To outshine your competition on listing appointments, having superior technology and marketing materials are a must. The challenge is how to do it, especially if you receive a lead that wants to meet with you on short notice.
What can you do to be prepared for a "come list me" call? With the right technology tools and mobile apps, you can now be completely prepared for a listing appointment in just minutes.
1. CMAs on the run
If you don’t have time to do a complete CMA (comparative market analysis) or don’t have wireless access, this is where your smartphone apps really shine. You can still access this data using your smartphone in conjunction with apps from Realtor.com, Smarter Agent or Zillow. These apps can quickly generate what is for sale in most areas as well as the most recent closed prices. The Zillow app also has a number of useful charts indicating whether prices are increasing or decreasing.
In terms of using this in your presentation, it’s a powerful way to show sellers the importance of staging their property as well as what the competition is. In fact, you can use these apps to ask the sellers which of the comparable sales are most like their house (provided the listings have interior pictures). The seller chooses the houses most like their house and you can calculate the CMA on the spot using the seller’s choices.
2. Transaction tracking and document storage all in one place
To always be prepared for a "come list me" call, be sure to have all the key documents you need stored in one place. If you’re still operating from a paper system, carry a box in your trunk that has all the necessary forms. Because the paper approach is a hassle to maintain, a better choice is to manage the entire transaction digitally.
One of the best tools for being prepared is Cartavi. Cartavi is a transaction-tracking platform that allows you to store and manage all the documents that you need for your listing presentation. The best thing about Cartavi is that it allows you to access all of your files from your mobile devices (including your smartphone) without having to be tethered to a desktop computer.
To be prepared for a "come list me" call, store all the necessary documents in one of your Cartavi "transaction rooms." Be sure to include your marketing plan, sample brochures and links for any videos that you may want to use.
During your listing appointment, demonstrate the system. Explain how Cartavi is a powerful risk management tool since it provides a complete digital paper trail of the entire transaction. Cartavi records exactly when all documents are opened and viewed. Furthermore, because Cartavi now works with DocuSign, you can have your clients sign all the necessary documents without ever having to touch a piece of paper.
Create a listing flier on the run with Walk Score
With gasoline hovering around $4 per gallon, many people are leaving suburbia and returning to urban living. Walk Score allows you to determine the "walkability" of your listing. Walkability is important because it supports local merchants, reduces fuel costs and strengthens local neighborhoods.
You can generate your listing’s walkability score at no charge on the Walk Score site. Plug in your address (or the address of any of your listings) and you’ll receive a score between 1 and 100 rating how "walkable" that address is.
The site grades walkability based upon the convenience of various businesses to the residents, income mix, parks and public space, nearby schools, bike paths and a "pedestrian-centric" design. They also evaluate how accessible the area is for the disabled, what the flow of the traffic is, and how comfortable and/or convenient it is to use mass transit if available.
Walk Score recently released a new tool that lets you generate a property flier on the run that includes a map plus what is nearby the property. You can select six of the following categories to include in your property flier: restaurants, coffeehouses, groceries, shopping, schools, parks, books, bars, entertainment, banking, post offices, hospitals, fitness, bike shops and child care. The flier takes only seconds to generate and costs $5. The system generates a print-quality PDF as well as a link that you can use on your blog, website, social media or other digital marketing source.
The one drawback to Walk Score is that it does not rate the quality of the neighborhood. There may be plenty of places that someone could walk to, but it doesn’t mean it’s safe to do so. This is where your knowledge and expertise about the area is critical in terms of whether you should include the various places this tool generates.
The next time you have to do a listing appointment on the run, remember that a little preparation and just a couple of great tech tools are probably all that you need to capture the listing.
