Are you the most irritating agent in your area?
What’s your take on networking?
I hate it.
Actually let me qualify that. I hate the word networking.
It’s such a clunky way of describing people just meeting up and talking.
I like meeting people, like chatting (it’s the Irish in me) but despise hard selling.
I was at a ‘networking’ event recently as a favour to a friend.
There were no estate agents there so I wasn’t looking to sell anything. Even if there was I wouldn’t be looking to sell– I’d be more interested in chatting with them for sure, but that would be it. I ain’t there to sell.
I sat next to a chap at this meeting and politely asked him what line of business he was in.
His scarily well polished reply pounced on me as his eyes glazed over: “I help businesses like yours save money and I can help you make extra money to.”
“For fuck’s sake” I thought silently and died a little inside. He was a utility club house or energy whatsitname rep, speaking the language they get really well trained in.
What should I do? I didn’t want to be rude but having been in this situation before I knew I had to act fast.
So I made a polite excuse and said I needed to desperately use the toilet. With no plans to return to my seat. Ever.
It’s amazing how direct you can be in the face of a potential ten minutes of being sold to by someone you would never buy from in a million years.
Any road here’s my point.
Later on the same chap made a point of going round to everyone handing out his business card. He was literally just giving them to people without saying a word.
He was obviously in a rush and decided to card spam all the people in the room.
And that’s a good way of describing his actions because he was simply irritating people by spamming them with something they hadn’t asked for.
But here’s the thing, estate agents who lazily put leaflets through doors saying ‘we’ve got the biggest market share, shiniest shoes, most branded cars’ etc are doing the same thing Mr Irritating was doing.
The property owner hasn’t asked for your sales pitch.
A much better approach if you’re going to direct market to them is to tell them something rather than try to sell them something.
Share a market update, a potted history of their area, a What’s on locally guide, anything that is relevant, interesting and will leave them thinking a little more positively about your agency than they did before receiving it.
If that fails. Just bung your business card through their door and see if they want to cut their gas bill.
Thanks for reading and here’s to your next instruction.
Jerry
PS: This month’s April issue of The Negotiator magazine features a really good article on page 24. The author is a dashing swine talking about the benefits of agencies entering awards.
PPS: A couple of you were asking about a caption service for your video blogs / You Tubing – I’ve been told a company called Rev are good and affordable but I haven’t used them yet. www.rev.com
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