Big franchise? Independent? Boutique? With so many choices out there, how do you ensure your property sale is being handled by the best option available?
Here are some thoughts from decades of experience as to why a boutique agency is better:
1. You are not a number.
In the back room of a generic real estate agency at the weekly sales meeting you will hear about appraisal numbers, commission targets, shortfalls and price reductions. The focus is on profits and understandably so, as a big office means lots of staff and massive overheads that have to be paid for somehow… Here the quantity of listings is valued more than the quality of the service as the chosen salesperson scrambles to meet the minimum expectations of their employer in the never-ending pursuit of numbers.
At a boutique agency like Southwell Property, the sale of your property means as much to us as it does to you. The extra care and attention you will receive will not only result in a more pleasurable experience, but most likely a higher price. Our most sacred metric is your referral to your friends following a job well done.
2. Our agents are of a higher calibre
With its focus on numbers, the generic real estate agency will typically be staffed with a mixed bag of age and experience. They will have everything from the guy on his P plates scratching to make ends meet to the career veteran struggling to keep up with new digital marketing methods.
When building a small, boutique agency, we like to know our agents are the cream of the crop. At Southwell Property, we are very selective when it comes to putting together a sales team. We have a team of highly experienced, well educated, professional agents who have incomparable knowledge of the markets in which they work. You can expect our handpicked team to be driven, loyal, and focused on you and your property.
3. We do not follow a ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach
The larger “fast food style agents” have a tendency to follow a simplified, stock-standard method of selling your home. They will have a plan without getting to know you or your property first.
However a boutique agency is different. We believe in getting to know your needs, wants, and expectations before suggesting a plan of attack. At the end of the day, we want to present you with a tailored plan to sell your property with innovative marketing that works best for your situation, in order to gain the best possible sale price for your property. From our experience, a custom made selling solution will always get you the best outcome.
4. You’re dealing with the same agent from beginning to end
It is common scene. A seller signs on with a mainstream agent, they believe to be the best person to handle their sale. They feel confident in their agents abilities and are excited to see how the open home goes, however a lot of the time, you will be palmed off to the agents off-sider or sales assistant.
At Southwell Property, the person you sign on with is the person who will handle the sale of your property from beginning to end. Boutique agencies ensure this because they prefer to maintain quality service over quantity of sales.
5. We focus on innovative marketing
Effective marketing puts your listing in front of the best buyers. Boutique agencies are better at tailoring marketing campaigns to cater to each unique property.
The large scale generic agent will probably tell you straight up what they plan to do in terms of marketing. Do you go with the bronze silver or gold package?! They will list it on realestate.com.au and domain.com.au, they’ll take out some print advertising, they’ll put a sign in front of your house. However, this is exactly what they did for the last six listings – is it really the best approach for your place?
At Southwell Property, we simply don’t believe in a one-size-fits-all marketing plan. We utilise a number of marketing strategies coupled with creative copy to ensure a tailored campaign for you and your property.
We also ensure your property looks it’s best with the opportunity to utilize our in-house styling to jazz up your place before the photographer rolls in. Did you know our founder has a university degree majoring in marketing? Differences like this mean more buyers and higher price on your contract.
6. We care about you
At the end of the day, we care greatly about achieving the best price for you and your property. We know from experience that a happy customer is one who knows that no stone was left unturned in sourcing the best buyer for your property. You will simply receive a better experience and price at Southwell Property and we look forward to working on your sale.
If you’d like to know more about what a boutique agency can offer you, or more specifically what Southwell Property can do for you, you can contact our team today on 0488 923 988.