I absolutely agree 100% with Teresa Boardmans post, as did many of you, but I would like to take this thread and go deeper…
This is what I see
As we Americans transition further and further into the realities of an instant gratification society, buyers continue to require less from the agent (expected free as a service), and more of themselves. The big players have influence (positive & negative). In fact, the consumption of sites like Craigslist.com, Zillow.com, and search sites seem to be leaving many buyers in an ‘ignorance is bliss’ fog. It doesn’t seem to matter what they didn’t know until after the fact.
Revolution = chaos to mainstream
The impulsive nature of buyers caught up in the so-called revolution leaves the victory in that they did it without any wisdom of the professional. Instead, they’re using the wisdom of the collective assumption to pass judgement on what buyer representation should look like for them.
I’m not saying this is every buyer, but what I am saying is that it is a phenomenon that I feel may be blossoming into a trend. As we all continue to ignore the eroding value placed on quality professionals and watch buyers opt for the ridiculous expectations of a website with 1/2 facts based on 1/2 questions based on 1/2 truths by someone possibly even unrelated to the profession. I feel like your schedule really is only worth what a buyer believes it’s worth- and 50 people online just said to this buyer that it wasn’t worth anything. The fact remains that this buyer will buy and will probably use an agent in the end.
Just turn the key, dammit
The buyer, when calling to see a home, is calling to see a home. 1.0 and some 2.0 agents understand that preparation is vital to the client’s best interest as it gives a quality agent an opportunity to prepare options, but the buyer believes they’ve already done the preperation, they’ve found the house, and now they’ve simply asked you to show it- now. The buyer believes they are prepared. Now what?
This trend may only be local to them- for now
I am positive that the middle of the country with the exception of Austin, Dallas, and Houston, is probably not yet trending, but I can only imagine what other more tech savvy cities are feeling when it comes to customer relations and dumbing themselves down to give the customer a quality turn of the key and a swift buyer adios.
Here’s what I suggest
Adapt, adjust, and grow. We as agents and a profession may have to account for these situations opportunities somehow, someway. I truly believe that someone will step in to fill this “turn the key for me-only” expectation, or they won’t, but one thing is for sure – turning that key in the future may be your one shot at any buyer if this trend continues.
What do you see?
Is our future more hands off and less hands on? Are you seeing an increase in the stand alone buyer that insists they only need you to turn the key but lets you hang around until it no longer suits them? Is there a way you believe that this trend will actually hurt the buyer in the long run? Have you yet experienced a situation where you shared the reins of representation with google and other online real estate information sites, and felt second guessed at every turn? These are questions you must be asking yourself day to day in order to find the trends in your market, and they’re by far not the only ones to be asking. But by asking yourselves and others these vital questions are what will allow you to adapt, adjust, and grow, despite the so-called revolution.
