Real Estate Marketing & Beyond
More than 20 years ago, agents at ERA Shields Real Estate in Colorado Springs, CO, participated in a sales training led by Larry Kendall called Ninja Selling. This approach is based on a philosophy of building relationships, listening to your customer, and helping them achieve their goals. At its core is a belief that it is far better to create value for people by solving their problems.
It was out of this training that the “Stat Pack” was born. Simply put, the Stat Pack is a “boots on the ground” monthly market report that our agents can share with their clients and sphere as an example of the value they bring. A collection of easy-to-read bullets and simple charts, the report draws on data from a variety of sources that can help homeowners, buyers, and sellers better understand current market conditions. I regularly consult our local MLS, the National Association of REALTORS®, the Colorado Association of REALTORS®, our local assessor’s website, a regional new construction report, Fannie Mae, Fannie Mac, and reports on the primary mortgage market.
I also include one key trend I am seeing and provide insight and context to help consumers better understand how that trend is affecting the local real estate landscape. For instance, many buyers wonder why there is so little inventory right now. But when we explain that many current homeowners have mortgage rates around 3 percent, and there is little incentive to sell and buy a home with a rate in the 7% range. We have also helped homeowners appeal their assessed values using data from the Stat Pack. That was a great touch with 75% of our clients winning their appeals.
I’ve served as the “editor” of the report since 2003, so I have an incredible 20-year vantage point of the area’s trend lines. I’m able to distill this long view into actionable items for our agents to share with their clients and prospects.
The Stat Pack is a great way for agents to keep in regular communication with their sphere. We have a professionally designed template that uses the company’s branding. Agents can add their own branding to the report as well. Agents tell us they appreciate the credibility the report imparts to them.
We host the Stat Pack using a few different platforms including Issuu.com. Agents can share a hard copy of the report, email the pdf or post a link to the Issuu file. They can also incorporate key statistics from the report into their listing presentations.
We discuss the report each month at a sales meeting and provide suggested sound bites that agents can use in casual conversations and encounters. For example, “Homes in the $400k range are very popular now. Can I send you a more detailed report?”
We have also created a video outlining how agents can use the Stat Pack in their marketing efforts.
In addition to the monthly reports, we also produce quarterly reports as well as a Year In Review report that comes out in January.
For a company with two offices and about 90 agents, we have found this formalized approach to producing market reports to be a valuable tool for our agents in building their business. The Stat Pack creates a regular opportunity for agents to showcase their value in an excellent example of Ninja Selling. I certainly appreciate that something we learned 20 years ago is still a key part of our marketing efforts today.
By Eddie Hurt: ERA Shields Real Estate
