I cannot stress enough the importance of getting your buyers to commit to dealing with you exclusively.
Being in the business a year and a few months, I learn this the hard way. Just recently I was working with a couple who seemed like very nice people and they were. They would call me all day long with their questions and desires for homes and commented regularly on they thankfulness for my help. Inside I felt that I could trust them and didn't know how to get them to commit without saying I didn't trust them. I should have had them sign the form anyway.
After working with the couple for 2 long months, driving them all over showing them properties and sharing information, as well as helping them to work through some credit issues and not giving up on them like many other agents had, I got an EMAIL saying, "Thanks but we bought a house with another agent, could you send us our pre-approval letter"?
I have had this happen with even good friends, where they use your services because it was obvious we knew what we were doing and then go and buy the home with their sister who needs the business.
We read so much on these blogs about the choice we have after each of these experiences. Are we going to let it pull us down or are we going to learn from it? Well I chose to learn from it!
My question to all you experts out there is: What are some good methods and ways of saying to your buyers that they will need to commit to deal with you exclusively?
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Cody, that's too bad that they took advantage of you like that. (BTW, I assume you meant "buyers" and not "sellers" as in the headline.) Yes, in hindsight it's easy to say you should have had them sign the form, but I understand what you're saying about the implication of not trusting them. I personally believe that if someone is going to work with another agent then they're probably going to ignore the form anyway. And in reality, I (again, just me) wouldn't waste my time going after a commission in that situation anyway--life's too short and I'd rather redirect my energy to something that will be more positive and productive.
Having said that, a compromise strategy might be to describe the agreement and give them a copy in the first meeting with them, and tell them you will need them to sign it at the conclusion of your first day/week/insert appropriate time working together. You want them to feel comfortable working with you, which many buyers can't decide before they've even seen properties with you, so I think at the end of that first day is a fair timeframe. They should also know that the agreement binds YOU as their agent to certain standards, so it's protection for them as well. Depending on the region and broker, it may also be a requirement to have the agreement signed early in the process, so you can always "blame" the rules. If it's not required, and if you're really not comfortable asking them to sign the form, then I would at least have a conversation at the start of the process that is along the lines of "I'm not going to ask you to sign this form because I want you to know I trust you, but in return I ask that if you plan to use another agent at any time, please let me know that. As you know I work on 100% commission so my time is very valuable." At least then they may feel a little bit guilty, and think twice, about it. And they may not even know how we're compensated.