assignment. It turned out to be a $20 million lease and it enabled
me to then start my own firm. So by living with this “attitude of
gratitude, having that positive helpful attitude toward others and
being persistent enough to keep my eye on the prize, I was able to
reach my dreams and goals! You can too!
One of the most important things I teach is being both a “master
of the market” and a “master of the process.” Being a master of the
market means knowing your niche in the market better than anyone
else. I specialize in office space tenant representation. I study each
and every building and landlord in my market and insure I know
it inside and out, forward and backward. Being a master of the
process means knowing the process step-by-step, detail-by-detail
of what you need to do for your client to make their experience
with you pleasurable so you will have them, their company, and
their contacts as clients for life! To do this, you need to ask the right
questions and learn as much as you can about your clients and the
market. Avoid the "Yes" or "No" responses and get the detail you
need. Learn the skill of asking open-ended, leading questions such
as: who, what, where, when, why and how.
To be a “relationship oriented” consultant, it’s important to take
a relationship approach to business, compared to the transaction
approach that many agents have tried for years without much success. To do this you must:
"Be a consultant first and a
'resultant' second."
Understand What is Important to Your Clients
Now that you understand the skills and characteristics to adopt
when interacting with your clients, you must ensure that you gain
the following information from each and every client in order to
make the transaction a success:
Understand Your Prospective Clients’ Real Estate Needs
This takes time and due diligence, and the process should start
immediately. Today, with Google, social networking, and your
contacts there is no excuse to skip the research. Take the time to
learn about your clients before you meet with them.
Their short and long term strategic plans and goals, including:
- What product type they are interested in?
- What current needs or services they are interested in?
- The desired property location
- The size of the property needed
- What kind of personnel count do they have?
- Parking needs?
- Space usage?
- Location preference?
- How long do they want to lease?
- When is their desired occupation date?
- Are there any specific floor plan requirements? Warehouse
space requirements?
Get to Know Your Clients’ Trusted Advisors
After 25 years of assisting clients I have found that their most
trusted advisers are typically their attorneys, accountants, bankers
or spouses (for privately held firms). Get to know these people and
your halfway there to long term success! There are many ways to
getting to know these important “trusted advisors of potential cli-ents." I use three ways: writing articles, speaking and meeting with
them. Each week my goal is to meet new trusted advisors in each
category, write a new article, blog and speak to one of their offices
or associations. Why is this important? Because these advisors are
the ones that will introduce you to their clients and that introduction makes or breaks you for any new business!
Once you know all of this information and let the client know
you want to become one of their trusted advisors, then their wall
usually comes down. This doesn’t always happen right away, but
if you put the client first, you will be well on your way to growing
new business.
Most agents had a very tough past few years, yet our business has continued to thrive using this method without excessive
marketing material, over-the-top offices, and huge advertising
budgets. It has become clear to us that in times of economic uncertainty, our clients value trust over everything else.
For more information and to watch a brief video we did on office
planning, please visit http://www.ibswebsite.com/Commercial-Real-Estate.html This video will help you understand how to best
help your clients now to improve their bottom line.
