Most of your real estate buyers and sellers don’t even know this is important – so you need to tell them.
What is it? The value of your reputation in the real estate community.
- If they could see agents making lists of homes to see and placing some at the top and others at the bottom based on the listing agent’s name, they’d know.
- If they could see agents guiding their sellers toward offers written by agents they like to work with – and away from offers written by unpleasant or difficult agents, they’d know.
But they don’t see that. And most agents are careful not to mention it because the Code of Ethics says you mustn’t speak poorly of other agents.
Some buyer clients who have experienced the difficulty of getting in to see listings do know that if they had a house for sale they wouldn’t want to use the agent in question.
But most buyer clients don’t realize that the trouble they’re having with getting an offer accepted might come down to their own agent’s poor reputation.
Some seller clients have seen poorly executed offers and know if that if they were buying they wouldn’t want that kind of a sloppy agent.
But most seller clients who are getting few showings don’t know that their own agent’s negative reputation may well be the cause.
So, what to do?
Mention your reputation in your marketing materials – especially in your agent bio. Say it in a way that shows its importance.
If you’re a listing agent, you can say something like “Buyer’s agents are always happy to show my listings because they know their offers will be presented fairly and quickly.” Or, “I go out of my way to cooperate with buyers’ agents, so your listing will get the most exposure possible.”
If you’re a buyers’ agent, you might say “Listing agents are always quick to cooperate with showings for my clients because they know my offers will be complete and correct – and that I’ll do my share of the work to get an offer to closing once it’s been accepted.”
And if a client asks you about it? Tell them the truth – that some agents are difficult to deal with so other agents try to avoid them.
Graphic courtesy of Stuart Miles @ freedigitalphotos.net
