Presentation time: showing a flat

From my point of view – that of an estate agent – it is the most important element of the flat sales process. A well-crafted listing – enriched with beautiful photos – will never quite replace a "live" presentation. The client can touch everything and ask about everything on the spot.

It is much harder to present a property if I do not know the needs of the person viewing it. Why is that? Because of poor selection of listings. Unfortunately, you can count on the fingers of one hand the people who knowingly – after careful analysis of the market – look for their dream four walls, with a vision of their future flat in mind. This is a utopian scenario, so during a presentation it is much harder to look after the image of the property and to speak the language of benefits when we know little about potential – often would-be – buyers. Moreover, they are not very active during the presentation, ask few questions and do not take the initiative.

We – as estate agents – must therefore rise to the heights of creativity and concentrate as much as possible on the buyer and the image of the listing. Sometimes the look of a flat (dazzling!) is enough to sell it on its own. The viewer is so charmed by the interior that they are not overly interested in the details. This means we have done our job well. We have found the ideal candidate. We have perfectly matched their needs to the property. Paradoxically, if a flat attracts too many interested people, it means we have not focused enough on the image of the listing. A warning light should come on. It will not be easy to find a buyer in such a situation, and on top of that we will lose a great deal of valuable time showing the flat to one person after another. It is then worth conducting a preliminary interview to find out whether the person on the other end is really interested in buying.

We cannot allow a situation in which, on the day of the presentation, the flat looks much worse than in the photos in the listing. Many people have a photographic memory, and they look through photographs with more attention than the text of the advertisement. If the client is greeted at the door by an unpleasant smell, mess and ever-present dust, they will immediately make a quick comparison and the visit will not last long. We should not be surprised if they leave after a few minutes, without even getting to the stage of asking questions. Disqualification. Professional suicide.

An interesting solution is to organise a so-called "open house". Such listings sell much faster (on average 25 days from the listing going live). Interested clients are more decisive and focused on the transaction.