Build a Better Listing Presentation Package

Creating the ultimate listing package requires tenacity, creativity and insight. Sellers want to know your presentation is based on a keen sense of the market, your expertise in determining value, and your ability to bring a deal to close in the shortest time possible and at the highest price.

The key to nailing your next listing is to prepare—more thoroughly, more accurately and more creatively than your competition.

First, don't let your prospect get away with just an appointment. Use this opportunity to capitalize on your uniqueness, leaving the prospect with one key takeaway—that you listen and act.

A casual yet pointed conversation between you and the homeowner should confirm the basic facts about the home (number of bedrooms, bathrooms, etc.) and identify what steps the homeowner has taken to improve the property.

Real estate speaker Jared James has some great tips in this regard. Jared urges agents to give sellers an assignment—something that will give you an idea of what kind of seller you're dealing with, and allow you to subconsciously take control of the transaction.

"When you put someone to work, it subtly asserts your control, while also building trust, because you are working on something together," said Jared, a frequent contributor to REALTOR® Magazine. The strategy also provides insight into the seller's motivation and expectations of what they want to sell for, which, as all REALTORS® know, is not always in line with market values.