]. If you aren’t interested in me helping you, then please do let me know so I can take you off my list and help other local people in [insert name of your town] make the step to the next chapter of their life. Otherwise, I will assume you interested but exceptionally busy and I will keep trying until we catch up with other. Thank you!”
Irrespective of what happens, you shouldn’t stop calling until THEY, the punter, tells you to stop… until your prospective listing says yes or courteously says no thanks, I am not interested.
It isn’t your job to say no for your house seller.
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