Should Estate Agents do more for their clients?
I thought this month I would like to write a light hearted blog about why Estate Agents ‘could’ or ‘should’ perhaps consider doing a little more for their clients. Agents, take a deep breath, I promise this won’t hurt a bit!
My question to any Estate Agents reading this blog is, ‘Could you do more for your clients even although you may feel you don’t have to?’. Read on, and please let me know your honest opinion.
At Clear Vision Media, we work with Estate Agents and Property Developers up and down the country. When we first begin to work with a new agent, I have two main questions that I always like to have a firm understanding of, firstly:
‘What is the average timescale their agency takes to sell a property in their area?’
And I also like to discuss:
‘What is my client looking to achieve by working with Clear Vision Media?’
The reason I like to ask these two key questions is to fully ascertain how we can best help their business. Having the benefit of working with agents throughout the UK enables myself and the team to understand some of the challenges one agent may face, that another agent in a different area is unlikely to experience.
The answers I get can be so vastly different and yet each agent is doing the same thing as their competitor. Perhaps here lies part of the problem of why Estate Agents should be doing more for their clients.
Unfairly judged?
This is most likely not a huge surprise to many, but yes, our hard working agents are not well respected in this country. Being an Estate Agent, unfortunately is not a profession that general Joe Public regards as an ‘honest living’. Just think back to the last time you were at a social function and were introduced to someone for the first time. I would bet my entire bank account that when asked ‘So what do you do for a living?’ there would have been an all mighty groan when some hard working agent replied ‘I’m an Estate Agent’!
Even with my own job, people will say ‘wow, 3D animation, that must be so interesting’ and yes it is, I love my job. However, I know the interest in my profession will quickly dwindle as soon as the group I am talking to discover whom I mostly work with! Whilst I can laugh now, it is getting tedious defending Estate Agents and the job they do!
So why do people dislike Estate Agents?
Estate Agents today take a lot of ‘slack’ shall we say with regards to how much money they EARN from selling a clients property. I have purposely typed ‘EARN’ as this is exactly what they are doing. Rightly or wrongly its fair to say the majority of Estate Agents, online or high street based, earn a very comfortable living. I have no problem with this as, in my experience, the majority of good agents work very hard, despite what public perception may suggest.
Being an Estate Agent is sadly not the most well respected of professions. Lawyers and Dentists fall into the same category, receiving again an unfair judgement vote from the masses, but they at least have the respect for their profession!
Perhaps its time all the good, honest, hard working agents of our great country made an effort to change public perception. I for one, very much enjoy working with Estate Agents and can whole heartedly respect the work they do. Many years ago (too many years that I care to admit to) I worked for two very successful agencies. I thoroughly enjoyed my time with both agencies and won’t hear a bad word against either. During this time in my career I learned many valuable lessons that I put to good use in my business today. However it puzzles me why there are some agents that simply won’t move with the times. Agents that won’t do more and are happy plodding along doing the same routine, day after day. Yawn!
Wake up and smell the roses!
Change! Step it up a gear! Offer your clients more! They not only want it, they deserve it!
Ok so there are agents that are selling houses well within a week, some only taking a few days due to careful marketing and an up to date database – wooptidoo for you! However, how many of these agents are taking the time to ensure their client is in fact genuinely happy with the sale and the overall service they received? Did the client feel they got the best deal possible?
4 Products an agent could or should provide for free:
By providing your clients with more choice, you will attract more clients!
1. Short property video
Why not offer to design a short summary video of their property at no cost to the vendor? It is possible to create a short video highlighting the key selling points of the property for less than £100!
2. Access to an online update
Add a link to your website which enables the vendor keep track of any progress. Ideal for clients that are working during the day and only have time to check late in an evening. Not to mention the time that it will save your staff in updating them. Don’t get me wrong, a face to face update or daily telephone call is obviously preferred, but wouldn’t it be great to offer more choice?
3. Floor plans
2D and 3D floor plans that can appear on the website and in the clients property video. Floor plans, and in particular animated floor plans are a fantastic way to illustrate the space layout available. Floor plans can be unfurnished or furnished, incorporate your company logo or colours. Whatever suits, the point is, the more information a client has, the easier it will be for them to make a decision about a property.
4. Video Screens
Provided your premises has the space necessary, agents could easily promote a clients home on a video screen that runs 24/7. A far more modern and eye catching alternative to the boring window cards that no one can see unless they are directly in front of the window. If your agency is lucky enough to be on a busy road, drivers will also be able to view the available properties as they are stopped in traffic. What an easy way to attract interest in your business!
By offering one or all of the above, your client is definitely going to feel they are getting value for money. Remember, most vendors believe all you are doing is a quick initial meeting, advertising their home online, charging a marketing fee, and then walking away with another chunk of their money once the property is sold.
You and I appreciate there is an endless list of chasing viewers, keeping in touch with lawyers, negotiating a better deal, so on and so on, blah, blah, blah! The vendor does not think about any of that! Hence the reason, Estate Agents get a bad name. People don’t see the bigger picture because they are not physically a part of it. By offering more choice and more products, that let’s face it isn’t going to break the bank, you are going to reap the benefits tenfold.
So in answer to my original question, YES, 100% YES! Estate Agents should most definitely offer their clients more choice, even if only to change public perception. The results will be phenomenal. If you are the agent that has the trust and respect of the general Joe Public, then you are also the agent that has more quality clients!
My wonderful husband and I have a wedding to attend in August of this year, let’s see if that’s long enough to change public perception! We would love to ramble on about what we do instead of defending what you do!
Go shake up the industry and have fun!
Get in touch
Always choose the winning team!
If you would like to discuss:
Marketing the sale of any property or development by using our Floor Plan Property Videos,
CGI’s (computer generated images),
Aerial photography and videography footage, or to talk to us about our architectural and financial services, please get in touch.
We can be contacted on during office hours on: 0141 644 0115 or by emailing: quotes@clearvisionmedia.co.uk. The more detail you include within your initial email the easier it will be for our team to successfully answer all of your questions.
Alternatively if you would simply like to view more of our products and services, including our demo property videos please visit our website: clearvisionmedia.co.uk.
We are always happy to help in any way that we can, so contact us today, it will be the best contact you ever made!
Written By Carol Faichney, Partner, Clear Vision Media
Specialists in floor plan property videos. Visit: clearvisionmedia.co.uk for further information on our full range of products and services.
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