Time and time again real estate agents will ask about how our real estate postcards fair with those of our competitors. The quick answer is that they don’t fair with our real estate postcards. Now, that might sound a bit bias coming from a person who represents that same business, however, if you stop for a moment and really look…it’s true.

Let me be quite frank with you about how this industry works. Most postcard market companies that focus on helping real estate professionals are out to sell you empty promises how their postcard products can make you money fast. They push this idea that if you market, market, market your phone will soon ring, thus making their claims true. When in reality, with any amount of noise making, you’re soon to turn some one’s head. However, that’s not proof that a product is truly effective or saves you work and time on your dollar spent.

It’s all about the offer you pitch to buyers and sellers that make you stand out from others. And it will always be that way. In fact, just stop and think about the last time you bought something from a retail store. What was it that compelled you to move forward with that product? Was it on sale? Did it just hit store shelves? No matter the reason, the “offer” is what moved you. Whether you bought it because it was 50% off or you wanted others to see you as cutting edge, there is an “offer”and you appropriate value to that offer. And that’s just what Realasponse.com does with real estate marketing.

Our postcards come equipped with offers. Attractive offers to buyers and sellers that are hard to turn down. Because the one thing that any buyer or seller wants is good information that will either help them save money or make money; that this is done by sharing valuable information. Information we help you market and offer. Other postcard marketing companies don’t do that. It’s practically a do-it-yourself kit with no instruction. We’ve done the work for you.

Remember, people will only pick up the phone and call you once they are compelled too. Offer something valuable and meaningful to them. That’s the Realasponse.com difference.

I’ve had this question asked to me for quite some time. “How can I get real estate leads pushing real estate postcards?” The truth is, you can get real estate leads with postcards however, not with today postcards being offered to Realtors and agents. I say that because today’s postcards don’t do enough to compel a buyer or seller to act and to compel a buyer or seller means that you are driving them by way of interest. And quite frankly, a picture of a home and you smiling saying,”Buying or Selling?” won’t cut it in 2010. The secret is in the offer; and I’m not talking gimmick items. It’s all about giving them something they truely need: information. Every buyer and seller wants to make an informed decision an offering them that which will improve time spent valuable. Which is why our real estate postcards include insider reports you can offer as a means of having them contact you. So don’t take a chance mailing postcards that don’t offer anything but your name and number and an empty promise that doesn’t prove it’s claim. Don’t just say you’re better than 99% of the other agents, prove it by offering valuable information FREE.

By: Rich Levin

“Gosh darn it” (or stronger) Sean McDonald (name changed to protect the not so innocent) exclaimed. “That’s the second listing presentation that I went on this week that the owners chose someone else. What do I need to do to stop this from happening?”

When Sean doesn’t get a listing he calls the seller to ask why. There is no consistent answer.

This is typical.

Sean hired me to work on his listing presentation. He knows that I work with Agents who take over a hundred listings a year. He asked me what these Agents do that he needs to learn.

Twelve Distinct Skills

There is a lot. It is all simple, not easy, but simple. There are twelve distinct skills and proficiencies below. They are listed at the end of this article.

Reputation

First, the Agents are known. Most of their listing appointments are with people who know them or know of their reputation. You can easily create this same advantage.

Your marketing and networking establish the foundation for your success. It is how you become known.

Do you communicate regularly with your primary sources of business, that is, your past clients and your Spheres of Influence? Is there a geographic market you wish to dominate, perhaps just your street? Do you send them something regularly to those markets? Does it have a significant presence of you? Is the main message that you sell Real Estate?

Presentation Structure

I asked Sean to talk me through his normal listing presentation. It was obvious that he was winging it.

Do you have a structure to your listing presentation? Does that structure begin with your preparation and continue through to twenty four hours after the presentation?

Preparation

Preparation is both the key to your confidence and the key to the seller’s confidence in you. How much time do you take to prepare pricing, your marketing plan and review your entire presentation as it applies to a particular client?

Your First Impression

OK, let’s say you are well prepared. You are standing at their front door as they open it. What kind of first impression do you make? Do you take subtle control with your questions? Are you careful with what you wear? Do you bring them a small gift? Do you have a structured process from the time you walk over their threshold until you are sitting down with them beginning your presentation?

Your first impression directly relates to the ease with which you get agreement and have the seller’s trust on pricing, negotiations and whether or not they send you a steady stream of referrals.

You only have one chance to make that first impression. The seller’s first impression of you will open the door to a permanent great relationship and an easy transaction or end the relationship at that appointment.

Your Opening Questions

OK, let’s say you made a great first impression and begin your presentation. Do you have a thorough set of questions that uncover the seller’s motivation and urgency, plus questions that show you care more about them than about the listing?

Actively Listening

Those opening questions, plus your ability to actively listen, and your sincere attention to them are enormously powerful and important to your success.

Your Marketing Plan

OK, let’s say you have their rapt attention. Do you have a structured marketing plan, the things you do to attract buyers and get the property sold and closed? Do you have a marketing/listing book, computer (PowerPoint) presentation, or a folder of materials to show examples of your work?

Here’s a subtle advantage that can be the difference between success and failure. Do you present your marketing plan powerfully, showing the advantages, benefits and asking for agreement as you go? Or do you simply review a bunch of items?

The strength of your marketing plan and your skill at presenting it determines whether you get a commission challenge, whether they choose to go for sale by owner, or whether they choose to interview other Agents. The strength of your marketing plan and your skill presenting it impact whether you get a priced right listing with a cooperative, enthusiastic seller on the spot or not.

Presenting Pricing and Value

OK, let’s say that so far they are impressed by you, perhaps even more than they expected. Now it’s time to present pricing and value.

There are two reasons that most listings expire. Either the Agent did a mediocre job preparing pricing and value or presenting it.

I always refer to this as pricing and value because the most common mistake of even the best Agents is that they treat the price as if they controlled it. “My price,” they will say.

Let’s get this right. It is always their price, the seller’s price. You advise the seller on price. They choose it. When you master the language and attitude around this subtlety you will never lose a listing you wanted because of pricing.

Do you take an overpriced listing? I say, trust your judgment. There are times to take an overpriced listing and other times to pass.

Gaining Agreement and Signatures

OK, let’s say you have agreement on pricing. They like and trust you. How do you proceed to getting the listing paperwork signed? Do you use a seller’s net sheet? Do you have the paperwork mostly filled out ahead of time? As you complete the paperwork, are you involving the seller, gaining their agreement as you go?

Then do you call within twenty-four hours to reinforce their decision and assure them that you are already working to get their property sold?

The Critical Key: Practice

On the whole, there is one simple yet critical key to perfecting your listing presentation. It is the main reason someone taking a hundred or more listings a year will beat you in a competitive situation. It is this. They get lots of practice. They are conducting two to ten listing presentations a week.

The simplest and most critical key to perfecting your listing presentation is practice. Do you schedule one to two hours once a week to rehearse your listing presentation, so that those weeks when you don’t have a live one you still get stronger?

Facing Fewer Objections

Once you have a structured well rehearsed listing system objections become easy to handle. Top listing Agents confront fewer objections because each time they hear the same objection a second time, they build a strong answer into the structure of their presentation to prevent it from arising in future presentations.

The strength of your listing presentation can dictate the success of your career. A successful listing presentation is more than getting the listing. It is creating a relationship that gets the property sold with cooperation and ease. This leads to your being the Agent they will refer for as long as your marketing and reputation keeps you on top of their mind as their REALTOR®.

Sean MacDonald is getting most of the listings he goes after, now. The biggest hurdle for him was recognizing that great listing Agents don’t have to have the latest tools or the fanciest scripts.

Top listing Agents simply worked long and hard to build and practice a solid strong presentation.

Once the basic structure is mastered, you work on your sales and presentation skills. Once you get the listing you constantly work on delivering the service your promise.

There is a lot to learn. It is all simple, not easy but simple. With dedication, hard work, and practice a great listing presentation is in your future.

Following are the twelve skills and proficiencies that lead to the strongest possible listing presentation.

1. Reputation
2. Presentation Structure
3. Preparation
4. Your First Impression
5. Your Opening Questions
6. Actively Listening
7. Your Marketing Plan
8. Presenting your marketing plan
9. Presenting Pricing and Value
10. Gaining Agreement and signatures
11. The Critical Key: Practice
12. Building the answer to objections into presentation.

Rich Levin is one of the most successful Real Estate coaches in the nation by virtue of the measurable results of his clients and creator of the Real Estate Hierarchy of Success, a working model for understanding and planning your business.

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Have you seen today’s just listed and just sold postcards being sold today! Oh my, can you say “1998″. No, seriously, if you’re going to use real estate postcards today, you better be sure you’re presenting the property on good quality design. The reason why it’s so important is because prospects can make negative assumption on your listing or sale. Here’s an example, lets say you have a date who you figure is an attractive person, however, once you see them they are poorly dressed and the car they arrived in is hardly a car at all. Get my point? It’s not just the property, however, everything associated with that property that helped you form your first impression. It’s the same thing with just sold postcards, just listed postcards and, hell, any real estate postcards that you send. Here’s something to ponder, in a market like this can you really afford to gamble on future transactions. Perhaps, not. So use real estate postcards that grab the attention of prospects increase the chances of winning that next deal.

We here at Realasponse have notice a surge in business for our real estate postcards. Since the demand was growing I wanted to look into what might be driving this desire to use our marketing tools vs. the other diret-mail postcard solutions already out there on the market. Well, after some investigation I’d was told time and time again the same thing from various agents. Their explanation matched what we’d always felt about other real estate postcards currently in the market. They said other postcard marketing companies offered no incentive for customers to call them back. There was no compelling reason for prospects to stop what they were doing and call them. Realasponse was the ONLY company that offered a built-in solution to their direct-mail needs. And they’re right! We know that no one will move to call you unless you move them to do so; and offering an insider report is the best way to get people calling you. So if you need postcards for your real estate marketing efforts, don’t chance it.

We offer just listed postcards, just sold postcards and real estate postcards of all sorts.