According to renowned salesman Zig Ziglar, “If people like you, they will listen to you. But if they trust you, they’ll do business with you.” In business, a little bit of trust goes a long way. Further to this admitting your mistakes will also go a long way in business.
With tight competition across most industries these days, there is no such thing as ‘doing too much’ for your clients. Most people might consider the following 4 ‘mistakes’ unforgivable, but really they are displays of dedication and quality service to your clients.
Go above and beyond, even for those who don’t appreciate the effort
Without doubt, you’ll be wanting to do more than what the client could have ever expected from you or your business. Even if they show no thanks for your service, it’s always worth going above and beyond expectations. A prime example of this is when estate agents spend an untold number of hours researching a property for a client, and then the client goes and signs with another agency.
So how does this make going above and beyond for your clients, a mistake? It could seem like a big waste of time if something like that happens, but think of this example as a chance to test out your business practice.
Yeah sure you didn’t get the client, but you at least had the chance to sharpen your skills as a practitioner. There is nothing a prospective client could do that should make you lower the standard of service you provide as an agent.
Give more detail than you need
Some people believe that concentrating on the smaller, minute details of something can become distracting, and takes away from the bigger picture. When it comes to property however, the small details are where a sloppy agent can really lose out.
For example, in contract small print, details such as minor repair work and certain seller exclusions can have a big impact on price. Yes this can take a much longer time to pick all the details of a contract, slowing down the process over all. In the end your client will thank you for your diligent and thorough approach to their property.
If you care about the client enough to provide a high level of detail, your reputation will precede you in the future.
Be honest
There is no such thing as being too honest. As an estate agent you should never sugar-coat a property as this can lead to clients feeling as though they’ve been miss-sold or swindled. You should never promise what you can’t deliver, especially when it comes to keeping the client happy.
There are promises that you most definitely should make, like how you’re the best qualified person for the job, or highly marketing a client’s property on request. Just don’t got telling them that you can get $400,000 for their property which is only worth $300,000.
Give them more information than they can handle
When you communicate with your client, it all comes down to being able to handle their expectations. The most common client complaint when dealing with agents, is the fact that they weren’t ready for the potential pitfalls of the transaction. That’s the mistake of the agent as they clearly haven’t provided enough information to the client.
Sometimes it’s easy to feel like your client is getting irritated by all the information that you’re throwing their way. The truth is that people forget, so it’s always a good thing to give important information on more than one occasion. This can be important in preventing deals from falling through, or disrupting the scheduled timeline of a transaction.
Conclusion
There are many estate agents who would throw these ideas out the window, simply because they take more time and effort than simply following the bare minimum. This is a great reason to get stuck into the above, because it will set your agency apart from the competition.
Delivering the best possible service for clients should be at the top of your list, especially over making things faster and more efficient for your paperwork plie.