For years, agents and brokers were valets. Their value proposition was that they held the key to the room with all the information in it and you had to go through them to get in. They also held the key to get into any house that was on the market. Basically, they just opened doors.
Though there are still many agents that still want to be valets, the days of valet agents is coming to an end.
It’s time to be the concierge of real estate in your area as well as your area in general.
Not the mediocre one at a mediocre hotel who grabs your bags from storage or hands you a pamphlet with stuff to do in the area and says “Here you go. Good luck.” I’m talking about the concierge that knows everybody in town and can get you into places that only the ones “in the know” know about and can get into. The concierge that knows every club doorman, every hostess and restuarant manager and every tour director in town. The one who everyone wants to turn to to get the “insider” information on what’s going on in the area, where to go and how to get in.
A great concierge will ask you, “What are you looking for?”, suggest one or several places to go or things to do and make sure you get in and are taken care of. At the end of the day (or night), you’ll be saying, “That concierge sure picked the right place to go to based on what I was looking for. He/she is definitely the go-to person for finding out what to do and where to go in this town!”
How do your clients view you?
Your clients should view you the same way when it comes to real estate and your community. You should be the one that knows everything and anything real estate and community related in your area that people can turn to for answers and guidance.
If there’s a rumor of a new shopping mall being built in the future, you should know whether it’s true or not and what stores are going in and when.
If a house just came on the market, you should know what all the ones that sold before it on that street looked like, how much they sold for and how they compare.
If there’s going to be a lot release by a builder in your area, you should know about the release date, which models will be available and what incentives you can negotiate before anyone else.
If there are foreclosures and short-sales in your market place (which is most likely the case), you should know the ins and outs of how the process works and how to effectively negotiate an offer with the bank.
If someone in your area wants to know this kind of information, they should automatically want to turn to you because the word on the street is that you’re the one “in the know”…the one who’s got their finger on the pulse of real estate in the area…the one who knows how to negotiate more effectively and better than the rest of them.
Work at it to earn it…
In order to earn this type of credibility and notoriety, you have to put in a lot of work to earn it. That concierge didn’t stumble into those hook-ups and strong connections by accident. That took, and continues to take, a lot of dedication and effort. It takes up a lot of time each and every day. It requires constant communication with those in the community. It takes staying on top of what’s going on at all times. And then it takes satisfied people telling all their friends and even those they don’t know about him/her.
If you want to a be a great concierge agent rather than just another valet agent, you have to put in the same type of work and dedication. You have to impress your clients with your knowledge and expertise so that they tell their friends, coworkers and even those they just met, “(your name) is the one to talk to when it comes to real estate in (your town) and to find out what’s going on”.
Much like a great concierge makes a ton of tip money from people coming in to pick their brain for advice, you’ll find yourself with a steady stream of clients and commissions as the local expert. And just like the valet watches the concierge’s success in disbelief, the agents who think that opening doors is enough will wonder why you have so many clients and how you’re closing so many deals in this market.
Bob
October 8, 2008 at 8:13 am
This isn’t practical in a large market.
Heather Elias
October 8, 2008 at 8:21 am
Absolutely. Taking ‘local expert’ to the next level…when your client asks a question and you can say “I talked wth that builder’s rep last week, she said..” or “the Five Guys pizza is going to open in three weeks” without having to say “Let me find out and call you back” ; that’s instant credibility and they appreciate it.
Bob, maybe you are covering too large of an area if you can’t keep track of local information? I know Danilo covers a large, growing county, and still knows all those details. No, it’s not easy, yes, it’s time consuming. But it sure does pay off…
Danilo Bogdanovic
October 8, 2008 at 8:32 am
Bob, Not sure what you mean by “large market”. I’m in a huge market (Northern VA), but my focus is on Eastern Loudoun County. If I were to try to know the entire Northern VA market, I would never be able to be an expert.
Perhaps you should focus your farm area and be the “master of one trade” rather than the “jack of all”. That’s how you become the expert and the go-to-agent in your area. Much like you go see a specialist rather than a general medecine doctor when you have a specific ailment, consumers are seeking out agents who specialize in the specific area they’re moving within/to.
Just my .02.
Steve Simon
October 8, 2008 at 8:37 am
I will probably be flamed for this but after you’ve had twenty thousand students you are aware of the background of more than a few lawsuits. That being said I agree with the gist of the post. It is however extremely easy to raise yourself from “FOK” (fountain of knowledge) to target for someone with buyer’s remorse.
If the buyer’s decision to buy was based in part on something you said will happen, and it does not happen, the buyer only has to persuade the court that the information you relayed to them was a material factor in their mind when they decided to buy. It is very subjective, and may not be easy for the buyer to prove, but you (the agent) will not want to be in this game…
So, practice good risk avoidance procedure:
If you are telling people about malls in the future, make it abundantly clear that any future development is not guaranteed. Do not speak for the intentions of developers you’ve never met.
Once you start spouting off, it is very easy to get carried away…
I’ll leave it there for this comment, I’ll wait to tell you about “Gratuitous Agency”, and “Attraction Nusance some other time:)
Benn Rosales
October 8, 2008 at 8:43 am
Steve, I’ll concur on that, our expansion in the burbs very early on taught everyone in the profession and even those that arent to use the word proposed because it seems the politics in each little city would virtually stem even for sure things. So if it’s not complete and opened, it’s proposed, but the broader point I certainly agree with here.
Danilo Bogdanovic
October 8, 2008 at 8:47 am
Steve and Benn – You are correct and I’m sorry that I didn’t touch upon that in the post. I always use the words “proposed” and “possibly”. I even share my source(s) with the client so that they understand that I’m just relaying what’s been told to me and so that they can chat with the source(s) on their own.
Lani Anglin-Rosales
October 8, 2008 at 8:54 am
Danilo, so many people are using hyperlocal blogging as a means to show a tangible expertise and I love your examples of how to show your true knowledge. I’ve made moving decisions based on proposed expansion and taken that chance that the city would eventually expand out to the burbs and knowing what is proposed will always help OCD people like me help to make a decision because some people want as much control as possible over their biggest investment, and having an idea of what a neighborhood COULD look like in the coming years helps tremendously. Whether it’s knowing proposed retail, a home that isn’t on the MLS yet, or the new dress code of the local school, it all paints a broader picture- as an agent, if you have the ability to paint with a detailed brush instead of a mop, why wouldn’t you?
Jim Duncan
October 8, 2008 at 8:58 am
Be the source of the source.
I tell all of my clients that while I feel I know more than the average Realtor because of my involvement and writing, I still want them to verify and vet everything I tell them (they do anyway).
Be definitive and confident, yet hedge everything. Much of planned development is rumor anyway … until they start pouring footers.
Danilo Bogdanovic
October 8, 2008 at 9:09 am
“Be definitive and confident, yet hedge everything.” – Very well said Jim!
“…having an idea of what a neighborhood COULD look like in the coming years helps tremendously.” – That’s the mentality 90% of the buyers I work with have. Seems like the same is true for you Lani.
Rich Jacobson
October 8, 2008 at 11:25 am
Oh so true! There’s a boatload of dumbfounded valets out there right now, scratchin’ their heads, wondering why today’s sophisticated consumers aren’t asking them to park their cars. Differentiation through details.
Brian Block
October 8, 2008 at 11:57 am
Danilo, what a fantastic analogy! While there’s nothing wrong with opening doors, those agents who only do that may feel it slam them in their behinds on their way out of the industry
Missy Caulk
October 8, 2008 at 1:33 pm
Danilo, one way to stay on top of “potential” condo’s, Whole food stores, or new restaurants is being active in the Chamber, in my area they always know the skinny. In this market we are should be a source for the consumers or at least know where to point them.
Rod Rebello
October 8, 2008 at 1:59 pm
“…Much of planned development is rumor anyway … until they start pouring footers.”
And even then, not a sure bet. There’s a shopping development just down the road that made it just past framing stage, and is dead in the water since they ran out of funds.
Bob
October 8, 2008 at 8:15 pm
I learned from one of the best – Gregg Neuman. When asked where he sold real estate, Gregg would respond, I’m licensed in California, but I specialize in San Diego. I would bet that Russell Shaw would say something similar. No coincidence that they are both in Keller’s Millionaire Agent book and sell 100s of homes year in and year out.
I suppose that if one thought this was the way a buyer agent should approach it, there would be some merit, but in a market like mine where buyers will look in 10 different zip codes, they would starve given present market conditions.
With all due respect, it’s sounds good and high minded, but it isn’t practical. I don’t know any high powered teams that have their buyer agents follow this strategy.
Danilo Bogdanovic
October 9, 2008 at 5:21 pm
Bob,
Gregg (and Russell) sell more in a year than some agents do the entire time they have their license so you definitely learned from some of the best. I learned from another one of the best too – Chris Cormack, also in Gary Keller’s Millionaire Agent book. I was on her team as a buyer’s agent for 4 years during which time 5 other agents and I sold up to 350 homes per year. And we did this in a farm area that only had about 200K people in it. (To give you perspective, the neighboring county, Fairax County, has over 1M people in it alone)
The reason for our success was in fact because we focused on a specific area and followed the very strategy I described in my post. With all due respect, calling this strategy impratical is inaccurate and false.
Bob
October 12, 2008 at 9:49 am
Danilo,
In an area of 200,000, fine, but it is impractical in a market of 2,000,000.
Like you said, it takes time and hard work to develop that knowledge. How easy was it to replace you when you left the team? How many excellent buyer agents would be passed over because they don’t have that knowledge?
The more important question is how do you know that the same results couldn’t have been obtained with a team that just knew how to sell and close?
Danilo Bogdanovic
October 13, 2008 at 10:29 am
It is impossible to be an expert of an area of that size (2M) so yes it is impractical.
Neither the lead listing agent nor I have been replaced and their sales reflect that. And you can’t be an excellent buyer’s agent if you don’t have that knowledge. Just because you have great closing skills doesn’t make you a good buyer’s agent (nor listing agent).
Being able to close is great. But if that’s all you can do, then you should stick with inside sales where people come to you (e.g. retail). Real estate is an outside and relationship sales business. You’re basically selling yourself and your expertise (e.g. lawyers, doctors). Being able to close is great, but you have to attract clients to you first. That’s where being able to sell yourself comes into play. That’s where being an expert is key. And the definition of what makes you an expert is where we differ in opinion. That is where we can agree to disagree.