Thomas Martin-BROKER, PROPERTY MANAGER Property Manager in Sacramento, Folsom

Trying to carve out a niche in the CA real estate market can be tough. As a Sacramento-based property manager and broker/owner of a small company, we are constantly challenged to find ways of "standing out" in the crowd of businesses competing for Sacramento area Landlord's patronage.

One area where one can really make their mark in this industry is in customer service. While it might not always be the most profitable decision, we take the extra time with our clients to make a connection, rather than simply "sell them" on a list of goods or services. Where other companies may have marketing pitches that are scripted to take exactly 20-30 minutes, we try not to set a time limit. One client might take an hour or more, depending on the quantity or nature of their questions, and we are happy to stay the extra time it takes to make them feel valued.

I think the most important aspect of customer service is maintenance of the relationship. Our customers do not want to feel like we have forgotten about them once an escrow closes, or in our case when a lease is signed. Making the extra effort to stay in touch can be as simple as a hand-written note on the bottom of a monthly statement. In our business, we check up on all properties quarterly and send notes to our clients regarding minor issues (preventative maintenance due, gutter cleaning, weatherization, etc.).

Our goals are simple- to make each and every client feel like more than just a paycheck. In a market where everyone is more and more concerned about getting the most value for their dollar spent, it is the service-based professionals that are going to succeed, those of us that go above and beyond.

What are you doing for your clients that has them think of you and your services as vital to their success? Are you indispensable?

Investors Choice Property Management (ICPM) manages 100 single-family units with the care and diligence our Landlord clients deserve, in a manner that has them referring their friends, co-workers and family members. With over 16 years professional property management experience, our business is 95% word-of-mouth referral, we do NO Sales, and pay among the highest referral fees in the industry for management accounts. Visit our website at www.investorschoicepm.com today for more details, and find out what we mean when we say: “Experience Property Management the Way it Should Be.”

I met with an elderly potential client this past week, and it struck me how often clients are taken for granted in this industry. We had an average meeting, answered a few of his questions, and compared our services and fee structure to that of the company he was in the process of leaving.

When it came down to it, the client did not care that our price was a few dollars less, or even that our repair costs were not marked up. In the end, it was just the act of taking the time to meet that swayed the client in our direction. He summed it up best when he said "you have spent more time with me discussing my rentals than my current property manager has over the past 7 years". Our meeting was just over an hour.

Time invested in client retention is important in any business, as it does not take a marketing guru to tell you that seasoned clients are hard to replace. It costs far less to keep an existing client satisfied than to go out and find a new one, and building rapport takes time and energy. Why not invest in the rapport you have already built with your current clients?

As I post this to the online community, it occurs to me that maybe larger companies and their impersonal management styles are at least partially responsible for our small management company's successes. As long as they keep doing exactly what they've been doing, there will always be room for service-based brokers like ICPM.

So I say to my colleagues- give your clients a little of your time on a regular basis, as it is a solid investment in your future. To my competitors- Don't change a thing. Your business is good for my business.

Investors Choice Property Management (ICPM) manages 100 single-family units with the care and diligence our Landlord clients deserve, in a manner that has them referring their friends, co-workers and family members. With over 16 years professional property management experience, our business is 95% word-of-mouth referral, we do NO Sales, and pay among the highest referral fees in the industry for management accounts. Visit our website at www.investorschoicepm.com today for more details, and find out what we mean when we say:

“Experience Property Management the Way it Should Be.”

As a Sacramento area property manager for the past 16+ years, I have owned and worked for several companies, both large and small. I have always enjoyed the multi-faceted nature of our industry. A property management company is more than just a Landlord's "rent-collector". Over time, I have assumed many roles for our clients, financial adviser, strategist, mediator, sounding board.

The most important role we can play in our client's business lives is their trusted ally, their friend. I have worked for companies that did not share this view of their clients, often referring to their clients in the most negative of terms, and cautioning against "getting involved". To some, a client is just a means to an end, or in this case a fee. I never quite understood how someone could ridicule the very legs on which they stand.

Perhaps the business takes it's toll on some people, or they become resentful of their time committed to the many duties that make up their day. Whatever the cause, I think it is sad when we forget the most important aspect of our relationship with our clients.

When a client thinks of you as more than just a "stuffed shirt" or someone working for a fee, the business is the better for it. Decisions become easier to make for the client when he/she has absolute faith in your abilities, and knows full well that you would never intentionally lead them astray.

Even when times are tough, a client that counts you among their friends will be far less likely to dissolve that business relationship, whereas a client that is nothing more than an account # to a company will have little reservations about canceling services to save a few dollars.

To those who advise against "getting involved" with their clients, I say why not? As long as you can represent your clients best interests in a professional way, and your relationship does not compromise your ethical standards, why can't your clients become your friends?

Investors Choice Property Management (ICPM) manages 100 single-family units with the care and diligence our Landlord clients deserve, in a manner that has them referring their friends, co-workers and family members. With over 16 years professional property management experience, our business is 95% word-of-mouth referral, we do NO Sales, and pay among the highest referral fees in the industry for management accounts. Visit our website at www.investorschoicepm.com today for more details, and find out what we mean when we say:

“Experience Property Management the Way it Should Be.”

While I am not much for "feel good" blogs, I have recognized the value that positive thinking plays in our business lives. I take a more practical approach, however. I try to recognize the good in everything that happens, rather than classify the occurrence as positive or negative.

If I did not get the new client today, perhaps it was not going to be a beneficial relationship, or perhaps it has freed up some time to do something else.

It is a slow time of year for property management, but rather than stress over the calls we are not getting, I choose to be thankful for the ones that we are getting. I think that it is this positive outlook that has kept our small business successful during this downward spiral.

I hope it either gets a little busier for us between Thanksgiving and Christmas, but if it does not, I will be thankful for the rest before business inevitably picks up in early 2009.

Hang in there everyone, and know that it will all work out just fine. Now I am off to do my part in a struggling economy- I am taking my wife to dinner.

After 16 years as a Sacramento area Property Manager, I have learned a few things about our market, our client base and how to attract and keep quality client relationships.

I have read numerous articles, blogs, etc. about how to impress clients, to win their confidence, to dress for success, along with dozens of other catchy phrases promising certain victory in the business world if we follow these simple instructions.

I have always seen myself as an original thinker, as I always seem to find myself looking for a different way to do things that would make me and my company stand out in the marketplace. Some examples of our unique approach to the industry:

1. Be yourself. Clients are more educated than ever, and can often see through a fancy sales pitch. I have gone to meet potential clients in shorts (pause for gasp from the fashion police), and secured the client's business after they had met with 4 or 5 finely dressed, slick-talking competitors. In this day and age, the button-down shirt and tie just cannot compete with a competent, confident individual with a commanding and unscripted knowledge of his or her industry.

2. Don't be afraid to be different. We have signed more accounts just by being the one person that was willing to listen to the client's questions and give specific answers, rather than launch into a pre-scripted pitch that the client has heard in some way or another before. The goal is to stand out in the client's mind as the individual amongst the clones. This principal has allowed us to come away 90+% of the time with clients that have interviewed multiple companies.

3. Never settle for "good enough". Ask yourself "What can I do to make my company truly stand out as an individual in the marketplace?" . For us, the answer revolves around customer service. We return all business calls within 2 business hours. We treat our clients better (in our opinion) than most, giving them regular reports on the condition of their property, rather than forget about them once their unit is rented. We treat our client's tenants with the respect often lacking from some companies, and have been rewarded with timely payment history, even an instance of a tenant becoming one of our landlord clients. We enjoy solid relationships with our landlords and their tenants based on trust, mutual respect, and due diligence.

4. Vision is important, but not the most important. Speaking from experience, working towards a goal is always a good idea, so long as we do not become all-consumed by it. If we cannot enjoy the journey to get there, we might find that the goal, once reached, did not meet the lofty expectations we laid upon it.

To sum it up, being genuine is about being honest to yourself and those around you. There is a remarkable sense of accomplishment that comes from having the integrity to let the world see you as you are, rather than trying to fit into some pre-conceived notions of how someone should think, or act, speak or dress. I think we all experienced enough of that world back in grade school. Wouldn't it be refreshing if everyone just stopped pretending to be someone or something they are not?

Show a little of the real you today. Take it from me, it is well worth the effort.

Investors Choice Property Management (ICPM) manages 100 single-family units with the care and diligence our Landlord clients deserve, in a manner that has them referring their friends, co-workers and family members. With over 16 years professional property management experience, our business is 95% word-of-mouth referral, we do NO Sales, and pay among the highest referral fees in the industry for management accounts. Visit our website at www.investorschoicepm.com today for more details, and find out what we mean when we say:

“Experience Property Management the Way it Should Be.”