Winning the opportunity to market a high-end property will more often than not put you in a highly competitive situation. Affluent clients are not only highly selective in their choice of agent they are accustomed to interviewing professionals to ascertain their expertise. In most markets, they have their pick of agents in the area, and willing to put in the work to interview, evaluate and choose the absolute best one!
Your listing presentation plays a critical role in this process. It’s what clients will use to gauge your abilities as a salesperson, a marketer, and negotiator. Ultimately, it’s what will lock down that listing or send them running to the competition.
Want to ensure your next high-end listing appointment is a winner? Just follow the tips below or enroll in an online or in-person training with the Institute for even more in-depth insights into how to win and market high-end properties:
1. Reframe it as a marketing consultation.
Calling it a simple “listing presentation” downplays the importance of the appointment and also frames it as a one-way conversation. It implies that you’ll come in with a polished and pulled-together speech after which you’ll be on your way.
In reality, your appointment needs to be a two-way consultation. You should be asking questions, learning about the property, and listening to the seller about their concerns, goals and other needs. By discovering the most important features, unique aspects while appreciating the qualities of the property from the seller’s point of view, you will position yourself up as the professional who recognizes how to set their property apart and maximize the marketing opportunity.
2. Send them your bio and background ahead of time.
You only have so much time at this appointment and ideally, most of that time is spent talking about the home (and specifically, how you plan to market it). You don’t want to waste valuable minutes detailing your education, background and career trajectory or making small talk about the weather.
To keep your appointment as focused and efficient as possible, send the client your bio ahead of time. Keep it simple and stick to the info they’re really looking to learn: your experience in the field and your track record for sales. If you’ve won any awards or seen some public recognition, include those, too. Generally, you want to aim for a simple but professionally design brochure with just your picture and these high-level details.
3. Be Prepared – Knowledge is an Expectation.
You should know as much about the property as possible before entering its doors. Study up on the home’s history, its amenities, and the surrounding neighborhood because in today’s market ‘lifestyle’ is a critical part of marketing the home. What have other homes sold for recently in the area? How long were they on the market? Did they see price cuts or bidding wars? How do those homes measure up in terms of size, condition, and amenities?
During The Institute’s training you will also learn the power of how NOT providing a price during the first appointment can give you the edge!
However, it is still important to have this knowledge at your fingertips, come prepared with a clear picture of the current market, what prices are currently being fetched for similar properties and any challenges it may face. You should also have the proof to back all this up (local comps, appraisals, property tax data, etc.) so the client understands your analysis and sees you did the research.
Tip: Higher end homes are unique – never use words such as ‘comparable’, instead reference other homes as being of a similar style, size or acreage.
4. Learn the seller’s story.
Always have the seller walk you through the home from room to room. Ask them about how they used each space and what they liked and didn’t like about the property. Why did they buy the home in the first place? What sold them on the neighborhood? What were the neighbors like? You want to understand the draws of the home, as well as its drawbacks, so you can properly market them or downplay them in your efforts.
5. Bring in marketing mock-ups.
To really show you’re committed and prepared to sell the house, come in with sample marketing materials for the seller to review. Brochures, flyers or postcards are all good options, as are examples of what the listing or its dedicated website will look like.
If you regularly use some sort of advertising or marketing approach, bring in examples of these to share as well. Make sure to include stats on past strategies (views, click-throughs, calls generated, etc.)
6. Don’t be afraid to walk away.
A $5 million dollar listing is lucrative if it sells. However, if it’s overpriced, it will sit stagnant on the market. Always make sure a seller has realistic expectations for the property and that they’re educated on the current market they’ll be selling in. If they have unreasonable expectations for how much their home will sell for (or how quickly it can sell), then you’ll just be setting them — and yourself — up for serious disappointment.
Tap into the Luxury Market
Want to learn more about what today’s high-end buyers and sellers are looking for? Then consider our Certified Luxury Home Marketing Specialist certification or enroll in an online or in-person course today.