You’ve negotiated a deal, signed the documents, and now it’s time to part ways with your client. Except how do you thank someone who just shared a multi-million dollar transaction with you?

Typically, one thinks of sending their client bottles of wine, ornate centerpieces, or tickets to a local event. While these are nice and certainly appreciated, there are a few key elements to giving a closing gift that feels meaningful to your client, leads to repeat business, and can even win you new business — just by giving the right gift.

Recently, the Institute spoke with top 1% producer Jim Walberg and customer experience expert Ryan Ogden on our Estate of Mind podcast, where Jim shared a few of his best tips for designing a bespoke experience for clients from start to finish, including how to give a closing gift that makes an impact.

Here’s how to do it:

Know How You Want Your Client to Think and Feel

When most luxury real estate professionals look for a closing gift for their client, they’re worried about factors like price, the latest trends, or which housewarming gift would look good in the client’s new home.

The real questions to ask are, how do I want my client to feel, and what do I want them to think of me once this deal is closed?

In fact, according to customer experience expert Ryan Ogden, these are the questions you should be asking yourself from the moment you meet to the moment you close — but these questions are especially handy when it comes to choosing a closing gift.

Do you want them to feel valued? supported? appreciated?

Do you want them to think of you as someone they can trust? someone who listens and has their best interests in mind?

Get clear here and start picking out your closing gift.

Don’t Wait to Think About Your Closing Gift

You learn a lot about a person when you spend weeks (or even months) helping them find or sell their home. As soon as your first meeting with a client, you’ll start to pick up on their likes and dislikes, start anticipating needs, and finding out what matters most to them.

And if you want to give them a meaningful gift at the end of your time together?

You’ll want to observe and listen closely to what they say and do and start making connections to how you can work those clues into their closing gift.

For example, one of Jim’s clients from Pakistan mentioned in passing that she had always wanted to play guitar. She bought a guitar in secret when she was a child, and her dad made her give it away. When a friend bought her a guitar recently, she didn’t know how to use it.

Coincidentally, Jim’s nephew is in a band, so Jim asked if he could hire him for a dozen guitar lessons for his client. Unsurprisingly, his client was moved to tears at the gesture.

How’s that for a meaningful gift?

All it takes is listening carefully and thinking ahead.

Give Them an Opportunity to Tell Others About Their Experience WIth You

When your luxury real estate professional gives you a gift that moves you to tears, there’s a good chance you’ll tell people about it.

When you share that story, there’s also a good chance people will want to know who your luxury real estate professional is and how they can get their number for their next listing or purchase.

The good news is, you don’t need to make your clients cry to create an opportunity for them to tell people about their experience with you.

A simple way Jim has created new business from his closing gifts is scheduling gifts to arrive at his clients’ place of work rather than their home.

Not only do people love receiving unexpected gifts to break up their workday, it gets the people in the office asking about where the gifts came from, which opens up the perfect opportunity for the client to share about their positive experience with their luxury real estate professional.

In other words, thinking just a few steps ahead can leave an even bigger impression on your client (and their colleagues) than simply sending a pricey gift to their home.

How Can The Institute Help You Design a Truly Bespoke Experience for Your Clients?

The Institute’s in-person Luxury Live events are back, and they’re the precursor to joining some of the top producers and instructors in the industry to start or grow your luxury real estate career.

The curriculum for these exciting two-day Luxury Live events is based on our proven 7-Step Luxury Marketing Blueprint so you can equip yourself with the latest luxury marketing strategies and the confidence to serve affluent clients at the highest level.

To learn more and see when Luxury Live is coming to your city, click here.

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