What real estate agents can learn from hospitality workers

Jan 8, 2020

Ellen DeGeneres, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Lady Gaga. There is something oddly similar about those three. Love them or despise them, they all have great-big personalities.

And, they were all, at one time, employed in the food and beverage industry (DeGeneres and Ocasio-Cortez bartended and Lady Gaga waited tables).

If you’ve ever worked in the hospitality industry, you know that there is a direct correlation between building rapport with your customers and your tip income.

After all, do you tip the grumpy waitress, the bartender who ignores you or the bouncer who makes you wait until the “important” people are let into the club?

Like real estate, many of the jobs in these industries have a low bar of entry. Let’s face it, waiting tables is easy to learn. Waiting for them with elegance, with class and with customer service top-of-mind is a bit harder.

The House Feeling a Little Empty postcard is available under the Life Event Series in the Postcard section.

Being personable leads to the bigger bucks

Even the bartender who mixes a mean Manhattan won’t build a following without a bit of personality. It’s the same in real estate.

An agent can have an expert-level understanding of contracts and marketing but, without the ability to build rapport, will fail to build a referral base. Without that, he or she will be forever chasing after new business.

Think about the waiters and waitresses you’ve over-tipped – it was their personality, their ability to interact that compelled your generosity, right?

Sure, you can be a ho-hum agent, do the minimum required and still make as much on a transaction as an agent who goes above and beyond in providing customer service.

And, if you don’t want or need repeat business and referrals, go ahead and be that agent otherwise read on.

The approach

“When greeting a guest I always approach the table with a smile,” Jenna Paul, server and assistant general manager of The Peached Tortilla in Austin Texas tells Jane Ko at Seasoned.co.

Sounds simple, doesn’t it? But the advice also applies to real estate agents. Whether you’re knocking on doors, schmoozing at community events or greeting who you hope will be your next listing client, a smile is imperative.

Smiling puts a potential client at ease and builds that first step toward genuine rapport. “People like that warm and inviting welcome,” says Chance Ramsey, assistant general manager at Contigo, also in Austin.

Step two to blissful rapport

“Don’t worry – he’s one of us.” You know that feeling you get when you’re sure you’ve just met a like-minded individual and everything clicks?

My “one of us” may be vastly different than yours. But we know, instinctually, whether or not someone is like us or not like us.

The Ready to Sell the Lawnmower postcard is available under the Life Event Series in the Postcard section.

“Rapport is established by creating a common ground with your guests that enable them to put you in the “like me” category,” David Hayden explains to food and beverage employees at TipsSquared.com.

He goes on to explain that being perceived as one of your potential clients’ “good guys (or gals)” … “puts them at ease” and builds trust.

So, how do you become a member of their tribe? Consider mirroring. Tony Robbins suggests that mirroring is the ideal technique to help you learn something new, be it a new habit or strategy.

Author, trainer and business speaker Jeff Mowatt, takes it a step further by applying the technique to building rapport in sales and uses food and beverage workers trained in the technique, as examples.

“Match your customer’s style,” he begins. “Pay attention to how your customer prefers to communicate and get in step. Does your customer prefer to get right down to business, or warm up by engaging in small talk?”

“If your customer talks quickly and loudly, make an effort to match that energy,” and “if the other person talks softly, then you talk more softy,” he suggests.

“If they lean forward, then you lean forward … In other words, you ‘mirror’ the other person’s tone of voice and body language.”

Think about DeGeneres today. Aside from the big, bold personality, she’s someone with whom people connect. The same can be said for another one-time hospitality worker, Jorge Mario Bergoglio.

A one-time nightclub bouncer in Buenos Aires, he is known today as Pope Francis. “The People’s Pope,” to many, he has made it his mission to build rapport across the globe.

Being personable in the hospitality industry leads to immediate gratification in the form of higher tips.

The Want More Time for Play postcard is available under the Life Event Series in the Postcard section.

In real estate, the gratification is delayed. But, when it comes, it pays off in big bucks.

Go after the Empty Nest niche market by sending the Want More Time for Play postcard from the Life Event Series.

Need help targeting the perfect niche of buyers or sellers? Use our mailing list tool to create the ideal list (it’s easy) or call our support team for assistance at 866.405.3638!

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Downsizing: How to help your older real estate clients

May 20, 2019

Get a head start on this booming market

Statistics suggest that soon we’ll start seeing more older clients, looking to downsize.

A Trulia study published late last summer found that, in recent years, boomers weren’t downsizing mainly because of a “lack of affordable options” and “a shortage in starter home inventory,” according to HousingWire.com’s Jessica Guerin.

The market, however, is changing, presenting what just may be perfect conditions for what is being called the “Silver Tsunami.”

In fact, in early May, Housing Wire published “The 55+ housing market is booming,” and an article about “builder confidence in this sector” reaching an all-time high.

This year, the youngest baby boomers turn 55 and the oldest in the cohort will celebrate their 73^rd birthday.

If you want to work with boomers, understand them

It’s a great-big generation with a 20-year spread between the youngest and the oldest. Mention Rod Stewart or McFadden & Whitehead to younger boomers and they’ll flash back to platform shoes and balls of mirrors.

That’s stuff that is foreign to older boomers. To them, the only music worth listening to came from Bobby Darin, Frankie Avalon and, of course, Elvis.

Then, there are those in the middle of the generation who grooved to the sounds of the Beach Boys, Beatles, Sam Cooke and the Supremes.

There’s also a difference in how they view home ownership. The rate for Americans between the ages of 62 and 67 is three times that of those younger, age 56 to 61, according to a Fannie Mae study, citing U.S. Census Bureau statistics.

Get to know this generation and you’ll not only have a better feel for how to market to them, but how to assist them when it’s time to sell the family home for something smaller.

Helping them choose their next home

Emptying their home—divvying up decades of belongings to children and friends—is a lot to think about. In fact, many older home buyers are so focused on the move that they pay far too little attention to the choice of the new home.

Even if they’re on the younger end of the boomer generation, they’ll need to consider the future and how the home and the location will fit their needs 10 to 20 years from now.

That’s where you come in. Now is not the time to be Mr. or Ms. Super Agreeable. If you think they’re not considering what they should be, say something.

For instance, if their preferred location is 50 miles from the nearest hospital or urgent care facility, speak up. Though their health may be fine right now, the chances are good that it won’t be as they age.

If they’re insisting on a multi-story home, do everything you can to dissuade them. Stairs are brutal on old knees and muscles. And, since we start losing our sense of balance as we age, stairs can also present a terrifying danger.

Some of the things you, as their agent, should look for when showing them homes include:

At least one exterior entry to the home should have no steps.
Doorways that are wide enough to accommodate a wheel chair (at least 32 inches), or the ability to widen them.
Wide hallways. The National Association of Home builders suggests that, to age in place, the home’s hallways should be a minimum of 36 inches wide.
Lots of windows for natural light.

Sure, there are lots of other things to consider and your clients may need to make changes in the years after moving in.

Empathize as they empty the nest

Baby boomers own and occupy 32 million homes. The previously-mentioned Fannie Mae study hints that your most likely downsizing client will be between the ages of 65 and 85. Again, this is a huge, diverse group of people.

Many, however, will be leaving the home in which they raised their families; a home that is full of memories. The decision to do so must be gut-wrenching for them. Empathy will go a long way when working with these sellers.

Remember the advantages the move presents:

They’ll spend less on home maintenance
They’ll spend less on heating and cooling the new home
They may end up with a smaller property tax bill, less expensive insurance and lower mortgage payments.

These are the money-saving and therefore exciting aspects of downsizing that should be reiterated as often as possible to keep the seller looking forward.

Help make it easier on them

Remind your downsizing clients that “Rome wasn’t built in a day.” If they’re having trouble sorting through belongings, suggest that they tackle one room at a time. Even one part of a room, such as the closet, will speed up the job.

Another variation of the “eat-the-elephant-one-bite-at-a-time” theme would be to suggest that they start with paperwork or their collections (books, photos, vacation tchotchkes). If it’s still too overwhelming, point them at the kitchen or bathroom.

These rooms rarely hold items of sentimental value and they’ll feel as if they’re accomplishing something when they successfully finish.

Check in with them by phone frequently to find out how they’re getting along and to offer encouragement.

Specializing in helping older homeowners downsize is the real estate niche of the future. Jump in now to get a head start on the competition.

Let your downsizing clients know you’re ready to help (available in the postcard section under the Life Event Series)

Send at least 100 Too Much House postcards from the Life Event Series to an area where you want more listings.

You might also like:

Direct Mail Real Estate Marketing Trends for 2019

A Refresher Course in Attracting New Clients

Need help targeting the perfect niche of buyers or sellers? Use our mailing list tool to create the ideal list (it’s easy) or call our support team for assistance at 866.405.3638!

PLUS: When you have time…here are Free killer tools to help your success this year!

1. Become a Listing Legend Free eBook

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3. The 12 Month Done-For-You Strategic Marketing Plan

4. The Free One-Page Real Estate Business Plan