When it seems so commmon sense to us - those that work in this field - isn't amazing when you come across people that STILL do not know what Home Staging is? If you ask some Stagers they might tell you or me that "the market is saturated" - and the opportunity for expansion and more business is shrinking.
I am sitting in an airport ready to fly home to my family, and have to share that the last 10 people I have interacted with on the way to the airport, in line in security, sitting at a Starbucks, etc. - have all wondered what my "Staging tote" bag means and what do I do?
"What is Staging?" asks my shuttle van driver. Intrigued when I tell her - she says,"I did not know there was an actual business for that."
"Does she actually do that?" I hear whispered behind me by a little girl in the security line looking at my bag with before/after photos on it. "I just love HGTV shows!" exclaims the mother. "Selling Secrets though - I don't like," she says. And who would - with that critical mother-daughter team! Please - they are NOT doing a good service for our industry. I turn to another person in line, "So you are a Home Stager? I think my sister had that done on her house." Chances to educate abound - no matter where you or I go!
Even last night as I was eating - 3 men from Ohio and Virginia - had no idea what Staging was - sort of kept that clueless look on their faces as I explained what I did and how it helps houses sell. One guy (after a few drinks) was all excited about how we was going to get banks to Stage repo houses. "More powwer to you," I said - because I have not been able to crack that nut yet!
With so much exposure and so many people in business, it never ceases to amaze me that there are still those we have not reached with our message. The public is still very much out-of-the-know when it comes to Staging. The HGTV shows do little to really tell the whole story - but it's a bit better than what we had before which was no national exposure for what we can do in a house. Still the best exposure is our own personal interactions with people - one by one we help them see the light.
Anyway, I expect that the person seated next to me will also not have any idea what I do - and so it goes. Keep spreading the message about what we do for sellers - especially in the tough markets most of us are in these days! These people need to hear our message of how we can help them or someone they know.
- Jennie
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Jennie - And this post pretty much sums up my marketing plan. Rather than focus on a very small niche where every other stager is, I instead talk to everyone else that knows me; cultivate that farm and work from there. I have a CPA that has over 200 Realtors as clients, guess what relationship I manage - those 200 or that 1?
Do I work with Realtors? You bet I do, but I'm referred to them...they look for me.
Jackie