Research has shown that one of the best ways to improve your customer relationships is to get them to laugh. Laughter is a common language, one we can all understand and relate to. Did you know that customers are more likely to work with a real estate agent that has a good sense of humor? According to a study by Baylor University, a good sense of humor can be a great boost to your reputation. However, only if it's done well.
It can ease stress, be helpful in real estate and marketing sales and develop relationships as long as you are not teasing someone, making fun of someone, or offending someone. Humor must be used wisely. And, it must be used strategically, not so much off-the-cuff, unless you are Robin Williams, of course.
Humor can also create more memorable marketing messages and diffuse a difficult situation. If tensions built up over a certain issue with the client, humor could be a way to defuse everything. You know, that old LOL at the end of a sentence that might've been a little too harsh? Not that the acronym can make everything okay, but, throwing a little humor in at the appropriate time can be a good way to alleviate a stressful situation or just make your client feel better.
Homebuyers can get anxious and tense over the process. They could be stressed and frustrated so is laughter always the best medicine to throw at them? It depends. You can make fun of yourself or the industry to give people a sense of reality and that you don't take yourself too seriously. However, many people today do not receive information with humor that well, but it can be a way to stand out from a sea of boring agents, because, let's face it, real estate is not that funny of a vocation.
Because marketing is such a big part of what we do, sometimes we have to put ourselves in a negative light so that we actually look better individually. For instance, the company Car Max does a great job at telling you how horrible used car salesmen have been in the past but also what they do differently now. Even though it's literally the same job, you feel more comfortable with Car Max, who can laugh and joke about the industry and provide you some real service.
We need to do that with real estate. Real estate hasn't always been the most highly coveted job out there, but if we can make fun of the industry for what it has been or what some people have made it, and then swoop in to be the best guide that they need to move forward; a lot of the time we get the job.
So, this is just cracking a few jokes while driving around looking at homes? Not necessarily. It's a systematic approach to every single aspect of the real estate career. You have to identify the lighter side and use humor to bolster emotional reserves, and, the byproduct is that you'll be happier too. Laughter may not solve all of our problems but it does make it a little easier to handle the problems that come up, I mean, it could always be worse, right?
But what if you are afraid of humor? If you can poke fun at yourself you can show that you are lighthearted, easy-going, and you actually show yourself as more human, making the listener feel safer to share and develop a good relationship with you. Don't overdo it, but if you poke fun at one of your own weaknesses or the industry with a lighthearted, casual fare, you're more likely to ease someone's tension and anxiety and create a better relationship. [Source]
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