Hey there, Tech Savvy Listing Agents! I'm showing your listings in St. Charles and Geneva, IL! Your steady flow of clever blog posts helped lure the transferee to our great area, your website had nifty interactive maps, and you displayed attractive photos of the home on 1,000s of websites. Your charts and reports convinced your St. Charles and Geneva sellers to price competitively and then to lower the price as we head into fall. And you've marketed to the local agents as well...how could I miss your listing popping up on Google in every search? Your unique property websites are impressive. You've sent out snazzy e-flyers to all the St. Charles and Geneva agents with each price change. Really great work and you got my client's attention.
And now, after all your work over so many months, if you get us to the door, will you get us to the table?
I worked with two families this week who are transferring to the area and considering St. Charles and Geneva for their new home. There are so many houses to choose from that you'd expect sellers would roll out the red carpets.
But we didn't see many red carpets at the showings. In fact, a lot of houses looked a little sad. Even if the seller is discouraged, it is the listing agent's job to create a great showing experience every time someone drives up to the house.
As the gardens turn brown, the dead plants should be cut back. At the front entry a few mums and pumpkins look nice and the front porch should be swept of dead leaves. And please, brush away the spider webs. "We never use the front door" is not an excuse. A buyer comes though the front door.
This time of year the lights should be turned on for a showing, especially on a dreary day. Maybe you could turn on some soft music. Warm cookies are a wonderful way to entice a buyer to stay a little longer and enjoy the home.
The dog needs to be somewhere other than the laundry room. Barking dogs scare little kids and their parents. And a buyer needs to see the laundry room.
If the weather is cold and the house is vacant, someone should come over and turn on the heat. One house I showed yesterday had the air conditioning set at 58 degrees. Perhaps the agent hadn't been there since summer, which probably explains the bugs.
As the weather grows colder, vacant houses here in the Midwest get bugs. Someone needs to vacuum up dead bugs before a showing. Hundreds of dead box elder bugs are not warm and inviting. Dead bugs are creepy to little kids who crunch them under their little sneakers. Teenage girls flounce out and go sit in the car, announcing that they aren't moving into that house.
Houses for sale need brochures in the house. Yesterday I showed fifteen houses in six St. Charles and Geneva subdivisions and only four had multi-page brochures with good photos. A 4,000 sf house priced at $600,000 deserves a nice brochure.
Listing agents should provide handouts with interesting information: the HOA newsletter, the community pool schedule, the St. Charles or Geneva Park District brochure, or maybe a Kane County Event Calender. Tell the buyer what distinguishes your listing and community from every other choice on the market.
The showing experience starts when a buyer sees the photos on the internet. Driving up to the house is the start of "show time". Walking through the door should be a "wow". A buyer should be reluctant to leave and move onto the next house. A buyer, especially a transferee, wants to collect nice looking materials to remind them of their favorite homes.
So to my St. Charles and Geneva colleagues, I ask: after all the work you've done, if you get us to the door, will you get us to the table?
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