During World War II, when flying ace Eddie Rickenbacker was pulled off his raft after 23 days adrift in the South Pacific, he was asked what was his greatest fear, to which he replied, “The next wave!”
With all the talk about the transition or challenging market, the emphasis has been on the technical approach to selling homes.

To wit:

• Number of traffic visits to score a sale (and how to increase the number)
• Financing acumen
• Demonstrating the base of value
• Lifestyle orientation
• Techniques for neutralizing objections
• Closing and follow-up skills

All of which are critical for beating the competition.

However, nothing – absolutely nothing – has been said about the simple, subtle, yet seismic retailing revolution which is just starting to happen as we speak. Very simply, the movement from a society and economy built on the logical, linear, computerized doctrine of the Information Age to a society and economy built on the inventive, creative, empathetic synergies that will foster a bigger picture or conceptual of why to buy. Call it the Experiential Age.

Napoleon Hill said it well – “Whatever man can conceive, man can achieve!”

The last several decades have spawned unique individuals with steel trap minds – computer programmers par excellence… politicians who polarized polls… business opportunists who managed in self interest… lawyers who parsed words… and so on.

All this breeds an awareness of the experientials in retailing - good or bad. If one has shopped at Home Depot or Best Buy versus Neiman’s or Nordstrom’s, the difference is obvious. So, what does this shift have to do with the housing industry? Plenty! A new breed of business patrician is arising with a mind toward the essence of the event – the purchasing event. Was it a positive or a negative? Did it differentiate from the competition? Was it pleasurable? The next wave of retail selling will be focused on the experience of the purchase, not just the product or numbers. There are five factors that drive this evolution in the housing business:

• 1. Selling Style and Design: Beauty has been buried in the rush for the deal, but its renaissance is coming. Selective buyers will buy the splendor and location of well-conceived style and design, not just price or the deal!
• 2. Empathy: In an analytical numbers-driven world, discounts alone won’t cut it. People are searching for a more ennobling experience. What will drive the sale will be the sales professional’s understanding of the needs, wants, and desires of their customers and how to communicate to their level of comprehension. Enter question-based counselling. Forging relationships will be back!
• 3. Synergy: What today’s buyer wants is not a process that mirrors the same old, same old, but the alchemy of seemingly disparate bits and pieces into a purchasing justification or manifesto. An example would be the amalgamation of lifestyle, product style and design, quality execution, convenience, low or no maintenance, time savers, family togetherness indices, satisfaction enhancers like floor plans that deliver more of the good life, brand name assurances, customer service programs that are professional and responsive, and finally, a price to value ratio in the context of financing that says … “Here’s a lot of home for a reasonable amount per month!”
• 4. Fun: In the emerging climate of uncertainty, driven by rogue nations and ruthless leaders, the greatest mandate in the retail experience is to make purchasing new homes a happy event. The benefits of laughter, lightheartedness, good humor, and spontaneity far outweigh the docile, driven sales presentation based on “just the facts, Maam, just the facts!”
• 5. Storyline: The key to success in the Experiential Age will be how well the message is presented and comprehended. When our minds are overloaded with information, it’s a breath of fresh air to clean out the cobwebs by introducing the common sense concept that a new home will substantially improve the family’s zest for living. And, that the time to seize the opportunity is now! The essence of persuasion today is to communicate in a specific manner those reasons to purchase, which are unique to that particular buyer. Since no two sales are ever the same, neither are two buyers.

An understanding of this next wave will fine tune the presentations of the future. Those who perform experientially will drive new home retailing to a higher level.

Following is a checklist of home buying scenarios that enhance the retail experience and differentiate from the competition:

• Offsite signage and flags that are accurate and sparkling clean.
• A professionally manicured entryway that creates a sense of arrival.
• Clearly defined pathways to the sales or information center.
• Welcome wordage, not negative notices like model tour do’s and don’ts. Examples: “No soft drinks”… “Take children by the hand”… “No lingering!”… “No photographs”… (actual signs seen in complexes this year).
• A genuinely concerned and caring salesperson who exudes enthusiasm on the initial greeting.
• A sales office that does not look like Burger King after the noon rush.
• Non-threatening sitting alcoves that encourage a brief respite before the model tour.
• Information graphics about location, neighborhood, and community that are easy to understand and compelling to the point where additional information is desired by the customer (with salespeople trained to incite interest).
• A model home or model park that is pristine clean. No excuses for cobwebs… peeling paint… pitted hardware… dirty windows… messy garages…. odor prone baths and kitchens. No excuses!
• A true sales professional who presents his or her product with question-based counselling.
• More sitting and hence more fitting (the right home to the right family)… Less standing and alienation.
• Absolutely none of this: “Here’s a brochure, the models are that way. When you come back, I’ll answer your questions.” NO! This must be purged from our sales staff’s vocabulary. Great sales personnel, open with… “Here at my company, we do things a bit differently… I’d like to show you five things we design and build into this price range that no one else does, and then you may browse at your leisure.”
• Use of the “share with me’s” is essential to experiential counselling. “Share with me what your dream home looks like and we’ll see how close we can come to making that dream a reality.”
• Conversational counselling creates the opportunity to conversationally close. “Based on what you’ve seen so far, does this home and homesite work for you?”
• Identification of the buyers’ 1-of-A-Kind… confirmation thereof… and a soft multiple close works wonders. “According to what you’ve shared with me, have we found your a 1-of-A-Kind home?”
• The homesite experience with a full tool box presentation is priceless and truly differentiates from the competition’s lazy sales staff.
• The closing experience is fun. - “Let’s go back and write this up, shall we?”… “Great!”… “We’ll leave the cones in place in case you want to come back and take pictures…”
• The closing experience is enlightening. - “It’s not the price of the home that matters, it’s how much home you can own for how little per month.”
• The closing experience is seamless. - “Let’s okay this agreement and then I’ll review the easy steps to loan approval.”
• The closing experience is urgent. - “Congratulations. For all the reasons, you certainly made this decision at just the right time.”
• The closing experience is justified. - “With this special adjustable rate financing, you can own a lot of home for a low monthly investment – and save on your Federal taxes!”
• The closing experience avoids cancellations. - “Congratulations on finding your 1-of-A-Kind. We are obligated to you and you are obligated to us. Let me explain the easy process from this point forward…” (Cement the sale.)
• And, the home buying experience is indeed pleasant. All calls are returned promptly. Color selections are done professionally. Delivery dates are accurate, and, at the end of the day, a referral sale is in the offing.
• A clearly understood alternate of choice financing program with a U-Benefit tied to either choice is utilized.
• The beneficence of a soft multiple closing process where the purchasers feel they are in control, not being controlled is magic.
• A value-based demonstration must be delivered that is so powerful and on target with the buyers’ desires that every home in the marketplace pales in comparison.
• Sales personnel must exercise the differential presentation that puts the purchaser directly into the experience. Example: “Who’s the chef in the family? Great. Jimmy, if this kitchen were yours, where would you store the canned goods, the cereals, the detergents?”
• Remember the buyer characteristics when presenting experientially. For example:
  • For the Status Buyer – “Let’s pretend it’s house warming day. When your guests arrive, doesn’t that impressive roofline make a statement?”
  • For the Individualist Buyer – “When’s the last time you saw a yard so private you can really express yourself with leisure side landscaping?”
  • For the Family Buyer – “Have I proven to you that we are in a remarkable school district?”
  • For the Deal Buyer – “Now you can see that our home with this special financing program gives you a lower monthly payment than the discounting builder with the lower price?”
  • For the Fifty Plus Buyer – “Save your precious cash for an emergency. Stay liquid. Take advantage of the best financing the housing industry has ever seen.”
  • For the Technical Buyer – “Let me explain the technical points of our energy program with it’s R-Values and SEER ratings and then prove to you how you save money on your heating and cooling bills… because we have a program of coordinated energy efficient design and construction features, not a package of random inclusions.”
  • For the Cultural Buyer – “Surprise! This home has two number eights in the address.”
  • For the Affluent Buyer – “Will this be a cash transaction or are you considering financing?”
• A lifestyle tour of the whole community with not less than five impact stations creates a value-added beyond the scope of the home – and an experiential purchasing point many competitors cannot match.
• The move-in experience should be a moving and memorable experience… and should contribute to referral sales.

Experiential counselling certainly beats using smoke and mirrors to create a price that may not be representative of the buyers’ dream home. In an unpredictable, transitioning market, price selling alone will not hold up at the end of the day. Experiential counselling will. Review these thirty experientials with your sales staff and inspire them to victory.

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© 2008 Thomas W. Richey, MIRM, Richey Resources
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www.richeyresources.com