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Don’t let communication breakdowns get in the way of successfully interacting with your home buyers and sellers. The Illinois REALTOR® magazine article, “Keeping Your Clients in the Loop,” offers strategies for keeping the lines of communication open, but here are a few steps that you can take action on now:

1. Don’t dazzle your prospect with real estate terms they are not familiar with.

2. Develop a clear communication plan and have your prospect sign off on it.

3. Establish who your property owner should contact in advance if they have any issues.

4. Review your comprehensive calendar of activities for marketing of their property.

5. Get in writing the seller’s expectations for the marketing services they anticipate you will be using to sell their home.

6. If possible, try to determine what the seller’s motivation is for selling their house on the initial call.

7. If you commit to a calendar date, make sure you comply!

8. Do not hesitate to offer a list of resources to help the seller get the property ready for marketing.