Thriving In Difficult Markets
Knowledge and skills taught in this session:
- Understand the dynamics of the changing market.
- Essential strategies for surviving in a downturn.
Remember to get your workbook out and follow through in it, as you complete the lessons online. Do the work, complete your daily planner and do the exam questions.
NEW: Watch this video first:
Thriving In Difficult Markets
Knowledge and skills taught in this session:
- What happens when the market turns.
Remember to get your workbook out and follow through in it, as you complete the lessons online. Do the work, complete your daily planner and do the exam questions.
How markets change
It’s amazing how quickly a market can change. I’ve had consultants tell me they’ve had 120 people through their open days one week, and 20 or 30 the next. One month there are 30 or 40 sales in an office, and a couple of months later, there are six – or none. And suddenly, buyers stop ringing up about your ads.
Properties stop selling
Vendors hope
Consultants dream
The media reports a downturn
Buyers become confused and wait
The market stalls
Consultants become negative
Consultants don’t adjust to the new market
Consultants do adjust, but ineffectively
Other consultants act
15 Rules For Thriving In Difficult Markets (part 1)
Knowledge and skills taught in this session:
- We work through the first seven of the 15 rules.
Remember to get your workbook out and follow through in it, as you complete the lessons online. Do the work, complete your daily planner and do the exam questions.
15 rules: part 1
Rule 1: Maintain a proactive discussion
Rule 2: Collect market information
Rule 3: Practise the Midas Touch role plays
Rule 4: Put all your clients through the Midas Touch – Download the Midas Script
Rule 5: Encourage unmotivated vendors to leave the market
Rule 6: Seek out the motivated vendors
Rule 7: Put your resources only into those who are motivated
Exercise: Consider how the first seven rules might be applied in your office.
For example, who would collect the market information required for rules 1 and 2? Where would it be stored and how would it be updated? Would there be any practical difficulties in putting all clients through the Midas touch? What would be a feasible timetable for this?
Role play convincing an unmotivated vendor to take their house off the market.
Find a partner to role play with
The vendor has no compelling reason to sell – they “just felt like a move” – and is holding out for an unrealistic price.
The consultant has had the listing for four months and knows the price is unattainable in the current market.
15 Rules For Thriving In Difficult Markets (part 2)
Knowledge and skills taught in this session:
- We work through rules 8 to 11.
Remember to get your workbook out and follow through in it, as you complete the lessons online. Do the work, complete your daily planner and do the exam questions.
15 rules: part 2
Rule 8: Consistently reappraise your listings
Rule 9: The asking price must be at or below market value
Rule 10: Allow for longer selling times
Rule 11: Continue marketing to your client base
15 Rules For Thriving In Difficult Markets (part 3)
Knowledge and skills taught in this session:
- We work through the remaining 4 rules.
Remember to get your workbook out and follow through in it, as you complete the lessons online. Do the work, complete your daily planner and do the exam questions.
15 rules: part 3
Rule 12: Alter your presentation to suit the new market
Rule 13: Maintain a detached, professional attitude
Rule 14: Take massive action
Here are some examples of massive action.
You’ve got 80 listings on the board? Put all of them through The Midas Touch over two or three weeks. Work incredibly hard and run your manager ragged.
Set up a war room and put up on the board and track every red dot that’s listed with another company.
If the market’s particularly bad and you’ve got lots of houses coming on, call a meeting of all your vendors. Write to them as manager and say, “Come on in, we want to discuss the market with you, show you what’s happening with it and just make sure we’re helping you 100 percent.”
At the very least, you can write to all your listings and say, “I’m writing because I’m concerned about the media impact on marketing your property. I want to make sure you’re aware of everything we offer in terms of marketing. If you have any concerns at all about the way the market’s changing, please ring me. Here’s my cell phone number.”
Have a ‘beer and pizza’ night. The whole team comes in at 4.30 and you phone everyone you’ve dealt with in the last year – everyone who’s come to open days, everyone you’ve done appraisals for, your whole client base. If it moves, ring it up! it’s a great time to touch base with people and ask, “seen the change in the market? When will you be making a move next?”, and to update their phone numbers and what-have-you. The beer and pizza arrives at 6 (it’s on the manager, by the way) and you go all the way through until 9.
This is the perfect opportunity to clean up your office and get organised for the better times ahead. Get the Kleensaks in and get rid of the clutter. Sort out your work space so it reflects how you actually do things. You know when you clean your car, you feel like it runs better? It’s the same in the office.
Rule 15: Ban negativity from the office
Exercise: Consider how the last eight rules might be applied.
For example, how would you keep track of other companies’ listings in order to catch the second wave? Would the changed market affect the nature of your marketing to your client base? What about reduced income – is that an issue for marketing? And how would you deal with a colleague who was affecting morale?