Introduction to Consultative Selling

For all its potential benefits, the real estate industry can be a difficult career choice. In some areas, the turnover rate approaches the astounding figure of 40-50% annually. In addition, the vast majority of salespeople rarely exceed mimimal level incomes. The small percentage who do achieve high incomes generally work extremely long hours at the expense of family and personal life. Something is fundamentally wrong.

We believe the primary cause for the high turnover rate, low incomes and lack of personal satisfaction lies in the industry's wide concentration on sales. The vast majority of training focuses entirely on getting sales. Even worse, this training is often based upon beliefs that are untrue or at best distortions of the truth. 

The two most commonly accepted of these beliefs are:

• People can be manipulated or tricked into buying or listing.
• To succeed salespeople must use pressure and fast talk to get most people to buy or sell

The underlying basis of this is that people are either stupid or easily led. There are literally thousands of sales tricks and tips designed around these beliefs.

Decades of this kind of selling have created a very negative public perception of the real estate Industry and those who work in it. The fact is that these sales techniques are not only intensely disliked by the public but by most salespeople as well.

Consultative Selling is an entirely different approach and way to work in real estate. It does not centre around taking advantage or manipulating people.

The focus is working with people, not at them.

It is based upon the realities of the industry and why people buy and sell in the first place.

Consultative Selling concentrates on putting together the necessary ingredients of a sale (the things that make a sale happen) and a sale is simply a natural result.

Most importantly, this method gives you success in increased sales in the short term whilst laying down the foundation for increased future business for long term success.

An important part of the learning of how to put into practice "C.S." is to significantly increase your knowledge about the real estate market and the selling process your clients must go through.

Buying or selling a home is a very emotional experience for most people and it is emotion that creates the most serious problems for both clients and agents. In the past, salespeople have been taught to try and use these emotions to pressure people into buying or selling.

In Consultative selling, just the opposite is true. Rather than playing on the emotions of clients, you provide the kind of knowledge and information they need to make decisions based on logic and the reality of their market. This not only helps them achieve their goals but moves them away from the emotional pitfalls that end up costing them time and money.

Central to this long term approach is the Loop relationship established with all clients. It is based on three important facts.

• Real Financial Success In Real Estate Comes From Listing. Not Selling.
• 60-70% Of Listings Come From Repeat Business And Referrals.
• Past Clients Are The Source Of Repeat Business And The Best Source Of Referrals.

Establishing a client loop means treating your clients honestly and ethically from the beginning and maintaining an ongoing business relationship with them long after the sale is over. It is this that creates the loop which moves your business today to your business tomorrow.

The 21 Realities of Real Estate  

Some of these may seem obvious but don't under estimate them, don't gloss over them, listen and pay particular attention to how they apply in the real world of real estate.

I would recommend printing these out and having them in a visible place on your desk somewhere.

Listen to the Audio's below.