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4 Key Tips To Running An Exceptional Open House

By
Real Estate Technology with CityBlast

 

 

How many tools do you have in your home-selling kit? Do you have enough? If you don't you may run the risk of not using an open house to it's full potential.

 

Even with the majority of home buyers starting their search online, most real estate agents will agree that hosting an open house is still a big part of their marketing strategy and revenue generation.

 

"I treat Sunday as the most important day of the week," says Wendy Cutrufelli, a sales associate at Alain Pinel, REALTORS®, in Walnut Creek, California. "When else will you be in a room full of buyers and sellers? You spend a lot of marketing dollars to reach these people, and open houses put you right in front of them."

 

Here are some key tips on how you can run an effective open house and create some killer leads:

 

1. Take Advantage Of Online Marketing: Once you’ve planned out your timing, you need to get as many people as possible interested and aware of your event. What’s the best way to do that? Go to where 90% of people start their home searches - the internet. Let everyone in your online network know when and where your open house will be through blogs, tweets and posts. You’ll usually find that at least half of the people who show up heard about the event through social media or Google searches.

 

2. Signs Signs, Everywhere A Sign: Not everyone attends open houses based on online searches so it’s also important to use signs and posters to get your name, contact information and event details out to the public. These visitors may be motivated more by curiosity than serious inquiry, but that’s kind of the point. You want to attract different types of people to your open house not only to increase the chances of finding a buyer, but making the most of the opportunity to widen your network.

 

3. Set the Stage: First impressions are not only important for your brand, but also for your product. With that in mind, you want to blow people away as soon as they walk in the door. Some simple tricks to remember:

  1. Turn on all the lights, open all of the blinds and curtains. It makes the home look bright, inviting and spacious.

  2. Remove personal items (family photos etc.). This allows other potential buyers to envision themselves in the home a little bit easier.

  3. Simple is usually better for open houses, so a good rule is usually about 3 main colors per room.

  4. One more creative open house technique you can use is to engage all of the senses. Bake some cookies and play some background music. Show your guests how great it would feel to live there.

 

4. Be the Perfect Host: Once you have people showing up to your open house and it’s ready to show, it’s time to turn on the charm.

 

"Once you get them in the door, it’s the way that you conduct the open house that makes the difference,” says Rita Burke, e-PRO®, broker associate at Kenna Real Estate in Denver. “If you come right at them with ‘Are you qualified?’ they’ll run away."

 

Make sure you have all of the right information prepared. You should give your guests brochures with a mortgage loan breakdown, a glossary of the home ownership/mortgage terms and the important neighborhood information. Start networking while you have the guests’ attention. They might not work with you on the spot, but if you make a good first impression it might pay off further down the line.

 

You should also be prepared to close the deal. It’s unlikely that you’ll have a buyer on the spot, but if you’re prepared and the opportunity presents itself, it’ll show that you mean business.

 

Welcome Them In

When done right, an open house is not only an opportunity to give a small demonstration of the product you’re selling, but also a great way to widen your network and build relationships. Remember an open house is a great opportunity to make a positive lasting impression directly with potential clients, so make sure you get it right the first time.


Want even more tips on how to host an awesome open house? Check out Coach Tom Ferry’s keys to a killer open house.

Show All Comments Sort:
John Wiley
Fort Myers, FL
Lee County, FL, ECO Broker, GRI, SRES,GREEN,PSA

Good points to remember. A good Open House takes work and should be done right.

Mar 31, 2016 10:11 AM
Praful Thakkar
LAER Realty Partners - Burlington, MA
Metro Boston Homes For Sale

Shaun Nilsson - specially in this market - where an open house at listing can lead to another listing - Be perfect host!

Mar 31, 2016 12:17 PM
Mike McCann Nebraska Land Broker
Mike McCann - Broker, Mach1 Realty Farm & Commercial Land Broker-Auctioneer Serving Nebraska - Kearney, NE
Farm & Commercial Property For Sale 308-627-3700

Although I do not sell homes anymore...when I did the Open House was a main tool in my artillery case!  Great blog with great tips Shaun Nilsson  

Hint #1:  If the owners 2nd vehicle is a fairly decent vehicle...park it at the end of the drive or in front of the home.  It will comfort to potential visitors that other visitors are in the home and it will add a distraction to the bad guys for the same reason. I always used this every Open House that I could.

Hint #2:  Never judge a book by its cover or a visitor by their looks. Sometimes the vistor that looks disheveled and out of place has the money and desire to buy and sometimes the fancy dressed one with flashy rings and car are already in debt up to their eyebrows.   And sometimes vice versa.

Mar 31, 2016 12:48 PM
Craig Cooper
Chase International Real Estate - Tahoe City, CA
Creating-Preserving-Growing Wealth in Real Estate

Shaun, great points to remember for a successful open house and in our second home market we certainly find it is still a great way to meet potential clients.

Mar 31, 2016 05:33 PM
Kat Palmiotti
eXp Commercial, Referral Divison - Kalispell, MT
Helping your Montana dreams take root

Yes, these are good points to remember when conducting an open house. My challenge is getting people to come - open houses are not typically well attended where I am. Maybe this spring will be different!

Mar 31, 2016 08:22 PM
Dorie Dillard Austin TX
Coldwell Banker Realty ~ 512.750.6899 - Austin, TX
NW Austin ~ Canyon Creek and Spicewood/Balcones

First impressions are everything! Great points in holding an Open House. In our area we have a lot of traffic and it's best to be prepared!!

Mar 31, 2016 08:34 PM
Lise Howe
Keller Williams Capital Properties - Washington, DC
Assoc. Broker in DC, MD, VA and attorney in DC

Great tips in holding open a house - getting the signs out early is always helpful too

Mar 31, 2016 09:02 PM
Sandra Hopkins
Keller Williams American Premier Realty - Bel Air, MD
Realtor® , Associate Broker

Thanks for the reminder.  I am hosting two open houses this weekend!

Mar 31, 2016 09:19 PM
Marco Giancola
Beachfront Realty - Miami Beach, FL
Realtor (305)608-1922, Miami Beach Florida

First impressions are everything and that includes the host! You are on stage-don't get panned by the critics!

Mar 31, 2016 10:47 PM
Evelyn Johnston
Friends & Neighbors Real Estate - Elkhart, IN
The People You Know, Like and Trust!

I love all the ideas, open houses still work great, if you work the open house!

Mar 31, 2016 11:26 PM
Olga Simoncelli
Veritas Prime, LLC dba Veritas Prime Real Estate - New Fairfield, CT
CONSULTANT, Real Estate Services & Risk Management

Many agents have stopped doing open houses and it's not necessarily a favorite activity, but still important. Good post.

Mar 31, 2016 11:50 PM
Ron Aguilar
Gateway Mortgage Group - Saint George, UT
Mortgage & Real Estate Advisor since 1995

Before you entertain the thought of an open house you need a list. Signs in the ground etc is usually not enough. Build your list of homeowners and renters and keep it current and make sure they live within a reasonable distance. Advertise the Open House to this list. Think of your daughters wedding, you better have a list.

Apr 01, 2016 12:18 AM
Gerhard Ade
RSVP Real Estate - Seattle, WA
What sets me apart, will set you apart.

Every home and every open house is different. There is no one size fits all solution. Currently, in the desirable neighborhoods of Greater Seattle you will get between 20 and 40 parties to come to an open house.  Still, thanks for the list.

Apr 01, 2016 02:12 AM
Deb Espinoza
Stage Presence Homes, San Diego Real Estate - Ramona, CA
GRI, Broker, SRS,ABR ePro, SFR, CNE

These are some great tips!  I like the idea of giving information on financing

Apr 01, 2016 08:43 AM
Joan Whitebook
BHG The Masiello Group - Nashua, NH
Consumer Focused Real Estate Services

Open houses are a great way to meet potential buyers and sellers.  I do wonder, however, how many buyers who come to an open house end up buying the house they viewed.  

Apr 01, 2016 11:36 AM
LeAnn Sink - Realtor Knoxville, TN
United Real Estate Solutions - Knoxville, TN
#ThinkSink when you need an agent.

I agree. A good open house takes lots of planning and thoughts as to where and how to market it effectively. I often hear of other agents who decide to hold an open house like a day prior! Really?

Apr 03, 2016 05:40 AM
Thomas J. Nelson, REALTOR ® CRS,ABR,PSA,RCS-D, ePRO
Big Block Realty 858.232.8722 - La Jolla, CA
Serving Coastal San Diego, Veteran's & Seniors

Great tips, I like the "be a good host" as it gets you into a mindset and great use of links! I don't even do open houses anymore, but I enjoyed the read.

Apr 05, 2016 01:07 PM
Sandy Padula & Norm Padula, JD, GRI
HomeSmart Realty West & Florida Realty Investments - , CA
Presence, Persistence & Perseverance

Shaun Nilsson Great post and these are sound tips that we incorporate for our OPen House Events already, and will again at today's OHE.

May 07, 2016 08:36 PM
Melissa Jackson REALTOR
Trinity Premier Properties - Azle, TX
Helping You Make The Right Move

Thanks for sharing these great tips.  Will look into getting the mortgage loan breakdown.

Jul 20, 2016 01:10 PM
Brad Thomsen
Big Bear Realty - Edmonds, WA
Real Estate Services

Great Post.

Thanks for sharing your knowledge.

Open Houses can be Excellent Business 

Happy Selling!

Apr 19, 2017 05:43 PM