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Success leaves clues. Great real estate agents prepare by knowing seven things before a real estate meeting. These items give them the insight and sense of preparation that increases the success rate of closing a real estate meeting.
If you want to approach your next listing appointment with complete confidence, then this article is for you.
1. They know their landlord.
A good real estate agent will do their homework on the homeowners they are going to meet, and if they already know the homeowner, a quick look at social media can provide information about recent life events, vacations, job changes, new hobbies, and so on.
If it’s the agent’s first time meeting with a homeowner, a Google search or social media research can give the agent a lot of information about the prospect before the meeting. Information about a recent engagement (or divorce), a new job (or recent unemployment), or a new baby (or recent graduation) can help the agent prepare for the meeting.
During the interview, asking about recent holidays or celebrations that a prospect has documented on social media allows them to build rapport and a connection with the homeowner faster than usual.
Top agents also understand that most homeowners will do a social check or Google search before booking, so with this in mind, it’s a good idea to check out your social media to make sure your posts are a true representation of who you are.
Also, do a Google search on yourself. Make sure your Google Business Profile is active, accurate, and attractive to potential customers.
If you’re not sure how to optimize your Google Business Profile, check out these articles: Optimize your Google Business Profile to build your brand
2. They know the history of the house.
Before making an appointment, a top real estate agent will research the home’s history — they know when the current owners purchased the home. They’ll read the home’s MLS description from previous sales to find out who the original builder was, if previous owners did any renovations, and if there are any notable features of the home that you should know about before viewing the property.
Being able to share previous sales information and builder details when listing your property demonstrates your professionalism to sellers, earns them trust as your agent and increases your chances of winning their business.
3. They know the trends across their local markets
Trends not only inform current market conditions, but also future market trends. Are days on market increasing or decreasing? Are prices rising or falling? Are there more or fewer homes for sale than there were two months ago? Understanding trends is important, but educating homeowners on how these trends affect them and how they can take advantage of them is where an agent provides real value.
Always remember: statistics speak, but stories sell, so be prepared to understand overall market trends and share with sellers how you plan to leverage them to sell their home as quickly and for the highest price possible.
4. They are aware of similar properties sold and properties currently on the market.
Comparable home sales and similar homes currently for sale are the most important factors when it comes to pricing, positioning and marketing your home. Top real estate agents study recent sales. They investigate the selling factors of recent sales of similar homes. They know if homes competing with theirs have recently lowered their prices or are offering incentives to buyers.
Being able to share a fact-based pricing strategy that sellers believe in, rather than just presenting a number, makes a big difference.
5. Know your unique selling point
What sets them apart from other agents? Top real estate agents make it easy to communicate what sets them apart and why sellers should sell their house to them. Do they have a large buyer database? Do they provide professional videos for each property? Do they host amazing open houses and have a unique marketing plan?
Again, the key is understanding how your unique selling proposition benefits homeowners. If you can explain what makes you different and how that difference benefits homeowners, you’ll land more listings.
6. They know how to market a home.
Top agents arrive at sales meetings with a concise, clear home marketing plan. Telling sellers how you’ll market their home is one thing, but the next step is showing them how. Top agents arrive prepared with a home marketing plan and examples of how they’ve marketed their home from previous sales.
They show prospective properties examples of videos, marketing materials, and social media posts they’ve done for other properties, as well as results from open houses they’ve held. They come to listing meetings fully prepared with a marketing plan to give homeowners a clear understanding of what they’re doing to sell their property.
If you’re looking for ways to leverage AI to establish a marketing plan that delights your sellers, check out this article. “Chick-Fil-A on Sunday” ChatGPT List Presentation Blueprint
7. I know my values and what I don’t want to do.
Early in my career, I would show up to listings and agree to things I knew wouldn’t benefit the seller or my business because I was so eager to take the listing. I would take listings for less money when I had no intention of doing so when I went in for the listing. I would take advertising that the seller wanted and I knew it wouldn’t work, but I would agree to it because I was so eager to take the listing. Ultimately, I learned the most valuable word a professional has: NO.
Over time, I gained experience and came to understand the value I bring to sellers. I had a track record of getting results and understood that my selling plan and the right pricing strategy would get the house sold. It wasn’t that I was stubborn and unwilling to negotiate, but that I knew what I would and wouldn’t do even if the sale didn’t go through.
Top agents have the self-awareness to handle the more saleable properties. They accept that yes is yes and no is no. In doing so, they understand that if they lose a property because it doesn’t meet their business guidelines, it’s okay if they don’t get it.
There’s another level to real estate booking conversions and the answer is preparation. Preparation not only leads to more confidence in yourself, it also leads to the seller’s confidence that you are the real estate booking agent they need to sell their house. Get prepared and watch your real estate booking conversion rates skyrocket.
