Have you ever struggled with a work/life balance? A buyer contacts you and wants to see a house this evening, and you were planning to attend your child’s recital or game. If you show the house, you lose in your relationship with your family. If you try to move the showing, you potentially lose the buyer and a sale. What do you do? It depends on whether you are an on-demand or in-demand sales associate. Here’s the difference:
On-Demand Associate:
- Is perceived by the buyer as providing a service, such as ordering an Uber.
- Both the associate and the buyer have a simple transaction focus.
- Associate and buyer do not have a strong relationship – may not even know each other.
- Associate tends to work primarily with strangers and may generate business by buying leads.
- Associate has not articulated their value proposition to the buyer.
- Associate works on the buyer’s schedule as on-demand.
- Associate is coming from scarcity and needs the transaction.
In-Demand Associate:
- Is perceived as a trusted advisor in addition to a service provider
- Associate and buyer have a strong relationship.
- Associate brings such value to the relationship and the transaction that it would be unthinkable for the buyer to do the transaction without the in-demand associate.
- Associate’s level of service and advice is so invaluable that the buyer is willing to fit into the associate’s schedule.
- Associate is coming from abundance. They have a system that generates a continuous flow of buyers and sellers so they don’t need the transaction and can refer the buyer to another associate if necessary.
In my experience, on-demand associates tend to burn out in their careers as well as burn up their families and their health. To build a happy, prosperous, long-term career, become the in-demand associate.
How do you do that?
- Start with a relationship focus versus a transaction focus.
- Take great care of your customer/client during and AFTER the transaction.
- Stay in flow with them at least 3 times a month via mail and email and at least once a quarter live.
- Become invaluable to them.
Christy Budnick, CEO of the global Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices franchise network puts it this way, “Value is defined in most dictionaries as meaning useful or describing something of worth. Invaluable, on the other hand, is defined as indispensable, priceless, precious, and valuable beyond estimation.
Invaluability, or value beyond estimation, leading to indispensability, is when a real estate professional – through their remarkable negotiating, staging, remodeling, social media, merchandising, creativity, innovation and high-impact communication skills – is now viewed as not merely an effective facilitator of transactions, but as a real estate trusted advisor.”
When you become invaluable to your clients and friends, you will have all the business you want and you will do it on your schedule. You are the in-demand real estate professional.
