Creating Happy Clients
Communication is the key puzzle piece in working with clients as it can help in developing good relationships and believe it or not some real estate agents don’t follow through with providing communication. Keeping in constant contact with clients and following up after the paperwork has been signed is the main component to success as a realtor. Make sure to schedule weekly calls to listings in order to provide updates, even if there is no news to report, you can still check-in. The same goes for the purchase of real estate, it’s always nice to regularly stay in touch to ensure that everything is on track with your client.
Referrals can be the number one source of business for many real estate agents. Creating happy clients is the key to garnering future referrals. It’s not all that often that we have a terrific experience as a customer and want to shout from the rooftop to tell everyone about it. For this reason, as a real estate agent the more that you can do for a client the happier they will be. Keeping in mind that real estate is usually the largest transaction that we will make in a lifetime, it says a lot that you are trusted by your client to help them handle the sale or purchase. While some of your clients may just be moving across town others may be relocating across the country. Many realtors are looked upon as not only a trusted source, but additionally as a local expert. Clients may need information on local schools, utility providers, and other topics, and it’s a realtor that should be offering to do anything they can do to help.
Loyal clients are the best kind of clients, but you don’t gain this type of clientele by just coordinating the transaction. It’s the extra little things that a realtor does that can make the service memorable and lead to further transactions from the same client, and also potential referrals to other clients. A lot of stress can go into buying a home, from dealing with the lender to coordinating the move, and everything in between. Some people can become easily overwhelmed with the long laundry list of things that have to get done and many people don’t understand all of the nuts and bolts that go into a successful real estate transaction. In fact, many Americans believe real estate to be some glamorous lifestyle whereby realtors get the opportunity to set their work schedule, be independent and drive fancy cars. While most licensed real estate agents will vehemently disagree with the picture, it takes going the extra mile sometimes to show clients that you ultimately want the best for them. A common misconception by the public is the money earned by real estate agents. Commissions aren’t just given away; they are earned. A lot of the time it takes a lot of hard work and dedication to earn a commission check and with all the time invested in the transaction you may not even come out on top.
When you can go above and beyond, a client remembers the extra little things that you did to go out of your way. While you don’t have to be a concierge service, it doesn’t hurt to provide clients with local information. For new visitors to the area, it may be as simple as recommending a good hotel and dining opportunities.
Just because the deal is done doesn’t mean that your work is. In fact, this is where your work begins as it means a lot to the client to follow up and make sure that they are getting settled in ok. Find other ways to keep in touch by connecting with your client on social media, home purchase anniversary cards, holidays, etc. By going the extra mile, you will ensure that your service is memorable and hopefully that will result in both repeat business and future referrals.