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The Right Props for Open Houses in Today's Market

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Education & Training with The Lones Group, Inc. 12518

The Lones Group, Inc.

The Right Props for Open Houses in Today's Market

Hi everyone and welcome to this week's Zebra Report - I am so excited to share with you again on the topic of doing Open Houses. I know - a lot of you are out there in super-fast housing markets and you are wondering, "Wait a second, why in the world would I even bother doing an open house when I am listing a house on a Thursday and have an offer review by Tuesday? What's the point? There's so many showings and it's so crazy already!"

Well, the point is that the more eyes that you can get in that house, and the more people who are seeing other people in that house at the same time, that creates an important level of excitement and competition. It also gives you a moment to shine and make impressions.

When you host an open house, you also want that point of difference. You want your open house to be different from anyone else's. Creating your point of difference starts by having really good, quality, self- branded materials. I'm talking about props that are branded specifically to you and not just your brokerage's materials that every-agent is using. I'm talking about branding materials that demonstrate that you do things a little bit differently, that you are not the average real estate agent and that this is not the average open house.

That means that visitors are seeing a branded "Welcome" open house sign the moment they walk up to the door. It means that when somebody comes into the open house that you have different spots in the house where you have created and put-up special feature cards and you've added details in that area. Why? Because the goal is to give people as much information as you can.

If you have a busy open house, then you don't have time to tell everyone about every little detail that makes this home special or that has been upgraded in the home. Having those special feature cards is important because it provides your visitors with an impression of the home, its value, its features - and importantly - an impression of you and your service.

Let's imagine, you have all these people coming through your open house and you want them to be able to gather information independently without having to rely on you to give everything to each person. Remember - with the market being what it is, there will be many people coming through your open house and you won't have time to make that personal impression with everyone. Instead, your props do the talking for you. Through your props you talk about the home, the area, the amenities - and you are doing that with visual tools without you having to be present every step of the way.

I always tell people, take a walk through the home and look for five or six things that you would want to stop and explain to a visitor if they were with you. Maybe it's a new furnace, maybe it's an incredible security system, maybe this homeowner has spent a lot of money on bathroom finishings. Have places through-out the house where you have that information.

You should have a central area in the home - a dining room, a kitchen, a great room - where you put up a display. That display should be very similar to what you would see if you were going to walk into a new home community. When you walk into a new home community you see an information stand with a beautiful map that shows where this property is located, where other local amenities are located - your open house visitors love to see that visual comparison to the area. It is important that you take the time to set these things up.

Another prop you could have is an enlarged floorplan. People absolutely love this! One of the things I tell people to do is to have a relationship with a local print shop that does oversized printing. You know how architects always have those large oversized prints? Have one of those made and put on a board so that people can really see the floorplan and the size of the rooms.

Now I've had agents say to me, "Denise, wait a minute. What if this is an older house? Does it really matter?" And I'll say ABSOLUTELY. People will take a photograph of these displays. They will then go home and compare it to the rooms that they have and the furniture that they have. It just makes for that critical point-of-difference that will attract new business your way.

Make sure that you have really good information about the area, good information about the market. Let people know what has been going on in the local market: what the sales have been, what the median days-on-market are, what the list-to-sales-price ratio is. Let them see those comparisons because this is information that they want and that will help them make a better offer on your listing.

It is a little time and energy, but it is a lot of pay-off. So, when you are doing your open houses - especially in a fast market - really give people what they need to be able to go through that home independently.

The real key to a successful open house in this market is to make sure that the house speaks for itself. You can't do that if you are the sole guardian of information. You can't do that unless you do the preparation and planning for your open house that allows you to have the materials that will not only speak for you, but leave a great impression of you and give them something to take home that is about you too.


For over two-decades The Lones Group has evolved the standing and skills of thousands of agents with branding and real estate coaching. Schedule a consultation, call us at (360) 527-8904, or send an email to solutions@thelonesgroup.com to learn how we can help you!

 

By Denise Lones CSP, M.I.R.M., CDEI - The founding partner of The Lones Group, Denise Lones, brings nearly three decades of experience in the real estate industry. With agent/broker coaching, expertise in branding, lead generation, strategic marketing, business analysis, new home project planning, product development, Denise is nationally recognized as the source for all things real estate. With a passion for improvement, Denise has helped thousands of real estate agents, brokers, and managers build their business to unprecedented levels of success, while helping them maintain balance and quality of life.

The Lones Group, Inc.

Comments(13)

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Bill Salvatore - East Valley
Arizona Elite Properties - Chandler, AZ
Realtor - 602-999-0952 / em: golfArizona@cox.net

Thank you for sharing the information.

Buyers and sellers in your area will benefit from your expertise.

Wishing you continued success. Have a wonderful weekend.  bill

Apr 22, 2022 03:15 PM
Denise Lones

Hopefully, other agents will use these ideas, benefiting buyers and sellers in their area - and as a result, growing the agent's business. What props do you use in your open houses? - Denise

Apr 22, 2022 03:30 PM
Kathy Streib
Cypress, TX
Home Stager/Redesign

Hi Denise- I couldn't agree more!!! If you do this, you're making the home stand out and you're making yourself stand out as the truly professional agent that goes the extra mile. 

Apr 22, 2022 06:56 PM
Denise Lones

Thank you Kathy

Apr 25, 2022 08:47 AM
Grant Schneider
Performance Development Strategies - Armonk, NY
Your Coach Helping You Create Successful Outcomes

Hi Denise - you have some very compelling reasons for building your brand by doing open houses.

Apr 23, 2022 03:36 AM
Denise Lones

It works. In a non-covid market (remember that?) open houses sit in third  [NAR HBS 2018] as a source for information for home buyers (behind internet and real estate agents), with roughly 50% of all buyers utilizing them as a resource. Plenty of sellers come through open houses too - I've been teaching about how to connect with sellers at open houses through-out April. Agents should make the most of their time when hosting open houses by using branded props and leverage themselves. - Denise

Apr 25, 2022 08:55 AM
Kathy Streib
Cypress, TX
Home Stager/Redesign

Apr 23, 2022 05:58 PM
Wayne Martin
Wayne M Martin - Oswego, IL
Real Estate Broker - Retired

Good morning Denise. The more effort you put into making your open house stand out, the more you stand out. Enjoy your day.

Apr 24, 2022 05:14 AM
Denise Lones

Well paraphrased. Thank you Wayne. - Denise

Apr 25, 2022 08:56 AM
Carla Freund
Keller Williams Preferred Realty - Raleigh, NC
NC Real Estate Transition & Relocation 919-602-848

Great information! I like to put information books in my listings so people can see these things when they go through. 

Apr 24, 2022 06:03 AM
Denise Lones

I was just sharing about something like this a couple weeks ago. Thank you Carla! - Denise

Apr 25, 2022 08:57 AM
Sharon Tara
Sharon Tara Transformations - Portsmouth, NH
Retired New Hampshire Home Stager

Great idea for highlighting the unique and noteworthy parts of the home. When I personally sold my last two homes I had included at every showing a notebook with photos of the yard for each season, a list of service people in the area, all manuals to the appliances in the home, a list of paint colors for each room...any and all info pertaining to the property that I could think to include.

Having information like that available creates a perception that the home was well maintained.

Apr 24, 2022 09:07 AM
Denise Lones

These are all great ideas and I really like the idea of the photos for each season. Thank you Sharon! - Denise

Apr 25, 2022 08:58 AM
Jeff Dowler, CRS
eXp Realty of California, Inc. - Carlsbad, CA
The Southern California Relocation Dude

Thanks for some wonderful ideas for making an open house standout. In this market we are seeing lots of them - it's when the bulk of the showings are happening before offers are reviewed. Sometime opens are the only time you can show, especially with homes going so quickly and many buyers out looking.

Jeff

Apr 24, 2022 12:34 PM
Denise Lones

I think it's important that agents get back out into the public with open houses and not use the speed of the market as an excuse - so I'm glad to hear that you are seeing lots of them in your area there in Carlsbad. Good to see you again Jeff - Denise

Apr 25, 2022 09:00 AM
Kathy Streib
Cypress, TX
Home Stager/Redesign

Sharon Tara you are so thorough and creative. 

Apr 24, 2022 02:00 PM
Sheri Sperry - MCNE®
Coldwell Banker Realty - Sedona, AZ
(928) 274-7355 ~ YOUR Solutions REALTOR®

This is good information for agents to understand. Thank you!

Apr 26, 2022 10:26 AM
Denise Lones

Thank you Sheri. - Denise

May 03, 2022 04:46 PM
Laura Cerrano
Feng Shui Manhattan Long Island - Locust Valley, NY
Certified Feng Shui Expert, Speaker & Researcher

There’s a lot of that going on These days, but it’s kind of feels like the world is a lot bigger than it used to be

Apr 28, 2022 11:33 PM
Denise Lones

Clients certainly know more, so we need to be better at being the expert source of information and provide them with service rather than salesmanship. - Denise

May 03, 2022 04:48 PM
Ginger Harper
Coldwell Banker Sea Coast Advantage~ Ginger Harper Real Estate Team - Southport, NC
Your Southport~Oak Island Agent~Brunswick County!

Thanks for sharing this information with us. Good to know. Will bookmark for later review.

Apr 29, 2022 11:11 AM
Denise Lones

You are welcome Ginger. Drop me a line when you get a chance to finish reading and let me know what you think. - Denise

May 03, 2022 04:48 PM
Laura Cerrano
Feng Shui Manhattan Long Island - Locust Valley, NY
Certified Feng Shui Expert, Speaker & Researcher

I do agree with the above assessment that it takes a lot of art, but that’s also what makes it interesting

May 24, 2022 06:30 PM