Are You A Demonstration "SUPER STAR"?



I love shopping apartment communities and meeting Leasing Consultants.  I wish I could tell you that nine out of every ten are awesome, but unfortunately it tends to be exactly opposite.  During most of my visits it becomes obvious that they were hired because they were nice, not because of their sales savvy.  In today's economy, we need effective commission driven sales people.

A few months ago I was visiting a community in central Florida and received such a thorough tour that the leasing professional even presented me with the objections I should have.  Starting with; no ice maker, no ceramic floor tile, no granite counter tops, no ceiling fans and my personal favorite, no water pressure. I do have to admit, while presenting me with the potential objections she immediately presented well rehearsed answers to over-come them, but I could not figure out why she brought them up in the first place.  So of course, curiosity killed me and I had to ask.  Her response was that she doesn't like dealing with objections (oh yeah, this is a good hire), so she just puts them in her tour demonstration to get them out of the way.  Upon our return to the office, I came clean as a shopper and asked to talk to the community manager.  I was told by the community manager that they were in a very tough market, they were offering up to two months free rent on new rentals and one month free on renewals.  I was then told, that even with those concessions they were barely holding on to an 89% occupancy.  We had a conversation regarding tour to lease closing ratios of which she stated were in the 20th percentile, solely due to the tough market, none due to sales talent.  When quizzed about the demonstration strategy of building the objections and answers into the tour process, she quickly stated how well it worked and that the trick was handed down to her from her regional manager. 

Once again, my mother's words echoed in my head, "The fish stinks from the head down"!

I happen to think that the tour or demonstration of the model and/or vacant unit is a skill that must be taught, coached and fined tuned to perfection.  Following are some of my favorite tips for effective apartment home demonstrations.

1. Be a demonstration "SUPERSTAR".  Check your attitude before meeting with your clients.  Dig deep, find an energy source and rev up for the tour.  An excited, positive, fun tour is one of the best closing tools you have in your leasing arsenal.  Your tour and demonstrations should be an academy award winning performance every time.  So know your lines (your product), know your fellow actors (your clients) and know your villains (your competitors) and keep a happy commission ending in mind.
2. Welcome them to their new apartment home.  Never enter the apartment first, always open the door, motion for your prospective residents to enter and say, "Welcome to your new apartment home".  This suggestion gets them to subconsciously consider the surroundings as their new home while touring.
3. Do not announce the rooms.  Never say, "This is your living room" or "This is your bedroom" or "This is your kitchen", etc.  These announcements are insulting; they can identify the purpose of the rooms independently.
4. Get them to decorate.  Upon entering the rooms ask questions like, "Where would you place your sofa", or "Where would you place your favorite piece of art", or "How would you decorate your dining room", etc.  There is an old saying in the real estate world, "If you can get them to decorate, you can get them to move in".
5. Know interesting facts about the rooms.  "Notice, our kitchen has 22 cabinets and 4 utility drawers", or "Notice, our living room has cable connections on both walls" or "Notice, every main wall in your bedroom has an electrical outlet".  All of these items are important, but my not be noticed by the typical prospective renter.  However, when recognized and reviewed, may be just what you need to tip the scale your direction and away from your competitor.
6. Actively involve the customer.  Be sure to ask them to open appliances, explore closets, step onto the balcony, test water pressure, etc.  Tours should be interactive and interesting, you do not want to turn your clients into little puppy dogs following your lead.
7. Hide special visitor surprises.  During your tour have your guests find gifts with your community logo and phone number, thanking them for their visit.  Possibly mugs in the cabinets, t-shirts in the closets, bottle opener key chains in the drawers, travel tooth brushes in the medicine cabinets, etc.
8. Always carry a tape measure.  Know standard furniture sizes and demonstrate how the specific floor plan you are visiting easily accommodates furniture with space left over.  "A standard sofa is 8 feet in length, and end tables 2 feet in width.  As you can see, our main living room wall is 16 feet long, easily accommodating your required 12 feet and providing you an additional 4 feet ... possibly for a beautiful decorative plant or tree".
9. Customize the tour to their needs.  Don't give the same verbal tour to everyone, customize the tour using their names and knowledge you have regarding their lifestyle.  "So Jennifer, you said you love cooking, check out the 23 linear feet of counter top space you have in your new kitchen" or "Suzy, come check out your new room, look at all of the shelf space you have for your stuffed animal collection you told me about" or "Jack, step out into your new attached garage, perfect for your new Mustang convertible".
10. Avoid taking them back to the office to close the deal.  The office is full of chaos, ringing phones and unpredictable residents.  Have applications and pens available in your model units and let them fill out the forms in solitude.  If you do not have models, be sure to put them by the pool with a cool drink or in a clubhouse amenity away from the actual leasing offices.

To be a "Demonstration Super Star", you have to have the closing ratios to prove it.  That means each of you have to step up your demonstration skills by implementing new ideas and creating a personalized experience that wins your clients over.  If they don't fill out an application and write out a check, it will be hard for you to become a box office hit at your company.  So I ask, are you and your product ready for your close up?

If so, bend down on one knee, put both of your hands in the air, give me the peace signs and say it... "Super Star". 

(And if you have no idea what I am talking about, rent Molly Shannon in "Super Star")

Can You Relate To This "To Do List" Video?

 

“I have too much to do”!  How many times do we utter these self-defeating words in a day?  Well, GET DOWN OFF THE CROSS MARY, SOMEONE ELSE NEEDS THE WOOD!  You have the same 24 hours a day that Bill Gates had to build his empire, the same 24 hours a day that Martin Luther King had to influence Equal Rights and the same 24 hours a day that Benjamin Franklin had to invent electricity within.  The biggest difference probably being, they each had a strategy and a prioritization plan for successful accomplishment; unlike you.

I cannot begin to tell you how many times I visit under-performing assets and when asked what the cause is for their less than adequate achievement levels, they respond at warp speed, "Too much to do"!  I quickly follow up that response with, "Show me your prioritized list of what you have to do today", and they look at me like I am a three headed monster.  The next line out of their mouth is my absolute favorite, "We have a, to do list, but we don't have time to prioritize".  It is so difficult for me to refrain from saying, “Then you only have time for failure - dumb ass".  But being the professional I am, I conjure up a sweet smile and merely say, "Let's take a look, maybe I can give you some helpful hints that will lead you to a higher level of success".  One day I will get the Academy Award for my acting skills.

Every single person I know, who has ever achieved at an admirable level had a game plan.  They evaluated and re-evaluated this game plan every day.  They made a conscious effort to make sure that the items they focused on each day, brought them at least one step closer to their ultimate goals.

Our industry goals are not that difficult to grasp; increase revenue, decrease expenses and create an awesome atmosphere for residents and employees alike.  From an employment/professional standpoint, our prioritization guidelines should be motivated by these three items .  In other words, you have to use these three goals to prioritize the order in which you execute your work tasks.  For instance, on my task list today I have; 1) collect rent, 2) review budget vs. actuals, 3) submit commissions, 4) organize resident party, 5) clean out storage room and 6) buy a new plant for my office desk.  Item 1 clearly impacts revenue, item 2 clearly impacts expenses, item 3 clearly impacts employee morale and item 4 clearly impacts resident retention - therefore these four items must be prioritized in the top of your to do list.  However, items 5 and 6 do not directly impact any of the three company goals, so cannot be considered a justifiable priority.

The problem is, cleaning out a storage room or going out to buy a new decorative plant may be a fun distraction from something like boring yourself with tedious budget comparisons.  This is where will power, discipline and a prioritized attack plan pays off.  It is a known fact 20 minutes of planning each day provides the average person an additional 60 minutes of work time, gained from being organized.  This 20 minute planning period needs to be a time set aside from distractions and interruptions.  Some people like to do it in the evening prior to going to bed, saying it helps them to sleep better knowing what is in store for them the following day.  Others like to do it first thing in the morning, saying it wakes them up and gets them motivated for the day.  As far as I know, no studies have been done regarding a.m. or p.m. planning, but all studies have concluded that it is an ABSOLUTE NECESSITY and that people who do it are happier, reduce their stress levels and achieve more than those who don't.

So, let's summarize the steps:

1. Start with a 20 minute uninterrupted planning period (either end or beginning of day)
2. Create a to do list for the day
3. Prioritize your to do list by using the three industry goals (increased revenues, decreased expenses, happy employees & residents), and put them in order of greatest impact
4. Protect yourself from fun distractions that stand in the way of accomplishments
5. Focus, dig in and remember - you have the same 24 hours as everyone else

I happen to love and surround myself with optimists if at all possible and avoid pessimists at all costs.  I love when I hear my friends and colleagues say, "I got so much done today, I can't believe it"!  Their accomplishments motivate them to do more, their accomplishments make their careers fulfilling and their accomplishments boost their self confidence.  On the other hand, when I hear people say, "I worked my butt off today and got absolutely nothing done", I cringe at the negative energy that comes from them.  I watch them organize their parade of sympathetic followers, playing their one man band anthem of "Woe is Me", all marching to the village of crosses to crawl upon their repetitive place of comfortable defeat.

Life is short, and we spend most of it at work.  So choose to win, or choose to lose - it's actually up to you.  But the moral of this blog is; the ones who choose to win, more often than not, have a prioritized daily game plan!  So tomorrow morning when you wake up remember, you can pick up a saw & hammer for your cross or you can pick up a pen & pad for your prioritization list, the same tools are available to everyone every 24 hours of their career.