Posted by David Bennett
Mon, 05 Jun 2006 20:37:00 GMT
People don’t buy good service. They buy help for their problems.
Calm the Fears
The two biggest fears people have when making a buying decision are:
(1) they’re wasting their money by not getting the solution they really need, and
(2) they’re not going to get the kind of results they want.
The successful sales associate will address these fears at the outset and calm them by demonstrating the specific value of the proposed solution.
The problem is value propositions often view services with an internal focus. Tired of seeing credentials and histories, one customer tossed out an interesting challenge. "If you want to sell to me, address the things I wake up worrying about: Am I getting the best price or a good deal? This is a huge purchase. How can I be certain I’m not getting stuck with a dog? If you can help me with concerns and solve my problems, I’ll buy from you or let you sell my home."
The closer you can come to answering the customer/client’s concerns before they even ask about them, the more carefully they’ll consider your value proposition.
Show Me the Payback
A value proposition is the message that differentiates you from the competition and tells why your solution will help solve the customer’s problem. There are two principles to follow when crafting your value proposition.
- Focus on what the customer cares about. Suppose you have some data showing that your listings are sold with the fewest days on market and that they close on time. That’s only valuable if the customer wants a quick sale. If what they really care about is getting top dollar, you need to present the data that supports your claim you are the one that can get it for them.
- Quantify the value proposition with numbers. For some reason, they’re more persuasive than words. Even if the consumer doesn’t really buy into your analysis, the fact that it’s quantified tends to give it impact.
In trying to show value to customers, don’t mistake features for benefits. A common example of this tendency is to focus on your listings, your sales, your great service as a reason for the customer to buy from you.
Let’s say you have twenty years experience and hold the GRI, CRS, ABR designations. Their response may be, "So what?" Unless you can demonstrate you can find them the home that is perfect for them to buy, it’s meaningless. And even worse, a lot of other people can claim the same thing.
Stand Above the Rest
To stand out, you need to focus on your differentiators—things you do differently or that nobody else does—but always show how those differentiators deliver value to the customer. Differences based on processes or systems or methodologies are generally longer lasting and harder to overcome than your technology tools, your education or your experience.
Draw Them a Picture
Help them see how you are different. Pictures, charts, success stories can strengthen your image in your customer’s mind.
- Documented success stories make you believable and that leads to a more compelling value proposition.
- When you can present your data graphically in charts, you’ll add punch.
- Pictures talk even louder than numbers.
Finding the Payback
- Show the impact on revenue: The difference between selling with your assistance and FSBO sales. (The median selling price of FSBO homes was $210,000 compared with $255,000 for agent-assisted home sales.) or the effect on value of unrealistically priced homes
- Show what costs they will not incur by using your services – advertising, marketing, holding open houses, etc.
Quantifying the payback is more persuasive than just claiming your services are a good thing. If baseline measurements aren’t available, that’s okay. Offer an estimate or a projection based on market averages. Even if they dispute your numbers, you’re still discussing the overall value of your unique offering.
By connecting your payback analysis to what really differentiates you from competitors, you’re in a much stronger position: They can’t use the easy "Me, too" comeback.
Posted in Key Message, Develop Key Message, Elements to include in your value proposition
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Posted by David Bennett
Mon, 05 Jun 2006 17:07:00 GMT
Enhance your value proposition
1. Brainstorm with Your Colleagues
Review your marketing material and what you say to customers to try to get their attention. If you’re not talking about tangible results, keep asking each other, "So what?" So what if it’s an efficient system? So what if we have a lot of listings? So what if our service is high quality? By asking this question over and over again, you’ll get much closer to the real value you bring to customers.
2. Talk to Your Customers
Your existing customers are your best resource to find out what value you bring. Tell your customer you need help understanding the real value of your offering and you’d like a chance to learn their perspective. Most people are scared to ask their customers about this. If you are willing to try it, what you will learn can be a real eye-opener. What your customers have to say can not only change your value proposition, but it also can change your offerings and self-perception.
Don’t let another day go by with a weak value proposition. A strong one literally opens the doors for you, while a weak one keeps you on the outside.
Posted in Test Your Value Proposition, Continuous Feedback and Improvement
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Posted by David Bennett
Wed, 14 Jun 2006 17:21:00 GMT
Establish a regular feedback system.
If you have a website, set up a feedback form. If you have a paper or electronic newsletter, include a feedback opportunity. Include in your email signature a line that is linked to a feedback form. The goal is to have your contacts telling you how you’re doing.
Blogging is becoming the next big thing on the Internet. Explore the possibilities not only to share information but to gather information using this format.
Feedback, whether positive or negative is valuable to you, is a must. If you hone your listening skills, you can mine gold nuggets.
At the conclusion of every transaction, be sure to send a feedback form. Wait a month or so before you do it, so the halo effect is diminished. You need to know not just whether they were satisfied or not – you need to know what they valued the most from the services you provided. If you start to get a pattern of responses that indicate your detailed knowledge of the neighborhood and their property in particular was the most valuable thing to them, or perhaps it was your negotiating skills that saved a bad situation, you have learned some positive details you need to emphasize.
Allow anonymous feedback. You’ll close off a source of potentially helpful information otherwise.
If we don’t listen to our customers and prospects, if we don’t know what our customers want - how on earth do we know what to say to them? So be sure to encourage feedback from your customers - through every means possible.
Listen, listen and listen.
Posted in Establish a feedback system, Continuous Feedback and Improvement, Feedback System
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Posted by David Bennett
Sat, 17 Jun 2006 15:17:00 GMT
Evaluate Your Value Proposition
- Is your message simple, crystal clear and easy to understand? Do people get it right away?
- Do you get a "that’s for me" response when you use it?
- Can all your customers and business associates tell others what your message is?
- Is your marketing message on every single piece of marketing material you use, from your business card to your web site?
Posted in Continuous Feedback and Improvement, Evaluate your message
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Posted by David Bennett
Sat, 17 Jun 2006 16:50:00 GMT
Create Value In The Eyes Of Your Consumers:
Most home buyers and sellers throughout the country believe that real estate agents and brokers do little to earn their commissions. This is our fault because we should be educating them about how hard we work before ever accepting them as clients or customers.
Keeping my commission firm was a problem until 1983 when I started tracking of all the different duties required to earn my commissions. Then, I developed four separate lists of over 100 activities I do to close transactions for sellers, buyers, expired listings and FSBO’s. This literally astounds clients because most have no idea how complicated a real estate transaction really is.
My list for sellers runs 120 items and makes it clear that it takes a lot more than just putting a sign on the lawn and an ad in the paper to sell a house. It includes such activities as:
- Order and review a property profile.
- Develop a targeted marketing campaign that maximizes your home’s value.
- Tour your property from the "buyer’s standpoint."
- Develop "just listed" postcards.
- Reduce your liability by providing appropriate disclosure forms.
- Implement marketing activities.
- Respond to buyer questions about the property.
- Screen-out unqualified buyers.
- Negotiate on your behalf with agents and potential buyers.
- 111 other activities to get your house sold.
My list of value-building activities to help buyers purchase the home of their dreams is even longer because it’s more complicated than selling. This list includes:
- Explain the benefits of a Buyer-Broker Agreement to you.
- Provide a list of loan brokers who can get you qualified for a loan.
- Explain all the steps in the home buying process.
- Save you time by helping to narrow your search parameters.
- Locate appropriate properties for you to view.
- Act as a "sounding board" in your decision-making process.
- Write an offer which meets your needs and protects your interests.
- Negotiate on your behalf with listing agents and sellers.
- Obtaining the inspections you want and need for your home.
- 116 other activities to help you own the home of your dreams.
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My FSBO list shows owners the many things agents do that would be difficult for them to do themselves. My list for owners whose listings have expired shows them how to get their home sold faster and at a higher price.
When you create your own list, if a seller or buyer asks for a discount, simply show them the appropriate list and say, "Here are just some of the activities I must complete to earn my money. Why don’t you point out the things that you’d be willing to do instead of me. If you save me time then we can talk about saving you money because I earn every penny I get."
When confronted with a list that runs nearly ten pages long their eyes glaze over and they usually respond with something like, "You’re the real estate professional I expect you to do this work!" To which I simply say, "If you want me to do all of these activities on your behalf then you need to pay me what I’m worth. If you want to pay less, I’ll see if I can find someone who will do less and maybe they can save you some money."
Posted in Analyze Service Offerings, Worth your Commission, What are your service offerings?, Testimonials, Key Message, Develop Key Message
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