Objection Handling for Expireds # 3 of 7: "All Real Estate Agents Are the Same Anyway"

Thanks for joining this series of posts about how to answer common objections consumers raise when you solicit their expired listing.

Every Friday I am writing about objection handling. These posts will reflect 13 years of experience in handling objections and reveal collected scripts that you can use. Your comments and participation is welcome.

Our Bradenton, Florida real estate market has seen more expired listings in the last 12 months than at any time since records have been kept. Many markets across the country are experiencing the same thing.

Both agents and consumers are frustrated. Agents WANT to be successful and sell their listing. Consumers want an agent who gets the job done.

You may want to read the introduction to this series: Objection Handling: New Series of Posts. I also suggest you read: Objection Handling For Real Estate Professionals: A Five Step Method . Both agents and consumers are invited to participate.

Here are the most common objections posed by consumers that I'll be addressing:

1. "We're going to re-list with the same agent."
2. "Where were you when my home was for sale?"
3. "All real estate agents are the same anyway"
4. "We are going to drop our price and sell it ourselves."
5. "We are only going to interview agents who showed our home."
6. "We are going to take it off the market for a while."
7. Bonus: Killer Closes for Expired Prospecting.

Objection #3: "All real estate agents are the same anyway?"

For Agents
When the consumer makes this statement I believe it's because they just do not understand exactly what agents do. They REALLY do think that all agents pretty much the same and they are right. But you ARE different. You really want to help them and know how to help them. How do you communicate that to your prospective customer?

Here's some dialogue you might want to learn to share in your own words....

Answer #1:
I can appreciate that. All of these agents have been calling you and telling you how great they are, right? They all say, I can sell your home, I'm the best, I'm number one, and all that stuff, right?

AND...what's funny... is that about 5% of the agents in our market sell 90% of the homes, according to actual statistics. Yet, nobody every calls you and says, "Hi, I'm actually one of the 95% that hardly sells any homes."

They all sound the same, don't they? The TALK is the same...the RESULTS are different. Listen, you do want to get the home sold, right? When can I show you the RESULTS people get when they...hire me?

Answer #2:

You're right...Obviously, there's no secret to selling real estate. After all, we all have access to the multiple listing service. We all have access to the same tools. We all have the same real estate license. So, you're right, in many ways, we're the same.

AND...what's curious is that the average agent in our marketplace only sold 4 homes last year. To give you an idea of how amazing that is...I'm on track to sell over 40 homes this year. That's 10 times more homes.

Wouldn't you like to have 10 times as much exposure for you home...to get it sold? Let's get together and I'll show you how I can do that.

(Obviously, you must have a good track record to use the above dialogue)

Answer #3:

You know...I can really appreciate your frustration...and I agree that a lot of agents are the same. In fact, many of the sellers I've worked for initially felt the same way...until they saw the RESULTS I delivered. If I sold your home in the next 38 days, like the other sellers I've worked for, would that pose a problem for you? That's exactly why we need to get together.

(Again, you must have a good "days on market" track record)

Remember these keys:

1. Objection handling isn't about tricking the consumer or finding some magic words to convince them to do what YOU want them to do.
2. Objection handling is about telling the truth in a non-confrontational manner.
3. Objection handling is not about memorizing a script, but about listening to the customer and answering their honest questions with honest answers.
4. Objection handling is about improving your communication skills which will help you and your customer.

For Consumers
These posts are giving you a peek behind the curtain of what we as REALTORS do to earn our fee for service.

You see objection handling isn't about "tricking" you the consumer into giving us your business. It is about honestly answering questions and objections in an effective way to help you, the consumer, make a wise choice.

Hiring the right agent is 95% of getting your property sold. I trust that this series will help you make the best possible choice when it comes time to hire your next agent.

Having your listing expire is a frustrating and disappointing experience. You may feel anger at your listing agent and toward all agents in general. I understand that feeling and can appreciate your frustration. And, you need to know that not all agents are the same. What you need is a Realtor who is experienced in counseling you about this major decision. You need a Realtor who has a proven marketing strategy and the ability to help you price the home correctly.

If you are selling a home in the Bradenton, FL real estate market, I would welcome the opportunity to assist you.

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(Copyright © 2008 By Dan Forbes, All Rights Reserved.)