Now every player
get one.
They have all been deemed superstars.
The trophies have
come to mean nothing.
Abracadabra
At John L. Scott, agents
are now referred to as "Real Estate Specialists". According to Lennox Scott, in a session at last Summer’s Real Estate Connect conference, "Our agents are
known and trusted through our relationships. We’re respected and valued through
our competency taking it up to new levels through professional development." Lennox considers this a "paradigm shift of heightened proportions".
I don’t.
Realty Executives
International has taken a similar route. When you join their organization, you
are no longer an agent. Abracadabra: You’re an executive. They
believe, I suppose, that the American consumer would rather conduct their estate business with an
"executive" than a real estate agent. Maybe they are right. But if every agent is an executive or can become one by just joining the firm, at what point does that term begin to mean nothing too?
What’s wrong with
calling them salespeople?
Brad Inman, in the same session, asked,
"What’s wrong with just calling them salesmen? Isn’t that what we really
want when we hire an agent? Someone to sell our house? What’s going on
here?"
Agents are sales people. And isn’t this a transparent, honest, accurate
term that every consumer understands? Doesn’t it accurately describe what the consumer is actually looking for? Why mess with a perfect thing?
The problem with calling everyone an "executive" or "specialist" is that in many cases it’s a lie. Not every agent is one. Some are. Many aren’t. In a time when transparency is heralded as an ideal such euphemistic "paradigm shifting" is not all that heightened. I can’t imagine those agents who have spent a lifetime cultivating successful careers by virtue of education, experience and diligence think so either.
I also think the brands advancing such titles are also damaged by the sheer hyperbole of these appellations. After all, not all kids are superstar players and not all company agents are professional executive specialists. John L. Scott knows that, Realty Executives knows that and, psst… the consumer knows that too.
Nevertheless, this artistic license continues to perpetuate itself. Anything goes I guess. Anyone can wave a wand, pull the curtain away, and — boom … a specialist or executive is born.
Stop with the name game
Agent. Salesperson. These are noble designations. They are truthful. They are dignified. If you think the term "salesperson" carries a stigma, think hard about whether or not that really has anything to do with American’s low regard for the real estate industry right now. Think about whether or not these shallow and superficial attempts are the right fix.
Today, there is something profoundly righteous — and effective — about being who you are. About not wrapping yourself in the gauze of tone deaf marketing. About being a company that levels with it’s marketplace.
A real paradigm shift would involve making it clear who in real estate is really a doctor and who is a physician’s assistant, who is a rookie and who is a time-tested professional.
- Davison
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Personally, I would argue that the only time we are selling is when we sell ourselves to get the listing. The rest of the time we consult. I don't know what your experience has been, but in mine, we can't talk someone into buying a house they don't want… although we can facilitate getting them in to one they do want.
I agree with Lane. I'm more in line with a "Real Estate Consultant" than a "Real Estate Salesperson". Of course if we are going to get technical then I am an Associate Real Estate Broker. I'd rather stick with consultant.
You are both missing the point. Individually, you can refer to yourselves however you please provided it's truthful and you build your brand around it. What I am addressing is far different. Calling yourselves consultants is different on several fronts but most important it does not allude a greater degree of knowledge than you might possess. It's a fair accurate description. But what if the firm you worked for decided to call every agent there a consultant even the new guy that just got their license. Would that not reduce the overall worth of that term?
You are not a real estate consultant. Unless once a you have consulted with a buyer and they decide to buy in a certain neighborhood, you then consult them to use a different "real estate consultant", because they are more knowledgabe in that neighborhood.
A consultant is paid for advice, expertise, knowledge and ideas.
From wikipedia-Often a consultant provides expertise to clients who require a particular type of knowledge or service for a specific period of time, thus providing an economy to the client.
When you have a product that you want the client to use, you are selling, not consulting. Your product is you.
I bet if we asked these guys at 1000 Watt when they are "consulting" that they bring in people from the outside that are experts in what they do.
A real "real estate consultant" would say something like "you know the best thing for you to do is go FSBO. You have a great home, great location, and you are willing to price below market, because you desire a quick sale. My consulting fee will be $350. Best of luck."
Okay, we get paid when our listing gets sold and when we 'sell' either our own or more likely someone elses listing. Both involve sales contracts with our name on it. We are clearly selling–selling ourselves in the first instance every time to even get the opportunity to represent. It's in the representation piece that the word salesperson gets foggy. In selling ourselves, to the extent we our successful, our would-be clients buy-in to the fact we are going to represent their best interests first–before our own. That's part of the fiduciary aspect of it. In my view, at the highest level, what makes it seem like consultant work is that we are in an education and resource person mode more than a sales mode per se.
Buyers don't buy in a vacuum. They generally must work through a miriad of tradeoffs–square footage versus view, for example. In other words, our goal is to help them make an intelligent decision. It's an education process that often takes weeks, if not months. They're certainly not going to buy a home because we have slick closing techniques. That's actually laughable. In fact, 'technique' with todays more sophisticated consumer is pretty transparent and a turn-off.
My goal has always been to make the client the expert. I can't possibly hope to do that unless I have expertise myself.
Then another aspect of this quasi-sales / quasi-consulting mix is helping clients make decisions that are often counter-intuitive. Now comes the psychology of influence, though distinctly not manipulation. For example, they want to list high so they don't leave money on the table, not realizing how over-pricing is a formula for doing just that–because of the market worn phenomenon; and because the early activity is the best, most motivated activity, etc. Similarly, on the buy-side time is generally not on their side, though today they certianly have reason to believe that it is!
So, it isn't like selling widgets and it's not like being a consultant in the clasic sense. But it is an art (the art of influence) and science (managing and interpreting data) where you where many hats under the umbrella of REALTOR.
Consultant; Executive? It's a semantical jungle. Regardless of what you want to call yourself, my concern in this regard is that when 90% of new agents never renew their license, it's hardly a profession for most. These life-changing, major financial decisions in buying and selling homes are being handled too often by rank amatuers. It's probably a good thing that the 80/20 rule is alive and well and probably more like 90/10!!
Real Estate Specialist?
Right up there with the popular renaming semantic craze in the 80's when garbage men were referred to as sanitation engineers and stupid people as mentally challenged.
Real estate people tend to take these branding shortcuts without realizing the consequences. And there are consequences. Over time, terms like specialist will come to mean nothing. When that "executive" agent shows up at my door wearing Tommy Bahama's, flip flops and has no idea what a smart phone is, it destroys the meaning behind that term. And then it destroys it for those agents are these things.
I wonder what John L. Scott's definition of a specialist is?
These "semantic" are just that. And I submit that they dilute rather than uplift the brand. Unless of course…you can prove your specialty. My support of Web 2.0 is that will some finesse and the proper use of technology and 2.0 you most certainly can without giving away the ship.