Real estate is a highly unique product. No two buyers are identical and neither are the buying situations. And while we can and do ask the client all the right questions about wants and needs, buyers can still baffle us when they reach a decision. This is because the decision to buy isn’t always based on logic alone, but rather it is a combination of real estate selling (logically driven) points and homebuyer hot button (emotionally driven) issues.
So how can we uncover all the issues that influence the decision to buy? Or, how can we sell to the heart as well as the head?
Real Estate Selling Points: The logical side of buying
Selling points are black and white. The points you need to pitch to a buyer will be a direct result of the buyers needs and wants. This list of needs and wants should stem from the home seller client questionnaire you had them fill out, or from an interview with the clients prior to viewing homes. But, like all tools, use selling points wisely.
- If the home you are showing has a flyer, highlight the main selling points of the home to your buyers before you arrive.
- Use the client’s language to hit on selling points. If they said they wanted a “spacious and bright kitchen,” you should present the home as having, “a spacious and bright kitchen.” It’s parroting, and it seems simple, but it shows buyers you have been listening to their needs.
- Use a pro and con list of the home with the main selling points that the client gave you at the top of the pro list.
Homebuyer Hot Buttons: The emotional side of buying
On the other end of the spectrum, are hot buttons. These are by no means black and white. This is where your client will depart from the list of needs and wants (the selling points).
They will, in the case of one client, turn down ten homes that met all of her needs only to buy a home that only met half her needs but had a massive walk-in closet simply because, “it’s bigger than my sister’s.” So what’s going on here?
Aspirations drive homebuyers. This means that you are not selling to who they actually are, but who they want to be. Their silent needs are:
- Achievement
- Fulfillment
- A need to belong
- Status
- Control
- Family and family values
- Love and romance
- Time
This is where the real estate professional must learn about the client on a deeper level than just the list of wants and needs. Is community important to them? What do they consider a status symbol? Do they know where they want to be in life ten years from now? Is family important or solitude? Once you are able to get to know the client a little more, you can show them homes that will affect their lives emotionally.
It’s not always easy, but once you master how to marry real estate selling points with homebuyer hot buttons for each specific client, you will be able to streamline the buying process for both you and your clients.
How have you worked to get to know your clients and their hot button issues? Tell us in the comments below!
