The Desperate Agent Model

Too many agents are dealing with buyers with a desperation or scarcity mentality. They use the four-step Desperate Agent Model, applying it over and over again, hoping the odds will miraculously swing in their favor at some point.

1. Talk to the prospect with the goal of creating a report.

Too often, we believe that by keeping the potential customer on the phone longer and finding common ground or common ground, we can secure their business. We believe that if they like us or think we are nice, we increase the probability of a sale. We want to keep them on the phone long enough to secure their phone number so that we can follow up with them. Our goal as a desperate agent is to secure a lead. The focus of a champion agent is not to secure the leadership, but to secure the appointment. The potential customer has limited value; the quote has significant value.

2. Offer to send things to the prospect …

The average agent wants a phone number and an email address so they can send the lead material. There is nothing wrong with acquiring the complete contact information of a potential customer. The problem arises when that is our main goal, instead of getting a date. When emailing them becomes our “be everything, end it all” way of converting prospects, we’ve lost the sales game. The conversion rate of an email contact is significantly reduced compared to a face-to-face or even telephone contact.

The use of lead search software for buyers is so overused that the perceived value to the consumer is negligible. It is not an exclusive characteristic of any agent in the market. We often use this excellent tool to compensate for our lack of telephone contact.

There is no substitute for the call. I worked with a young and dynamic couple in the Atlanta area. They are effective internet marketers. They had around 300 potential clients that they even had phone numbers for. These 300 potential clients were getting property matching information based on their preferences as the homes came on the market. They produced a couple of deals a month from this internet strategy.

When I started working with them, I asked them why they hadn’t called the 300 people they were “working” with. They said, “We have a few offers a month on this; why bother.” I told them to call 300 in the next week. They called 79 and reached 39 people at home. Of the 39 with whom they spoke, they established 16 face-to-face presentations. That’s a 41% closing ratio. They had conducted 11 face-to-face interviews with the Buyer and committed 7 to a Buyer Agency contract. That’s a 64% closing ratio. They had already sold two houses, but expected to sell several more in the coming weeks. They ended up selling six homes in the next 30 days from their 7 clients, 11 appointments, and 39 leads. They also found that of the 40 people they tried to reach for a few weeks, when they finally contacted, they had already bought and sold with another Agent.

The sales material submission philosophy cost these Agents more than six figures in commissions on the Buyer side alone. When they booked the appointments, the probability of their income and, indeed, their actual income exploded.

3. I hope your material is better than the other five agents that send you material.

Unless you can clearly prove and demonstrate that your marketing materials, philosophy, sales strategies and track record are superior, it will be rare to convert a Buyer through the properties you email them based on a profile.

If you secured them through a marketing call, a phone call, an open house, or the Internet, you should assume that other agents have all the information you have. If you can convince them to share your email address, you should assume that five other agents have it too. Whoever meets them face to face wins.

We all submit the same property matches because they are receiving the same property from all the agents they come into contact with.

4. Pray that she will eventually get an appointment.

There was a big difference in results when my partner from Atlanta went after the business scheduling an appointment. They stopped waiting for the potential client to call them when they were interested in a house. They went after the prospect that other agents knew, but they were waiting for the call, as they usually did.

When I say quote, I don’t mean a quote to show a property. I mean an appointment to conduct an interview with the Buyer; to determine the desire, need, ability and authority of the potential customer; to assess the likelihood that you will serve this customer and earn a commission. Pretend for a moment that you were a personal injury attorney. As a personal injury attorney, he offers a free consultation. The reason you want the consultation is to determine the probability of winning the case. The approach of a champion agent is the same. We are evaluating the potential customer based on the likelihood of achieving the customer’s goals and serving them well. We are also evaluating how much we will earn, how soon we will earn it, and how much it will cost us in time, effort, energy, excitement, and dollars invested.

A Champion Agent knows that the primary goal of a sales call, whether inbound or outbound, is an appointment. The truth is, champion agents have more appointments than other agents. They make more money because they date more. The underperforming agents look at the champion agents in amazement. They think there must be something magical about the way they operate. The truth is that they are fundamentally more solid in their philosophy, skills and approach. They clearly know that the goal is more dating.

Lower-performing agents need too much “The Deal.”

They often show a need, even desperation, to get a new customer.

Champion Rule: “When you need him more than the prospect, you lose control.”

If you need the deal more than the client needs you … you’ve lost. It’s hard to take the risk, create a bit of tension, close assertively if you need the deal to cover your mortgage or other bills. To be effective and successful in sales, you must be willing to risk losing the prospect or prospect. This disposition manifests itself in the first place in the form of asking people for an appointment to meet. It is followed in the belief that you are asking the potential customer to work with you using the service system you have established for them. You are the expert, so why not use your system for service? It is difficult to guarantee successful results if you use someone else’s system or approach to buying a home, especially the Buyer’s.

A Champion Agent is an agent in command. They are in command of the prospect, their customer, the service they provide, and how they deliver it. They are also in command of their time and knowledge. Most of the other agents are on demand. They are at the entire disposal of the prospect, client, other agent or other persons in the transaction, such as the lender, the inspector and the appraiser. The need for the deal can cause an Agent to lose all control. Being willing and able to walk away from a prospect if they don’t follow your procedures when doing business increases the chances that they will gain in value. As an agent trying to reach champion agent level, you must act like you are a champion now … now.