20 Creative Ways to Sell Your Listings

Days On Market (DOM) are longer. Weather is more unpredictable. There’s an increase in inventory in most markets.  That leaves many Realtors wondering what to do about getting their listings sold.

Have no fear.

Read on for ideas and answers.

With most of us carrying a larger inventory, one of the most common questions in R Squared Coaching over the last several weeks has been “What can I do that I’m not already doing?”  

As a result, brilliant minds from all over North America have come up with some suggestions. 

Here are 20:

1. Get strong at pricing.  Master the 3-Part Pricing Presentation you learned in your Wickman Program and use it every time.
2. Bring your Qualifying Questions with you on every appointment.  When you ask question #11, be sure to “stack” so you’re listening for their pain point.
3. Re-order your photos.  You do not need 17 pictures of the kitchen in a row.  There’s a very short amount of time to peak the Buyers’ interest before they move to the next property online.
4. Re-order your photos again.  Be sure your exterior shot doesn’t look like it was taken last fall.  Remove any pics that show clutter.  Rearrange the photos every 2-3 weeks.
5. Consider virtual staging when needed.
6. Doorknock.  Promote your listing in the area from which the Buyer is most likely to come.
7. Hold open house.  An agent in New Jersey had nearly 200 people attend just last Sunday.  You may not, but it shows the Seller you’re working.
8. Communicate.  Then, over-communicate.  Call your Sellers once a week.  
9. Video text to your Sellers (if there is more than one decision-maker, they both get exactly the same update).
10. Send stats to your Sellers weekly.  Your MLS and/or your company offers charts and graphs with market updates.  Look for DOM; percentage of List to Sale price; number of showings before an offer.  Data like this will inform Sellers and keep their expectations under control.
11. Re-connect with past showings and inquiries.
12. Reach out to Buyers that have “saved” your listings online.
13. In some MLS’s, just changing “Street” to “St.” or removing it all together refreshes the listing and makes it look new.
14. Offer to pay for closing costs or other adjustments, like flooring.
15. Buy down the interest rate for a Buyer. Builders do this all the time.
16. Modify the price with small adjustments on a regular basis.
17. Use a searchable price.  $500,000 is better than $499,900.  It broadens your reach to Buyers looking below and above the $500,000 price point.
18. Use an extraordinary price.  When the listing is not near a searchable price, consider choosing an “odd” number like $485,555 that may catch a Buyer’s eye.
19. Add a home warranty, protecting the Buyer for one year after the closing from major repairs.  They are scientifically proven to accelerate sales.
20. Market “immediate possession” as a draw to a Buyer looking for exactly that.  Sellers need not worry – no one will get possession without approval first and a purchase agreement everyone agrees to.

No fear.  

Project confidence.  

Ask questions and improve your listening skills so you understand Sellers’ motivation and timing. 

You got this.

The Floyd Wickman Team Blog Written by Mary Pallin