Obtaining Instructions Part 2: From Theory to Practice

In Part 1 of this article we discussed the theory that the way you present yourself on property portals, your own web presence and the way you go about handling leads is a vital part of winning instructions or at the least obtaining the opportunity to present yourself over your competitors.

Well, enough of the theory, here is one practical example of how you can implement an early relationship building exercise with potential sellers.

I’ve mentioned it before briefly in other articles and that is offering a product like a “A Guide to Selling Your Home”. Sounds easy, simple and basic but it really is how you position it and what you do with it.

For this to work we need to agree on a number of principles.

1. This is not about branding per se but more about positioning as a leader in your market and building credibility and a relationship.
2. It should be informational based and look to be impartial.
3. It is not primarily aimed at gaining an immediate instruction or presentation (necessarily) – however if you obtain this, it is a bonus.
4. You need to restrain your sales people and to an extent and drive this by marketing process to the point where personal contact is made.
5. This is all about giving prospects an opportunity to make contact with you early on in the research phase.

What should a guide include?

The content presented should be all about providing information and less so about promoting you. You should even put in a section about “How to select the right estate agent”.

Contents can include areas such as:

• Types of agreements
• The role of an estate agency
• Presenting you property for sale
• When should I sell
• Marketing options
• Budget for selling your property
• Negotiating the sale
• Moving checklist
• Looking to buy your next property

Where and how should I promote this Guide?

Promote it everywhere:

• On your website
• In your online newsletters
• Property Portal display advertising
• Community websites
• Use it for PR and to build your company as a leading authority on property in your area
• You can promote this directly to those potential buyers leads who come through the property portals as they may be selling their home locally

Follow – up

After you email the Guide:

1. Follow-up by email along the lines of following up to ensure they received the guide and did they have any further questions.
2. Provide your contact details should they wish to speak to you direct.
3. Suggest they sign up to your newsletter to keep them informed.
4. Invite them to special seminars on “How to Sell your Property without Stress”
5. Keep in touch and keep them informed.
6. Keep the hard sell to a minimum but ensure you leave the door open for them to move forward with you if they wish to.
7. Encourage ways to set up a face to face or for them to supply further contact details – when they are ready to do this, it is a good sign they wish to do business with you.

This approach can build over months a good solid pipeline of prospective sellers and subliminally build your profile in the local area.

[Image: Flickr/John-Morgan]

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