Commercial Real Estate Listing Techniques – How to Make Your Property Proposal Better Than Most

When you are invited by the owner of a commercial property to submit a proposal to sell it, you may only have that single opportunity to convey the proposal message and your marketing strategy. Unfortunately most vendor invitations to present sales proposals are made to multiple agents for the single property, so the message in the document has to be clear, and the conversion outcome is critical.

Before you start any proposal, ask yourself this one question. ‘What makes me different in the marketing of this property?’ If you have not got a clear answer then a major problem exists.

Far too many agents enter a competitive property sale proposal situation with a focus on one or more of the following:

• Discounted sale fees
• Discounted commission
• Discounted or agent paid advertising
• Inflated price quotation

Whilst the client may initially think that some of this is attractive, it does little to sell the property and may even be counterproductive. Why prostitute yourself? If you are the best real estate agent in your area then show it and make sure the message is clear in your sales proposal.

A great proposal to sell a property is strategic and targeted to the outcome that the client seeks. Everything in your document should be displaying your dominance and understanding of the task at hand. To be the best agent to do the job, the proposal has to illustrate that.

So what are the rules to adopt here? In essence the proposal is to be all about the property and the client in all respects. The following will help you with the blueprint for a great sales listing proposal.

1. A statement detailing the property location and features. Market appeal of the property is also part of this opening to your proposal. Copies of property titles, plans, photos, tenancy schedules, and encumbrances should also be displayed here.
2. A summary of the requirements of the client to sell the property should be made. Make sure that this is quite clear so that the client knows you totally understand the brief.
3. A list of the clients concerns and questions that you have identified is very useful at this point. As a direct follow on to that, you can provide answers for the client. This shows that you are really aligned to the needs of the client.
4. An overview of the property market and its current trends is essential. As part of this you should then position the subject property into the market you have described and then comment on the competition properties that impact the property marketing today.
5. Clearly define the target market that you see as relevant to the promotion of the property. Then explain how relevant the property is to that target market and the features of the property that will assist you in the process of marketing.
6. Recommendations regards methods of sale become the natural flow on from point 4 above. You must give reasons for your selection of the method of sale. Also give the client some comment on the ‘factors of time on market’ that exist at the time, and the success factors of your chosen method of sale. Give the client some clear comfort that you really do know that the method of sale selected is the best.
7. Use time lines as an illustration of where you would like to head with this property sale promotion. Illustrations are much better than words. Gantt charts are great for this purpose.
8. At this point it is best to provide an innovative marketing strategy that complements the chosen method of sale and attracts the defined target market. The promotional strategy offered should have 2 or 3 alternatives of marketing that provide the client with a selection of budgets. Vendor paid advertising is the rule and not the exception in listing a commercial property. Stick to this rule.
9. Copies of adverts are useful to give the client an idea of what the promotional material will look like and how it will be formatted.
10. A summary of fees and costs to do the sale should be simple and clear. Whilst costs are always important, if you have done your job in the earlier parts of your proposal, then the fees and costs will be less critical to the client.

All of the above points centre on the property and the client. Very little is said about the agency and what you bring to the property for the client. Only after all the points above are handled should you move to the matters of agency promotion and relevance.

As listing Commercial property for sale or lease is a competitive process, it is important that written submissions for owners are presented promptly. The company that has their submission before the owners first is likely to be given most consideration. However, the listing agreement or contract is an important document and it needs to be prepared carefully to ensure that all the arrangements negotiated with the owners have been included.

You should, if possible, present the submission in person so that you can “walk” the owners through the documents and immediately clarify any matters of concern. If possible obtain exclusive listings, but whatever the situation, ensure that the document is accurate, well presented and that your oral presentation complements it.

If you think you are the best real estate agent in the market to handle the property sale, then your proposal has to show that very clearly.