A story I tell often is about a stager that worked with me for about a year before she moved...drat...She was good about being on time, good about how to handle the clients if and when I wasn't around. She listened to me when I gave her the rundown on their situation and was always sensitive to what I briefed her of their challenges, etc. ie, divorce, sick kids, or just strapped for money. BUT the one thing that really solidified our relationship and made her an invaluable part of my team was the Sunday when she was driving home from church and just "stopped by" to check on a staging we had done a couple days before, because she knew I was having an open house that Sunday in about an hour and wanted to be sure it was just right.
That's not the end of the story. She went into the house and a favorite art piece of mine had fallen onto the newly finished hardwood floors and shattered the glass all over the floors and furniture. Oh my gosh, it was a hot summer Sunday and I had been already showing property in the morning, had run home with just minutes to spare to get my open house tools and get on over to the property. I got a call from Corina on my voice mail.
"Hey T, I just went by the Mountaire house and have run home to get my vacuum, because the artwork broke all over and I didn't want you to come and have anyone in bare feet getting hurt. Don't worry, by the time you get there it'll be back in staged condition."
My heart sank, but lifted as she had solved my problem before I had to even worry about how I would find the time to go back and get the vacuum and/or how to handle the people waiting to get into the open house when I got there, much less keep their barefooted children from getting cut. WHEW! Corina saved my day - again. This is the type of things she just did. Yes I referred her all the time, why? I KNEW my clients would be taken care of. You bet. That is when I realized that a relationship with a stager was not just about the "stuff". It is the extra service I try to give to my client that she noticed and she gave to me. She made it her business to make my job easier so that she would be invaluable to me. And she was. Thanks Corina for teaching me the difference between a stager and a member of my team. I still miss you damn it.
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