After you've been in the business for a while, you get used to the terminology, the process and what needs to happen to get your job done. As professionals, we often assume that this knowledge that we take for granted is also familiar to our clients. However, that's not always the case, and if clients don't understand what is happening and why it is being done, they are often reluctant to become actively involved in the process.
When it comes to concepts such as "staging", chances are that unless your client is an HGTV fan, they may not be aware of what it is or why they would want it (let alone want to pay good money for it!) Part of your success in encouraging clients to stage their home is to help them understand the process and its benefits in terms they can relate to -- helping them get their house sold.
What Is Staging?
You know what staging is, but does your client? Simply put, staging is the process of visually preparing a house for the real estate market by creating a warm, inviting space designed to appeal to buyers. If their house is the "product" for sale, staging is the process of "packaging" it to present it to buyers in a way that will make them want to purchase it.
How Do I Suggest Staging To My Client Without Offending Them?
Advertisers spend millions of dollars investing in the packaging and promotion of their products because they understand that consumers make their choices based not so much on what's in a box, but the message they've created around it and how it looks when compared to similar items on the shelf.
If there are multiple products to choose from, how do consumers decide? If you think it's based mostly on lowest price when it's a comparable product, look in your pantry and see how many store-brand or black & white generic labels you have on your shelf.
The first step in helping clients accept professional help in preparing their house is to have them understand that presentation is a basic marketing fundamental needed to sell a product. That product just happens to be their house.
What If My Client Thinks Their House Doesn't Need It?
It can't be said enough, but how you present a house on the market is very different than decorating it to live in. Even if your client has done a great job of decorating their house to make it "home", it is probably not optimized to present it well to buyers.
It's important to communicate to your clients that bringing in a staging professional is not a reflection on how they've decorated their house. Displaying a house on the real estate market is different than what's important for day-to-day living. The emphasis needs to move from comfortable owner-centric "home" to presentation of a "house on the market" from a buyer's perspective. Personal belongings and how they are used need to take a back seat to focusing on showing off the house and its selling features.
What If My Client Doesn't Want to Spend the Money?
If you've been able to explain the purpose and importance of staging, hopefully they will understand why it's a necessary step in the marketing of their home. It is an investment, but one that will pay big returns in terms of helping them get the most out of the sale of their biggest asset.
The result from the investment of preparing their house for the market makes a tremendous difference in the response it receives from buyers. When that can make or break a sale worth hundreds of thousands of dollars, isn’t it worth the cost?
