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Lawrence Higgins Associate Editor
Then there was one
select just one? As the niche retailers in my local high street attract thousands of customers every weekend, I first rejected those without a physical presence in my postcode – then there were 21. How did I decide whether I wanted the wide reach and appeal of say haart or KFH, the prestige of Bushells or Winkworth; the local excellence of Roy Brooks or Pickwick or the freshness of the newer agents such as
Property.in or Truepenny’s – without getting all 21 of them round to my house? Well I did everything – I looked at their
W
shop windows; advertising; flyers; presence on portals; the time taken to answer my call; word of mouth; marketing packs; awards they had won and even the cars they drove. I considered all of this not from my view as the seller, but from how I felt they would appeal to the buyer. Would those thousands visiting the
Saturday market be swayed to look at their impressive window displays? Would customers be happy to enter and spend
www.thenegotiator.co.uk
hen I put my house on the market I had a choice of 32 estate agents in my neighbourhood. How to
time browsing the literature? Would their up/down or mass-market branding entice or put-off? Once registered how would the agent keep in contact? Did they offer the latest apps and did they wear their credentials on their sleeve demonstrating their success and integrity as an agent? My choice was far from easy, but using these criteria I whittled it down to five agents to come round and sell themselves to me. How would those 26 that didn’t ‘pass go’ have made it onto my short-list?
“Did I want the wide reach of haart or KFH, or the prestige of Bushells or Winkworth?”
Well read on; there is an underlying theme in this month’s issue – differentiation – how to stand out from the crowd. Have a look at how winning a Negotiator Award will give you kudos, how your brand and shopfront can entice customers, how to use training to get the most out of staff and how your IT systems can be an asset and not a burden. Using these tips may not guarantee you
become the final one chosen – but they should guarantee that you are not one of the 26 that got rejected.
The Negotiator Magazine PO Box 624, Epsom, Surrey KT17 9JX tel: 0844 745 3001 email:
mail@thenegotiator.co.uk
Editorial Director Sheila Manchester email:
sheila@thenegotiator.co.uk tel: 0844 745 3101
Associate Editor Lawrence Higgins email:
lawrence@thenegotiator.co.uk tel: 0844 745 3103
Publisher Grant Leonard email:
grant@thenegotiator.co.uk tel: 0844 745 3100
Art Director Karen Bates
Advertising Manager Rich Storrs email:
rich@thenegotiator.co.uk tel: 0844 745 3102
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Independent of any association or trade body.
© Propertydrum Ltd 2012
Circulation
12,000 copies per issue has been published
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TheNegotiator l August 2012 l 3
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