As a former psychotherapist, I know that the essence of communication is vitally important and unless all the three components of communication are consistent, the message expressed is misunderstood. Remember that effective communication is 56 percent non-verbal, 37 percent tonality (how we sound) and 7 percent of the actual words spoken.

When a great script is in place, we are not concerned about what to say next as we KNOW what to say and how to say it. In fact, with a great script we listen much better. Listening is essential to building trust and establishing common ground on which the property owner and real estate broker can, together, advance their mutual goals of selling and closing the home sale transaction.

I talk about five key questions for the seller listing presentation in a special online exclusive in the July issue of Illinois REALTOR® magazine as part of the story “Tips and Scripts from Listing Presentation Pros.”

Asking pertinent questions and listening to the responses will help you to gain the understanding you need to determine what sellers to work with and what sellers are not worthy of your time, effort and abilities.

Key questions that should be asked in a listing presentation:

  1. What have you heard about the market?
  2. What do you expect from the listing broker/agent you hire to sell your property?
  3. What have your past experiences been like with other agents?
  4. What is causing you to sell?
  5. Why should I hire you?

For the first question “What have you heard about the market?” the question isn’t what do they KNOW but rather what have they HEARD about the current market. It is imperative that the property owner understands the realities of today’s market. What they have heard about the market may be less accurate than what YOU know. If the seller isn’t “on board” with the reality of today’s market then challenging their unrealistic expectations is essential.

Setting the course of proper pricing possible staging opportunities, finding the financially qualified buyer, negotiating, advocating in offers and possible multiple offers are some of the essential elements to getting to the closing table.

Read more in my online exclusive in Illinois REALTOR® magazine.

REALTOR® Lori Cox, GRI, ABR, SFR, CRS, CRB, SRES is a business and life coach, continuing education instructor and the co-author of NAR’s Short Sale & Foreclosure Resource Certification. She is the owner of Life Successes, Inc., a coaching and training company specifically customized to assist real estate professionals in building successful business and life strategies since 1987. www.loricox.com, www.twitter.com/loriwcox.