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The unusual value proposition for real estate agents

By
Industry Observer with WideOpen Networks 250784

Waves on the shoreYesterday was my first day back to the duty desk after a weekend trip to the wedding of a daughter of some life long friends.

I can always find something to do so a slow afternoon at the duty desk is never a problem.

Yesterday I got a treat and someone walked into our office. I got to spend a couple of hours listening and talking about our area.

It was an interesting conversation, and I enjoyed sharing my local expertise after I had explained agency and gotten the required signature on "North Carolina's Working with Real Estate Agents."

It was also refreshing to find someone who had looked at the local area as objectively as possible and came to the same conclusion that my wife and I had reached a year earlier, that the Cape Carteret area is a desirable one and a good place to put down some roots.

Still as I narrowed the area search for our walk-in and suggested that I would be glad to provide a driving tour of the neighborhoods which match the family's needs, it became clear that this potential client needed some more time to see the area on their own. 

I did suggest at the end that I would be glad to watch for properties matching their needs and email them.  Unfortunately our walk-in was uncomfortable leaving me even an email address.

I have been in sales a long time, but I am new to real estate so I was a little surprised that two hours of my knowledge and effort wasn't a fair trade for an email address where I could send them information matching their needs and helping then find the right spot.  They were from six hours away so I was willing to be their feet on the street.

I suspect I am a little more comfortable than most at filtering out unwanted emails, but it started me thinking about knowledge and how it is valued in our society.

I write a lot because I enjoy it.  With that writing I end up sharing some knowledge, opinions, and maybe even a little expertise.  I have never worried about "Writing for Free," because I find it is a great way to not let things get bottled up inside me.

Yet I also do consulting and end up charging substantial fees for my expertise.  In fact at the end of last week I spent an hour on the phone with a Southwest Virginia group giving them the basics of how I would use the Internet to attract people to their area.  I did the call at no charge, and actually with no thought of any type of engagement.  Yet by the end of the call, they had asked if I would participate in regular calls and perhaps provide some help getting them web visibility.

I agreed to participate in their calls when my schedule would allow, but later I sent a note to the person who had asked me to help the group out.

I explained that it had taken me three years to figure out what I was sharing with the group in part of a conference call lasting one hour.  I also suggested that expecting once a month conference calls to guide people through the complex things that had taken me that long to learn was probably not going to work.  I also said it was beyond what I was willing to do for free.

I told him that I would be glad to spend three days a month for my normal fee with the group and try to get them up and going in a few months to the point that they didn't need my help.  My contact with the group agreed.  So we will see how it goes or if the group is no longer interested in advice if they have to pay for it.

In the case of the walk-in client, I provided the best information that I had, I didn't hold back anything hoping to tie the customer to me.

I respected their needs including the nervousness about sharing contact information with a real estate agent.

Still as we went out and enjoyed a good dinner, and I put a nice tip on the check for the waitress who probably interacted with us for four or five minutes at most, I wondered about the wacky world of providing great free services with the hope of future business.

In a certain respect some of the Internet is built on that model.  You can get a free Gmail account for your email as long as you don't mind the ads.  Many Internet services have a free version and an enhanced for fee version.  I use the free Picassa Web Albums and Blogger, but I also pay for Flickr and Typepad. I would not make a blanket statement that either free or for fee is best when it comes to these kinds of services.

The clear delineation between the free advice in real estate and what is provided for a client is something I don't have a lot of experience with yet since my clients are so few.

There is a lot of free information out there, and sometimes it is worth only what you are paying for it.

This particular customer got great information since I live in the neighbors where they want to live.  I have done expensive research on the area and can answer just about any question or find someone who can.

In the grand scheme of things, I am always glad to help someone so they go away thinking positively about me as a Realtor® and our company.

There is a good chance that they will come back to us because of the time that I spent with them.

If that happens the time will have been a good investment.  If not it will be good experience.  Still part of me would have like to at least have gotten the email address as a tip even if the meal was put on account.

I just invested some more of that "free" time in  cleansing my website so that I have a new one that is ad free and City-data forum compatible. It was a long effort and will result in some confusion on my part in keep two slightly different websites synchronized.  I am happy that I have the skills to do it, but at a certain point have to weigh the time and expertise required against my business objectives.

Still I would rather have my good information out there than some of the outdated free information people sometimes end up using.  At least it gets my email address out there.

It is a sad commentary that some have so abused people's email addresses that some people like our walk-in fear to hand them out to a professional trying to help them.

Of course as I shared my story with a fellow Realtor®, the comment came back that some continue to consider our profession, as Realtors®,  only one step up from used car salesmen.

That was a double hit for me since I have a cousin who put three kids through college selling used cars including more than a couple to me. He continues to one of the most honorable businessmen that I have ever known.

I guess the lesson is that it doesn't take many bad apples to leave the barrel with a less than desirable label.

Yet as a recent outsider who is now an insider after 25 years in high technology sales, I can say that I have met a fair share of honorable people here in real estate.  Even more than that I have come to respect the tremendous expertise that top agents bring to bear for their clients.  I also new some technology sales people who were just as honorable, but I also ran into some sleazy ones who knew nothing of their products and only wanted to sell the customer something and then head for the hils.

Consumers are lucky to have a large group of talented professionals to help them with their real estate decisions, especially if some of the advice is free. 

The folks who don't want that expertise on their side are missing a sure bet, one almost as certain as a nice walk on the beach will reduce your stress or that there are settings where you can forget your challenges.

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