Selling to Agents Can Feel like Traveling to a Foreign Country

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By Kim Ades

RISMEDIA, Feb. 20, 2007-Grace is my nanny. She lives with me and takes care of my home and my children, and does everything in her capacity to make my life easy and smooth.

Recently, I had taken a trip and came back late one evening to find my car covered in snow. The next morning, it was 23 degrees Fahrenheit. As I was getting ready to leave the house, I had discovered that Grace had taken it upon herself to clean the car off. How thoughtful! However, I then found her hosing down my car! I yelled "No Grace! Not water!" But how was she to know? She is a native of the Philippines and this is her first winter.

Sometimes one can feel just like a stranger in a strange land when trying to sell a product or a service to the real estate industry. Here are five fundamental principles that can be a huge help in navigating the pits and valleys:

1. Real estate is a sales-driven industry.
Real estate is an industry of salespeople, so selling any product to the industry is always about salesmanship first.

2. Agents and brokers are emotional buyers.
Real estate is an industry of salespeople who sell homes-a product that is extremely personal and emotional. That is how they sell and that is how they buy.

3. Real estate follows the 80/20 rule.
The majority of power in the industry is held only by 20% of the brokerages. It is critical to learn who the players are and where they can be found.

4. Initially, barriers to entry are high-but not for long.
You will find that your clients can be your greatest allies and will help you navigate within their sphere of influence-all you have to do is ask.

5. Real estate is an industry of personality and not structure.
Real estate is an industry that is sorely lacking in corporate structure and is slow to benefit from the knowledge and experience of corporate America. Anything you can do to bridge this gap is highly welcomed, particularly among the movers and the shakers who are always open to hearing and being the first to adopt new, leading-edge ideas. RE

Kim Ades is the president of Opening Doors, a company whose mission is to help service providers blow up their sales to the real estate industry. Kim can be reached at kim@openingdoors.tv.

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