Power Closing in Real Estate Prospecting

Congratulations! Your real estate prospecting efforts have paid off with a listing presentation. You nailed the presentation, covering the essentials clearly and concisely. The prospect seems to be engaged in what you have to say.The question now is: are you ready to close? Many agents find it challenging to close a deal because they don't feel comfortable asking for the business. They don’t want to come off as pushy or overly aggressive, or they might be afraid that they’ll be rejected when they ask for it.But if you take some basic steps before your real estate listing presentation, you might feel more comfortable making the ask and improve your chances of getting a contract.Here are a few strategies to employ to become a power closer.

Pre-qualify Your Prospect

Determine Their Immediate Need

It doesn't matter if you're a great presenter. If the prospect doesn’t need your services then, you won't have a deal. You need to understand your prospect's motivations to sell. That means you must do your due diligence and thoroughly vet your prospect.In an earlier post on PRE-QUALIFICATION.we outlined three important benefits of effective pre-qualification:

• You can determine the prospect’s motivation: What’s driving their reason for talking to you or especially agreeing to spend time in a meeting? Where are they planning to move? And when would they like to make this move? By exploring these questions, you can craft a listing presentation that prioritizes their needs.
• You get a better picture of their financial situation: By asking smart pre-qualifying questions, you can get a feel for their financial motivations and realities. Is there an urgency to “sell now and if so, what’s behind it? In fact, your pre-qualification process may reveal that this is not the optimal time for them to sell. If you are transparent, you’ll build trust as someone concerned about their dreams and aspirations, as opposed to an agent searching for their next commission check.
• You’ll better understand their pricing motivation: Effective pre-qualification helps you assess what the seller wants from the sale. If they don’t seem terribly motivated yet are adamant about listing well above the market value, you might want to reconsider the value of the listing. While it may sound great to have an additional property on your inventory list, you could ultimately waste a lot of time and money servicing an overpriced listing that is not likely to sell

Leverage Your Scripts

Comfort breeds confidenceBecome effective at engaging your prospect with good, open-ended questions. Don't spend too much time talking about yourself. Cover the basics, but make sure you are focused on their needs. A script can help you feel more comfortable and confident, giving the prospect confidence that you are the right person for the job.Here are three tips from our post on Mastering Real Estate scripts:

• Never Stop Practicing: You need to know your scripts intimately and continue practicing to become more fluid and conversational. If you haven’t already done so, find yourself a role-playing partner. Take 15-30 minutes every morning to work with your partner on scripts, especially handling objections. Role-playing right before actual prospecting is the best way to get focused for the day ahead.
• Think Positively About Real Estate Prospecting Scripts: Using a script doesn’t mean you can’t use your own words. But it’s essential, and very helpful, to begin by practicing scripts verbatim. Espresso Agent has a variety of scripts for different situations. The more comfortable you become with the scripts, the more you can adapt them to fit your own style.
• The Importance of Building Rapport: As the agent, the onus is on you to engage and build rapport with your prospect. And there’s more to real estate lead generation script practice than just repeating the words on the page/screen. You must learn how to modulate your voice, add emphasis when needed, and use the proper phrasing. Again, mastering conversation through using your scripts is all about practice.

Know How To Diffuse Objections

Practice Handling Objections Daily

With every presentation, you must be prepared to deal with multiple rounds of objections. Here are three simple tips to help you become effective at handling objections:

• Be empathetic: A simple statement like, "I understand why you might feel that way," can go a long way in building rapport.
• Be an active listener: Mirror and playback what you’ve heard to let the prospect know you’ve heard them.
• Be direct: Address the objective succinctly and clearly.

The Ask

Be Conscious Of When It's Time To Make “The Ask”

You don’t want to come on too strong and try to close too soon. Being overly aggressive suggests that you're only in this for yourself. Once you’ve built rapport and shown you care about their goals, you might find that the “ask” will come naturally.If you follow these simple strategies, meetings will hopefully evolve naturally to an easy close. Just go into your presentation enthusiastic and confident. Believe in yourself, which will make it much easier for your prospect to believe in you…and respond positively when you make “the ask.”CLICK HERE to learn how Espresso Agent can help you become a power closer.