As a home stager, creating and maintaining a strong relationship with real estate agents is an essential part of generating referred business.
When you have a strong relationship with a real estate agent you will constantly have business flowing and you will always have a direct line of call if something goes wrong in a property.
Selecting the right real estate agents for your business can be difficult though. You may have a great relationship with one agent in the beginning but as your business grows that agent may not fit with your business anymore.
When choosing a real estate agent to maintain a strong relationship with, always look for someone who is:
- An established real estate agent. Agents who are not new to selling properties are more likely to develop a relationship with a home stager as they are always looking to expand their connections
- You want to be able to trust your real estate! As a home stager you want to know if the agent has any relationships with other home stagers and if they are referring their clients to you or to other home stagers
- A people person. A real estate agent won’t get very far if they aren’t a people person. They must be approachable, friendly and great at negotiating
- As a home stager it makes sense that you would want to have strong relationships with multiple real estate agents but a real estate agent doesn’t need a relationship with more than one home stager.
- At the same level as you. There is no point forming a relationship with a real estate agent whose clients would not be able to afford your service. Make sure your agent has the same client demographic as you do to ensure maximum results
Once you have established a relationship with a real estate agent it is important to maintain that relationship. This can be achieved through a variety of ways such as:
- Referring business. If a client gets their property staged but they aren’t sure what agent to go with yet, encourage them to go with the agent you are affiliated with
- Buying ‘Thank You’ gifts. If your affiliate has a big win, sells a great property or smashes a record, giving them a small gift is a great way to maintain a relationship and show the agent that you are about their successes
- Providing statistics. At a milestone during the year, be it yearly, half-yearly or quarterly, providing your affiliate with statistics about how your business is benefiting real estate is a great idea and a push to ensure that the agent will want to keep working with you
Having a strong relationship with a real estate agent is a great way ensure that you are constantly getting business and referring business. Having grounded relationships and affiliations with real estate agents is the best relationship that a home stager can have as it means that you are the first point of call to help that agent with a property.
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