Inspiration

Satisfied or Delighted?

Rocketing your referrals by harnessing the potential of exceptional customer service

Those estate agents who are unused to the characteristics of the current market have probably begun to realise that their success, and the sustainability of their business, is as dependent on their own efforts as it is on the buoyancy of the market – if not more. Not that this is new. This was always the case. It’s just that when the market was particularly flying there was a degree of smugness that suggested that much credit was due to the agent, when it was actually the market. The reality is that estate agents cannot really influence the market – we are simply conveyors of it!

Of course, being in the right business, in the right place, at the right time is helpful, but those who cut their teeth, or opened up their own agency, on the back of a strong market would be well advised to review the nature, style and approach of their business if they are to flourish during the “normal” market in which we fortunately find ourselves.

I say fortunately because this is precisely the market that causes agents to think like business people. In the recent past, they only had to think like agents, along with its possibly blinkered and parochial connotations. The tendency to work in the business rather than on the business created a degree of stagnation that many never even realised because they were so bound up in their own business that they overlooked the importance of continual development and redevelopment. Looking at others, both inside and outside the industry who are really making waves – and doing extremely well.

I was delighted to see the Storrington agency, Clarke and Charlesworth, featured on the front of May’s Estate Agency News. This was the agent who partially redecorated a client’s house whilst the client was away on holiday to make the house more saleable. The client had intended to do it, but had not yet got around to it, and they were of course delighted when they got home, especially as the property subsequently sold. This is the type of wow-factor service that can sky-rocket an agency to stardom, and is very much in accord with my CNE (Critical Non-Essentials) concept (see June 04 edition). The local PR must have been superb! This is the type of PR that creates referral business from people who have never actually had the benefit of doing business with you – but who just hear you are great!

But not all agents think this way. An agent contacted me the other day to say that he wanted to send a handful of his agents on one of my “Listing in a Changing Market” seminars. He said that he did not actually need to come to the seminar himself because he had been in the business for 20 years!

It seems that many agents regard agency training as simply outsourcing what they would otherwise be doing internally. Whilst I cannot speak for other agency trainers, I see training in agency as far more than that. In fact, basic agency skills are not rocket science at all. Innovative, contemporary training is the vehicle that can deliver the radical change that creates considerable distinction in your business. Without distinction, an agent is simply one of a number of agents in town. Without distinction there is no reason to be regarded as the overwhelming agency of choice. Without that, every marketing proposal meeting becomes a lottery. There is no trust, so why should the seller accept your valuation? And, importantly, why would they pay you any more than the next agent? Distinction. It’s critical!

So back to my client enquiry. How do you regard your experience in the business? Do you really have the benefit of 20 years experience - or do you simply have one year’s experience that you have repeated 19 times? Think about it. Those who continually seek to evolve, learn, develop, change and improve are those who tend to take the lead and who secure the no.1 position in terms of market share. These are the agents who adopt innovation in the business in order to demonstrate enhanced value. And they easily charge more than their competitors. I have many clients who readily secure at least 2% in a predominatly1% area. But you have to be different, distinctive and refreshing. You also have to communicate these values systematically as part of a clearly defined strategic marketing initiative. Big marketing words, but very simple and cost effective to deliver!

I spend time seeking out innovation in agency technique from around the UK and other countries, and I am continually reminded that innovation is by no means limited to technological advances or other tangible products and services. Just look at what Clarke and Charlesworth achieved for the cost of a tin of paint! And there are dozens of other examples of such types of service delivery I could mention.

Innovation means doing things in a way that is new and different. As I have always said – you don’t have to be better – just different, if you are to make an impact on your market. And if you deliver attitudes, styles, approaches and methods of customers service, communication and client support that are unlike those of other agents, you are likely to come out on top, because your clients are not only satisfied – they are delighted!

And delight is crucial. Research by IMA (Independent Customer Analysis) has recently shown that 17% of satisfied clients will refer business to you. However, a staggering 78% of delighted ones will refer business to you! Need I say more? Yet the difference between satisfaction and delight is a very fine line. It is achieved by your attitude to your business and your customers, not simply by having the latest tangible products and services.

Sadly, I only tend to see great, progressive agents. Those who actually need to move on tend to be those who rely only on their own experience, and don’t bother with training! Funny old world!

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© Richard Rawlings 2010
Richard Rawlings is the founding director of Estate Agency Insight, which specialises in helping estate agencies harness opportunity through innovative method, marketing, publicity, and training. He can be contacted at or on 0845 838 1354.

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