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17 Comments on Before & Afters of a Staging Consultation - Part 1
Judy, a consultation goes a long way! Looks good - Can't wait to see part 2!
Judy, like you, it's the tweaking that I always want to get in there and do after a DIY consultation, but since that's the majority of my jobs, they at least look better. My only concern is when I hear the agents say "oh yes, Ginger helped them stage the property." It's really NOT my work but at least staging is getting out there along with my company name.
Don't you want to "tweak" a lot of rooms that you see that are supposedly "staged"?
It is one of the frustrating aspects of our work. As Ginger said, when your name is associated with a property, but you didn't actually stage it. This has happened to me many times. You consult, they make some improvements, and then say you "staged" it. The ideal situation is when we get to return and add finishing touches.
They do look better, but it's too bad people don't quite apreciate or understand the little things a stager can do that will take it from fine to fantastic.
hmmm.... I see what you mean. We have some of the same issues. It does look better.. but not quite as polished as what we, as professionals, can accomplish. Still, I bet it is enough to make a difference to potential buyers.
you know, we always sell our consultation package for the RE office we work with to include 1 hour of us coming back. A professional photographer always takes the pictures for them, so our time is truely spent "fluffing"-- it's always up to the client to make that appointment, and sometimes they don't want it, but it has come in handy several times.
Julie
Like Julie, my basic Realtor consultation package includes two visits -- the first as an initial consultation to meet the clients and view the house, and provide them with an action plan to complete before the house goes on the market. The second visit is the day of the MLS photographs, to make sure everything looks as good as possible before the all-important photos are posted for the world. If the client wishes more help or further staging, I'm happy to provide that service for them. The homeowner would pay me directly for the services beyond the consultation package that the Realtor paid for.
I agree with others -- sometimes we shudder when someone gives us credit for "staging" a property when in fact we just supplied recommendations to the clients. Truly staging it would add more polish to market the home...but consultations are a great way to start!
Judy; I have struggled with this issue, too. I even considered NOT doing consultations, just full staging. However, I understand if people would like to save a little money and try it themselves. I have to believe that the house looks better with the action taken on my report, than if there had been no staging guidance at all. We stagers just have a "trained eye" and see all the things that could be done to make it better. But hopefully, the buyers just see it as being fine, and that could be good enough sometimes.
Thanks Marci - yes it does! Part 2, maybe tomorrow!
Ginger & Sharon - I too am concerned when they say I staged it. I try to inform the sellers and agents that there is a big difference between a consultation/DIY and actual hands on staging. In any event, we've helped the sellers to some degree according to their budget.
Anne - I like that "from fine to fantastic" good catch phrase! And you're so right!
Melissa - Polished is a great word to use too. I've just started showing clients the examples of before, during and after photos and I think it helps them to see that there is a difference when we come back to finish the job.
Julie - I think that's a great idea to offer a follow up. I've considered that, but I really don't charge much for my verbal consultation and now my agents are use to their special price! Might be a challenge to increase the price, especially since there are a few new stagers in town practically giving away their services!
Leslie - Again, great idea. I wonder... have you ever had a conflict with scheduling when you might have had another job lined up and you're needed on the day of the photos?
Peg - I do so many consultations that its a great source of income for me and I'm really happy to do them. I love doing them because I do know that even if they don't do everything I've said, if they do some... it will look much better and they will be better off. At least they have the knowledge of what needs to be done, it's always their choice what they do with that knowledge. It's also helpful for the agents because they know that at least their clients have been told! I think sometimes they see such great progress that to them, it looks so much better they think they're done!
Judy. It's Julie again, well you may not need to raise your fee, even though you/we should--our time is money :o) We advertise on the info for the RE office the value of what the client is getting (our consultation fee + the additional hour fee), however, we only charge the RE office the consultation fee. That was something we just worked out with them and agreed upon. They give us repeat business, so it is a benefit we are giving back to them. Outside of what we offer for RE offices, we advertise our consults at the consult only fee, not including the extra hour. We have thought about raising the consult fee to include that extra visit back, but in light of current economic conditions, it's not a good time to do that.....
We staged an occupied home last spring, but they never listed it because of health issues in the family, so we de-staged it. They just listed it without calling us back in, but they basically copied what we did using only their stuff. It looks almost the same, except for some furniture has crept back into places we'd removed it from. They consider it our work, and I guess it mostly is, but it still seems strange to claim the credit...
I like the idea of providing an hour or so after the homeowner has conpleted the staging suggestions. That is what I generally do. It reminds me of make-up sales. After giving make-overs, I have know people who would not sell their products unless the client bought a package of some type. Their reasoning was that the client would not get the expected results without purchasing the proper products. They would not look polished. I am sure they lost some sales. That is the same line that we walk in deciding whether or not to take on a job.
Julie - Look for an email, I'll tell you about my pricing and would like your opinion.
Laurie - Well you did help them the first time around and they learned what they needed to do. But when you say some furniture has crept back, just shows that homeowners are too emotionally attached to really be totally objective!
Vicki - I do agree with everyone here that provides an hour of follow up. And I always offer that and tell them the price at the consult. I need to consider if it is something I want to include in my consult but would definitely have to raise the price to make it worthwhile for me.
Great job! So nice to see the wonderful fireplace now. You are soooo right...the property always looks better after a staging consultation! You go Girl! :)
Hi Judy- I am glad I went and re-read the post. When I first saw the photos, I raised my eyebrow and thought that the job was not completed. (Thus Part 1) We all can do as much as possible with a consultation, however, I find some people like to 'play stager' themselves! Regards-Kathleen G
Thanks Janice! While it may not be perfect, it's a heck of a lot better!
Kathleen - You're right, the job was not completed! At least not the way it could have been. I hope I was able to explain what I was trying to explain!