Leasing Basics: Mindset for Success
Henry Ford said, "Whether you think you can or you think you can't, you are right."
With this very simple quote, he emphasized the role that the proper mindset can play in whatever we're undertaking. Our mindset can truly become a self-fulfilling prophecy. In addition to that, we know that first impressions can be formed in 30 seconds or less, so it's worth our time to make sure we're setting ourselves up for success with the proper mindset.
Now, contrary to traditional leasing courses, we here at Sprout start with what many people conclude with, and that is closing the sale.
We firmly believe that by having your end goal in focus at the onset of your presentation, your entire presentation will fall in line. It sets you up for success. Let's get started!
You Can Teach an Old Dog New Tricks
Now, if you're brand new to the apartment leasing arena, you can actually skip this section, but for those of us that have been in the industry for a while, sometimes we have to follow a three-step process.
We have to learn, to unlearn, to relearn.
Sometimes we have to learn why the old way of doing things just isn't working anymore.
Then we have to do something that's very hard. We have to unlearn that way of doing things. Sometimes that's extremely difficult because it might be years and years of doing something a certain way.
Then we have to follow the third step, and that's to relearn to do things a different way.
Now, the old sales process typically reminds us of a used car salesman. We know the type. We used to memorize features and benefits, we'd have them firmly fixed in mind, and we would ask our prospects maybe three or four fact-finding questions. You probably followed a guest card or a script that you felt had to be followed to a T, then we would spout off features and benefits, fast-talking our prospects hopefully into choosing our community.
We sincerely thought that if we didn't give our prospects any time to object or raise any questions, well then ultimately they would choose our community.
Here's the deal. That old process no longer works.
In fact, I'm not sure that it was ever really effective. Today's buyers are more educated than they've ever been before. We have things like online ratings, mobile marketing, social media, and so much more. The information age has made information available 24/7, and prospects are coming to our communities armed with knowledge. What does that mean for us? It means that we have to adjust our mindset.
Earned Not Given: Become a Part of the Decision-Making Process
I want you all to carefully read this part. Being allowed to actively participate in a prospect's decision-making process is a special privilege that must be earned.
Leasing professionals and salespeople in general fall into two categories. One feels that being allowed to be a part of that decision-making process, is just a given. They're the professional, so again, they should naturally be given that responsibility.
Others feel a little tentative, and they feel like they'll never be able to actively participate in a prospect's decision-making process.
The reality is that neither is correct. Being able to be a part of that decision-making process is possible, but it isn’t a given. It has to be earned.
No traditional salespeople are allowed in this territory.
Think about it. When you walk into a store and you have a salesperson that runs up and bombards you and says, "Is there anything I can help you with, sir?" Or "Is there anything I can help you with, ma'am?" Instantly you say, "No, I'm just looking," or "Just browsing." There again, we're excluding them from having a meaningful input in the decision-making process.
We want to have a meaningful input into where they're going to call home, where they're going to raise their families, where they're going to create memories.
Think about it personally.
When have you allowed a salesperson to become a part of your buying decision?
It's important that you stop to really think about this. It might have been something, a small purchase or maybe a large purchase, but there was something a salesperson did that made you feel comfortable enough to allow them to be a part of your decision-making process.
It might have been just simply that you followed a recommendation that a waiter made with something on the menu. Or maybe it was a much bigger process and you decided to go with a different set of appliances based on a recommendation of a salesperson.
What was it about them that gave you that comfort level, which allowed them to be a part of your decision and your buying process?
Identify the commonalities and characteristics that allowed this, and implement them in our sales presentation.
Out with the Old, In with the New
Consultative selling. No longer are we just salespeople. We're actually consultants.
A lot of times I'll hear when I walk into an apartment community, somebody say, "Well, I'm just the leasing agent," or "just the leasing professional."
The reality is, you're not just the leasing professional. As an expert in housing, you really and truly are a lifestyle and housing consultant.
To be an effective consultant, you have to be a good conversationalist.
A good conversationalist always becomes a good listener.
They say that we have two ears and one mouth and that we should use them in that same ratio. We learn how to really listen. We learn how to ask the right questions to draw out our prospects, this in turn will make them feel at ease. That's our job as a consultant.
There's a quote that I love, and I use it often. Maya Angelou said that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.
Again, these points all tie in to the big picture. None of us want to have a consultant that we feel has no knowledge about the product that they're telling us about, right?
A consultant has to be knowledgeable.
Knowledgeable about the prospect, the product, and again, about the buying process.
Shop the Competition: Be the Expert
Today, the buyers, or prospects, are comparison shopping when they look for an apartment. Typically your prospect isn't walking into your door and saying, "Well, today I'm trying to decide whether I'm going to rent an apartment or I'm going to buy a house." No, typically they know. They are apartment dwellers and they're trying to decide which apartment they're going to choose. As they're touring your community, or they're talking to you on the phone about your community, they're thinking about how it compares to the competition, whether they've seen it or whether they want to see it. Again, this is how they're thinking when they're coming to talk to you about your community.
What that means for us is that once we understand the buying process, then we start to understand how comparison selling really plays a role. It's no longer enough just to talk about our community. Again, that's the old used car salesman approach, only knowing your product. You have to become an apartment hunter yourself, this in turn allows you to become a real consultant. We need to be able to intelligently discuss how the communities in the area compare. The reason for this is that that's exactly what's going on in the prospect's mind. The better we are at drawing this out and the better we are about talking about the different things in the area, we truly become experts in the neighborhood, experts in the community. Again, we go from knowing that the prospect is comparison buying to comparison selling.
What does this mean for you? It means you have to shop your competition to know your competition.
Ask yourself right now, when is the last time you shopped your competition?
Be honest with your answer.
The reality is, we have to keep current with our competition.
We know it's not just about our product. It's also about how our competition is positioning their product, how they're presenting it, and who it is that's presenting it. We have to know, how did they show their model? What are they offering as a special? How does the leasing professional really present or bring to life the lifestyle that is at that community? So we have to shop our competition, we have to know our competition. So take the initiative to visit one of your comps this week.
Sometimes we get really scared to bring up the competition. The reality is, the competition, these other apartments for rent in your area, have already been brought up in your prospect's mind, whether they verbalize it or not. It's better to bring up the topic on your home turf. It's better to present yourself as the expert, as the consultant in the neighborhood, because what you're doing is elevating yourself from just being a vendor or somebody that's trying to sell something, to a real expert that is knowledgeable, not just about your product, but about all the products in the area and about the entire community. You really can help build a picture of what the lifestyle is about. This is something that is extremely valuable to your prospect.
Now, for some of you that are in an isolated area, you'll have to go outside your immediate zone. Your competition may be in a competing neighborhood, but it's up to you. You're losing residents somewhere. You're losing prospects somewhere. If you're losing a prospect to something, consider it your competition, and become comfortable bringing that to life. We're ditching the old used car salesman approach. We're not going to spout off features and benefits. We truly are consultants in what we do.
That's the first step in closing the sale.
It all starts with the right mindset for success.
Practice this, really absorb it, take it in, refer to it often, and make sure that you are setting yourself up for success with the right mindset.
The mindset is that we are there to provide a value for our prospects, and in the end, that will result in us closing the sale.
“Closing the Sale” is just one section of our beloved The Leasing Blueprint (Handbook & Video Series)
This product is for a digital file only, no physical items will be sent or mailed.
Introducing the Sprout Apartment Leasing Blueprint - PDF Handbook! From goal setting, email tips, virtual and self-guided tour guidelines, social media checklists and more - the Modern Edition of The Apartment Leasing Blueprint is the ultimate survival guide for leasing professionals.
What can you expect to find in your blueprint?
Morning Checklist - What to do before the doors open
Big Three Goal Setting
Dress & Grooming Guidelines
The Art of Email Updates
What Will Fit in My Apartment?
Neighborhood Guide
Asking the Right Questions - List of the Best Questions to Ask
Telephone Techniques
Overcoming Common Objections
Ideas for Closing the Sale
Virtual and Self-Guided Tour Tips
Leasing Online & Email Etiquette
Social Media Checklist
Camera Tips
and so much more!
A SPROUT MARKETING TRAINING: Comprehensive Sprout Leasing Blueprint
This video series is the ultimate webinar to learn everything you need to know about apartment leasing. The Sprout Leasing Blueprint is a compilation of 25 videos from the Sprout team covering all the leasing basics you need to know from how to prepare for the day, telephone techniques, building a customer connection, virtual tours, overcoming objections and so much more.
This is the perfect purchase for managers who want a hands-free training to get their team up to scratch. Let Sprout lighten the load and get your team prepped to become superstar leasing agents.
This webinar provides you access to a webpage with 25 videos including the following below:
1 Introduction Training Video
1 Ready For Business Training Video
9 Telephone Technique Training Videos
3 In-Person & Virtual Touring Training Videos
4 Overcoming Objections Training Videos
6 Closing The Sale Training Videos
1 Follow-Up Video
ADDED VALUE: Printable Question Ideas Download
