It takes a person with an entrepreneurial spirit to succeed in new home sales because they have the mindset that they can turn nothing into something. Where most people see an obstacle, they see an opportunity.

For example, when couples walk into a model home, they usually say something like, “We’re just out looking around. We’re not buying anything.”

That kind of response seems to offer little hope of making a sale. However, a salesperson with an entrepreneurial mindset sees through the smokescreen and thinks like this:

Why would they walk in the door if they aren’t ready to buy a new home? Why would they spend money on gas driving around looking at new homes if they aren’t interested in buying one?

I know that nine out of ten homebuyers go online first to check out new homes and communities. So, probably, they have already been swamped by builders’ ads, Websites and the media; and yet here they are … on my doorstep. They can’t tell me they aren’t ready to buy.

Most of the people who come in my front door are on some sort of mission to buy a new home. Even though they say, “I’m not buying,” I know that really means, “I am interested in buying a new home, but I want to look around without you following me. We’ll talk when I’m ready.”

So, unlike most new home salespeople, I don’t take this as a rejection and give up. Instead, I give them some space.

I am very knowledgeable about my community. I can confidently explain to them the value of this home. I have practiced my closing arguments. I am a valuable asset to these homebuyers. At some point, they will realize this and I’ll make the sale.

Why? Because I don’t give up when buyers throw an obstacle in my path. I know it’s an illusion. They may want to give me the appearance that they’re “just looking,” but I’m not buying it.

Posted In: New Home Sales Coach

Tags: closing techniques, entrepreneur, homebuilder, homebuyers, media, new home, New Home Sales, websites

We’ve only scratched the surface of Deals, Discounts and Incentives. You already know that it’s a closing tool, not your opening statement. The cardinal sin is giving them the incentive prior to them selecting a unique, one of a kind home to fit their needs.

Here’s what happens when you don’t have a planned dialogue, you don’t have a planned reaction, or you just don’t know what to say. Here’s the incentive inadequacy. You must be able to stand up to that awkward question, “Hey what kinds of deals, discounts, and incentives is the builder offering?”

You can’t give a good deal on a new home if the buyer doesn’t have a basis of value for the item. I could offer you a great deal, $75,000 off that home over there, but if it’s not the home you want, then there is no value in the discount. That’s why the buyer has to pick something out before you give the incentive. Remember hold the incentives back, they are a closing tool. You can’t give someone a deal on something if they haven’t already determined the value.

Posted In: New Home Sales Training

Tags: Deals, discounts, incentives, new home, New Home Sales Training, value

A home sales center should be welcoming and comfortable — for the guests. As a salesperson, you should spend as little time as possible sitting in your office. Sales don’t happen here. Sure, you handle the paperwork and finalize details here, but the deciding moment will occur at the site.

Tom Richey, the brain behind the “Top Gun” sales and marketing seminars, said, “The more I site, the more I write.” He knows that as a new homes sales professional, you need to show, more than tell. A customer who is considering the purchase of a homesite or new home should be escorted to the site under consideration. Site plans, elevations, floor plans, and spec sheets don’t sell homes. Talking about the wonderful amenities doesn’t close the sale. This type of one-dimensional selling works for catalog and online shoppers but they aren’t making the biggest investment of their lives there. And those purchases are returnable.

Take them to the property. Let them see where they could be living, see the view, and imagine themselves in this space. Take in that new home smell.

The job of the sales center is to whet the appetite with visuals that entice. You should have the eye candy that gets your prospect to the “ooh and ahh” stage. Don’t allow yourself to be lulled into the comfort of this space because “comfort” doesn’t close the deal. Excitement does.

Seeing is believing. Seeing is selling.

Posted In: new home sales management, New Home Sales Training

Tags: homesite, new home, New Home Sales, new homes sales professional, sales center, Tom Richey, Top Gun Sales and Marketing Seminars

I’ve blogged in the past about the importance of creating a “magical experience” for the home buyer and compared the feeling to a Disney vacation. I recently talked about this strategy with a woman who had never been to the happiest place on Earth. She couldn’t quite grasp the magic I was describing.

So I asked her to tell me the difference between a magical date and an ordinary one. Her eyes sparkled as she clearly recalled an event that exceeded any other in her memory.

While she reveled in her reverie, I said, “That’s what I’m talking about. You remember the magical evening while all those less memorable dates fade away behind the better memories.” And she understood immediately.

Now imagine if your customer could fall in love with the new home you’re selling. By helping them discover the magic of living here, you can. Court them with the enthusiasm and passion of a suitor. Make the extra effort to put them at the center of the experience, one where they drift into the unrivalled joy of buying and living in a new home. You can do that by putting their needs, interests, and desires at the center of the discussion. Just as with a Disney vacation and your magical date, it’s about the overall experience, not the individual bits and pieces. The bouquet of flowers, the starlit boat ride down the river, and even the discovery that the two of you share the same favorite movie are the separate ingredients that contribute to — but don’t make — a magical experience. Each, on its own, is special but not exceptional. It is the sum of the wonderful parts that create the stellar buying moment.

As a new home salesperson, court your buyer with the goal of delivering the magical, memorable experience that not only sells the home, but also creates a happy homeowner who will make happy referrals.

Posted In: New Home Sales Training

Tags: Disney Vacation, home buyer, magical experience, new home, new home salesperson, referrals

When I consult with sales managers, I frequently get the complaint that their new home sales model is not open when it should be. They believe ”but aren’t sure” that their salespeople are late opening the model. They slip out early. They take extended breaks during the day, leaving the new home sales center unavailable during key times.

I tell each and every one of them that I can confirm with 100% accuracy which sales center is opening and closing on time without ever traveling to the sales center or model home. They look at me like I’m some sort of clairvoyant (which I’m not). I simply show up, unannounced, at a sales meeting. There are always people who arrive 15 to 20 minutes early, get their coffee, and are ready to start the meeting at the appointed time. There is also, sad to say, at least one person who waltzes in 15 to 20 minutes late.

This, I tell the sales manager, is one of those "tells" you see in a card game, a tip-off to the next play. The timeliness or tardiness that occurs when people are watching ”including the leadership team” is the same behavior occurring at your sales center. They aren’t savvy enough players to even attempt to bluff you.

If these people can’t be on time when everyone is watching, what makes you think they act more responsibly when left on their own?

Posted In: New Home Sales Management Training

Tags: myers barnes, new home, new home sales center, new home sales management, sales model, tardiness

I’ve blogged in the past about the importance of creating a "magical experience" for the home buyer and compared the feeling to a Disney vacation. I recently talked about this strategy with a woman who had never been to the happiest place place on Earth. She couldn’t quite grasp the magic I was describing.

So I asked her to tell me the difference between a magical date and an ordinary one. Her eyes sparkled as she clearly recalled an event that exceeded any other in her memory.

While she reveled in her reverie, I said, "That’s what I’m talking about. You remember the magical evening while all those less memorable dates fade away behind the better memories." And she understood immediately.

Now imagine if your customer could fall in love with the new home you’re selling. By helping them discover the magic of living here, you can. Court them with the enthusiasm and passion of a suitor. Make the extra effort to put them at the center of the experience, one where they drift into the unrivalled joy of buying and living in a new home. You can do that by putting their needs, interests, and desires at the center of the discussion.

Just as with a Disney vacation and your magical date, it’s about the overall experience, not the individual bits and pieces. The bouquet of flowers, the starlit boat ride down the river, and even the discovery that the two of you share the same favorite movie are the separate ingredients that contribute to, but don’t make, a magical experience. Each, on its own, is special but not exceptional. It is the sum of the wonderful parts that create the stellar buying moment.

As a new home salesperson, court your buyer with the goal of delivering the magical, memorable experience that not only sells the home, but also creates a happy homeowner who will make happy referrals.

Posted In: New home sales marketing

Tags: home buyer, magical experience, myers barnes, new home, new home sales management, new home salesperson

One of the biggest lessons we learn during a recession is the value of a dollar bill. The dollar menu seems to grow at the fast food eateries. People who would ordinarily toss a dollar or two into a Salvation Army bucket or the street performer’s cup are less hesitant to part with their money so quickly.

Let’s face it. Money is security. A few dollars does not make you feel secure. A million dollars could make you sit more comfortably, depending on how you’ve invested it. In the business of new home sales, the choke-hold of this economy has spawned a population of tight-fisted prospects. So let’s turn our thoughts to how we can loosen that grip.

The purchase of a new home is the single biggest investment that most people will make in their lifetime. It’s no easy task to guide them over the threshold of fear and doubt that goes with committing to the purchase.

First of all, you need to differentiate between a house and a home. A house is where you live. A home is how you live. One is a physical location and the other is an emotional experience. When you are helping someone make this decision, you need to understand this distinction. You don’t just point out a fireplace. You sell the comfort of a crackling fire on a rainy weekend afternoon when the best thing you can think to do is curl up on the couch with someone special or even a great book. And a bedroom isn’t just somewhere you place your furniture. It’s a comfort zone, whether you’re happy, sick, tired, or simply feeling like pampering yourself by sleeping in.

When you transfer the worry about the investment of buying a house into the emotional security of living in a home, you will turn your prospect into a homeowner.

Myers

Posted In: New Home Sales, New Home Sales Training

Tags: homeowner, investment, myers barnes, new home, new home sales management, New home sales marketing, New Home Sales Training, new recession, Real estate courses, security

Are you battling the price war in your sales efforts? Do you feel like you have to bottom out your bottom line just to stay in business?

When you feel like taking a hatchet to your price, stop for a moment and think of this: Disney.

Does Disney push you to buy a pass to just one theme park? Do they entice you to come for the thrill of a single ride? Do the ads sell you on a hotel room as a destination or the dining experience of a particular restaurant? Of course not. What Disney sells is a magical experience. The big picture is a mosaic made up of tiny treats that combine to create a vacation like no other.

According to statistics, the average family that visits a Disney theme park consists of 4.5 people who come for four days and five nights at a cost of $5,000. That’s no small investment these days, but the parks continue to fill up. Perhaps in a down economy, the magic of Disney is more important than ever.

But I have to believe that the success of Disney is the corporate culture that is fully invested in delivering a magical experience. And it doesn’t just happen with a spray of pixie dust — even though they can easily make us believe otherwise.

I challenge you to put the magic of Disney into your selling strategy. Visitors invest $5,000 in a Disney vacation because the cost of admission is at least equal to the pure enjoyment they get in return.

What is the cost of admission to your theme park? It’s the price of a new home. How can you turn your sales presentation into a magical experience? What can you do for your buyer that will make that individual not just agree to purchase but be thrilled to do so?

Sell the joy of the home, not the price of the house. Deliver the experience and share the magic.

Myers

Posted In: New Home Sales, Personal Development, Real estate courses

Tags: corporate culture, experience, myers barnes, new home, new home sales management, New home sales marketing, New Home Sales Training, price war, Real estate courses, sales