Are real estate professionals sales people?

Are real estate professionals sales people? The answer is heck yes, well at least the million dollar realtors are. While interviewing sales candidates I often would ask the question in the interview "what's the first thing that comes to mind when I say salesman?" It is almost frightening how often the answers are negative in nature. The words "manipulative, used car salesperson, dirty, cohersive, cheat, etc." are common in the responses. It's really too bad that such negative connotations are attached to salespeople. Several years ago while working in a direct sales role I had the opportunity to approach a potential new client in the print industry. I had done my research and felt a winning transaction would be worth millions in revenue. Day after day the door was shut in my face. Why shouldn't they one may ask? After all, the print business is a dying industry, isn't it? One day I caught a break; I ran into the VP of sales at lunch and convinced him to let me spend 30 minutes with him. I promised the meeting would be educational in nature and that I wouldn't pitch him any products in the meeting. Cautiously he agreed. The meeting went well; we hit it off great and the potential client gained a newfound respect for my industry knowledge. He agreed to have me back to his office a week later. Meeting after meeting I learned more about their struggles, their goals, and where they invisioned themselves in the next 5, 10, and 15 years. Three months later I made one of the biggest sales pitches of my career. My proposal was bold, it included options this very conservative client had never considered; state of the art software, new equipment leases, maintenance agreements, and on-site training. The client agreed to the terms as I knew they would. After all, it made sense to me and it met their needs. Nine months later and in the midst of an economic crisis the President of the company invited me to play golf at a private resort. During the round of golf he expressed deep appreciation for my "relentless" pursuit of his business. He reported that the housing decline in Arizona had put most of his competitors either out of business or on the verge of bankruptcy. They however were doing very well. The changes they made in technology, the efficiencies gained with their new equipment, and the processes they put into place based on our recommendations had allowed them to reduce operational expenses and seek new sources of revenue. While others were going out of business, they were keeping people employed. I look back on that experience and it makes me proud to be in sales. Home buyer's dont' always know what they want. When they do, they don't always have the courage to pull the trigger on a home. These potential home buyer's need an agent that not only knows the business but one who can help them make tough decisions. Good sales professionals help people make tough decisions. If finding homes and making decisions was easy then realtors wouldn't be needed. If you're not ready to call yourself a sales person at least take the time to study sales books and methods. Learn why buyers buy and how to listen when they're concerned. You never know when the techniques and strategies taught in sales will help you close your next home; maybe even today.