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Don't call us we'll call you...

By
Home Stager with Ambiance Staging

ambiance staging home staging boulderAre you patiently waiting by the phone for your local newspaper to suddenly call you eager to write an article about you and your company in their news column??  Yeah, so was I.... but somehow they never called.

Well, wait no longer.   CALL THEM yourself.

I did just that, and spoke to Greg Avery in the Business department of the Daily Camera here in Boulder.

I said "Hey Mr. Newspaper man, you should write about home staging." and Mr. Newspaper man (aka Greg) said "how fortunate that you called, we were just talking about doing a segment on preparing your home for sale; your timing is perfect!"  

Here is the result:

Your Home is a Stage: Buyers want to see House, not Clutter! 

So fellow real estate professionals, pick up the phone and call your local newspaper, you have nothing to lose and everything to gain!

I'm still trying to convince Greg that vacant home staging is particularly newsworthy; so that is also in the pipeline.

Another alternative is to write an article about staging and submit it to them to see if they'll run it.   At the very least contact your local board of REALTORS with an article and they'll surely publish.

I haven't received any direct business from the article, however, it has helped tremendously with name recognition with REALTORS.  I'm starting to get my branding out!! I'm also taking a hard copy of the article with me on presentations to add to my arsenal.  You'll find that being in the newspaper suddenly makes you an expert! 

P.S.  I also helped the Camera by recommending another (fabulous) stager, Macky Bennett of Rearrangements & More so that they didn't have to research it; saving them time.  When the photographer came to take the photos he was supposed to only shoot a 'before' and 'after' photo of the home we were staging, but we got him to take our photo as well, and buttered him up a bit ;)  The end result is that WE were pictured!!! That was a huge score.

The only downside was that we had not planned to have our photo taken, and as you can see we were NOT prepared! Oh, well the opportunity far outweighed any potential embarrassment. 

Chrissy Harrison
Referral Only Realty - Longmont, CO

Jessica - your ideas are great. Now I need to get up the courage to call........ 

Thanks for coming to our office to teach the home staging class. It was very informative and I hope everyone uses your services in the future!

Apr 19, 2007 12:01 PM
Steve Scheer
Realty Oasis - Metro Brokers - Highlands Ranch, CO
Highlands Ranch Real Estate - Denver Real Estate
Jessica, I already have similar info on this topic, but I would like to print the article to hand out at times.  It is organized well.  I can think of a few situations in particular where your lists would have been helpful (not hearing it from me) - who knows, maybe you'll get a call. 
Apr 19, 2007 01:39 PM
Phyllis Pafumi
ReStyled to Sell Home Staging New Jersey - Old Bridge, NJ
ReStyled to Sell Staging Homes NJ

This was a great opportunity. I did the exact same thing last year with 2 newspapers, and while it did not generate business, it did get my name out there. That is the name of the game.

Best of luck and continued success

Phyllis Pafumi

Apr 19, 2007 01:51 PM
Dena Stevens
Rocky Mountain Realty - Canon City, CO
Putting The Real Into Realtor Since 2004
Jessica, this is fabulous, congratulations. I've e-mailed my articles but never thought about calling them. You are soooo smart.
Apr 19, 2007 03:37 PM
Steven Shewell
Primary Residential Mortgage, Inc. - Ephrata, PA
The Mortgage Maverick
Good advice, Jessica.  I took this advice several years ago and I am now on speed dial for several of the local media when they need quotes and information about the mortgage market.
Apr 20, 2007 02:57 AM
Jessica Hughes
Ambiance Staging - Boulder, CO

Steve~  I have a 'home preparation list' in PDF format that I can e-mail you if you're interested, it's pretty comprehensive.

Phyllis~ Thanks and the same to you.

Steven~ I hope to be in the same position as you several years from now!  Thanks for the inspiration

Dena~ I don' think I would have called if I hadn't read your blog about e-mailing your articles to the press.

Chrissy~  Thanks and I hope so too!  I also hope your Beautiful Historic Longmont Home sells.

Veronica~  You are too kind!  I actually think the photo didn' turn out too bad, but believe me we were grubby!

Apr 20, 2007 06:38 AM
Yvonne Brown
Century 21 Northwest - Gilbert, AZ
Despite our addiction to the internet, people DO still read the paper! Thanks for sharing your success story!
Apr 21, 2007 12:48 PM
Watch My Listings
Watch My Listings - Beverly Hills, CA

Way to get out there and make it happen Jessica.

Best,

 Sean

Apr 22, 2007 11:42 AM
Abby Roselli
ALR Home Staging and Showcasing, LLC - Staten Island, NY
Staten Island Home Stager

Awesome story Jessica!  I guess I should STOP waiting for my phone to ring as well???!!!???  :)

Thanks,

Abby

Apr 22, 2007 11:56 AM
Todd Clark - Retired
eXp Realty LLC - Tigard, OR
Principle Broker Oregon

Great post! I never had thought about calling them, it only makes sense that out of 7,000 agents they may need the help how to choose and I'm sure they hate making calls just as much as most agents. If we make it easier for them, they just may take you up on your offer.

Apr 23, 2007 12:34 AM
Ron Lipscomb
EXIT Realty - Juno Beach, FL
Jessica - awesome blog.  i am a newbie here; i don't quite understand 'staging'.  nonetheless, i think i shall by the end of the day.  thanks.   ron
Apr 23, 2007 12:56 AM
Jessica Hughes
Ambiance Staging - Boulder, CO

 

Abby~ Pick up your phone and CALL!

Todd~  You got it!  Call especially if you have some newsworthy idea or helpful information.  Make yourself of help to them.

Ron~  I'm sure you will know all about staging soon! It's the 'secret weapon' of top producing agents! 

Apr 23, 2007 02:38 AM
Michelle Minch
Moving Mountains Design Home Staging, Pasadena, CA - Los Angeles, CA
Home Staging Los Angeles and Orange County, CA
Jessica: Thanks for your post and congratulations on your article. Ever thought of emailing a copy to all the Realtors in the area? All it will cost is time and it is great PR for you.
Apr 23, 2007 02:58 AM
Kathleen Lordbock
Keller Williams Realty Professionals - Baxter, MN
Keller Williams Realty Professionals
Thanks for the push - now I just need to do it instead of thinking about it
Apr 23, 2007 09:41 AM
Minnesota Home Staging Firm, Minnesota
Minnesota Home Staging Network~ MN's Top Home Staging Firm - Inver Grove Heights, MN

Jessica - OUTSTANDING!!!  Great for you guys.  I will pop back later to read the entire article, but the thing that caught my eye right away was the very negative comment someone made at the bottom of yoru article. What the %$%^#? Someone seemed a bit crabby about the concept of Staging.

Keep up the wonderful work and don't let the crabbies out there get your down. We ARE doing a wonderful service for many, many people and your recognition is well deserved!

All the best,

Beth

Apr 23, 2007 11:24 AM
Gerald Mayes
Legacy Financial - North Las Vegas, NV

That was a very good idea

Gerald

Apr 23, 2007 12:00 PM
Steve Scheer
Realty Oasis - Metro Brokers - Highlands Ranch, CO
Highlands Ranch Real Estate - Denver Real Estate

Jessica, That would be great (the pdf)

Thanks!

Apr 23, 2007 02:53 PM
Michelle Minch
Moving Mountains Design Home Staging, Pasadena, CA - Los Angeles, CA
Home Staging Los Angeles and Orange County, CA

Jessica: How about sharing your PDF with the rest of the class?

Pretty please?

Apr 23, 2007 03:06 PM
Jessica Hughes
Ambiance Staging - Boulder, CO

Michelle~  sure no problem!

May 02, 2007 12:57 PM
Anonymous
virtual tour oc

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Mar 21, 2011 12:47 PM
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