Date: 8th May 2017
[This article is a precursor to my soon-to-be-published PDF true story-based report titled “8 POTENTIALLY COSTLY MISTAKES NOVICE REAL ESTATE INVESTORS MAKE!“: Submit this form to get a copy when it goes LIVE]
The key to success in real Estate Investment – and indeed any other business – is building quality client relationships. This is why we MUST pay careful attention to the way we interact with our clients, to avoid falling out of favor with them.
What follows below is a discussion of seven (7) experience based tips I’ve compiled to address mistakes I see lots of real estate dealers making in the Nigerian market.
If you’re guilty of making any of these mistakes, I strongly suggest that you make needed changes today – else sustainable long term ssuccess may elude you.
- NEVER PESTER PROSPECTIVE CLIENTS:
If at any point in time you sense that your prospective clients are ready to close a deal with you, the last thing you want to do is to begin bothering them to find out when they will be making payment.
That would only send negative signals that could make them worry about your sincerity. Pushy salesmanship, used in other businesses does not work so well in real estate – because it often involves large amounts of money. People generally don’t like to be hurried when they are trying to take a buying decision – especially when the money involved is considerable. Put yourself in their shoes and you’ll see it’s true!
When you consider the nature of the Nigerian market, it goes without saying that most buyers would want to be extra careful, to avoid getting duped by scammers.
This is why bugging potential buyers who show interest with calls and other pushys follow-up tactics could backfire, jeopardizing your chances of closing the sale you’ve worked so hard for.
My advice: Stay professional. Be calm. Never let them see you as being “needy” i.e. don’t give them the impression that, “You need the money” and that’s why you’re saying “come and buy now“.
No! That simply would not work right for you.
Instead, give them space/time. Ideally, it would be best to let them be the ones to get back to you. As long as you’ve done your own job well, by supplying all the information and education they need to make an informed decision, chances are good that they will choose to close the deal with you.
Trust me – I’ve won countless clients this way. It works!
- NEVER EXPECT IMMEDIATE RESULTS:
You need to be patient. Overnight success stories are not easy to come by in real estate investment. I know it’s not easy – because one can get discouraged by negative responses from potential clients.
However, I recommend that you get used to that – develop a thick skin and learn to look for the opportunities in the seeming setbacks or rejections you may encounter from some potential clients.
Don’t make the mistake of walking away if negotiations seem to be stalling. No matter how discouraging things appear, it pays to believe in building relationships with your prospects. This is because you never can tell – a potential client currently giving you negative responses could later become a source of good referrals to a big money bag tomorrow.
It has happened to others. It can happen to you too. But that’s ONLY if you are willing to be patient!
- NEVER LOOK DOWN ON PEOPLE (OR TAKE THEM FOR GRANTED):
Sales can happen in various ways – and those who help make them happen may sometimes not be persons you would expect by virtue, for instance,s of their status or appearances.
That’s why it’s unwise, to look down on anyone or take people for granted. No matter what you think you know about them, or what you see, it’s never wise to write anyone off.
There is a lot of historical evidence to back up what I’m saying here, in various markets. In other words, history has repeatedly confirmed the popular saying that, appearances can be deceptive.
Your mechanical engineer could be in need of an apartment or a land to purchase. The simply dressed person sitting next to you in the bus could be a brother to someone who is in need of a landed property. That insignificant looking bank teller may know some big depositor contacts that could lead you to a great sale.
My advice: Form the habit of introducing yourself, and exchanging business cards with those you meet. Research has shown that excellent business opportunities often get harvested through contacts with others who do not need what is being sold, but know those who do! So just keep telling everyone, about what you do, because they could refer you to buyers
- DON’T BE AFRAID TO TAKE CALCULATED RISKS:
Successful practitioners never think or act recklessly e.g. by taking foolish risks. Instead they take their time to weigh the pros and cons of every intended line of action, in dealing with every client, before making a binding decision.
They do so to minimize chances of things going wrong – but never let fear of failure or setbacks stop them from acting with courage to achieve their goals.
Once they are convinced they have thought the entire process through, they commit themselves to taking action to implement their plans.
If you want to succeed, you must learn to operate the same way.
- DON’T SPEAK WHEN YOU DON’T KNOW:
This is a critical point that every professional must pay attention to – regardless of what field you may be operating in.
Make sure you know your business inside out – everything about it from the beginning to the end MUST at your finger tips. However, if/when you find yourself being asked about an aspect you are unsure or are clueless about, NEVER try to wing it (i.e. to guess).
Stay true to yourself, by giving accurate reports about what you know, to reflect your established competence and proficiency. Clients tend to be skeptical about persons who know something about everything, but may act more favorably disposed towards those that know everything about something.
My advice: When you don’t know what to say during interpersonal interactions with clients or prospects, it’s always wiser to protect your integrity by not giving false or inaccurate information. Instead simply tell the client you’ll get back to him/her.
This can earn you more credibility, trust and respect from such persons, because they will realize you are careful to avoid misleading them!
- NEVER LOSE CONTACT WITH CLIENTS AFTER CLOSING SALES:
Never say “good bye” to any client, after a successful sale to him/her.
Rather say “see you next time”.
In line with the above, you would therefore occasionally find ways to follow up and “say hello” to them either by phone or email. You see it’s cheaper to keep an existing customer, than it is to find new one. That’s why this is so crucial for your continuing long term success.
Successful real estate consultants – and smart salespersons/business owners in general – often go to great lengths to nurture lasting long term relationship with existing customers.
I recommend you do the same: And when you reach out to them, be sure to always get feedback from them, towards improving on the solutions you offer.
- NEVER DWELL ON PAST FAILURES OR SUCCESSES:
Don’t subject yourself to the trauma or unpleasantness of reliving any bad experiences you had. However, neither should you indulge yourself in fantasizing endlessly about your past successes.
Instead, live for the present, and plan for the future.
Endeavour to set new goals when you succeed, so you can stay motivated to do more and better. When you have failures or setbacks, analyze your actions or inactions and identify what you can learn from the experiences.
Good luck!
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TIP: If you need help making use of the ideas I’ve offered above, or wish to learn more, contact me using the form on this page – click. For more useful articles, true stories, case studies, special reports and white papers on real estate investment, sign up to my Real Estate Investment Chronicles™ mailing list.
Lanre Karim – Nigeria’s Real Estate Investment Advocate (REIA) ™ – is the author of the Real Estate Investment Chronicles (REIC) ™: a thought-leading online publication that features tried and tested Real Estate Investment strategies– and solutions – for everyday persons.
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