Before Everyone Digs Their Heels In

An intense standoff was underway. The little bunny standing perfectly still. Barely an ear twitch. The slightly bigger dog, also standing perfectly still with her front leg in the air. They stare at one another for 2 long minutes. Suddenly, the bunny makes a run for it and the chase is on. The dog has zero chance of catching up and was called back. It was just one of a handful of standoffs that happen regularly in our backyard. It's quite entertaining.

This one reminded me of many negotiations I and my coaching clients have experienced. Seller has drawn the line in the sand and is giving nothing more to the Buyer, no more concessions. Buyer wants the house but believes the price warrants more from the Seller. We agents are officiating the standoff and shaking our heads because, as in so many cases, the clients "are cutting off their nose to spite their face". Side note: I had to finally look up the meaning of that idiom and it dates back to the 12th century! Maybe it's time to retire it, yet it's so effective!

Back to our standoff. How do we influence it? What would have to happen for the standoff to never occur and all parties feel valued? In The 6 Personal Perspectives, the first and the one we quote often is Win-Win or No Deal. That's easier said than done without preparation. Phil M Jones, the author of Exactly What To Say, writes "The worst time to think about the thing you are going to say is in the moment you are saying it." You know the feeling, 30 minutes after a conversation, you think of all the things you could've said but didn't. I really dislike that feeling.

To avoid the standoff, let's look at a few options:

The Agent Strategy: Data Does the Heavy Lifting

The devil is in the details (wow, I'm just full of idioms this morning). When communicating over price, condition, and terms, MORE IS BETTER: Another wise phrase from Mr. Jones is, "before you make your mind up, why don't we just run through the details one more time so you can know what it is that you are saying no to?" It's the details!

Be the Market Expert! Know your data and how to deliver it. If you're afraid of this conversation, I want to encourage you to face it head on and learn the numbers. Data speaks for itself when delivered properly. I'm not talking about spinning information. Straight forward numbers: Comps, price adjustments, days on market, buy downs, etc. The data does the heavy lifting. Your job is to understand their needs and balance that with the facts. Practice those conversations until you're comfortable having them.

The Leadership Insight: Preparing Your Agents to Lead

Leaders, your job is to provide the market data and teach your agents how to interpret the data, apply it, and build conversations around the data to truly prepare them as Market Experts.

Speaking of data, your budget is due soon and do you do a deep dive into the budget with your MCA or do you just leave it up to them to define the budget since "it's their lane"? Do you truly know the finances of the organization that you lead? Do you and your OP strategize with it? If you don't understand the numbers, I encourage you to take MC Financials. It's important!

The Weekly Challenge

Think about your recent client conversations and filter them with this question:

"Am I relying on opinion and emotion to make my point, or am I letting the data do the heavy lifting?"

If you're like me, you can isolate a past conversation easily. Now, replay it with the above strategies, gather the numbers, and practice communicating them clearly. Even better, role play with someone to really drive it home.