"Deal Or No Deal"

As Charles Dickens famously said at the beginning of The Tale of Two Cities, "It was the best of times, it was the worse of times."

Sometimes I feel that our economy is like that, there is no doubt that there are some very tough markets where our friends in the New Homes Industry are still suffering, and yet there are others who have been able to adapt, and are beginning to thrive and gain significant market share.

So for those of you who are still going through tough times we truly "feel your pain", as we have been there ourselves many times before. To all of you loyal blog readers we are here to help lift you up and inspire you with our monthly dose of real world training strategies that work in this specific market, and current success stories from around the globe.

First our updated good news.

GOOD NEWS METER

According to major news outlets such as MSNBC:

> Housing construction rose in August, and the number of newly laid of workers seeking aid fell unexpectedly last week, adding to signs that the recession has ended.

> Construction of Multifamily, rose 1.5 to an anual rate of 598,000 units.

> Building permits rose 2.7% in August to an annual rate of 579,000.

> August reflected a 25.3% surge in construction of multi family units.

> Regionally construction rose 23.8% in the Northeast, and 0.9% in the midwest.

> Tough Markets such as Broward County in Florida enjoyed 7% appreciation.

"DEAL OR NO DEAL"

Earlier this year I was blessed to have the opportunity to speak at the International Builders Show in Vegas, with famed presenter Charles Clark III, and the topic was Negotiating. We had a standing room crowd of people from every facet of new homes.

Here is an overview of what I discussed. Please keep in my mind that the Official New Home Specialist Negotiation System (sm) takes at least a day if not longer to teach and is accompanied by lengthy workbooks with rheems of offical planned dialogues and role playing opportunities. The following is an abbreviated excerpt of the program I taught at the IBS 2009 in Las vegas.

ESSENTIAL RULES OF NEGOTIATION

> Why do customers negotiate?

Typically, ego, pride, peer/media pressure, behavioral style, culture, and to save face, but very rarely out of financial need. Once we understand this, we can realize that negotiating is just a game, and it is our job to give the customer the satisfaction of feeling as though they have won the game, yet we make the sale at an amount we can afford to accept.

8 ESSENTIAL RULES

1) CREATE A WIN-WIN

"We will never fear to negotiate, but we will never negotiate out of fear."

President John F. Kennedy

Dr. Covey defines a win-win situation as being good for both sides. The customer needs to perceive that they receive a great value, but we also need to ensure that our companies, are also comfortable with the proposals that we are submitting. If not it would either be a lose-win, or a win-lose, neither of which is good for you or your customer.

2) Confirm Ownership

There is no point in even beginning a serious negotiation until the customer has confirmed that they are actually interested in buying your home. Otherwise you will be simply negotiating against yourself, and the customer will merely "shop" your low price around town. So the next time a customer asks whether you will negotiate, reply with words to the effect:

SALES GENIUS

"So this is a home you would like to own?'

If they say yes, then continue. If they say no, then don't be afraid to put your papers away, and explain that you will be happy to help them when they are committed to going ahead.

3) NEGOTIATE OTHER THAN PRICE

Once you have established that yours is a home that your customer would like to own, than it is important to make a list of the facts that will impact the sale, that way you can learn to negotiate items other than price.

Here is the checklist of items to confirm before you enter into a negotiation:
1) Going ahead today
2) Home (model type)
3) Home site/location
4) Included features
5) Luxury choices
6) Financing or cash
a) If financing, have they been recently approved by a lender.
b) If cash, do they have proof of funds to close.
7) Amount of Initial investment
8) Move in date
9) Home to sell
10) Anyone else involved in the buying decision
11) Anything else we should know about (no surprises)
(Then last but not least, ...drum roll please)
12) Total Investment

Admit it, before reading this blog, you thought negotiation was, all about price. Look at all the other elements of the sale we need to focus on first.

4) GET TO GIVE

Once you have verified all of the elements of the sale, and have received your customers proposal, If you are able to come back with a counter proposal, it is important that you get something back in return to keep the negotiating experience authentic for the customer and to cause them to appreciate that they are really getting an exceptional value.

For example,
i) Take occupancy two weeks sooner,
ii) Increase the initial investment
iii) Get your loan approved today
iv) Remove some of your luxury Choices

I grew up selling brand new homes in South Florida, where it was expected to negotiate; and frequently found that there were many rounds of “FACE TO FACE” counter proposals, and each time I would get something a little extra back from the customer.

5) START HIGH STAY HIGH, (IF YOU HAVE TO, THEN COME DOWN SLOWLY)

I'm not talking about the seventies here, but instead, shock your customer with your first counter proposal by coming down by a ridiculously small amount. Be sincere and kill your customer with kindness, but your first return salvo will be a shock to them and reeducate them that their original offer was blatantly ridiculous.

6) ALWAYS COUNTER WITH AN ODD NUMBER

Never meet a customer half way, as what accounting school would ever advocate that formula for doing business, and if you are in a position to counter than make it an odd number so that your customer will believe that your accounting management team has labored over the specifics to give them the best possible value.

For example if your asking price was $300,000, and let’s say your customer offers, $250,000.

(After confirming that they would like to own your home, and acting shocked, and asking “How they arrived at that number?”, as well as explaining that you don’t take offers, and talking about the Smart Selling technique of Checkerboard pricing.)

If you come back with a counter proposal “in person”, after confirming that they could move in two weeks sooner a counter proposal of $1,2345.58, would be apprropriate.
(Say cheese, smile and kill them with kindness, smother them with your closing love!)

Be prepared for the customer to be shocked at first, maybe even a little angry. But by you coming down by such a small amount their next counter proposal will be much higher, until you eventually arrive at a figure you are all comfortable with.

7) NEVER COMMIT
Even if you believe you have arrived at an amount that you feel is acceptable to your company, since you are dealing with someone who wants to win the game, of negotiation, then turn the tables, and instead of letting them see you sweat, make them sweat a little.

If you agree or commit too soon they will think that you have been playing a game and will go home and develop a huge case of buyers remorse, or worse still keep shopping your price around town.

Instead have an addendum pre-written for anything less than full price that they have to sign that states;

“Purchaser acknowledges that they are making an offer that is (substantially) less than the published price and that this offer may be rejected for any reason whatsoever.”

Then you ask them,

SALES GENIUS
“This is somewhat unusual, and there is a strong possibility that your proposal will not be accepted as written (pause). With that in mind, would you still like me to turn it in?”

Think about what you have accomplished,
a) They will go home and wait on tender hooks to see if they have been able to win and purchase your home for the price they want, as opposed to continuing to shop around.
b) If you can accept their proposal they will feel like they have won.
c) If you can’t accept their proposal and need to meet them in person to present your counter proposal then at least you have conditioned them for that, as opposed to inadvertently misleading them by causing them to believe that their offer was acceptable.
d) Sometimes they will not want to take the risk of losing their home and will ask you to go back to the original acceptable asking price.

This happened to a great salesperson named Piera in South Bend, Indiana who tried this technique, after her customers Realtor insisted that they make an offer twenty thousand less than the original asking rice. Piera had the customer sign the addendum. That night the customer called and said that she couldn't sleep and could she go back to the original price. Yes you can! One little technique, made the sale sand saved the company twenty thousand dollars!

8) NEVER NEGOTIATE OVER THE PHONE

If you CALL your customer back to give them your counter proposal, put yourself in their shoes and ask yourself how they should react. They are at home the kids are screaming, the economy is hurting and their favorite team is losing on the TV, and there you are trying to sell them a home.
Since we agree that Buying is emotion backed by logic, where would the more logical place to present your counter proposal be? Exactly, back in your model.

When they are at their current home and they want you to spill the beans they are focused on one thing and one thing only price. Let’s face it they are not going to live in the price; they are going to live in your brand new home.

So tease them into coming back, by saying:

SALES GENIUS
“I would love to give you that information but it’s a little too complicated,
in order to prevent any misunderstandings we need to meet in person.
Is tomorrow morning at 11:15 good, or the afternoon at 4:45 better?”

For those of you out there thinking what if it’s not complicated, I would venture to say from decades of personal experience that anything communicated electronically, as opposed to in person can and usually will be misunderstood.

So in order for you to keep the experience authentic and to raise their buying temperature back up, when they return grab a clip board and walk them slowly back through the model, and the available home or home site. Act as though you are confirming all of the details, but we know that your will have re-created the emotional urgency necessary for them to now make the buying decision.

Then it is safe to sit down and go through your counter proposal, remembering to confirm all the other facts and end with the total investment.

COACHING TIP

I know that negotiating at this level is not for the faint of heart, and it certainly takes some practice.

Please remember though, that you didn’t start this, your customer did by wanting to make you an offer. If you don’t give them the satisfying experience of playing the “Negotiating Game” convincingly they will continue to make ridiculous offers, and keep you on their treadmill as opposed to you gaining control, and making a sale that results in a win-win for both parties.

ROLAND ON THE ROAD

Back in August, the Charlotte SMC organized a Breakfast where I had the honor of being the speaker for the morning.

The topic, was "How to Communicate, Connect and Close more sales.

We had over eighty eager New Home Sales professionals, who welcomed me with that typical Southern Charm for a great program. While I was there I was able to reconnect with the incredibly positive Sales team from Simonini Builders, pictured below.

Also while I was there I spent a day with our old friends at Shea Homes, America's largest family owned builder. We spent the day working on Advanced Negotiation techniques.

Next Stop Maryland to work with the team at Caruso Homes. After initial training from all of us at The New Home Specialists and a "Fast Track" program with myself; here we are on a Saturday morning working on Model Demo role playing. The photo on the right we are standing on the balcony, overlooking the foyer and the salesperson is asking me for the sale, simply by saying:

"Is this the type of home you'd like to own?". Every single member of the team tried it so that they became completely comfortable asking simple but effective closing questions.

Here is a picture of compnay owner, Jeff Caruso and myself at a Washington Redskins game. Who said travel wasn't fun?

Next stop Fayetteville, North Carolina, to continue working with the Caviness and Cates team. Here we are role playing their Closing process.

After training we blew off steam with a night of bowling followed by laser tag. Hailing from Britain, I was a little confused, and tried to kick the ball!

Just last week, I was once again with our pals at Ideal homes in Norman, Oklohoma. The topic was Appointment Setting and then we worked on their Hot Prospects which we call Customer in Process (CIP). They are on track for almost a record setting year and under their fine mangement team are amazing implementers of our processes, and truly a great sales team, acomplishing extraordinary results in this tough market! They have actually increased their market share. We are very proud of them.

If you would like a free copy of the Cip form, please email me at:

Roland@newhomespecialist.com - CIP FORMS

SALES HEROES

This blogs award goes to Ingrid Prang, a delightful young lady in South Florida, who is selling beach front condominiums for Minto Homes. Ingrid had an appointment with a customer who she hadn't met yet, and gave me a call to strategize how to make the sale. After about an hour long conversation; where I effectively took Ingrid through the Customer in Process (CIP) form, we had our strategy in place. I sent Ingrid an email confirming every last detail. A few days later I recieved a thrilling call from Ingrid, saying that the customer came in with his wife, and bought the home on the first visit at full price for $850,000!!! (Remember this is September 2009 in Florida, not 2005!)

Here is a copy of the email with the strategy, so you can see how much preparedness it takes to succeed at the highest level.

From: Roland Nairnsey Sent: Wednesday, September 09, 2009 3:29 PMTo: Ingrid Subject: Follow up to last nights customer call
Ingrid,
Thanks for calling last night regarding your customer for Villas By the Sea. I am thrilled that you called, as we are truly here as a resource for exactly this purpose to help you strategize, and make those extra sales. As a recap of what we discussed.
Customer Info:
>You have a gentleman interested in a beachfront unit that is in the process of coming back on the market.
>You are asking $865 and he offered $820, which we are unable to accept.,
> He is comparing you to Competitor, which you have done a great job of making his Realtor aware that may not be there to warranty the home or take care of the community guidelines and amenities.
> He may feel that the other unit is larger and has slightly more included features, but unlike yours, it is not directly on the beach front, but is across from the beach.
> He is arriving Sunday night and bringing his wife for the first time to view their unit and our beachfront home and make a decision. He has shared that she is highly emotional, (may be a tiger, expressive).
> They are starting the day with the competitor and ending with you and VBS.
Goal
Since buying is "emotion backed by logic", prepare a presentation that will be highly emotional for the wife, and cause him to see the incredible value he is already getting, so that the sale becomes irresistible; and your meeting culminates in him purchasing at VBS at the correct amount, creating the perfect win-win.
Strategy & Preparation
a) Go over this week at sunrise, and take some photos from the patio of the sun rising over the Ocean and beach and blow them up to large sizes and stick on poster board.
b) Talk to Jack and see if we can figure out how much that home would be to duplicate at today's prices. In other words he was quoted the price it was sold to the previous customer, but what if we were to put it on the market today at full retail, let's hope it should be somewhere in the $900's.
Appointment
a) Meet at your sales office and give them both an animated, detailed, emotional overview of VBS, and there specific OCEANFRONT home, using all the props, and taking them out back to see the beach and dip their toes in the sand. Mention the words "Oceanfront" as much as you can as well as "Quality", "warranty", "Minto care" "financial stability, "peace of mind" as well.
b) Start at the Beach club, and take as long as you can to walk them through every facet of the club, admiring views, and ask them to imagine their twins coming down and enjoying the club with them. Ask them "If they can imagine their family enjoying the beach club this thanksgiving?".
Once they are emotionally involved with the club remind them of the financial stability of Minto and how that will give them peace of mind in knowing that your "Community investment" is very stable, and you won't have any surprises, unlike the uncertainty of the other project that they are looking at.
c) Walk over to their building, stop at the outside and admire the unique architecture of your building, and point out where there home would be.
d) Demonstrate their home, start with going straight back to the patio and spending as much time as humanly possible admiring the OCEANFRONT view. Show them the photos of the sunrise, and ask them "If they could picture waking up to that breathtaking sunrise over their beach every morning?". Also ask them " Wouldn't it be convenient to wake up and go straight down to your beach without having to worry about crossing the street, and at night go for sunset walks on the beach any time you want?"
e) Ask for the sale.
"Do you have any questions before we go back and review the paperwork?"
Followed by ten seconds of profound silence. If they have no objection go back and write it up. If he mentions the price, then say words to the effect of
"I'm so glad you mentioned that, I have something back at the office, regarding this incredible opportunity
which I should have shown you before."
f) When you go back, on your desk, have a written presentation showing what their home should be at today's Retail prices, and what others
coming in would have to pay, and show them their full savings. (If you have confirmed this with Jack first), You can even apologize and say
words to the effect " I really shouldn't have given you that old price, I made a mistake but Jack says if you go ahead today he will honor it."
g) You wait a second and then start filling in the agreement and say :
"How would you like your names to appear on the agreement?"
and start writing.
How does that sound?
Roland

TWO MORE REPEAT HONORABLE MENTIONS

Amy Willey is a past Sales hero. I received this email from her regarding her conversion ratios. Beginning with the end in mind, we must set goals for our selves, and measure, our success, so we know whether we are moving forward and improving or not. Otherwise we are like a rudderless ship. Check out Amy's incredible closing stats!
Roland,

Thanks Roland, I truly appreciate your support! Well the traffic into my community is low, and my conversion ratios are this:

July-- 9 traffic, sold 5 firm homes 55% (All sales were written within week of initial visit)
August--10 traffic, sold 4 firm homes 40%(3sales written within week of initial visit, 1 homeowner referral)September--6 traffic, sold 4 firm homes 66% (1 of these was a contingency that bought in Aug., flipped in Sept. I didn't count the contingency in Aug sales)

I don't like to talk about this, as I don't want to jinx myself, as I am definitely blessed, and I have a sales process from reading your books and putting it together with my mentor, that works.
Best Regards,
Amy

Last but not least is Tonia Abrahamsson who last year was a sales hero by receiving the highest Video shopping score I have ever given, with a whopping 226 out of a possible 250 points. I have been working with her team on Self Generating Qualified Traffic, one of the best sources being Realtors (where budgets allow), and we discussed in detail hosting Realtor Breakfasts. As Nicki Joy says, "It's not what you know, but what you do with what you know". Here is an email I received recently from Tonia:
Hello Roland,
Just wanted to share some exciting news with you.
Artesia has done three Realtor events between end of August and September. To date, we have written 10 purchase agreements between those three offices.
We understand how important it is to reach out to our realtor friends. With the turnover within realtor offices, these regular events always seem to capture a realtor or two that may have not visited our community otherwise.
Hope all is well.
Best Regards,
Tonia

I am very proud of these three incredible sales people, plus all of you out there working so diligently out there in this tough market. Please send me emails with your stories at:
Roland@newhomespecialist.com

Happy Birthday Bob

October 11th is Bob's Birthday. We had a great party in the office. Here he is blowing out the candles on his Miami Dolphins cake!

FREE DOWNLOADS

Remember if you want the audio version of "Deal or no Deal", please write to me at;

roland@newhomespecialist.com - Deal or no Deal.

and/or the Customer in Process (SM) forms (CIP)

roland@newhomespecialist.com - CIP

and I will be happy to send it/them to you.

Last but not least two photos of my beloved son Max, who incredibly is now almost 18 months.

Please write to us with either your questions or success stories.
Meanwhile, stay positive and have a great month of selling
Coach Roland
newhomespecialist.com

There's a new R word in town...RECOVERY

SALES OF NEW HOMES SURGE

That was the headline all across the country on July 28th, so for those that read last months blog, I hate to gloat but.....I TOLD YOU SO!!!

Since all of us are in the persuasion business, where perception is king, it is time for us to jump on the bandwagon with gusto and help our customers understand that "Now" truly is the perfect time to buy. While the good times may not return the way they were a few years ago, most experts agree that this seems to be the "beggining of the end" of the recession.

Last month I posted some facts that we could use in our dialogue with our customers, so here are the latest facts.

> Sales of new homes in June jumped 11% from May.

> It was the third month in a row of higher sales, and the most robust sales pace since November.

> Inventories of homes for sale dropped to 8.8 months in June, down from 10.2 months in May and the LOWEST monthly supply since October 2007.

For the record, experts agree that a normal supply of new homes is between six to seven months for a healthy balance between a supply and demand driven market.

Says Bernard Markestien, senior economist at the National Association of Homebuilders

"Evidence is mounting that we have turned the corner for sales, and that is a precursor for a recovery."

There it is my favorite R word, RECOVERY, after my own name of course.

So while the naysayers may depress us with talk of median prices still dropping, and that this may end up being a jobless recovery, and cash for clunkers worked so well they are out of cash, and so on, let's "dare to be different", and all across the selling fields of this great land lets stand up and be counted (Cue military music) and start becoming the voice of optimism, and the purveyors of positivity. Let's start instilling in our customers a sense of urgency that an opportunity like this to invest only comes along "once in a lifetime, and you would hate for them to miss out".

OK, now that is off my chest let me share with you where we have been all across the country, and all of the real world success stories that are happening as we speak.

NEW HOME SPECIALISTS ON THE MOVE

(This is my new photo symbolizing travel, how do you like it? That's me under the wing scratching my head and sobbing, as I realized that I had just lost my luggage for the umpteenth time!)

Here I am with the newest recruits at Minto Communities who are still doing incredibly well in their communities across South Florida, and one in Port St.Lucie. As you will have read in previous blogs we at NHS have been working with Minto for a few years, and they fully believe in hiring candidates with the highest potential, and then allowing us to instill in them our proven sales processes. The management team has recognised that training isn't a one time event, and should be practised continually to keep their sales team sharp and always growing and improving.

As mentioned a few blogs ago, we firmly believe that the real growth spurts for sales skills occur when we get out of the classroom and actually role play skills that we have previously discussed.

Here we are on site, in a gorgeous model numbering a floor plan and preparing exactly what to say to a customer to maximize their involvement, and then we are role playing Closing. Heather is doing a great job of taking me through her recap close, while Lori, Barbara, and Jacqueline look on.

I was just back at Minto with their whole sales team discussing "Adapting for Different Behavioral Styles", and learned that Lori who had been promoted from reception to sales, had already earned two sales, and Barbara was already up to eight sales! Congratulations to the whole team, we are very proud of all of you!

For information on the Recap Close, please write to me at Roland@newhomespecialist.com - Recap Close.

Next stop Annapolis, Maryland. Check out the beautiful scenery!

We just started working with Caruso homes in the Maryland/ Virginia area, so I was in town hosting a recruiting night. We are working closely with them on an accelerated implementation of our systems, so I am going to hold off sharing any more details for the time being, because I know that in a few months we will be bragging about them as the next wonderful success story.

Next stop, Memphis, Tennessee, with the team at Magnolia Homes. Owned by the delightful mother, and son team of Karen and Reggie Garner, and managed very ably by Josh Holley.

This visit we began with Video shop reviews and coaching and then created the training program based upon areas that we all agreed we needed to work on. As a tip, whenever you have elements of shops that are good, it is a wonderful training tool to show those segments (with the salesperson's permission) to other team members, to show them "how it should be done". Actions speak louder than words, as they say.

Here we are watching James Wachob's video shop. James was a sales hero on this blog last fall for his excellent shop, and again his most recent shop didn't disappoint. In Wales (part of great Britain, not the mammal), people name you for your profession such as Billy the Baker, Chris the Cook, Sally the... well you get the idea. From now on I am just going to call him, "James the Closer". James has attended three Boot Camps (sm), and heaps of on going training and is as serious a student of closing as I have ever met. I like to say:

"Your style may cause you to be memorable, but its your process that makes you rich!"

Roland Nairnsey

James has an incredible closing process, so good that if we were running subtitles on the screen, you would hear learned dialogues word for word, yet he makes them seem like his own. Again, great job to James the Closer!

Here we all are at Magnolia Homes having a little pizza break from right to left, are Reggie, Lisa, Andrea, Josh, Karen holding her brand new grandson Shafer, Reggies beautiful wife Jennifer, and her mother.

Next it was Fayeteville, North Carolina for a quick visit with Caviness and Cates to brush up on Model Demo and Closing skills.

They are working hard and getting great results. For the month of July they posted 24 net sales! I am on my way back there next week to work on "Preparing for the main Event" (video shop preparation), Advanced Closing and Closing Role Plays. I have to admit I can't wait as there are many great characters there, and they are always a lot of fun to work with.

After that it was Owensboro, Kentucky, to work with the amazing team at Jagoe Homes. They are doing so well in this tough market that below I have shared the whole story of how we came to work with them, and how they are earning their well deserved success. Here goes;

Jagoe Homes has the WRITE STUFF!
Tri-state family Builder builds huge market share by 46%in down economy

If you were to hear about a Builder whose salesteam was Closing1 in 4 customers walking through the door, as of July 2009 would you believe it? Probably not. Well this is exactly the case with Jagoe homes, based in Owensboro Kentucky.

Eight years ago the owners Bill and Scott Jagoe had sought out the services of Bob Schultz and the New Home Specialists, to help give them the sales systems and processes that they realized they needed to create consistency in sales and significance for their family owned business.

After a thorough recruiting process, Dave Crowe was hired to manage the sales team. Dave interestingly came from the funeral monument business and had no prior new homes experience, nor any preconceived notions of how to manage a new home sales team. He was immediately flown to Boca Raton, Florida to consult with Bob Schultz and was thoroughly inculcated into every element of the New Home Specialists proven systems and processes.

Here are Dave Crowe and myself enjoying a mouthwatering dinner at the world famous Moonlite Bar-B-Q. If you are ever in Owensboro you should stop there!

The existing sales team was evaluated, many of whom didn’t make the cut, and many new recruits joined the team by implementing the NHS ten step recruiting process ®. Dave attended Serious Sales Management ® and joined a NHS management mentorship group as well as receiving on going training with the New Home Specialist team. The sales team attended congruent curriculum
based sales training initially with former facilitator Marilyn McVay and then with myself. This included attending Boot Camps (Sm) and on site Smart Start programs (sm), as well as model demo and closing role plays, and in depth Video Shopping coaching and evaluation utilizing the NHS patented system.

Consistent sales success started to blossom, that became sustainable because it had been forged the old fashioned way, though hard work and having the discipline to implement the complete NHS playbook.

Owner Scott Jagoe remembers;

"A few years back when Bob was onsite, a salesperson gave Bob the credit for a sale he had just made. Bob replied, the book and the training are avialable to everyone, your the one that listened, read, tried, and closed YOU GET THE CREDIT."

Fast forward to the summer of 2009, where of course the United States is suffering through the worst economy since the great depression of 1929, and a strange noise can be heard in Owensboro Kentucky and Evansville Indiana. It is the sound of hammers swinging and homes being built. As competing builders scratch their heads wondering what magic trick has been going on at Jagoe; Jagoe continues to increase its market share, widening the gap between themselves and their competition, with a 46% increase in their core markets.

Says owner Scott Jagoe,

"We enojoyed a 39% increase in agreements for the first 7 months of 2009, over 20008!"

He continued:

"Our sales team as a whole enjoys a 1 in 4 Closing Ratio, that's not a typo, and we do consider ALL traffic. We keep to the BASICS OF YOUR PROGRAM, sharpen the saw to increase sales skills, and consistently Discover and Close, Discover and Close."

I just had the pleasure of working with the team again at the end of July, to help some new recruits in Louisville get up to speed, as well as a tune up with a few of the existing team.

Scott Jagoe mentions my visit:

"Just last weekend not 24 hours after Roland's training I had a salesperon close on two homes. That salesperson reported to me he used what he learned the prior 3 days from Roland. The bottom line is your program gets results."

In re-tooling their builder story, to add more benefits and involvement questions, they were thrilled to be able to impress their customers with their financial strength while simultaneously creating urgency by being able to say, “That on average approximately a family day is moving into their brand new Jagoe home.”

A bold statement in today’s environment and an accomplishment we are all proud of.

Here we are role playing on site, with Andy, Danielle, Laurie, Dayle, yours truly, Jennifer, Sara and Nathan. Notice Sara demonstrating the homesite with the Soy Bean field in the background, and of course a model demo wouldn't be complete without a famous shower scene demo, to show the spaciousness of course!


SALES HEROES

KRISTIN HAYES

First is Kristin Hayes of Eastwood Homes in Charlotte, North Carolina. Her partner Hayley who definitely deserves an honorable mention for being so modest in giving her sales partner credit, sent me sent me this email:

From: Hayley Myers

To: Roland Nairnsey

Subject: Effective on...close

Hello Roland,

I wanted to share a success story with you that my partner Kristin & I learned from your training.

My partner Kristin and I recently partnered up at our Almond Glen community. I was having a tough time closing the prospect…they did not feel comfortable moving forward until they had some time to think and they also wanted to walk our design center. Kristin my partner jumped in and said “let’s go ahead and lock you in to our current pricing and take your home site off the market… we will write the agreement effective on Tuesday June 23rd so that way the process has begun and you will have time to see the design center and you will not risk losing your home site.”

The close completely worked and we wrote up the agreement right away. In the mean time the buyer has brought her entire family and 6 of her friends by the community to show them the home. She has not completely committed yet but we are very close to finalizing the details. She has also referred another prospect…whom is also close to writing.

Thanks for teaching us this technique. It really works!

Hayley Myers
Eastwood Homes
New Home Specialist

Thank you for giving me the opportunity to offer you our finest service. At Eastwood Homes, we believe that quality, blended with excellent service, is the foundation for a successful business. Please keep me in mind if you know of anyone looking for a new home, who can take advantage of the tremendous value our beautiful homes and excellent service offer.

The "Effective on Close" that Hayley is referring to we also sometimes call the "Puppy Dog Close", I have used it personally to great success, and our reasearch has shown that this one close has been responsible for increasing sales approximately 30% for those that use it, all across the country. If you would like more information about this close, you can either go back to the September 3rd 2008 blog, or write to me at:

Roland@newhomespecialist.com - Puppy Dog Close

To top all of this off, Kristin was just recognised by the Chralotte SMC, where I will be speaking on August 11th, and I will have the honor of being able to sing her praises while she collects her well deserved award. Here is the email from her boss, David Nelson.

Roland and Bob,

How are you? Krisitin Hayes, who you have spoken with in the video conferences is the winner of the 2009 SMC Individual On-Site Sales Award. We are gathering a few of the NHS for the event.
See you next week!
David Nelson
Eastwood Homes Charlotte Division

The second winner of Sales hero of the month is:

Christy Dedora

I worked with Christy during a seminar and was impressed with how energetic and engaged she was the whole time. We received this uplifting email, shortly after that which I believe speaks for itself.

From: Chris DeDora

To: Roland Nairnsey

Roland!

I wanted to share with you my experience thus far! I sold 1 my first week here and then 1 each week in the following 4 weeks, so I’ve had a total of 5 sales in my first 6 weeks and I am working on several others. Again, thank you for the awesome training, I refer back to my book and notes often and continue to utilize everything I learned from you! I hope to attend one of your seminars again! I will check the website for upcoming events! Hope you are doing well!

Chris

Chris DeDora
New Home Specialist
Serving All Communities!
Regent Homes

Congratulations to Kristin and Chris for the great job and to all of you working so hard out their and succeeding in this tough market.

I still firmly believe that, "My favorite Attititude is Gratitude", and I am truly grateful for the opportunity to share these great concepts and processes that have helped people improve their careers, and that they take the time to share their victories with all of us, allowing us all to enrich our lives.

By the way look who I ran into at the airport in Washington. Whoever said his personality was like cardboard? For the record, ....Yes you can!

BLOG RECAP

FREE DOWNLOADS

Recap Close

Effective on / Puppy Dog Close

SALES HEROES

Kristin Hayes and Chris DeDora

And finally a few photos of my pride and joy Max. Not only does he play the paino every day, now he likes to play it standing up! Behold the next little Richard!

For any of the free downlaods mentioned or to ask questions and share your success stories, please write to me at Roland@newhomespecialist.com


Happy Selling,



Coach Roland

Newhomespecialist.com

Recovery Is In The Air

Finally, it seems for the last few months there have been daily drops of good news in the media, and that the emotional mood of the country is starting to slowly shift and become cautiously more optimistic.

For those of us still in Real Estate Sales it is up to us to seek out this positive information, and since we all agree that "Perception is Reality", we have to translate this myriad of complex data simply and effectively, and imbue into our customers that NOW is the perfect time to invest in one of our brand new homes.

It is our job to find these positive articles, and be prepared to refer to them when managing customer's objections about the economy, confirming that now is the right time to buy. On line sources that I check regularly are the Wall Street Journal which is WSJ.com, CCNMoney.com, and the Official NAHB website. Between the three of those sites you should be able to find enough real world positive data, to build your own self confidence, impress your customers, and manage their concerns.

I don't purport to be an economist, but let's first understand what the positive indicators are that are pointing to the fact that we have passed through the bottom (sounds painful), and are moving towards a real recovery.

a) Housing starts increase

Housing starts rose 17.2% in May to a seasonally adjusted level of 532,000 units according to the US Commerce department figures, posting their third monthly increase. Building permits and single family housing starts also rose in May. On the NAHB website the following very helpful information was posted on June 16Th.

Both housing starts and permits were up across every region in May. Starts rose 2 percent in the Northeast, 11.1 percent in the Midwest, 16.8 percent in the South and 28.6 percent in the West. Permits rose 5.7 percent in the Northeast, 8.9 percent in the Midwest, 2.3 percent in the South and 3.8 percent in the West. More information on housing statistics is also available at: http://www.housingeconomics.com/.

b) Inventories are shrinking

The May 28Th headline for CNNMoney.com stated

STEADY HOME SALES COULD BE POSITIVE SIGNAL

April sales are a sign to some economists that the worst of the housing downturn may be over.

This article like many others discussed the facts about home inventories, which is that by the end of April the seasonally adjusted estimate of new homes for sale was 297,000 or a 10.1 month supply at the current sales rate. Down from January where there was a 12.4 months supply.

"This continued reduction in the new homes inventory helps bring supply in line with demand, which is an important step towards the market's recovery" Says NAHB Chief Economist, David Crowe.

April was the 24Th consecutive month in which the number of unsold new homes declined.

c) Positive GDP

The official definition of a a recession, is two consecutive negative quarters of GDP (Gross Domestic product). Research is showing that in spite of a spike in unemployment, economists are predicting that this third quarter will result in positive GDP.

One could say, that while the economy is not yet booming, every month it is becoming less bad.

d) Some of the worse markets are getting better

The three states that led the boom and enjoyed the most appreciation, (Florida, California and Nevada), were also the hardest hit by the economy and have led the nation in foreclosures and short sales. The good news is that these markets are starting to make modest come backs.

For example, even South Florida (where I happen to reside), the Florida Association of Realtors(R) show sales of existing homes and condos continued to post gains in May, the 9Th consecutive month to month increase.

Sales of single family homes were up by 47% in Broward County and 76% in Miami-Dade county compared with May of last year. Even condo sales rose by 25% in Broward and 36% in Miami Dade.

e)The Stock Market enjoys its best quarter since 2003.*

On July 1st, the Wall street Journal reported that; "The Dow closed the second quarter at 8447, up 11% or 838.08 points for the last three months."

They went on to report:

"It was the best quarterly performance for the Dow since the fourth quarter of 2003, early in the last bull market. The quarter marked a period of healing for financial markets around the globe."

The wall street Journal also had a headline on June 16Th

Home Builder Shares Up, Housing Starts Top Street View

The article went on to report: "Shares of home builders traded higher, after housing starts showed further signs of stability in the sector."

Again for the rest of this and other great articles check out WSJ.com. *A word of caution in regards to quoting information about the stock market, as even though it finished the second quarter up, it is still a fairly volatile economic indicator. I have the Dow programmed into my I-phone, and check it regularly. Please do the same thing, and be sure that the Dow is still doing well, before you communicate this benefit to the customer, and potentially end up with egg on your face. So what does all this mean to us, the new home sales professional slugging it out and trying to sell homes out there in the real world?

Firstly, please don't quote my opinion or even your own, instead get in the habit of finding the data, having it available and then quoting "Research shows...".

For in every article that has tinges of positive news there are always warnings and disclaimers. And there are plenty of smart customers out there who are using this economy to justify their ridiculously low offers and will go to war with anyone who attempts to point out that there is a new R word in town, RECOVERY.

The best use of this data is to both use it as a proactively as positive reinforcement for investing now, as well as being prepared when managing objections such as "I don't want to buy now / what if we are not at the bottom of the market?" or "What if the recession gets worse?"

With that in mind, lets quickly recap the 6-Step Formula for Managing Objections. Please remember that very rarely do we make the actual objection go away, instead we can challenge the customer's mindsets and cause their perception to change.

MANAGING OBJECTIONS

1) LISTEN

Listen with empathy not sympathy. Simply say "I hear you". Never agree with the objection.

2) REFLECT AND MINIMIZE

Repeat it back and attempt to make the objection smaller.

"I hear you, you feel the price is a little too high?", "The bedroom is a little too small?" etc.

Often when customers hear the objection repeated, it goes away.

3) QUESTION

This is the most frequently overlooked step. Before we can provide a cure, we have to know specifically what ails our customer. Questioning has three parts:

a) Compliment the objector. i.e., "That's a great question, I am so glad you asked."

b) Preface your question with 'Please help me understand..."

c) Always ask an open ended question, those that begin with "What/ how/ where/when/ tell me/ share with me." etc.

4) ANSWER THE QUESTION

Always with a preplanned answer, and typically either using a "Research Statement" i.e., "Research has shown.." or a "Feel, Felt, Found" / "Third party testimonial" i.e., "Other homeowners, Mr & Mrs Jones, felt the same way but when they moved in they found that..."

5) CONFIRM

"How does that sound/work for you?" etc.

6) MOVE ON

Don't sell past the close. Trust yourself, and move on.

I have Role-Played with many fine sales teams across the country objections regarding the economy. So here is a hypothetical response to an objection such as "I am not sure if we are at the bottom yet / I am concerned about buying in this economy." Etc.

SALES GENIUS (Steps 1 & 2)

I hear you, your a little concerned about the economy?

If the objection persists then continue with step 3

SALES GENIUS (Step 3)

Please help me understand, what are your concerns?

When the buyers respond with words to the effect of, "What if prices continue to go drop, or what if the market gets worse?" then continue with Step 4 and answer the objection.

SALES GENIUS (Step 4 & 5)

I am so glad you mentioned that, it's a great question. (Pause)

Many of our recent home owners here at (Sunny Acres) felt the same way, but have found that their buying power could not be stronger than it is right now.

Our research has shown that there are many real signs that the economy is improving, in fact the Wall Street Journal has reported that housing starts rose nationally in May by over 17%, that national inventories shrank for the 24Th straight month, and the stock market enjoyed its biggest quarterly gain since the last bull market in 2003. Even hardest hit markets like Miami-Dade County in Florida, their single family home sales have increased by 76% over the same month last year. Isn't all of that data incredible?

When you add to this the fact that here at (Sunny Acres) by (ABC Homes) we have re-negotiated with all of our sub-contractors, allowing us to pass on these savings to you, giving you the best value we have ever given! Plus the record setting low interest rates and the little time remaining to take advantage of the eight thousand dollar stimulus tax savings (for first time buyers only), our homeowners have found that there is no better time to invest than right now. Wouldn't you agree?

Let them think, when they agree, simply ask for the sale. So with pen in hand, and paperwork on desk, ask:

SALES GENIUS

Since you agree that now is the perfect time to invest in a brand new (ABC) home here at (Sunny Acres), do you have any other questions before we begin the paperwork?

Then start writing. "Cling, clang" another closer just got their wings!

For the official New Home Specialist Objection worksheet, please email me at: roland@newhomespecialist.com

TRAVELS AROUND THE COUNTRY

Recently I was at The Lake Club, the most prestigious community at Lakewood Ranch in Sarasota, Florida. Here we are with Miranda Oswald and her team, and in the center is Kevin Favre of London Bay Homes, showing very capably how to demonstrate the benefits of their step-in Roman Shower.

Below are the brand new additions to the successful sales team at Minto Communities in South Florida, with their fearless leader, Jack Appleman. A Canadian based builder that we at the New Home Specialists have been privileged to work with for the last few years in Florida, and who last year defied all the odds by selling almost 500 homes in their five Florida locations.

Here is the graduating class of Summer 2009 with their "Smart Start(TM)" Diplomas, after having spent two and a half grueling days with yours truly. Two days later Barbara, standing between myself (the old guy in the blue shirt) and Jack, went back to her community at Olympia in Wellington and sold a brand new home to a customer on their first visit. We at NHS continue to be so proud of all of their hard work and discipline in following our proven systems and for their well deserved continued success.

Next is the terrific team at PMC Homes in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Just looking at the picture has to make you chuckle. I always believe that training should be both fun and interactive, making learning both enjoyable and more meaningful, and this team is always a pleasure to work with.

We spent some time in the classroom recapping Model Demonstration skills, then went out on-site and Role-Played. In the picture below Don is demonstrating to Tina and Lauren the benefits of the over sized back yard, and then the easy to clean shower! They all did exceptionally well. The next day we recapped Advanced Closing Techniques and then we Role- Played what we call "The Closing Game". This is where the salesperson takes me through their step-by-step recap close, and then asks for the sale. The first time I say no. The salesperson has to manage my objection and then ask again using a different closing technique. This happens four times, then on the fifth time I acquiesce and agree to go ahead with the sale. Just like a golfer on a driving range, the idea is to create the muscle memory for closing, so we can be fully prepared when we meet with real customers. Below Theresa is effectively "closing" Courtney and myself.

SALES HEROES

First sales hero is Amy Willey , pictured below with her husband. Amy has been writing to us for months at NHS, asking for training material and downloads and has been using every tool in her artillery to make sales in her tough Maryland market.

Here is an excerpt from an email from Amy,

From: AmyWilley
Sent: Thursday, June 04, 2009 8:00 PM
To: Roland Nairnsey

Roland,

I forgot to give you my May update. I sold two homes in May. One was my model home for a leaseback investment (and it settled in May), and the other was a to be built home to a family I had worked with for two months. They just couldn't make the decision, so I made it for them by sending the contract, and they sent it back with the money. This market brings out all creativity inside of you to get the sales. I will keep you posted on what June brings for me. Thank you for all of your assistance and support. I keep reading Bob's books over and over to get the information ingrained into my brain.

Best Regards,
Amy Willey

As Muhhamed Ali says:

"One who is not courageous enough to take risks will accomplish nothing in life."

Well done to Amy for taking a risk, sending the agreement and being rewarded with the sale.

Next sales hero is Scott Baughman. Scott has worked with us for many years, mainly as a Sales Manager first in Atlanta, and then for Premier Homes in Pueblo and the Springs in Colorado. He has attended four New Home Sales Boot Camps(SM), three Serious Sales Management(SM) programs, as well as various on-site training programs, Role-Playing and video conferences. What makes his story exceptional is the way he has adapted to change and embraced adversity. His sales team was doing well, (in fact last year, Kacey had been a former sales hero of the month). Unfortunately because of the tightening credit market Scott was forced to let his complete sales staff go. In order to help his builder survive, Scott was forced to sit in the model, role up his sleeves and start selling homes. This is what Scott sent to us in an email.

From: scott baughman Sent: Monday, June 29, 2009 2:32
PM To: 'Bob Schultz'; Roland Nairnsey, Subject: Thank you...

Dear Bob and Roland –

I just wanted to send you a quick note to say THANK YOU for all of the training on how to sell more new homes – quicker – for more money AND information on how to successfully implement what we learn on the training. I just finished a week with three net sales for the week – So far I am at nine net for the month. I have three more close to writing and I hope to sell at least one more before the end of the day tomorrow.

We are pretty consistently selling between 8 and 10 per month on average using the training that I received and implemented from you.

THANK YOU!

Scott Baughman

PS. The figures I just gave you were for June, in May I sold 7 in the Springs and 6 in Pueblo.

Some were easy some were hard, but the bottom line is that by following the process we got em!

Read more about Scott in an article I wrote for SMI magazine about red hot managers. Hats off to Amy, Scott and all of your working so hard to succeed in this tough market.

FREE DOWNLOADS

Email me at roland@newhomespecialist.com and clarify which dowloads you would like.

>Objection Worksheets

>Red Hot Managers Article

Finally it wouldn't be a real blog from me if there weren't a few pictures of my baby, Max. Time is flying as he is already fourteen months old. I can't believe how madly in love I am with the little fella, and how much I treasure every moment with him.

Please feel free to write to me at Roland@newhomespecialist,com with any comments questions or stories.

Happy Selling!

Coach Roland

NewHomeSpecialist.com

New Microsoft Bing.com Search Engine Takes the # 2 Position

June 1st 2009 Microsoft launched the new 'Decision Search Engine' intent on improving the way search results are displayed. Commercials on national prime time TV show people speaking random words associated with what others asked them as a way to illustrate the frustration of search results on many search engines. Microsoft launched a YouTube channel with the new search engine to share advertisments - www.YouTube.com/Bing. An example of this includes a commercial where a wife asks about 'Hawaii' and the husband begins saying all types of words that have to do with Hawaii such as 'Hawaii 5-0', surf lingo and other items that would commonly come up on a search engine related to Hawaii.

The Bing.com search engine looks at the context of what users are searching for and then makes a decision on which search results make the most sense to display. With the launch of the new Bing.com search engine Microsoft overtook the # 2 position behind Google temporarily jumping ahead of Yahoo.com with 16.28% of the market share. Yahoo moved down to 10.22% of the market share with Google remaining at 71.47% of the search engine market share according to StatCounter reports June 4th.

Microsoft has launched several new cutting edge technologies in the past few months including Photosynth.net enabling users worldwide to combine images creating extremely detailed 'video like' 3D images online. What remains to be seen is if the Bing.com search engine will be a long term competitor with Yahoo.com or Google.com using intelligent search results and new technologies.

Robert 'Dot Com' Jackson
Internet & Technology Expert
BuilderConsulting.com - Building Better Websites & Online Solutions Since 1995
913-814-8844 Office

Role Playing & More Good News

Congratulations to all of you who are already enjoying a successful start to the year, in spite of the harsh economic realities, and thank you to everyone for your positive feedback regarding last months Good News blog.

Fortunately the good news continues, with many glimmers of hope in the economy, plus all sorts of success stories still streaming in from across the new home sales centers of North America. One of our jobs as new home sales professionals is to find the good news, and then inspire our customers both with our positive outlooks and the positive facts of how investing in one of our brand new homes will benefit them.

As well as showcasing success stories and learning from each other, in this blog we will also focus on the importance of role playing, or what we like to call "Simulated Selling(SM)" for sales professionals.

ROLE-PLAYING

"An ounce of practice is worth more than a ton of preaching".
-Ghandi

As much time as I spend teaching in classrooms and sales centers across the country, I firmly believe that true transformation only occurs when one immediately practices what one has heard
in class.

In the safe setting of a seminar its possible that everything sounds appealing, but the reality of remembering everything and being able to implement is probably remote. The temptation may be to pick and choose concepts sort of like a "smorgasbord", never really ingesting the essential processes and creating lasting growth and systemic change.

However the moment that you take the information and begin to role-play it, is when the processes start to become real, and the outcome will be quantum improvement in your sales skills and of course sales results. As the great Muhammad Ali said:

"The fight is won or lost far away from witnesses, behind the lines in the gym, and out there on the road, long before I dance under those lights."
Muhammad Ali

I find as a trainer, that when I watch Mystery Video Shops with you and your team mates, (as a positive training tool!) it is obvious the areas that have been role-played and the areas that haven't. So with that in mind, here are some functional tips on how to role-play, and maximize the benefits You will find that when you role-play you will quickly find the areas that you are strongest in and can reinforce, and also realize the areas that you need the most help.

WHEN TO ROLE-PLAY

Dr. Covey says in "The Seven Habits Of Highly Effective People" (I am writing a book called "The Seven Habits Of Fairly Effective People"...well, not really, that would just be silly!), that it takes 21 days of repetition to create or change a habit. That's why the gyms are often full up on the 2nd of January, but if you are not still going by the 23rd of the month then you haven't created the fitness habit yet.

Understanding this, just like personal hygiene or cleaning our teeth, practice needs to become part of our daily regimen. For the record, even though I am English I have very nice teeth and clean them twice a day, thank you very much!

In our profession many of us may work in communities where there is considerable down time between prospects. For me, I was often lucky if I saw any new prospects on a weekday during the steamy Florida summers. With that in mind, we need to set ourselves a schedule of healthy daily activities that will help us stay focused, and positive; as well as increasing sales.

In the last blog, we spoke about self-prospecting, this time we are discussing role-playing and practice. The other major daily activity or course should be a stringent Follow-Through(R) plan. All three of these activities should happen daily, after you have inspected your community, signage and models and gone through your Daily Franchise Checklist.

For a copy of the Daily Franchise Checklist, please email me at roland@newhomespecialist.com

Another optimum time to role-play would be during part of your regular sales meetings. In fact the role-plays should be assigned well in advance, and even posted on the office meeting schedule giving the role-player(s) plenty of time to prepare in advance.

For a copy of a Sales Meeting Agenda, please email me at roland@newhomespecialist.com

The third time to role-play would be one-on-one with your Sales Manager, or sales coach during a weekly visit. We firmly believe that a Sales Manager should spend approximately 70% of their time in the field with the sales team, where the real action is happening so role-playing would be a natural part of that visit.

"Everything is Practice"

-Pele

WHAT TO ROLE-PLAY

I am so glad you asked! I have found the biggest mistake eager role-players make, is to bite off more than they can chew, by starting off with advanced techniques or trying to learn too much at one time. My motto has always been:

KISS (Keep It Simple and Straightforward).

It may not sound so exciting but lets make sure we master the essentials, (the blocking and the tackling, if it were a football practice) before we confuse ourselves with more esoteric material. In Jazz circles there is a saying: "You have to master the tune, before you can improvise".

Therefore the first task you should undertake is to write out the complete sales presentation that would take place in the sales office before going to look at the models. If you have ever attended any of our programs we have the complete template for this in the module titled, "Your Five-Minute Drill(SM), Part IV - Simulated Selling(SM) Experience." It is also available as an accompaniment to our CD series, which we go into detail, on CD #5.

For any of you that have ever been in a play, or a movie it is the same process. Research shows that by writing out your lines yourself, they become embedded far more quickly in your grey matter. I had the good fortune to be speaking at a seminar, in which the widow of the legendary Oscar winning actor Anthony Quinn (Zorba the Greek, Guns of Navarrone etc.) was in the class. She confirmed that Anthony (to his friends) undertook exactly the same process we are discussing, where he would write out his lines and then bold certain words and phrases he wanted to stand out. If it's good enough for Anthony Quinn, it should be good enough for us!

Once you have written out your Simulated Selling(SM) sales presentation then you should learn it one segment at a time. For example:

Greeting, Discovery, Builder Story, Macro and Micro location, Community overview.

Essentially learn the Greeting questions EXACTLY, role-play it perfectly then move on to discovery. Master your discovery questions, the Key C.O.M.M.A. (SM) questions, role-play it perfectly then move on, until you have mastered your complete Simulated Selling(SM) sales presentation.

These five elements of learning, would then combine and become part of your "Seamless Sales Process(SM)".

There is an old phrase, practice makes perfect, this isn't true, as practice just makes permanent. Henry Longhurst said: "They say practice makes perfect. For the vast majority of golfers it merely consolidates imperfection."

So our goal as your coach is to help you realize your potential by practicing perfectly. As the famous football coach Vince Lombardi said:

"Practice doesn't make perfect. Only perfect practice makes perfect."

-Vince Lombardi

So, if you are role-playing and it is not going well, then stop take a deep breath and do it over. You will find that by the second and third time of repetition, you will grow in confidence and become more and more self- assured. At New Home Sales Specialists(SM) we have no problem in being "unreasonable", when something so important as your career and long-term success are at stake.

Next work on your Model Demonstration skills. I have worked with many of you in great detail on this topic, and also discussed it my last blog but here is a brief overview:

• Take the floor plan of each model and number it in the precise order you want to demo.
• Begin with the outside and pick 5 features and benefits, then close it.
• Start with a wow, (usually through the front door) and have the customer experience it by asking an involvement question.
• "Go the light", create the biggest impact by going to a bright space as quickly as possible leaving smaller rooms to later.
• Make it personal by asking about their furniture placement.
• Spend plenty of time in the kitchen giving choices to gain involvement, and then let them know, "When we go back to my office I will be happy to make a note of that/price that out."
• Ask plenty of small involvement questions, remember the 48 second rule.
• "Close as you go", close each major space before you go to the next.
• Always close every home you are in. In the model simply ask "Is this the type of home you'd like own?" In the available home "Is this the home you'd like to own?"
• If you are not selling the model itself then practice saying "Let's' go look at homesites/available homes etc"; not do you have time or would you like you to go look at homesites.

Next work on Objections. Have your sales team come up with every single objection they hear, make a list of your top ten most frequently heard, and then using the 6 Step Formula for Managing Objections, write them out with the objection, your lead-in question and then your answers. I just returned from London Bay Homes in Naples where we spent a whole day on exactly this, with great results.

Lastly of course, we should practice Closing. Now those of you who are already advanced, know that Closing takes place throughout the sales process, so practicing involvement questions is a terrific role-play.

Since the average human being can only focus for 48 seconds or less, practice sharing a feature and benefit and then capping it with an Involvement question every 48 seconds or less. Try to mix up the questions so they sound fresh, Such as:

"How does that sound/look/feel?"; "How does that work for you?"; "Would that be important to you?"; "What do you think?"; "Does that make sense?"; "So far so good?"; Still with me?"; "Ok?"

"Fair enough?"; "Could(n't) you imagine?"; "Isn't it?"; "Wouldn't you agree?"; "Don't you think?";

And many more.

Many years ago, I created something called "The Closing Game". The idea is that you take me through your recap, close, and then ask me for the sale by saying:

NEW HOME SALES EXPERT

"Do you have any questions before we begin the paperwork?"

You must have the right body language, which is sitting down with a pen in hand and the agreement exposed, so that I understand it is a serious business question.

I will say no, and using the 6 Step Formula you have to manage my objection, and then assumptively close again using a different closing statement. I will say no 4 times and then on the 5th request capitulate and agree to go ahead.

The whole idea is to help you create the muscle memory for Real Closing. I once role-played the closing game with a delightful young man named Josh from Overland Park, Kansas, via video conference. At first I believe Josh was a little thrown off by my obstinacy, and the fact that he had to stretch way out of his comfort zone by asking me for the sale 5 times. Interestingly, later that day he had an appointment come back. He sat the gentleman down to recap and then asked for the sale. The customer said, no. Without flinching, Josh managed his objection and asked again. This went on four times and on the fifth request the customer went ahead with the purchase. He said to Josh that the deciding factor for him was Josh's self confidence and belief that this home was the best opportunity for him. The fact that Josh had practiced and role-played with me his coach, gave him the confidence with the customer to make the saIe. Aah, I hear a bell, as somewhere a closer just got their wings!

We have worked for many years with Ideal Homes in Norman, Oklahoma. The three managers Brian, Bill and Lane, are great implementer's of our systems and constantly keep their sales team accountable, with great effect. At the end of last year I was with them and we role-played The Closing Game. They now do that weekly with each sales person, and in the first three months of this year (2009!!!) they have already sold 107 homes!

Here is a photo of Grant (also a highly skilled professional musician) and his team mates at Ideal Homes role-playing The Closing Game.

Here is what Bill Flemming, one of the Sales Managers at Ideal Homes in Norman, Oklahoma just sent me about role-playing:

We just completed one of the most productive sessions with Roland Nairnsey we have ever had. Our sales team always learns so much from Roland and all of the professionals at New Home Sales Specialists(SM).

Role-playing is always an essential part of our continuous training process at Ideal Homes, especially role-playing closing strategies. Let’s face it; closing is what it’s all about, so role-playing The Close and asking for the sale 5 times in each presentation really helps keep our New Home Sales Consultants sharp and more confident which leads to more sales.

Sometimes we even practice in the form of a game. One very good example is the Objection game. We have each NHC write down the three most common objections they are handling on a daily basis and we throw them into a hat. Each one then takes a turn coming to the front of the room, drawing one of the objections from the hat, and role-playing the objection using the Six Step Process. Believe me, this works. We usually do this in teams and it really gets fun and competitive.
Role-playing is a must to stay ahead of the challenges that we face everyday in New Home Sales, especially with today’s challenging market conditions.

Bill Fleming, Brian Bergerson, Lane Slovecek
Division Managers-Sales, Ideal Homes, Norman, OK

Here is the very skilled and highly energetic sales team at Ideal Homes.

A few years ago when the market was heated up, people looked at me as though I was crazy because there were so many customers, that even asking for the sale once was sometimes a stretch! Now it is back to a more typical market where only those salespeople with these kinds of extreme closing skills will survive.

If at first role-playing is uncfomfortable for you, remember this great quote from seven-time Tour De France winner (and ex-boyfriend of Cheryl Crow) Lance Armstrong.

"Pain is temporary, quitting is forever."
-Lance Armstrong

Do you think he was referring to riding his bike, or dating Cheryl? Hey, don't hate the player hate the game, I merely report the news!

Last month also took me to the charming city of Charlotte to work with the four divisions of Eastwood homes. A very succesful builder in the Carolina's, who has already had an incredible first quarter.

Here is a photo of some of the Eastwood team after the two and half day Smart Start(SM)

Our team is also working with them on a bi-weekly webinar series. So their team is truly serious about creating transformational growth.

Also, I was in picturesque Fayetteville, North Carolina, kicking off our long term program with the sales team of Caviness and Cates.

The sales team is very ably led by Joy Coper in the light blue jacket and were extremely enthusiastic. The tall gentleman in the back is Homer Tyre, and he was one of the first people into Iraq when the War first started. He is a true hero, and to him the worst day in a sales office will never compare to what he has had to endure in the theatre of war.

Lastly, I was in St. Louis participating in a Homebuilders Association program with John Schleimer of Market Perspectives, Richard Elkman of Group Two and Stephen Moore of BSB Design. The subject was Making More Sales In 2009 And Positioning To Thrive Again In 2010.

The program was well attended and very well received. I had the pleasure of reuniting with many sales people, managers and owners whom I have enjoyed working with over the years.

Below is a picture of Cindy, Joann, and Kayla of Fulford Homes. They had attended our New Home Sales Boot Camp(R) in Florida, and then tracked me down at the St. Louis Program. At the New Home Sales Boot Camp(R), Joann, had been fearful of public speaking and she ended up Role-Playing with Bob Schultz himself, and earned a standing ovation from the one hundred plus attendees. (By the way, thanks for the ride back to the airport!)

SALES HEROES

This month I have so many that could be eligible, such as Joann Yanards at Fulford Homes in Illinois for her courage in role-playing, Todd Wiens at Ideal Homes not only for his active participation during training (plus his bright yellow socks!) but for his incredibly personal and impressive follow up, the whole London Bay sales team for their incredible hard work in crafting highly intelligent answers to complicated objections about the economy, and to Chris Dedora at Eastwood Homes for her energy in wanting to turn around her community at Spencer Mountain in Charlotte.

Having said that here is an excerpt from an email from Don B. Lederman of SH Communities at Woodbridge Ranches, In Davie, Florida.

Hi Roland,

Always enjoy spending time with you in the blog-o-sphere. Plenty of great material as usual for those who care to excel, and for those who just simply forgot the basics and need to see the success stories out there today.

Here in Davie, since January 11th, we’ve sold 9 inventory homes, +/- $8.7M, outselling our competition combined 3 to 1 and just about doubling our production of last year. With a new associate and whole new attitude that wraps its arms around every guest that we have, we just have to help them see that this IS the time to buy. Our return guest count, starting January 3rd went from 8 – 9 a week to 23, 28, 19, 21 a week, etc. It’s definitely perking out there and everyone should go to work every day expecting success.

As you know, the background street marketing to Realtors(R), chambers, private schools, smart follow-up, website driven traffic, corporate advertising, creative on-site ‘take-aways’, etc., etc. all help contribute to our overall success. Kelli Shapiro is my ace associate; and covering two sites (one closing out and one well under way) from this office, we also have a sales assistant/administrator, Kelly Lievano, yes I have 2 “Kellies” I guess you could say. Kelli and I are doing a Broker presentation breakfast in Plantation Tuesday morning

All the best,

Don B. Lederman
Sales Manager

So Don and the two Kellies are my first group of Sales Heroes.

The second sales hero is someone who I know personally very well, and shockingly isn't even in New Home Sales (Not fair, I hear you cry!). That person is my sister (nepostism I hear you cry!), Victoria Piccirilli (Born Nairnsey), is one of THE most succcesful Mary Kay salespeople iin the whole country, and just received her second totally free brand new Cadillac. Here is a picture of Vicki and her lovely husband Robert, and my two adorable nephews Charlie and Robert.


Everything that we teach about treating your job as though you owned your franchise, from preparation to prospecting to closing skills to Follow-Through(R) is almost exactly the same with my sisters' daily regimen for success. Since I am older and was there the day she was born, needless to say I am very proud of her.

RECAP

The importance of role-playing.

When to Role-play

How to Role-play

What to Role-Play

SALES HEROES

Honorable mentions to Joann Yanards, Todd Wiens, London Bay Sales team, Chris Dedora, and actual Sales Heroes status to

>Don B. Lederman and Kellie's Shaprio and Lievano.

> Victoria Piccirilli

FREE DOWNLOADS

Daily Franchise Checklist

Seven week Sales Meeting Agenda

email me at Roland@newhomespecialist.com

Finally one more photo of my little Max, who will be ONE-YEAR old on April 24th. Here he is on his first flight, to visit my other sister Abigail, in Huston. As you can see he is all smiles.

Have a great month of Happy Selling, and please keep sending me your success stories and great news.

Coach, Roland Nairnsey

NewHomeSpecialist.com

The Good News Blog

By ROLAND NAIRNSEY

Are you as fed up with all of the bad news as I am? I thought so.

So with that in mind, here is a blog dedicated solely to good news. If you want to feel negative and are looking to keep company with misery; or would rather continue hearing anxiety inducing stress related stories that cause gnashing of teeth and increases in blood pressure, then this is the wrong site for you.

Instead, I feel it is our job as sales trainers and motivators to lift you up and inspire you with real life success stories from across the World. Firstly, we will hear what happened and where appropriate we will learn exactly what these positive individuals are doing to succeed in these adverse economic conditions.

Please consider this blog a safe haven from the storm. A sanctuary for new home sales people, wherein you can rejuvenate your spirit, recharge your emotional batteries and go out create success for yourself.

Firstly a positive mantra from our friends at PMC homes in Tulsa Oklahoma. As every great motivational book will state, success begins with what you think about. Whether you are quoting Earl Nightingale, Dale Carnegie, Florence Schovel or The Secret, you attract what is first in your mind.

Bo Armentrout, their sales manager heard this phrase from his Superintendent and now it is their tag line that is sent with every email. Here it is;

“At PMC Homes, we choose not to participate in this recession. However, we will lead the recovery.”

I appreciate your interest in PMC Homes and please let me know how I can better serve you to exceed your expectations and earn your personal and referral business.

Best regards,
Bo Armentrout
Sales Manager, Broker, CSP, CRP

Isn’t that a great way to defeat the depression? As the great Gandhi simply stated;

“Be the Change.”

INTERNATIONAL BUILDERS SHOW 2009

The International Builder Show in Las Vegas was a big success, with a larger than expected turnout considering the state of the economy. I had the privilege of speaking at the Sales Rally, as well as on a dynamic program called "Secrets of becoming an Exceptional Closer Now" with the talented speakers John Palumbo and Meredith Oliver, and another program called "Deal or No Deal, secrets of Negotiating Strategies" with the renowned Charles Clarke III.

Here is a photo of myself along with Industry legend Tom Richey, and the other esteemed panelists from the sales rally. They all did a terrific job.

As special treat for all your loyal blogging, we will continue to post a slew of valuable "Free" downloads from the Show. Downloads include PowerPoint's and scripts.The programs are:

• "Secrets of becoming an exceptional Closer now"
• "Deal or no deal secrets of negotiating strategies!"
• "Close more sell more" from the sales Rally
  as well as from Bob Schultz's programs:
• "Challenges and solutions..opportunities in a changing market"
• "Caash in Caash out the new sales strategy to redefine the 50+lifestyle, Buying and selling process"
• "Sales is a game" from the Management summit.
• PLUS, for the first 50 of you that write to me, the free e-book below, with cutting edge articles from Bob, and one from yours truly.
  
  

  Write to me at Roland@newhomespecialist.com - Write in The Secret

SUCCESS STORY

Next a success story from the much maligned State of Florida. Minto communities is a company that we at The New Home Specialists have been working with for nearly 2 years, and by remaining focused and methodical in their approach to implementing our systems are continuing to be successful. Please read their success story.

BUILDER IN SOUTH FLORIDA BEATS ALL THE ODDS AND RECEIVES AWARDS FROM INDUSTRY EXPERTS FOR RECORD SETTING YEAR, SELLS NEARLY 500 HOMES IN 08!

If you were to hear that a builder in South Florida sold and closed nearly 500 homes in 2008, would you believe it? Probably not, well the incredible team at Minto Communities has accomplished exactly that.

The management team at Minto realized that every other part of the company was following well defined and clearly documented processes, doing the same with new home sales was a critical next step.

With that in mind they sought out Bob Schultz and the New Home Specialists (NHS) Serious Sales Management system and were also introduced to and implemented their unique trademarked program, the Official New Home Sales Development system.

Through a disciplined structure of on going curriculum based training, consistent and rigorous measurement, evaluation, and follow up, including "role playing" and Video Shop reviews; the Minto sales team has dramatically sharpened its new home sales skills. Also following the NHS ten step recruiting process, exceptional new recruits have joined the team who are coachable, have high energy, and are willing to learn and execute the proven sales processes.

Minto's allegiance to a replicable sales system, coupled with cutting edge, well designed homes in exquisite communities, has been the foundation upon which Minto has built its reputation for over half a century. Combined with carefully conceived pricing strategies, this has been a recipe for sales success. The fact that Minto has been able to accomplish so many sales in these trying economic times, in Florida one of the most difficult states in the entire nation in which to sell homes, has caused other builders to be envious.

In Special recognition of their outstanding achievement, Roland Nairnsey, Senior Vice President of Training and Development at Bob Schultz and the New Home Specialists recently presented some well deserved awards to Minto's New Home professionals. Tonia Abrahamsson won for the best Video Shop, who's shop represented one of the highest scores ever achieved nationally! Lisa Crovato for the best conversion ratio, which was accomplished in the Port St. Lucie market, deemed as one of the most challenging markets nationwide. Sue Bachman for Rookie of the year, after having been recently promoted from the position of new home sales assistant. The entire Minto Florida New Home Sales Team received an award for their outstanding sales performance in 2008 under the direction of Dirk Neumann, Director of Sales.

With its expansion to West-Central Florida, and with the guidance of its new Vice President of Sales and Marketing Jack Appleman, Minto is beginning 2009 where they left off in 2008., Through their synergistic relationship with Bob Schultz and the New Home Specialist team, the company continues to defy the downturn and successfully sell brand new homes!

The Minto team with their awards, on the left is Jack Appleman, then Lisa Crovato, Pam Wilhoit, Tonia Abrahamsson, and Sue Bachman, and their successful teammates.


SALES TRAINING TIPS

Now for some real world sales training tips. that you can implement immediately to create your own success. Sitting around and complaining or worrying doesn't help, as I like to say:

“Action Cures anxiety!”
Roland Nairnsey©

Here is an excerpt form an interview that I did for Builder Radio that aired in February, I believe you will find it helpful.

BuilderRadio interviews Roland Nairnsey, Sr. Vice President of Training and Development, Bob Schultz and The New Home Specialists

Can you teach me how to close more sales?

That seems to be the most often asked question that Roland Nairnsey – and probably every sales trainer and consultant in the housing industry – is asked these days. Roland’s answer is, “Yes. Absolutely. But, you can’t go straight for the close; you first have to earn the right to close.”

Selling is a process that requires skill in order to perform well. The more skillful we become, the more sales we close. It’s as simple as that. Becoming aware of the steps in the process and the skills we need to develop is the first step. One measure of our skill is our conversion ratio.

“First, be aware of your conversion ratio,” says Nairnsey. “It’s somewhat shocking to us that not all sales managers are aware of their sales team’s conversion ratios. So, the first thing you have to do is measure those conversion ratios. That gives you your beginning point; that’s where you start. Then, once you know what that ratio is, you can begin to improve.

Next, we as sales people should be generating our own qualified traffic. The days of waiting for the builder to provide us all our business are gone. There’s a ‘rule of thirds,’ which says that only one third of our business should come from the builder; the other two thirds really should be self-generated.”

Listen to the audio portion of this program to hear Roland Nairnsey describe in detail how these two points are fundamental to closing more sales. Or, continue reading the summary below.

Watch Your Conversion Ratios.What should your closing ration be? Short answer: It depends. It depends on your market and your product, but most importantly, it depends on your selling skills.

Nairnsey shares as an example a salesperson named Ted in South Bend, Indiana, “not a hotbed for home sales, but Ted has a closing ratio of 1:3.6. That means he closes one sale for every 3.6 customers that walk through the door. So, it takes him less than 4 customers to make a sale. Isn’t that amazing? But, he has to do that because he doesn’t have great traffic.”

A 1:4 closing ration may be outstanding, but Ted isn’t an isolated case. Nairnsey works with a relatively new sales team in Loganville, GA who’s members post ratios of between 1:4 and 1:6, and another team in Colorado that averages 1:4.

Nairnsey says that a closing ratio of 1:15 is average, but that many larger builders are seeing ratios of 1:25 or worse. Still, the point is to measure and then improve. “If you’re converting 1:15, the important thing would be to focus on how to improve that. How can you get that down to 1:14, then 1:13 and so on until you get it down to an acceptable level?”

Roland's ‘Sales Tune-Up’

Look at the numbers within the numbers,” he says, in order to find specific ways to improve. In other words, improving our performance in each of the steps of the sales process will lead to an overall improvement in our results. Nairnsey suggests we set the following goals:

Give a Planned Presentation: 100% Everyone that comes in your door should be given a thorough, planned presentation where you are able to learn about the customer and their needs, as well as share information about yourself, your homes and community, and your company.

Demonstration/Guided Model Tour: 90% - 100% Nairnsey emphasizes the need to make this a guided tour so that you can demonstrate how and why this home meets their specific needs and lifestyle. Your goal should be that everyone who received a presentation moves on to take a model tour.

Site on first Visit: 90% If you’re selling in a community, make it your goal to move everyone that takes a tour on to choose a home site. Or, if they have their own site, you should arrange an appointment to visit their site with them. The purpose is to get them to envision their new home on the site. Get them to fall in love with the prospect of living in your home. “You can’t make the sale until you get them to fall in love with your product,” says Nairnsey.

Ask for the sale: 90% Most salespeople let a huge amount of business walk out the door because they simply don’t ask the customer to buy. A closing question that both Nairnsey and Bob Schultz use is, ‘Do you have any questions before we go back and review the paperwork?’

“Then, let them answer ‘No,’ a term buyers are predisposed to use,” he suggests. “Aim for the bulls eye, not just the target.”

Sit down to review terms: 90% “Never negotiate on your feet; always close at your seat,” quips Nairnsey. “So, we’re going to sit down with them for a recap of what you’ve covered,” again, asking for the sale at least 5 – 7 times before moving on to the next step in the process.

Next appointment: 50% - 100% of those who don’t buy on the first visit. If asked properly, an average of 20% or more might buy on the first visit. For those that don’t, 50% of those that come in the door should be booked for a next appointment. “70% of those that leave without a next appointment will never come back,” he says.

“At least let’s get 50% of those that don’t buy on the first visit back for a planning appointment. You must insist upon a next appointment. That’s the kind of emphasis you need to have.”

Follow Through: 100% of those that don’t buy on the first visit. You must be dedicated to an excellent follow through strategy to get as many buyers back to the table as possible.

‘Narrowcasting’ to Generate Traffic

Your typical advertising methods – website, billboards, media, etc., might be called ‘broadcasting.’ That’s certainly appropriate for your company, but individual salespeople should assume responsibility for generating their own leads through a process Nairnsey calls ‘Narrowcasting,’ that is, going after your niche market; knowing who and where your buyers are, and finding ways to connect with them.

Some key areas where salespeople can narrowcast to for leads include:

Realtors
Networking with Realtors.Customers who are brought to you by a Realtor are three times more likely to buy than walk-ins. Cultivate real estate contacts by sponsoring and attending broker breakfasts; join the local Board of Realtors and go to their meetings; make contacts and keep in touch with them on a regular basis; refer business back to them; take excellent care of the customers they bring you.

Referrals. Referral sales are the #1 lead source for home sales and are among the least expensive, easiest to close, and most profitable sales you can make. Nairnsey recommends that sales people ask for referrals…

1. When making the sale - get 4 names at time of purchase

2. At walk-through

3. At closing

4. Current customers – VIP or Ambassador Program

5. Social Events ‘Pick Your Neighbor Event;’ You be social director.

Also narrow cast with:

6.Cancelled Agreements – Situations change, call back every 3 – 6 months

7. Zip code analysis

8. Rental communities

9. Local businesses – HR departments at factories, hospitals, police, etc.

10. Clubs and Organizations – Chamber of Commerce, BBB, etc.

Nairnsey began selling homes in 1983, during a housing market similar to the one we see today. He credits those tough markets with giving him the impetus to take control of his sales by getting the training to develop the skills required to survive the tough times and thrive in the boom times.

MORE SUCCESS STORIES

This was an email from Carmen Ware Sales Manager at Olthof Homes in Schereville Indiana,

Just wanted to let you know that we have sold 36 homes since the beginning of the year. Can you believe it! That’s better than we did last January and February. I don’t want to brag, but I think it may be because I am running things my way.

Carmen Ware
Olthof

Another manager who works very hard at his total process to the same extent that Carmen Ware does is Scott Baughman. Here is an email from him with sales tips included.

Roland –
In what started off a challenging year for Premier and other home builders we seem to be on pace to sell about 8 per month – net – in the first quarter.

I attribute our success to the following factors:

1) A builder (Company Owner) who understands the realities of the market and has priced our available inventory in line with what the market dictates that we should be priced at.

2) A mortgage company that continues to provide service above and beyond to our buyers and – by extension – to us as a seller. When they give a “green light” – usually on the same day as we write the agreement we know that there is a 99% chance that the transaction will close.

3) And finally, a sales process that works. A sales process that I learned from Bob Schultz and the New Home Specialists. Bob – you and Roland have shared everything from the basics of the process to very high level ‘mastery’ skills I have worked hard to first of all get it and understand it. Then, to share it with sales people that I have worked with in such a way that they get it and benefit from it. Using this information I helped the first builder group that I worked with in Georgia go from a virtual start up to sales of close to 600 homes per year – in 4 short years. The second builder I worked with doubled sales from close to 750 to almost 1500 in one year (2005). Here at Premier Homes sales have increased over 300% in the three full years that I have been here using the New Home Specialist systems. As a side note 300% - I think – would be a great accomplishment in any market but when you consider the kind of market that we have been in for 2006, 2007, and 2008 it is remarkable. The process (and the ability to teach, coach, and train sales people on how to implement it) while not successful 100% of the time – and what is – works more of the time than anything else I have ever tried. From the self prospecting techniques that sales people use to generate their own traffic to everything that they do with that traffic (qualifying, model demo, available home demo, available home site demo, recap close, advantages of home ownership, secrets of mortgage finance, DISC knowledge, follow up when they buy, follow up when they don’t buy, CAP, Cancellation Analysis, goal setting, handling objections, and so much more) once they have generated it helps us get more of the incremental sales that we may have missed if we didn’t use the process.

I am looking forward to my next trip to Florida to refresh my skills in both sales and sales management. This will be my fourth trip to the sales management program and my third trip to the sales program. Even though I have been before – with each return trip I pick up some new idea – some new technique that gives me more insight on how to sell more new homes quicker for more money. I truly believe that the incremental sales that we make more than pays for the investment of the return trip.

Thanks again for everything! I will see you in June at Boot Camp

Interestingly I feataured Carmen and Scott in an articile for NAHB's SMI magazine. For the full article, and more information on the processes that both Carmen and Scott follow to create their consistent success, email me at

Roland@newhomespecialist.com - Type in Red Hot Managers

Now for a few more of you who are continuing to succesfully slug it out in the selling fields of new homes.

From: bobby g

Sent: Sunday, February 22, 2009 4:18 PM

To: Bo ArmentroutCc: Roland NairnseySubject:

RE: CIP Form

Roland

Out of the 9 families that have come through my community, only 2 of them I was unable to close. Here is a CIP for one of the two.

Thanks,

Bobby Green
PMC Homes

So in other words my modest friend Bobby closed 7 out of 9 customers, or 1 sale per every 1.2 customers walking in the door. Take that recession! Seriously, great job Bobby!!!

The CIP form is of course the ultimate coaching tool that I have referenced in previous emails and is still available to any of you that email at:

Roland@newhomespecialist.com - Type in CIP form.

Next is a very positive email from Tabitha Smith who has just joined Pulte in their Charlotte division. I love the message because in sales we have to take the time to Celebrate our Success.

Roland
By the way I sold a pre-sale yesterday!!!
My second sale with Pulte....and I feel great!

Tabitha Smith
Pulte Homes, the company most trusted to build the places we call home!

As salespeople we must savor our victories; and enjoy our success one sale at a time!

Housing and the economic stimulus bill.

Socrates said:

“Knowledge itself is power”

I believe he also said, "Does this wine taste funny to you?" Ok, so maybe he didn't say that, but back to my point, which is conversely I believe that: “The absence of knowledge causes stress and ultimately dooms one to fail in today’s highly competitive market”.

With that in mind the NAHB recently had on their website a detailed overview of the stimulus package and how each proposal benefits us in the housing industry, written by their NAHB Staff. If you would like a copy email me at:

Roland@newhomespecialist.com - type in NAHB Stimulus Benefits.

The last testimonial is from Buddy Blake a Real Estate Broker for Seacoast Realty, in Wilmington, North Carolina. Buddy’s team represents new home builders. Many of his team have attended our Boot Camps and have always been very eager to learn, and hone their sales skills.

What I love is that Buddy took the time to publicly recognize one of his sales people. As managers we must always remember to “Praise in public, and (if you need to) rebuke in private”. Here is an excerpt of an email from a very happy customer praising sales professional Courtney Pridgen.

Here is the email:

Roland and Bob,

It has been your team's guidance and training that has helped me to become the agent that I am today. Thanks again for the kind words.

Take care, Courtney

Buddy Blake
Coldwell Banker
Wilmington, North Carolina

Forwarded message:
From: Heim 1stLT Carl J. Date:

February 7, 2009 7:2 5:01 PM

ESTTo: Buddy Blake

Subject: Courtney Pines

Sir,

I recently purchased a new home in Courtney Pines. I am writing to let you know how pleased I am with the purchase of my first home as well as the excellent work of Courtney Pridgen.Prior to my decision to purchase this home I spoke with many real estate agents throughout the area. None of them left me with the"warm fuzzy feeling" that I needed to purchase a home. In fact, with a military deployment in my near future I was almost dissuaded completely for fear that I was taking on more than I could handle. That all changedafter meeting Courtney. She explained to me the process of purchasing ahome in Courtney Pines in a manner that I could easily understand (having absolutely no real estate knowledge). Given her manner, professionalism and obvious competence the decision to purchase a home from her was a no-brainer. In short, I walked away from our conversation feeling confident that I would not be taken advantage of or left in the dark on any part of this process. As you can tell, my assumptions were correct. Courtney handled every detail of this purchase with extreme professionalism. She is by far the most knowledgeable real estate professional that I have encountered and was able to answer everyquestion - as stated above, in a manner that I understood, without making me feel like she was dumb-ing down her information.In closing I'd like to re-assert that her knowledge and most importantlyher professionalism are unmatched. In addition her communication skills and overall manner are superb and were the driving force behind my decision to purchase this home. You are extremely fortunate to have her on your staff. I am confident that my words echo the thoughts/feelings of any of her clients. Thank you both for making the purchase of my first home such a simple and exciting experience.

Remember, that buying is "Emotion backed by logic", our customers aren't buying just "sticks and bricks", they are investing in their next home. The tie breaker for them is often the anticipation of the enjoyable experience of having us sales professionals help them.

Great Job Courtney and to Buddy for taking the time to recognize a job well done!

SALES HEROES

There could be so many, as I have such respect for all of you that are staying positive and are hunkering down and working so hard in the toughest market in all of our lifetimes. But of course there are a few sales heroes that standout even in this elite crowd.

Tonia Abrahamson of Minto homes, for having one of THE most outstanding Video shops I have ever seen, and scoring an in incredible 218 out of 250. Coincidentally Tonia is consistently the most successful sales person in her company and during training can been seen lip synching the planned presentation as we work on it, and always has the answers to my complicated sales training questions.

Just as Dr. Covey says in the 8th habit, “Find your voice and inspire others” , Tonia is so effective at implementing her sales process, that she is now training those around her how to improve and become a sales hero like herself.

Secondly are two salespeople from London Bay Homes in Naples Florida, Ed Anderson and Paul Schmidgall.

Ed is a retired insurance agent and instead of spending his twilight years on the golf course decided to sell new homes. He had never sold new homes nor received any training before attending our programs. At the end of the second day of training Ed came in with his complete sales presentation hand written by him. He was a little bleary eyed because he had been up until three in the morning working on it. Talk about commitment! Watching his Video shop in February, Ed did very well at implementing a very effective sales process and received one of the highest scores.

Paul is an interesting character. In his first career Paul was a soldier for the US army. Not just any soldier but the kind that was trained specifically to be dropped behind enemy lines to rescue downed soldiers. So while the rest of us are busy complaining about a bad day at the office, think about what Paul had to go through. In his second career Paul became a trained chef. Now in his third career he has become a new home sales proffesional at London Bay. I have to admit that at times during training Paul would appear at little agitated with my high expressive (mildly waffly)responses to his very serious questions. Since Paul has lived by following proven processes, it is not surprise that he was looking for clear and simple answers to his questions. I had the privilege of watching his video shop in February, and have to share that without a doubt it was THE BEST FIRST shop I have ever seen! He scored a remarkable196 out of 250, and showed real determination in implementing thoroughly the process which he knows will cause his success.

To all of our sales heroes a very heartfelt well done!

RECAP

Sales training tips such as how to:

Measure your conversion ratio
Self generating traffic,
Give yourself a Sales tune up.

SUCCESS STORIES

Bo at PMC Homes in Tulsa
Minto Homes in South Florida
Scott Baughman at Premier Homes in Southern Colorado
Carmen Ware in Schererville Indiana
Bobby Green at PMC Homes in Tulsa
Tabitha Smith at Pulte in Charlotte North Carolina
Buddy Blake and Courtney Pridgen at Coldwell Banker Seacoast Realty, in Wilmington Delaware

SALES HEROES

Tonia Abrahamson at Minto
Ed Anderson and Paul Smidgall at London Bay Homes In Naples

FREE DOWNLOADS

Red Hot Managers – Full article containing management secrets
CIP Form
NAHB Stimulus Package Benefits
IBS 2009 programs

Write to me at roland@newhomespecialist.com and name the downloads you are interested in.

MORE GOOD NEWS

It was my Birthday on February 20th (Same every year, if your thinking of sending me a present). I am not sharing my age so please don't even try! Here I am below being suprised by a cake at the office, and there is Bob Schultz himself eyeing up one of the Cheesecake Factories finest specimens!

Lastly, it wouldn't be my blog if there wasn't a picture of my little lad Max, who is now ten months, and looking very GQ in his grown up duds.

Have a great month, stay positive and keep sending me your success stories.

Happy Selling,

Coach Roland

http://www.newhomespecialist.com/

Rise & Shine in 09 by Roland Nairnsey

PHOTO- Stephen Brooks owner of Grand Homes in Dallas, Texas heralding in the New year swimmingly! (More later)

Well here it is my first blog of this New Year. Welcome back to all of you loyal blog readers, and thank you so much for your positive feedback, it means a lot to me to know that this blog is helping salespeople across the world to increase sales at this incredibly difficult time.

First of all my humble apologies for not diligently writing this post every month. I will attempt to make it up to you this year. In the words of the great Bryan Adams, "Please forgive me”.

OK so what do we have in store for you? First of all I would like to continue to inspire you with real world selling strategies and techniques that will help you weather this temporary storm that has been so affectionately labeled “the global recession.” Secondly I would like to keep it personal with photos of you, teams from across North America, but would also like to go a little deeper with your own personal stories and photos. Plus this year I would like to, make this an open forum so if anyone has any questions (about new home sales, please!), I would love to answer them so all the readers may learn from each others questions.

This is the only interactive forum specifically designed for new home sales, (big USP* statement), so please enjoy, interact and tell all of your friends in our business about it so we can create the biggest, most impactful web-log in our industry.

So let’s get down to business: first a motivational message from your fearless leader, regarding this frightening economic environment. As we all know the reality is that things are tough, but as we like to say “perception is reality”, so since we can’t change the reality we can certainly impact our customer’s perception, and build the best possible case that now is the perfect time to buy. We can’t afford to worry about what we can’t control, and need to focus on what we can manage, namely our customers perception.

So the next time your customer says it’s a buyers market and they want to use is as an excuse for delaying action you need to response with:

Sales Person
“Yes, isn’t it great and at (Builder homes) we like to say it is a smart buyers market, in fact your buying power will never be stronger than it is right now,
can I show you what I mean?"

Then after causing them to fall in love with your home and unique one of a kind location we the need to sit the customer down and walk them through all of the benefits of investing now. Two huge reasons are incredible pricing opportunities and incredibly low interest rates, but we still have the chart for you to download so just email me at roland@newhomespecialist.com, and then personalize for your own selling situation.

The truth is that (just like many of you), this isn’t the first tough market, I have been through. I started selling real estate in 1983, hard to believe I know because I look so young, probably the botox talking (Just kidding about the botox, really!) and it was tough then, tough in 1989-91, and then really tough right after 9-11. I remember actually selling a home on the morning of 9-11, one of the saddest days in history, but my customers needed a brand new home, and I had to focus and help them acquire one.

Somehow, when we refuse to panic and buckle down and hone our selling skills we always come out of stronger and more effective. It is these tough markets, which creates GREAT salespeople. Like a regenerating of the forests this market will cause you to truly develop your closing persona’s, and come back stronger, and even take market share from your competitors who are panicking themselves out of business.

As I write this I am on a plane on the way to Vegas (easy now) for the International Builders show. I have the true honor and privilege of speaking at three programs; at all three of my programs I am discussing Closing. So for a change “What happens in Vegas, is not going to stay in Vegas”!

I will be offering free downloads, to cover topics such as:

• How to create urgency, and the benefits of investing now
  


• "Deal or no Deal, negotiating strategies" including:-



• Negotiating checklist,



• How to avoid negotiating over the phone,



• Setting the customers expectation in writing for the counter proposal



• 9 steps to maintain control of your sales process and the sale



• 6 steps to manage objections and more!

So as a special reward for your blogging loyalty, I will make these downloads available to you without the expense of flying to Vegas. Please write to me at Roland@newhomespecialist.com and I will give you the program password for the free downloads. If you would like the Cd's and DVDs that accompany the programs then please go to NAHB 's website and they will direct you how to acquire them.

Now for some travels and sales tips.

Recently I was in Dallas with Grand homes, as part of their ongoing educational new home sales curriculum we worked on Model Demonstration, with an eye to maximizing the customers involvement and make more sales. Here are some of the key tips:

ELEVEN MODEL DEMONSTRATION TIPS

1. Start from the outside in. First the neighborhood then the front of the home.



2. Number each floor plan, so you will know exactly where to stand and what to say.



3. Always start through the front door to maximize impact.



4. Go the lightest, brightest part of the home immediately to keep buying temperatures high.



5. Make it personal, ask "How their furniture would work" or "How they would decorate?" specific spaces.



6. Never use the words standard or extra, replace them with "included" (or "included luxury feature"), and "luxury choice".



7. Make it memorable in a positive way. (Tap cabinets and counters, go outside etc.)



8. "Be interested not interesting", ask lots of involvement questions, and focus on their hot Buttons.



9. Ask at least 5 alternate choice questions, and when they respond, say: "I will be happy to make a note of/price that out when go back to my office." In under 45 seconds you just made an appointment to take them to the closing table.



10. Always end in a wow location, somewhere emotional where you can ask for the sale.



11. Always ask for the sale, simply saying "Is this the type of home you'd like to own?" or if it is the actual home then simply say "Is this the home you'd like to own?".

Below is another picture of Stephen Brooks with his sales team demonstrating #7 (make it memorable), to prove that "Grand Homes is the only builder in Dallas, giving away a free pool! I guarantee that none of us will ever forget it!



In fact here is a link to a TV ad that Mr. Brooks did, where at the end he actually jumps in the pool. Enjoy!

Click Here To Watch Video

After the guys at Grand, I went to London Bay Homes an incredible custom home builder, building homes from just over one million to over sixteen million dollars in the Naples and Sarasota area. We also role played model demonstration. Here are some pictures of us together.

Then it was off to the clement confines of Calgary, in Canada to work with the sales team at Jayman Masterbuilt. Even though the weather was a shocking 30 below, I couldn't have enjoyed myself more as the combined Calgary and Edmonton divisions are an utter delight to work with! We spent two long days working on our Fast Track program which includes, professional communication, five minute drill, model demonstration, closing and appointment setting.

Above is a photo of the Jayman team and also owner and industry legend Jay Westman with yours truly (I'm the one in the tie).

SALES HEROES & "BE THERE" THEORY

Now for our sales hero section. There are two special sales souls that immediately spring to my mind from the last few months. What they both have in common is an infectiously positive attitude, and an indomitable spirit that just never gives up.

Many years ago the Wall Street Journal had an article about the "BE THERE" theory, which logically stated that no matter where you are, you need to be there one hundred percent.

I couldn't agree more. When we are at work we need to be fully focused. My pet peeve are people who try to accomplish too much at once, and are either addicted to their "crack berries" or cell phones and are inadvertently ignoring their customers. As I like to say;

"There is no such thing as multi taking in new home sales, you are either focusing on your customer 100 percent, or blowing the sale."

The same thing applies when you go home, make sure you are focused on your loved ones 100 percent. They also deserve your undivided attention. If you don't have a family at home then focus on doing what makes you happy and indulge yourself, that way when you return to work you will feel refreshed and re-energized.

My first sales hero is Sharon Kochlefl of Remington Homes in the Chicago area. After finding herself with time on her hands she was able to fulfil a life long dream to have dancing lessons. Business has not been perfect for her, but she has found a way to find what it is that makes her happy, and this of course positively affects all of her life. This is part of an email she sent to me;

Good Morning Roland! I hope this email finds you doing well.
I spoke to Greg Sunday (Sales manager). I HAD to call and tell him I just wrote my 4th agreement in five weeks! ISN'T THAT AMAZING?!!!! As you can see, professionally I am doing well. Personally, I am having a great time as well. I attended my 40th H.S. reunion two wks. ago!!! (told you I was older than dirt) What a fun weekend that was. Thank goodness Mon. is one of my days off...ha-ha. Still dancing and enjoying every minute! Nov. 15th will find me doing a tandem routine at the Medal Ball. Two of the instructors asked if I would be game to dance with both of them, trading off in performing two different dances...West Coast Swing & the Hustle...two fun dances. Didn't take ANY convincing for this little "spitfire" as they call me.

As I truly believe, out of everything bad, comes something good...ALWAYS!!!!
I apologize for the length of my email. I DO realize you are a busy man.
Be well, my friend....
Sharon Kochlefl, Remington Homes

(Sharon with her dance instructor)

Another short excerpt from a Sharon email below:

Woo hoo ....SOLD 2 this week!!
"quota" has NEVER been good enough for me!!!
the dancin' queen at Remington Ridge

Sharon credits a lot of her success to her manager Hilary who is an absolute DRIVING FORCE,
and much of our success has come due to her constant motivation, support and spirit.

My second sales hero is Renise Mclean from Jayman Masterbuilt in Calgary, as well as having a great attitude (like her team mates), and being a great student of the sales process, she consistently is a top performer selling homes come rain, shine or in her case snow drifts. She often sends me positive little notes, so here is a short excerpt from an email along with a photo of Renise and her beloved charlie.

Dear Roland

Business is good, sold 5 this month so far.
Yesterday, I sold a house to a gentleman on the first visit. All because I didn't lose control. He purchased an available home here in Panorama. Very exciting!!!!!!!!!

Regards, Renise
Jayman MasterBUILT in Panorama Hills
Renise McLean- Area Sales Manager

Lastly, back by popular demand are a few photo's of my new baby son Max.

I know he is impossibly cute isn't he, even I do say so myself.

Please free to write to me with your stories or questions from the selling fields of new homes.

Stay focused and positive; and happy selling.

Coach Roland

http://www.newhomespecialists.com/