Even if you’re expecting a specific objection from the person you’re talking with, you may still wind up at a loss for words if you’re not properly prepared. That’s one of the goals for this series – providing you with examples and strategies to fall back upon, and to encourage you to practice your answers to common questions.
In this video, real estate coach Dan Smith, and top producer/master cold-caller Pablo Rener, take on the question of commission, particularly when raised in an initial conversation with a potential client. Their role-play may help you be more prepared the next time you’re asked the same question – because you know you will be.
Pablo Rener: Nice to be here.
DS: Thank you. So, we’re going to continue doing objection handling. We started on last week’s episode, if you want to go back and watch that one. It’s got some good information that we’re not going to repeat on this role play, but it’d probably be good for you to watch. We’re going to jump straight into, rather than me make the phone call, do the introduction, and do all that, we’re going to jump straight into the actual role play of the objection. Now most of you guys and gals who are either at the door talking to people, or at the door, I’m sorry, on the phone talking to people, or at the door knocking and talking to people that way, are running into a lot of “what commissions do you charge?” You get a lot of that when you’re prospecting on the phone, don’t you?
PR: All the time.
DS: What are you going to charge me? So, that’s one we’re going to work through here for you. So, we’ve gone through everything else, it sounds good, we’re having a good conversation, and you ask the magic words….
PR: Hey, by the way, what do you charge for commission?
DS: You know, that is a fantastic question, what I charge for commission. It’s going to be very important in the decision-making process, isn’t it?
PR: Yeah, because, you know, I’ve gotten mailers from people that are charging four, four and a half percent.
DS: So, four, four and a half percent? I’m surprised you haven’t seen any three-and-a-halfs! I mean, the numbers are all over the place, aren’t they?
PR: Yeah, I mean if I can save money, that’d be great.
DS: I get it. So, in a perfect world, what did you have in mind, anyway?
PR: Well, you know, I’m thinking, I want to be fair, I think four and a half would be a good number to start with.
DS: Ok, so four and a half is the commission that you’re thinking I could pay. So let’s do this. I promise, one of the first things we’ll cover when we come out there is getting commission worked out, so it’s something you’re comfortable with too, you don’t waste any time. How does that sound?
PR: Fair enough.
DS: Ok. So, we’re back into the talking about the rest of the appointment, right?
PR: Ok.
DS: What we did there, guys and gals, what I want you to realize what we did… Remember, when we’re on the phone or at the door, that’s not the time to handle the objection as far as like to close on it and have the answer we want. That’s not the time to say “well, I charge 6%” or “if I have both sides, I’ll do it for some other number” that a lot of you say. That’s not the time. Right now, the only objection we’re trying to handle is the one that’s keeping us from getting the appointment. We handle the real objections at the appointment. Right now, we only handle the objections that are keeping us from getting the appointment. And so what I did was, first of all, I wanted to pull out of you where I was going to be starting. So now when you and I meet, you know, next week or whenever it is, I know I’m not going to be caught off guard that you’re looking for 4.5%. And I know that I would like to get 6, so we have a starting point, a where we want to end destination point, and now we have these waters to navigate. Right, does that make sense? For getting from one to the other. But how not-fun is it when you go on an appointment, you have no idea they’re looking for that, and suddenly it’s sprung on you, and now you’ve got to deal with it.
PR: Yeah, especially if you’re thinking you’re going for a 5-6 and they hit you with 4.
DS: They take you all the way down, right? So, we now know where we’re starting, which is great, and we’ve also said, “listen, I get it, it’s important, it’s one of the first things we’re going to talk about.” Have I said I would do it at that price? No. Have I said that I’m going to charge any number? No. I just said it’s important, it’s one of the first things we’ll talk about to make you happy, that you feel comfortable with it. And I move right past it, and keep going for the appointment.
PR: Perfect.
DS: Does that make sense?
PR: Sounds good.
DS: All right. Ok, guys and gals, so, hopefully you got something from that. Best part about these ReboReports videos is you can just go back and watch it again and again and again and take notes and do whatever you want. So, thank you very much to ReboReports for having us here today, in order to offer this service to you, all of you real estate agents out there. And, let’s see, about me. Real quick. If you’d ever like to attend one of my events, find out a little bit more about me, show up to something where I was going to be speaking or training, maybe on a listing presentation, maybe doing a live objection handling session. You can go directly to my website which is versatilityinsales.com, and on the right hand side, it says “upcoming events, click here.” Click there, it’ll take you to the ticketing site, answer all the questions about when, where, how much, what I’m going to be speaking on, and if you’d ever like to attend any of those, now you know how. Next week, we’re going to keep going, do some more objection handling. I hope you’re enjoying it as much as we are here. And remember, until I’m here next week: to get what you’ve never had, you must do what you’ve never done. Make it a great one.
