Key Highlights

  • Maxwell Gladwell in best-selling Blink said you have 7 seconds to make a good first impression – the same goes for maximizing/selling your listing
  • Buyers leveraging internet in order to spend as little time as possible in visiting homes they want to see

Home sellers are no longer competing with other listings in their neighborhood…they are competing with homes prospective buyers have seen on HGTV.

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According to research done by Proctor & Gamble, sellers of anything have a 3-7 second window in which to affect a consumer’s decision to buy a product. For real estate, a seller has a maximum of seven seconds to make a positive impression of a listing before the potential buyer swipes left.

The old-normal of buyers giving a potential home a minute, just one minute, from the time they arrived curbside until getting into the kitchen is completely past tense now. With new-normal COVID restrictions and showing limitations (signing COVID-related disclosures, presenting a current mortgage pre-approval, adhering to specific time-frames, limiting access to two buyers from one household and one agent) buyers will only put up with the hassle of visiting a home IF AND ONLY IF they see what they like/want/need in a home within seven seconds of seeing that home on their phones.

Here are the top five rules to maximize your listing in order to sell it within the new-normal 7-second allotment of time, according to Carol Medford, CEO of the Medford Team:

  1. Buyers want move-in ready homes, not homes needing fixes.
    1. Buyers want home that are compatible with their criteria, not the seller’s.
    2. Spend the $1,000 for today’s upgrade to make the sale today.
  2. Maximize the appeal of a house by making it move-in ready.
    1. Update the kitchens and baths with solid surface counters, contemporary tile, get rid of laminate floors and put in energy-saving features
    2. Focus on removing objectionable features to maximize the house’s overall effect at the lowest cost.
  3. Staging works, including virtual staging
    1. This is all about the online photos optimized for mobile devices.
    2. Make sure staging furnishings are consistent with current styles
  4. Showcase your listing photos with drone footage, 30-40 magazine-quality stills, a 3-D tour (Matterport), floor plan, video
    1. Use stills and videos on social media sites
    2. Use more expensive video production for high-end lux properties
    3. This is NOT about using smartphone pictures.
  5. Prioritize the listing’s best shots and show them first to engage you buyer right off the bat.
    1. Start with a shot of the outside and then shots of the key areas of the home.
    2. Follow up with bedrooms, hallways, etc.
    3. End with drone shots of the area and local amenities such as parks, hiking/biking trails, vistas, etc.

This 7-second new normal is here to stay. Embrace it, help your sellers embrace it and you’ll have a signed contract in days.

 

Thanks to Carol Medford writing for InmanNews.

Also read: Lux Sales in Hamptons Drop to 6-Year Low, Best Social Media Marketing Tools for 2020 – Part II, Is Remote Working the “Extension Cord” Buyers Need for Suburban Living?

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