Today’s real estate industry may seem like it’s all about market analysis, advanced data analytics, and 3D virtual home tours, but underneath all the bells and whistles, real estate is still a people business. The most successful real estate agents are great at reading and handling people — and those people skills all start with great communication.
So how do you improve your communication skills, so you can optimize your performance as a real estate agent? It doesn’t have to be difficult — most of the tips below are intuitive, easy to put into practice, and can be applied to a lot more than just your professional life. Read on for our top six tips on improving your communication as a real estate agent.
Master body language
This tip applies not only to you, the agent, but to your customers. On your end, you want to model confident, open, trustworthy body language. You should maintain good posture, or even strike a “power pose.” Avoid “defensive” body language like crossing your legs, leaning back, or folding your arms.
That applies to your customers, too — if they’ve struck a defensive body posture, don’t try to put on the hard sell. Back off and forge a stronger connection. Smile at them — people almost always return a smile — and build trust by actively listening to them. Touch is a great way to build connection too, if you can do it in a way that doesn’t seem forced.
Body language isn’t just for show. Studies have shown that body language has more to do with how someone perceives you than what you actually say.
Control your voice
Just as body language can convey your true feelings and intentions regardless of what you’re saying, your voice’s tone and pitch can have a huge impact on how a customer perceives you.
When you speak to potential buyers and sellers, don’t each sentence on an up-note, as if you’re asking a question or seeking approval. Instead, use what’s called an “authoritative arc.” Start the sentence at your normal pitch, raise your pitch as you move through the sentence, and then end on the original note. This type of speech is perceived as confident and authoritative — qualities you’ll want to embody as a real estate agent advising customers on huge, consequential financial decisions.
Enunciate your words clearly, and over-enunciate key points to really drive them home. And don’t be afraid to use lots of hand gestures when you speak. Research has shown that using your hands when you speak increases stimulation of the part of your brain that governs speech, which means you actually speak more effectively when you use your hands.
Actively listen
When people are looking for a good real estate professional, they want one who’ll listen to what they want and don’t want. A good rule to use with your customers is to listen more than you talk. Listen closely to what they say, and paraphrase to show that you hear them. Then, follow up with detailed questions to further facilitate discussion.
For example, if your customer says they like a certain neighborhood, you can paraphrase by saying, “So you like Neighborhood X? What features do you like about it?” This kind of talk can open up all kinds of useful avenues.
It’s equally important to physically convey that you’re listening. Face buyers and sellers directly, make eye contact, nod, and keep your phone in your pocket. Using a listening posture will encourage the speaker to communicate more openly — whereas looking disinterested, even if you are actually paying attention, will make them shut down.
Create narratives
You’ve probably noticed that compelling speakers often use anecdotes to make their points. If you can use experiences from your own life to illustrate your points, you’ll build trust and authenticity, and your argument will resonate emotionally with your clients.
For example, if you’re trying to explain cyclical trends in the real estate market, don’t just toss out dry statistics — describe your firsthand experience seeing rising or falling prices, or relate the experience of a past customer, and how they thought and felt about it.
Don’t overdo it, though. Tell too many anecdotes, and you run the risk of seeming self-centered. Use anecdotes and personal stories sparingly, and keep them short and to the point.
Be honest
Whether they’re buying or selling, your customers are likely nervous about the process they’re about to embark on. Some agents feel like what potential buyers and sellers need is reassurance — and maybe even false assurance. But what they actually need, and what they’ll appreciate down the line at the end of the process, is the truth.
Honestly and frankly let your clients know what to expect, whether that means likely losing out on some bidding wars before finally getting a home, spending a big chunk of their eventual sale proceeds on closing costs, or watching their home sit on the market for longer than average if they’re selling in a down period.
To the inexperienced agent, giving false comfort may feel easier in the short term, but your clients will be much happier in the end if they know you gave them the straight story.
Practice empathy and compassion
One of the most important aspects of a real estate agent’s job is to be a calming, steadying force, especially when things don’t quite go as planned. It’s a no-brainer that you’ll want to be sympathetic, especially when they experience a disappointment like a rejected offer or a sparsely attended open house. But empathy is different from sympathy, and it’s more useful to everyone involved.
Sympathy is simply an emotional response from your perspective, directed at the other person — you’re acknowledging their pain. Empathy, on the other hand, involves understanding things from the other person’s perspective, which can offer some very important insights.
For example, sympathy is telling your disappointed seller that you’re sorry no one came to their open house. Empathy is understanding that the reason they’re so disappointed is that their next-door neighbor got half a dozen offers the first week they listed.
It’s letting your customer know that their neighbor’s situation was unique, and that their own sale will happen at its own pace. There’s a big difference between the two, and your customers will certainly appreciate one more than the other.
Luke Babich is the Co-Founder and COO at Clever Real Estate, the nation’s leading real estate education platform for home buyers, sellers and investors.
