Nice Guy or Sucker?
Just got back from Inman Connect and have all these great ideas to take our business to the next level, to engage our foreign business more aggressively and can’t find enough hours in the day to start making more things happen.
But while strategizing (yeah, yeah – I analyze, study and always have a strategy), I realized that there are a couple of lingering questions that sit unanswered in our business. Of course I’m going to throw it out here for our genius readers to take a stab at it. I go back and forth with these and always end up in the same place. Don’t be afraid to call me a sucker if you feel the need, because it’s exactly how I feel at times.
When Rick and I decided to get into Real Estate Sales, we saw a need for nice, down-to-earth people in the industry. People that had good head on their shoulders and were willing to share their knowledge while remaining ethical and trustworthy – cake, no?
Nope – not so much cake. The same people that trusted us as an architect and accountant, no longer trusted us when we became Realtors (what’s the matter with THAT picture?).
Anyways – we made a pact to always be nice, to always be helpful and to never place the “mighty dollar” before our relationships. Here’s where it gets good. What happens when you are constantly approached by neighbors and friends with real estate questions – preparing their home for sale, rental market, pricing their home, structural engineer, good inspector, how to deal with a difficult agent………but when it comes down to hiring a Realtor, they choose someone else!
We, as professionals, know that the more help you offer, the better the chances of getting the gig. But we also know that there’s a chance that we won’t. We also have a very matter of fact “you win some, you loose some” type of mentality and know when to say “…..it’s ALL good!”. But today, I felt horrible when I had to put a stop to a local lady that kept calling me for advice but in 3 different occasions this past year hired a different Realtor.
Maybe there’s a secret formula = one hint + one call – one slap ….. VOILA!!
(can substitute the slap for a stab or a kick).
Tell me what you do, how you maneuver around those questions innocently – if you dance or if you are just straight forward from the get-go. Do I look like a sucker to you? (let me have it….I can take it)
** original article on AgentGenius.com **