7 Vital Sales Steps to Earning More Commission

When people ask me, "What do you look for when interviewing and hiring a Leasing Sales Professional", I always respond with, "Personality and ability to follow direction".

It is my belief that you absolutely cannot teach personality.  This is something that is developed from childhood and becomes engrained over the years making it impossible to professionally teach or re-engineer.  So, if you find someone with a great personality who easily relates to others during conversation, you are 50% there.

It is also my belief, that if you find someone who accepts and follows direction ... you can teach them ANYTHING!  When employees stray, I typically find a supervisor that is not providing them with adequate direction or a supervisor that is not holding them accountable for implementing and maintaining that direction.

So, I pose this question to supervisors, "Have you provided your Leasing Sales Professionals with the 7 vital steps to increasing their sales"?

And I pose this question to the sales people, "Have you maintained and consistently implemented the 7 vital steps to increasing sales"?

And you all answer back, "No, but as soon as I read this article I certainly will"!  Good-4-U!

STEP 1 - PROSPECT
We must first start with identifying our target and sub-target prospects that we want to attract.  This identification process starts by reviewing our product.  If our community is in a great school system and the bulk of our apartments are 2 & 3 bedroom floor plans, then most likely families will become our target prospect.  Conversely, if we are in an urban area and the bulk of our apartments are studios and 1 bedrooms, then students or singles may be our target market.  (As a Fair Housing side note, all we are identifying is who is most likely to take advantage of the floor plans we have to offer.  I am not suggesting that if a married couple comes to our urban nest that we do not accept them since they are not single or a student).  Now that we have identified our target market, we can more effectively execute our marketing plans.

The community with the 2 & 3 bedrooms might want to adjust their model to have one of the bedrooms display bunk beds reflecting a children's room.  They may want to realign their outreach programs to include county fairs.  They may want to redirect social contributions toward sponsoring elementary schools athletic teams.  They may want to place print ads for the first time in the children's section of the newspaper coloring page (also reflected online)  that will prominently be displayed on refrigerators by budding artists.  And of course they will want to reorganize their amenity listings on .com sites to give priority to things such as playgrounds, monthly resident events, children's community activity programming, etc.

The community with the studio and 1 bedrooms might want to adjust their model to reflect more of the student or single lifestyle by replacing the traditional couch with an elaborate futon, by replacing the traditional dining room table with a pub table bar stool set or by replacing the traditional bed with a platform bed.  They may want to realign their outreach programs to include college job fairs.  They may want to redirect their social contributions to walks/runs/marathons for social awareness causes.  They may want to place print ads in lifestyle or entertainment sections of newspapers (also reflected online).  And of course they will want to reorganize their amenity listings on .com sites to give priority to such things as location, neighborhood social amenities, social programming, etc.

STEP 2 - APPROACH
Your approach during first communications are detrimental to your success.  A unique sincere energetic approach will always earn you a home run on the sales field with prospective residents.  Change your stereotypical greeting of, "Good morning thank you for calling", to something that is welcoming and unique, like "I'm glad you've called today".  Divorce yourself from overused industry greeting rhetoric, such as "It's a great day".  Same goes for your auto response email, replace the Dear Jane with, Jane, we are thrilled you contacted us today!

STEP 3 - INTERVIEW
This is where the true sales professional shines!  It is our job to interview the prospective resident, without them knowing we are interviewing them.  The trick is to do it in a very conversational manner, not necessarily by asking them direct questions, like "How many bedrooms do you need", but instead by asking them open ended discussion questions, like, "Describe to me your apartment home needs".  Any question that begins with, describe to me, tell me about, share with me, talk about, let's discuss, etc. puts you and the client in a give and take conversation mode.  Your goal is to find out their priorities as well as the potential objections they my voice regarding your product.  Document these and be prepared during the tour to point out how you met their priorities, and be prepared to overcome the objections you predicted may arise.

STEP 4 - PROPOSAL
During the tour prior to arriving to the apartment home, be sure to propose lifestyle situations they might consider.  For example, point out the unique pool cabana and ask them if they can picture themselves relaxing beneath it after a refreshing swim on a warm summer day.  Point out the onsite car care center and ask them if they can picture themselves utilizing the car vacuum after accidentally spilling a potted plant during their move.  Point up to the apartment balconies and ask them if they can picture themselves relaxing with a glass of wine after a long days work.  This proposal process can ultimately be carried into the apartment home tour, but the give and take format needs to be established prior to seeing the apartment home itself.

STEP 5 - DEMONSTRATION
I believe our industry professionals as a whole are weak in this area.  I believe that they depend on the product to impress the prospective resident, and therefore offer weak verbal descriptions and limit their effort toward pointing out worthy features.  We say useless things like, "As you can see we have granite counter tops and stainless steal appliances".  Unless you are touring Helen Keller, this is a complete waste of sales energy.  Instead you should be saying, "Take notice of your 18 linear feet of counter top space, as well as your 16 cabinets and 4 utility drawers".  This is also the key time to get them to mentally arrange their furniture.  The old real estate saying of, "If you can get them to decorate, you can get them to buy", works exactly the same in our industry, just substitute buy with rent.  I also love the "Interaction with Reward" concept.  Ask them to open the refrigerator and have cans of soda as their reward.  Then ask them to open the cabinet and have koozies with your logo and phone number printed on them as their reward.

STEP 6 - NEGOTIATE
Ok, some of you already have your "Fair Housing Bristles" standing up on the back of your neck after reading this step.

Negotiate does not solely refer to price, it refers to "Negotiate Customer Considerations".  This means, get them to consider that you provided them 13 of the 14 things on their priority list, they need to consider this apartment home as a viable option.  Get them to consider that though you were unable to provide them with reserved parking, your community is 18 miles closer to their work than the community that was able to provide reserved parking.  Get them to consider that they will save close to 45 minutes a day to work as well as gas, which might be worth walking a few additional feet for.

This can also stand for "Landlord Considerations".  This means, be sure to dig deep and find out what is preventing them from filling out the application and putting down a deposit.  Sometimes it is something as simple as replacing towel bars or adding a ceiling fan ... and this might be worth considering pending on the occupancy of that specific floor plan.  Others may be more costly like replacement of carpet, however, if it has sat vacant for 4 months, this may be a viable consideration in exchange for occupancy.

STEP 7 - SUPPORT
Customers want to know they are making the right decision.  It is imperative that we resale to them once they have decided that we are their preferred new home.  You need to support their decisions by reminding them of the 13 priorities we fulfilled.  You need to remind them of the additional features that they expressed approval for and plans to utilize.  This is also a great time to draw upon your market survey knowledge to support that they are making an outstanding investment decision and have selected the best value from within your market.

I am sure that many of these steps were not new to you.  But the real questions is, do you consistently utilize these 7 sales steps collectively?  Missing one step can compromise the success of the sales process.  Sales is a psychology.  It is a pattern that helps the buyer to feel confident in their decision, allowing them to walk away feeling comfortable with their investment.  Most importantly, preventing them from having second thoughts that motivate them to continue shopping, later leading to a rental cancellation.

So, One Two a few more steps to do, Three Four show them some more, Five Six break out those final leasing tricks and Happy Seven, welcome to commission heaven.

A Legend In Their Own Mind

Have you ever had one of those employees who just seem to know everything?

The Maintenance Supervisor who knows more about leasing than you and your entire leasing team combined?  The Leasing Consultant who is brand new to the industry, has gained three months of experience and is now applying for a Community Manager position?

I cannot tell you how frustrated I get with these individuals.

I did learn very early on, that there is a difference between confident arrogance and delusional arrogance.  Over the years I have realized that if someone is confidently arrogant, typically they have earned the right to be through repetitive success.  It does not necessarily make it easier to accept their inflated ego, but you can't help respect them for their consistent accomplishments.  On the flip-side, the person displaying delusional arrogance typically has little to show regarding accomplishments. Interestingly enough, for some reason, they have come to believe that people not only want to hear them but actually put value in what they have to say!  Yet, you and I know, we really just want them to "SHUT THE HELL UP"!

I once had a Leasing Consultant that thought she was a ROCK-STAR!  She had her own blog, she told professionals how to market, how to collect rent, how to lease, etc.  She was and probably still is today, "A Legend In Her Own Mind".  I remember her bragging to me about how she was best friends with all of these keynote speakers in the Multi-Family Housing Industry, and how they all came to her for advice and recommendations.  Knowing most of them, I was shocked, so couldn't help but contact them and ask them about their relationship with her. Most said they didn't know her personally but she might have been a Facebook friend, others said, "UGH, yes I know of her, I made the unfortunate mistake of letting her Facebook friend me and now she has an opinion about everything".  With that in mind I started monitoring, and of course, "Little Ms. Know-It-All" was giving her ill advice during work hours, along with updating her blog.  I had to address her unacceptable use of time during work hours.  Later she informed me that she had received a request to have an article from her blog printed and it would recognize her name and place of employment, did she have permission to use the company's name.  I requested to see the blog.  OMG, it was full of spelling errors, grammar errors and punctuation errors.  I did not know who to be more frustrated with, her for being so egotistically blind to her blatant elementary school errors, or the apartment association wanting to print the crap.

Another time I experienced a maintenance person who attended an apartment association event.  At the event he apparently befriended one of the event leaders.  Later the maintenance person unveiled to his boss, that he had been offered a job from this individual he met, he added that the offer was for higher pay and a much better position.  Interestingly enough, the Regional Manager knew, the guy who supposedly offered him the position worked with me.  She contacted me immediately to see if our company had truly offered him a position.  Upon quizzing my colleague , he replied, "NO WAY, he was the most obnoxious and arrogant dude I have ever met."!  Ah, another "Legend In Their Own Mind".  My colleague went on to inform me that this guy had told him that the company he worked for was giving him a huge promotion and raise for having saved them thousands of dollars.  Oh the tangled web they weave when they attempt to deceive.

So, what is the right way to deal with this type of employee personality?  Can you mentor these individuals out of their state of self acknowledged awesomeness?  Are they salvageable?

My gut reaction based upon numerous experiences is NO!  And I can't help but ask, "Why would you want to put yourself through the hell of trying"?  Unfortunately, as a dedicated manager, we can't help but try, even if the odds are against us.  Therefore, the question becomes, "What is the best tactic for mentoring this type of employee"?

I believe the best mentoring tactic is the truth.  Many of these individuals are so self-absorbed they truly do not know they are doing it, and they definitely do not recognize the perception people have of them.  When you say out loud to them, "I know you think you are an employee Rock-Star, but in fact I have been unable to find one of your cheering fans, so I need for you to come down off of your stage and join the crowd as an equal team member", it gets their attention.

I still feel due to experience that few of them will change, mainly due to the fact that this type of behavior tends to be more of a personality trait or low self esteem compensation tactic.  The good news is, you provided them with the truth.  Then, have regular team meetings and after each meeting let them know how they interacted with the group.  Did they talk too much, did they listen well, did they interrupt, did they accept others opinions as options, etc.  By doing this, you know you have done your best to modify their behavior.  If they can't change, they will rapidly self eliminate, because they want/have to be an "Employee Legend" even if it is in their own mind.

Remember, "The Truth Will Set You Free", meaning, either they will change or go play on another stage.  Whichever the outcome, your team will applaud your ROCK-STAR management skills, and you will become a legend in their minds!!!

A "Lease Application 2 - Go"

 

So, who are we kidding ... the lease application is one of the most important parts of our business.  We have carefully collected resumes, thoughtfully interviewed and conscientiously hired leasing specialists to represent us on a daily basis to aggressively secure lease applications.  The questions is, are they doing it well?

I often refer to the apartment lease application as a "Disposable Floor Mat".  Leasing Specialist's offer them as tour parting gifts.  Community Managers direct their teams to use them as marketing collateral material, requiring they staple them to brochures.  You can  find them brilliantly fanned out on display next to the empty candy dish on the cocktail table in the community lobby.  You can often find them in the after-hours brochure box at the clubhouse entry.  

I can't help but wonder, if by making them so readily available, if our Leasing Specialists have stopped recognizing the importance of securing the completed application at the tour.

I think the lease application should be available by request or invitation, the latter being the most important.  

A few years back I had to do an intense market survey in the Raleigh Durham, NC market.  I visited 13 communities, showing great interest to the Leasing Specialists regarding renting, because not only was I shopping the market, I was also shopping for leasing consultants.  I wanted to see who was going to go for the gold.  Out of my 13 visits only two leasing consultants invited me to sit down and fill out an application, the other 11 offered me what I call the "Lease Application 2 - Go".  I was so disappointed that these Leasing (Not So) Specialists completely ignored my positive buying signals, chickened out and didn't ask me to sit down and fill out the application.

What part of "THIS IS YOUR JOB" did they not understand?  What part of "YOU JUST LOST COMMISSION" did they not understand?  What part of "THEY SUCK AS A SALESPERSON" do their supervisors not understand?  The Leasing Specialist needs to realign his or her sales thought process.  They need to own that their job responsibility is to consistently motivate the prospective resident to fill out the application before they leave.  Get the commitment!

I once was discussing this expectation at a public speaking engagement and a community manager piped up in the audience to inform me that it was against Fair Housing.  Here we go, my favorite topic, "Fair Housing Paranoia".  I asked her to explain, she quickly told me that if one of her Leasing Specialists forgot to ask someone to fill out an application, but had asked everyone else, then they could be sued.  And went on to say, it is just like if you forget to offer someone a cup of lemonade but offer it to everyone else, that's why we just have it out with a sign that says serve yourself - that way everyone is invited.  OMG!  REALLY?  Has Fair Housing paranoia made us this STUPID, not afraid, not overly cautious, STUPID!  I shared with her that actually they would be sued if her Leasing Specialist consistently forgot to ask prospective residents from one of the protected classes to fill out the application.  I further told her that I personally wouldn't worry about it if she worked for me, because if she were to forgot to ask anyone to fill out an application, she would have the opportunity to remember the importance of it on the way to the unemployment line.

So again, are our Leasing Specialists aware that their main job is to motivate the prospective resident to fill out the application before leaving.  The question becomes, have we given the leasing consultant the tools to be motivational.  Do we have an impressive product, well landscaped, well maintained and well managed?  Do we have an organized Leasing Center, home to appropriate employee behavior and a conducive professional environment?  Do we have outstanding make-ready or model units for show, that are clean and pristine in appearance?  If we have equipped our Leasing Specialists with these tools there is no reason why we would not hold them accountable for being able to motivate the majority of prospective residents to fill out the application on the spot.

So which are you?  Lease Application carry out?  Or, Lease Application dine in?

Bon Apetit!  I hope you are having a rich desert of Occupancy A La Mode!

What I Learned In China? A Smile Is Bigger Than The Great Wall!

Year after year, speaking engagement after speaking engagement, employee training session after employee training session I have preached the importance of a smile.  I have preached it so often, that I think I became numb to how much I believe it has impact on others.

This young man dawning his orange uniform in the picture, was a passenger in a company truck riding along side my tour bus.  We were in traffic for approximately 25-30 minutes and not once did I ever see him without a smile on his face.  I was mesmerized by his positive energy and could not take my attention away from him.

This is when I recognized the true POWER OF THE SMILE.  I had just spent multiple thousands of dollars to take the longest flight of my life half way around the world to see the mystic sites of China, yet they were all flying past my window without me viewing them, because I was in the presence of an AMAZING SMILE!  I was truly sad when traffic opened up and I had to return to my investment of site seeing.  I know for a fact, that this young man made my day much better.  By the way, this young man did not have the luxury of sitting in a climate controlled leasing center, in a nice chair, behind a nice desk - he was a refuse collector, in a non air conditioned truck on a 101 degree humidity filled day.

I am realizing while writing this blog that I am truly sick of miserable, negative, complaining people - and want to fire them from my life!  

As I shop markets I am blown away with how many multi-family housing representatives I meet on the front line who bring me down.  I am inspired to start writing help wanted ads for our industry, they would include things like:  Personality Required, Must Be Able To Tell Jokes On Command, Responsible For Daily Laughter In Office and Tom Foolery A Must.    Then I would recommend new ways to interview, such as put them in a room with a television running "I Love Lucy" & "Carol Burnett" episodes and observe them through closed circuit cameras to make sure they laugh in order to be eligible for hire.  I would rework interview questions to include things like:  What was your most embarrassing moment in life?  What is the funniest thing you have ever witnessed?  Who is your favorite comedian?  When was the last time you laughed uncontrollably to the point of almost peeing your pants?

As a keynote speaker, one of my favorite experiences is dealing with the maintenance guy who was forced to come to my training session.  He comes completely distracted thinking about the work orders stacked up at the property.  He comes  frustrated that he has to listen to this twit talk about customer service when he has life-threatening Freon leaking out of an A/C unit.  He comes in miffed that he reports to the idiot who deems this session more important than his on-site duties.  He is determined to have a bad time and get nothing from this session.  Then I unveil the first comedic moment, he doesn't crack a smile, but I can't help noticing that Subway Sandwich stuffed belly jiggle from behind the table and under is crossed closed body language arms.  Five minutes later I toss out the next comedic hot potato and this time he can't help but show some teeth.  A few minutes later I pull the pin and toss a comedic hand grenade right at him, those arms fly open, and he catches it displaying full on public laughter.  After this humiliating display of engagement, he forgets his commitment to learn nothing, leans forward, picks up a pen, and surrenders to writing notes regarding customer service.  He vowed not to drink the Kool-Aide, but the kid like stains around his lips are going to be noticed back at the community when his commitment to customer service is adjusted for the positive. 

When I see this happening in my classes, I want to point and yell out, "DUDE, you just drank the freaking Kool-Aide", but instead, I just serve up more for the hours remaining, I want him to leave drunk with new knowledge.

I think this young Chinese man pictured above drinks the Kool-Aide everyday.  I picture him waving and saying high to every customer he sees as he collects their garbage.  I see him being able to turn bad customer service experiences around by just flashing those pearly whites.  I envision his co-worker waking every morning, eager to spend the day with his positive energy.  

Oddly enough, because of him, I would consider being a refuse collector in China, if he were my teammate!!!

So what is the message of my blog?  If you are negative by nature and don't have a personality - don't apply to be a part of my life!  But if you are positive and love to laugh - apply today, YOUR HIRED!