Use lifestyle marketing as one more tool to land valuable FSBOs

How to market to FSBOs

Every so often something ironic/amusing happens that puts a smile on your face and makes you appreciate just how fortunate you are to be a real estate professional on this planet.

One of those events occurred recently to the delight of every broker and agent in the world.

Colby Sambrotto, the founder and former CEO of ForSaleByOwner.com, gave up on trying to sell his 2,000 sq. ft. condo in NYC by himself.  He decided to list it with a broker.

You can probably guess (with a sly grin) how the rest of this story goes.

After quickly receiving multiple offers, the broker helped the FSBO king sell his condo for $2.15 million, $150,000 more than the asking price.

We’re sure every real estate broker and agent is energized by this story and motivated to go out there and pound on more FSBO homes.

After all, studies show, 72% of all FSBOs will eventually list with an agent.

The problem is, will every other agent tell the FSBO the same thing?

What sets you apart from the pack?

We’re not going to tell you that having the SpatialMatch neighborhood and lifestyle search engine embedded on your site is going to be a lock on landing every FSBO call you make.

But we will tell you it’s going to  give you an edge. And if you present enough of these “edges” when talking to a potential client, you might just get that FSBO listing.

Here are a few suggestions:

– Show them how you own the neighborhood: Sure, other agents will tell a FSBO they specialize in selling homes in that subdivision. But what if you showed the prospect a sample of your SpatialMatch map for that subdivision, displaying all the IDX listings AND the top amenities near that neighborhood.

– Show them how you attract “lifestyle” buyers: Point out to the FSBO how you sold a home down the street to one buyer who was crazy about golf/jogging/Starbucks/fill in the blank (__________). The FSBO might think, “Hmm, my house is really close to the GIANT MALL/fill in the blank (_________) down the street which I have found to be extremely convenient. This agent might just have something there that will help me sell my home.”

–  Show them how you have more tools then they do: Yes, of course, you will put the FSBO’s home on MLS. But as a real estate agent, you have access to other tools to help sell homes quickly. One of them is SpatialMatch, which points out lifestyles amenities to prospective buyers. Gee Mr. or Mrs. FSBO, you don’t have these tools at your disposal , do you?

If you work at it, at some point, this thought is going to appear in the FSBO’s mind: “Wow, that’s something the last seven agents who called did not have.”

When that happens, the skies will open, the sun will shine, and it’s going to be another great day for you as a real estate agent on this interesting little rock we call Earth.

To learn more about SpatialMatch, go here – www.spatialmatch.com