Real Stagers Versus the TV Stager

Excellent contrast.  Yes, I thinnk those producers were looking for something different than Realtors or homesellers do.  However, there are other characters that really do promote the staging industry - certainly the people who go in and transform a room into a showplace. 

Hello Marci, hope all is well in the south today...  The TV shows are certainly a mixed blessing.  On one hand they have provided great visibility for everything related to Real Estate, but on the other hand the picture is out of focus.  In the end, it is TV.  Everything on TV is produced to provide entertainment.  It doesn't matter if it's realistic or accurate, just entertaining.  Even the news segments have become "Give em what they want" and what everyone wants is to be entertained.  So, to the TV shows I say thanks for getting the ball rolling, but we'll take it from here!

Great post, Partner!  Congratulations on having a featured post! 

Bravo Marci!  Reality and people's expectations culled from watching the home shows are often worlds apart. People want miracles for little expense and clients often expect the stager to deliver million dollar results for two hundred dollars. (and countless hours of consultation and design direction)

We stagers will certainly more than make up our value with staging a home for sale...yet, our efforts deserve adequate compensation. Home Staging Professionals charge for their expertise, and homeowners and Realtors are the beneficiaries. Television shows and their sponsors pay the 'cast'....behind the scenes. 

The true reality.....a great Home Stager is PRICELESS!

Regards-Kathleen G

Marci: 

You mean you don't walk in with a camera crew, make-up artist, carpenter and electrician????

You mean you don't require a dressing room with only Red peanut M & M's, Perrier and a selection of DVD's while waiting for the crew to set up the shots?

No wonder I'm not making any profit!  I thought that's what we were supposed to do...I saw it on TV after all... :)

 

Marci girl! GREAT post!!!  This needed to be written!  It makes me wonder if A LOT more homeowners would call on us but they are hesitate because of all you write here.

Congrats on the feature! :) 

I missed this post, thanks Yvonne for pointing it out!  Very good examples.  I have a client that we recently gained - a very busy agent with a lot of listings.  She tested me on her personal property.  It is going to be for sale, but not for months and she didn't clean or fix a thing yet.  She wanted to see what I was going to say. I couldn't soft sell it in any way, because I needed to be just like I would for her clients.  She has used me three other times since then. She liked how I gave both positive and negative CONSTRUCTIVE criticism. 

As it is often in life, it isn't what we say, but how we say it!

great post Marci, I always thought the same thing, on TV they do not say things right, sometimes they are almost mean, this business or even real estate for that matter involves people, and there is always that fine line that you need to watch, I almost feel good sometimes when homeowners make a comment back to those homestager, like the other day when I was watching, homeowners said I would like to go to her house and see how organized she is !! tit for tat.  Attitude is everything so better have a good one.

Shobha

The latest "they need to pack up their personalities and get out of town>"

It is TV- people, not real, not realistic, just not staging per se.

Hello there upstate neighbor Marci!

Great post, you couldn't have stated any better! The mother & daughter team on TV make me cringe. If I was a consumer not familiar with home staging the 'mother & daughter team would make me hesitant to try this service. I gotta agree with Gary's statement the home staging shows are a mixed blessing.

I have a background in interior design, so I offer minimal staging to my clients.  However, when I see that there are several things that need to be done that they may find offensive by my suggesting them, I refer them to a stager.  A stager is taught how to handle these situations with a little more tact and etiquette.  Even though I try to be sensitive to my clients style and tastes, I don't want to risk sounding like someone on HGTV.  It is always nice to have a stager in your back pocket! 

It's pretty true. they need the DRAMA to get people watching. I recently staged for HGTV myself and found out that a lot of it is really TV magic and rehearsed reactions of buyers. (They keep reshooting until it's "dramatic enough.)

But sucks for us who work in the real world!!! Hopefully the new show will show otherwise.

Cheers,

Cindy

I absolutely see your point!  So far I really haven't run into any sellers that think I will talk to them the way they witness on those shows, but I can understand why people might be concerned.

So right Marci, we are dealing with real people not for a camera. It is after all their home still.