Cooperation - What Set's Us Apart

What makes our industry spectaculary different from almost every other industry, is the level of cooperation that competitors will have to successfully complete a transaction. I know of no other business where it's players are, by it's design, forced to worked together so we could each achieve our goals. It's one of things I love about this business, because it allows me to create relationships in different offices throughout the county.

Sometimes in our rush from appointment to appointment, we overlook to little things we could do to assist our fellow agents and really complete our duties to our clients - the sellers (assuming we are sellers agents). It's in providing real feedback when we show other agents listings. If a listing agent calls for feedback, or if an email request is sent, your feedback helps that agent point out areas of concern that need to be addressed. Sometimes, having other agents reiterate what the listing agent was saying gives their words more weight, and could help in price adjustments or improvements that need to be made to the property. If you work for the seller, it's an obligation to provide that feedback, especially if requested.

I'll admit, at first I felt uneasy, even if the customer did not like the property. Some agents take it personal if you mention that your buyer thinks the price is too high, compared less favorably to other properties in the area, or not what they were expecting. But it's that free flow of information that provides us with the added tools we need to price our listings accordingly and react to what the market is indicating (Even the best of us miss things in our listings). It may be a lot easier to say "Well they'll think about it," but there's nothing like some constructive criticism to help shine up product.

So the next time the listing agent calls for feedback - call them back. That 60 seconds you invest will help your client (the seller). If you have the feedback request from CSS - take a minute a fill it out. Don't be shy - let them know the good and the bad. All of it will help your fellow agent (even if you don't sell it) and you don't know how valuable that could be to YOU down the road!