So I have to thank you all for inviting me to hang around with a bunch of insomniacs with broadband... great. Now my better half will never think that I come to bed.
And where I think I write most of my best stuff for my outside blog The You Factor www.theyoufactor.com after midnight, tonight I wanted to bring up something I wrote this afternoon. This was part of a lengthy comment I put together after a friend of mine Marc Davison from 1000Watt Consulting (check out their blog... it's inspiring) wrote about a conversation we had this weekend about the next version of Real Estate Search. (See the whole thread at Inman.com Here)
So I have written about commission justification before, but today for some reason it all came clear. Below is what I wrote:
"Justifying your commission comes down to you in my mind. It's like tipping at a restaurant almost. I go in expecting to get served my food, my table cleared, and maybe a little witty banter. Now if I get: recommendations, samples, made to feel comfortable, asked about myself, engaged, and that you're happy to have me as a client... i'm going above the 20% tip. (i.e. why I would pay 6%) It's paying a premium for the overall experience. The question to ask is, "Would YOU pay 6% for your service? Is it THAT great?"
Doesn't that just about sum it up? Back when I was bartending I always worked with the same thought process in mind and felt that it amounted to me making more tips than everyone else at the end of the night... (That and pouring a very generous cocktail)
- Know what you're talking about. Whether it's wine or baseball, people don't want BullS@t. They would rather tell YOU than have you feed them crap you made up.
- Be genuinely interested in what they have to say.
- LISTEN... to whatever story they tell you, even if you've heard it before
- Ask questions about them... not you... you're behind a bar... they're there paying the bills
- Share my thoughts in a friendly manner, even if i know they won't agree with them
That did it for me and it kills me that more agents can't boil it down to these simple 5 principals. Thoughts?
Matt Dollinger
@properties
Matthew - Welcome to the group, I wonder why no comments? I think your post is full of info on commissions splits. It could be a sore subject with all these short sales, when the bank takes their cut.