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90 Day Sale Guaranteed, Gimmick or Goldmine?

By
Real Estate Broker/Owner with J. Luis Properties, Inc.

What is a 90 day sales promotion?

There are a few variations of this sales technique albeit the two most popular being: "I will sell your home in 90 days or my commission is free!" and "I will sell your home in 90 days or I will buy it!" The first one being less risky to the agent for obvious reasons.

Many agents balk at these two so called gimmicks because they seem outlandish and of course if true they show-up all the other agents who are not willing to go out on a limb and be gutsy enough to take the risk. These promotions are no different than any other sales promotions, the prospect must meet a certain criteria before being allowed to participate. Would you give a 0% interest rate on a car loan to a customer who has a 500 credit rating? It the same concept.

I have found these promotion get right to the skinny, you are able to qualify a seller right away to see if they are someone you want to work with (That's right you're qualifying them!). You get quick answers to tough questions right upfront: list price, commission & motivation, not to mention you generate quality leads for future follow up. These homeowners are identifying themselves as future sellers whether it be today, tommorrow or next year.

I currently use one of these promotions without leaving the seller feeling duped. Honesty upfront is the key. Sometimes, I get asked the following question: "Noel since we don't qualify for the program how long will it take to sell our house?" I answer with what has always been my goal when I list a house, "No more than 90 days." I am proud to say that I have about a 99% success rate in attaining that goal.

Another question I get asked is, "How many houses have you had to buy?" My reply is, "One, I had to buy it or else my wife would kill me! But seriously none. I came close a few time s though." This is a testament not that the promotions works but the system does: Price it right, be fair with your commission structure and run the marketing plan diligently.

If your planning on running any promotion, do so with caution and perseverance. Also, don't expect to get rich overnight. These promotions are a great way to help brand yourself and generate quality leads over a short period of time. Promotions should be used in addition to other marketing efforts to be truly effective.

The old adage goes, "If it sounds too good to be true it usually is." Well in this case if you follow the basic principles of listing a house for sale you may just find a little truth and some gold to boot.

 

Happy Selling

Noel Padilla

"Doing Business Right"