After Fresh Perspectives stages a property we use popular Social Media sites to promote what we do. It is a great way to get the word out about the property for sale along with the added benefits it provides us of additional company exposure. Our goal as a company has always been to partner with our clients (Realtors and/or homeowners) to drive traffic to the property. It doesn’t matter how beautiful a listing is if no one knows about it. This is also a fantastic way to set ourselves apart from our competition. I don’t know any other stager in our area who uses this religiously. We on the other hand, do.
The power of Social Media is fascinating. It has completely revolutionized the way we do business. It has enabled us to create relationships with people across the world. ActiveRain is a perfect example of that. Not only have I had the pleasure of meeting staging industry leaders in person, but I have also forged online relationships with others in my field from across the country. It has given me the ability to hone my craft, improve my business and has blessed me with many new clients. Just last month a homebuyer contacted me regarding a property she was interested in looking at. I had sent out a “tweet” on Twitter about it. How excited do you think the Realtor was when I connected the two of them?
If you are not using sites such as Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube (to name just a few) not only will your business not thrive it will soon die. This is how Generation Y communicates. We have to speak their language in order to gain their business.
Being on the forefront of this form of communication will set you apart from the average Realtor of today. Having just a website today is no longer enough in order to survive. Posting your listings on the social media sites are where today’s buyers are going to find them. Today’s sellers are also expecting you to use this medium to advertise their property. Word travels fast. Shouldn’t you and your listings be what the buzz is all about?
Below is a video on YouTube with some amazing facts. It is about 4.5 minutes long, but definitely worth every second you spend watching it.
Anthea Click is the President of Fresh Perspectives Property Merchandising Services in the Greater Nashville area. For more information on staging your property for sale contact us at 615-465-8086 or www.fresh-perspectives.com
Fresh Perspectives was recently contacted by another stager, Liz Jenkins of A Fresh Space to help her with a vacant staging. Liz and I are friends. We have conducted seminars together and she has referred vacant projects to me. Liz specializes in organizing, redesign, and project management. She no longer stages vacants simply for the fact that she just doesn't like them. I, on the other hand, absolutely love them.
Liz had been working on renovating this home. Updating fixtures, floors, repairing the roof and replacing the hvac among many other things when she called me. She needed the final step of staging the property to complete it. After walking through the property and discussing her ideas we went to work just a few days later. Below are pictures of the results.
Living Room Before Living Room After
Family Room Before Family Room After
Kitchen Before Kitchen After
Working together to complete this project was a bunch of fun for us. Liz and I have found a great way to use our skill sets to help each other's businesses. We are both looking forward to working on more projects together in the future.
If you are wanting to grow your business, find others in your area so you can work together. This is a great way for everyone to win - the agents, homeowners, the buyers, and of course the stagers!
I was recently contacted by Kirkland's(one of my favorite home furnishings store) to enter their designer contest. After submitting photos of my work, providing a design philosophy and tips for designing a small space I made it to the top 10! Votes are now being cast for the top 5 Designers to remain on their website and become a My Kirkland's Designer. Voting began July 31st and runs through August 27th.
Not only am I honored to be a part of this very talented group, I am thrilled to be considered in the top 10. Other familiar faces in the running are Cathy Lee and Tanya Griffin. Both are women who are not only apart of the Active Rain family, but they also do great work. How awesome is it that home stagers are apart of this opportunity.
So, all my friends out there in the Rain, will you show your support for the home staging industry as a whole and vote for us?
It's an extremely tight race and we would definitely appreciate every vote cast for us. Simply click on the photo above and cast your ballot.
Cathy and Tonya - I hope we finish top 3!
Update: Another Active Rain family member is in the running - Karen Rynolds. Cast a vote for her, too!
When I talk with agents about staging I get very similar feedback. Yes, they believe staging does work, yes they know it helps to sell a house faster, but..........How do I educate my seller? How do I find a good stager? What are the stats to prove staging works?
How can we, as stagers, expect the Realtors to sell staging when they don't fully comprehend it themselves? I believe it boils down to one thing, education.
I am a firm believer in education. When I sold real estate myself I knew nothing about staging. There was one company in town that I was aware of and from what I heard they got great results. Beyond that I was ignorant to it. There were no classes to take to educate myself on how to properly merchandise a home. I learned all about negotiating contracts, fair housing regulations, client representation and how to sell myself, but nothing about making the listing as appealing as possible to attract the buyers. Sure, I knew to tell my clients to remove personal photographs, de-clutter, and neutralize but not much more beyond that.
I feel that is where most agents in Nashville are. With so many questions about staging, not knowing what to ask or knowing how to find a good stager is the reason more homes are not staged in the Nashville area. Television shows such as Designed to Sell, The Stagersand Stager Invasion have done wonders to educate the public about staging and how it can help sell a house much quicker. Now granted, we are still talking about Hollywood. No, we can't replace the counter tops with granite, paint the entire house, and purchase brand new furniture all for under $2,000. It's a little unrealistic, but definitely much better than these shows not airing at all. The public more often than not knows more about staging than the real estate experts.
So, how do we turn this around? How can we make real estate agents even more valuable in their client's eye?
Education! When Melissa Marro,a staging industry leader, contacted me about bringing the CSP Elite Agent Program to Nashville I was thrilled! Now there is a class agents can take to answer all those questions they have. How the staging industry got started, how it has evolved, how to find a good stager, the value staging can bring to the sell of a property, how to educate their clients and the list goes on and on.
No, this class is not about the agent staging themselves like other programs teach. How do you think the agent looks in the eyes of their client when they see them schlepping furniture, suggesting paint colors, and accessorizing? Is that what top agents really do? No! They are out there finding the buyers for the property - they leave the appeal to the experts on their team - the stager.
Nashville will experience the first CSP Elite Agent Program on August 5, 2009 from 8-5pm. I'm so excited for these agents who take this class. Not only will they be miles ahead of the competition, but they will preserve their client's equity and add dollars to their personal bottom line. I was always taught it was better to teach a man to fish than to give him one. This class is definately teaching the man to fish.
For more information or to register for the August 5th class visit www.cspelite.com or call 1-866-574-0565.
As a stager I am hired by home owners to get their home ready to put on the market. I am not there to pass judgment on their choice of décor, color, or any other aspect of the home that they love so dearly. My job is this: get buyers in the door to write offers.
Many times I am greeted at the door by a nervous home owner worried the monster on the other side is here to chew them up and spit them out by telling them everything that is wrong with their home. How grueling the next two hours are going to be. I know some would rather be at the dentist getting a root canal then spend this time together evaluating their house.
Honestly, I can say I understand how they must feel. It is probably pretty nerve wracking having a total stranger evaluate your home from top to bottom, inside and out. Well, rest assured Mr. and Mrs. Homeowner, I'm not a monster and I'm here to help. It's important to remember how you live in your home and how you sell a home are two different things. What works for living doesn't necessarily work for selling.
Next to your Realtor, I'm your best friend! I'm here to take what you have and make it better. I'm here to find the hidden money you have laying around that you weren't even aware of. I'm here to put money in your pocket. I'm here to show you really how great your house can be with just some minor tweaks. You may not always like what I have to say, but would you rather hear it from me or hear it from the many buyers who walk thru your house and don't write an offer? And then be baffled as to why your house hasn't sold after months on the market?
Do my recommendations always cost money? Nope. Sometimes it is just removing excess stuff and rearranging furniture. Is it worth it to put money into your house to sell? You betcha it is! Repairing broken door knobs, updating with a fresh coat of neutral paint, adding fresh flowers for pops of color, and caulking around tubs and vanities can make all the difference in a sold house or frustrated homeowners. Frustrated their agent hasn't sold the house, frustrated buyers haven't written offers, sometimes even frustrated that the sky is blue.
Remember Mr. and Mrs. Homeowner, you have to do your part, too. Your home has to show well - Period. If not, what shot does your agent have to sell it for fair market value? None, zero, zip.
So remember, when that monster comes knocking on your door take a deep breath and smile..... your leprechaun is here. We are going to find your pot of gold today!
Pictured above is a property staged by Fresh Perspectives Property Merchandising Services with zero dollars spent by homeowner except staging fee. Fresh Perspectives is a home staging company specializing in vacant home staging, model home staging, and property redesign for the Greater Nashville real estate community. For an honest assessment of your home contact us 615-465-8086 or www.fresh-perspectives.com.
Our Staging Seminar: The Nuts and Bolts of Staging on Thursday, March 26, 2008 was a huge success. Four area stagers: Myself, Liz Jenkins of A Fresh Space, B Lucas Thrower of Interior Redesign and Home Staging, and Karen Jones of Jones Creative Home Staging came together to offer a free community seminar on staging.
B Lucas Thrower, Anthea Click, Karen Jones, Liz Jenkins
We offered DIY Tips and gave insight on painting, window treatments, fixtures, flooring(which was presented by Dave of Church Street Flooring), kitchens and bathrooms. With a packed house the next seminar is sure to bring in even more people interested in staging their homes.
The next seminar, Staging For Your Life: Redesigning Spaces is scheduled for Thursday, May 28, 2009 from 6:00 - 7:30pm also at Church Street Flooring in Franklin.
Fresh Perspectives Property Merchandising Services specializies in staging vacant homes, model homes, and owner occupied properties for the Nashville area market. For more information on our services visit our website at www.fresh-perspectives.com or contact us at 615-465-8086.
Every real estate agent knows buyers want to purchase a home as big as they can possibly afford. They want as much bang for their buck and most won't even consider looking at a property that has less square footage than they believe they need. Granted, you can't change the size of the house, but you can plant a seed in the buyers mind that particular rooms are not as small as they can sometimes appear in the mls listing.
Imagine you are a first time buyer who loves to cook and the kitchen is the most important space in your new home. Not only do you love to cook, but you also love to cook with your spouse or have friends join you for a fun evening of food and entertainment. What is more appealing to you, a kitchen that is 9x15 or 15x9? Sure they are the same size, but the 15x9 kitchen just seems so much larger. The 9x15 size seems like you will be bumping elbows and standing on top of each other. The 15x9 lends itself to imagine the buyers can have 2 or 3 chefs comfortablely creating the gourmet meal.
So, before you sell your listing short (or shall we say small) focus on the numbers to avoid getting your listing automatically ruled out for being too small.
Fresh Perspectives is a home staging company specializing in vacant home staging, model home staging, and property redesign for the Greater Nashville real estate community. For an honest assessment of your home contact us 615-465-8086 or www.fresh-perspectives.com.
Homeowners, Realtors, and Builders alike understand the value of staging a property in this current market. Long gone are the days of placing a sign in the yard, entering the information into the MLS and receiving an offer within 30 days. Home staging is becoming more accepted and new stagers are entering the industry daily. So how does a staging company compete? When everyone zigs, you must zag.
Fresh Perspectives has decided to zag by becoming a specialist in property merchandising. There is so much more to selling than making a property look great and appeal to buyers. Most stagers will stage a property then wait for the client to call to de-stage. Our philosophy is to take it a step further by actually teaming up with the agent to market the property.
Target the Buyer
Before Fresh Perspectives begins a staging project we define a target buyer. Do you know who will buy this property? Are we focusing on empty nesters, a family with small children, or a single in a hot and trendy loft? It's important to know who you are targeting so the property speaks to them. You will have much greater success rate when you focus on target, aim and fire vs. throwing out a net and hoping to catch something.
Professional Photography
The importance of professional photography is also a crucial factor. According to the National Association of Realtors, over 80% of homebuyers start their search online. If the photos of the property don't demand the buyer's attention, especially in this market, the buyer will move on to the next home even if the property may be exactly what they are looking for. Buying a home is an emotional decision and good photography grabs buyers by the heart and demands a closer inspection, thus creating more traffic and offers to the property. We bring in our dynamite professional photographer, Allison Hendrixson of Vertical Expressions. Allison has an amazing talent and can capture emotion even out of a plain white wall.
Lifestyle Tours and Videos
Getting the word out about a property is the key to getting it sold. Fresh Perspectives creates lifestyle tours and videos to do just that. Virtual tours are now an industry standard, but there's more to it than hardwood floors and granite countertops. The buyer wants to know how they are going tolive in the home. It's important to note a buyer is not buying a home, they are buying a lifestyle. When we create a tour, we create the picture of the lifestyle. (Click here to see a sample tour). Along with the lifestyle tours we create videos and distribute them to YouTube and other video sharing sites.
Internet Presence
If over 80% of home buyers are surfing the Internet to find a home, doesn't it make sense to advertise the property where they will find it? Not only do we post the agent and property information on the Staged Homes For Sale page of our website, we also list the home on over 20 other real estate sites where homebuyers go to find properties. This is part of our focus, aim, fire philosophy to targeting potential homebuyers.
Drive Traffic
Out-of-the-box thinking drives traffic to view a property. We have been involved in unique events such as partnering with Simplicity Gourmet to host organic cooking shows, art shows, sponsored chocolate and coffee broker open houses, and community bike rides.
So the next time you need a property staged, do you want to hire a stager who makes the house pretty or a property merchandiser who becomes your marketing partner to get the listing sold?
Fresh Perspectives is a property merchandising company who specializes in zagging when everyone else is zigging. Contact us today at 615-465-8086 to get your property staged and sold or visit us at www.fresh-perspectives.com for more information.
How many times have you heard the old saying "If Momma's not happy, no one is happy"? Well, the saying also holds true for home buyers. Women make up to 91% of all home buying decisions according to the National Association of Home Builders. Targeting these decision makers only makes sense when trying to sell your home.
How She Shops
Men and women shop differently. When a man wants to buy a pair of jeans he goes into the store, heads directly to the rack, finds his size, pays the cashier, and back out the door he goes. When a woman needs a new pair of jeans she enters the store, passes by the kids department, picks up an outfit for Jane, sees a new tie for the husband (since he will definitely need a new one for the wedding they are attending this weekend), picks up a new collar for the dog, and then heads to the jeans department. She'll try on a half-dozen or so pairs and will find a couple new blouses and a few accessories to match. Men are hunters, women are gathers. We are just wired differently.
The same holds true when shopping for a new home. As long as there is a wall for his big screen and room for his recliner - it's perfect! She, on the other hand, is thinking of how the entire family will actually live in the home. Is there space for entertaining guests? Can she watch the kids play in the backyard while she is cooking dinner? Is there a quite corner where she can curl up and read a book?
What's Important to Her
There are four main areas that are important to the female home buyer. If you can target these, you will appeal to her desires and sell her on the property.
Entertaining
Women like to entertain. Open spaces and great traffic flow is important. French doors that lead out to a large deck or back patio will also fulfill that need.
Relaxation
Women need to relax. Coming home can actually cause a woman's blood pressure to rise. She has been out in the field all day and she has to come home to her second job. Cooking, cleaning, taking care of the kids - her job never ends. A great relaxation zone where she can take a leisurely bubble bath, a corner nook to get away from it all and read a great book, or peaceful backyard retreat is what she desires.
Flex Space
Let's face it, with today's lifestyles we need rooms in our home that change purpose based upon our changing lives. An office that can change into a craft room, a playroom that can become a guest bedroom with the use of a Murphy bed, or closet space that can be converted into an elevator shaft is what today's woman is looking for. Give her options and she will be a happy home buyer.
Storage
There just never seems to be enough storage is a common theme among homeowners. Adding built- ins to closets, flooring off extra space in the attic, creating storage nooks under stairwells will give her the storage space she is so desperate for.
It Boils Down to Livability
It boils down to livability. She wants to know how her family will live and function in the home. If enough of her requirements match what you are selling, you will be scheduling a closing date very soon.
Fresh Perspectives specializes in vacant home staging, model home staging, and property redesign to appeal to the woman home buyer in the Nashville, TN market. For more information on staging your home to sell contact Anthea Click at 615-465-8086 or visit our website, fresh-perspectives.com.
Fresh Perspectives has just staged this ultra cool California contemporary in the heart of East Nashville. If you are looking to stage your property in the Middle TN area, give us a call - we'll set you apart from the competition.
Fresh Perspectives can stage your property to sell. Whether it is an ultra cool California contemporary, colonial, traditional, or anything else in between we can set your property apart from the competition.
Contact us for your custom quote.
Anthea Click
President/ Lead Designer
RES Home Staging Group
5015 Saunders Terrace
Spring Hill, TN 37174
615-465-8086 Email | Website
Fresh Perspectives is a Property Merchandising and Home Staging Company serving the Middle TN area. For more information contact Anthea Click at 615-465-8086.
Disclaimer: ActiveRain Corp. does not necessarily endorse the real estate agents, loan officers and brokers listed on this site. These real estate profiles, blogs and blog entries are provided here as a courtesy to our visitors to help them make an informed decision when buying or selling a house. ActiveRain Corp. takes no responsibility for the content in these profiles, that are written by the members of this community.
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