Face to Face vs In Your Face….

Jennifer Allen wrote a blog about a week ago.  Would you rather annoy 30,000 or impress 300? I have always been a believer in the “do unto to others” approach to sales.  I don’t enjoy high-pressure sales tactics – so why should I engage in them?  Apparently, I’m not alone.  The public has made it clear that it is totally fed up with the “in your face” sales person.  The fact that finding someone who isn’t on the DNC is like looking for a needle in a haystack says it all. If you still  don’t believe that the public is  sick of the bombardment –  read this article by Damon Darlin in the New York Times:  Don’t Call. Don’t Write. Let Me Be.

Since the public has given a resounding “NO!” to what Lenn Harley refers to as  “push” marketing – it is a sad twist that these methods actually seem to work.  Success often comes through in your face tactics not face to face interaction.  Getting a listing because you wore someone down and annoyed hundreds of others along the way seems something of a hollow victory.  I  suppose some justify the methods as a means to an end.

However I have to ask the inevitable question:  How professional is this really??? – I mean REALLY????

My Aunt was trying to sell her home…

This was brought home to me by my Aunt Emilia.  Aunt Emilia is a very vibrant 88-year old lady who is still bustling around her home in New Jersey while doing things like taking long road trips in Spain and traveling by  train into Manhattan for a night at the opera.  She’s smart and down to earth and sharp as a tack.  Nevertheless, the thought of downsizing led her to list her home for sale.

Her expired listing brought a flood of agents intent on selling themselves – rather than her home…

My aunt had her home on the market for a while and she finally decided just to stay put until next year.  The expired went into the MLS and  the sign came down and the phone started ringing – off the hook!   Any guess as to who was calling her???

“Where were these people when I was trying to sell my home?”

Agent after agent was on the phone telling her how they were “different” and how they could “sell her home.” Many showed up at the door with packets.  Some were annoyingly persistent.  She was happy with her agent!  It was  a bad market and they had an understanding that they would only go so low and call it a day.  She “got” that he couldn’t go hog wild on promotion given those parameters.

She was a reasonable seller with a reasonable agent and she didn’t need a throng of hungry agents dogging her every move in search of scraps.  In truth she felt that they were trying to sell themselves more than her home.  So she asked me the obvious question:  “Where were these people when my home was on the market?”

To my aunt  this didn’t appear to be professional – not by a long shot.  It just seemed like a game where everyone was  one-upping the other guy.

So I ask again – is this truly a professional way to behave?  Seriously????

Agents like to compare themselves to physicians, accountants, lawyers and other highly paid professionals. Could you imagine your doctor going door to door looking for business?  Could you imagine an attorney cold calling you?  “Has anyone died?  Are you thinking of getting a divorce?  If so, I can help!”  Wouldn’t you send such a person packing instantly?

Small wonder when we hold ourselves up as valued professionals the vast majority of the population laugh hysterically.  Small wonder if our pack mentality that sends us running pell-mell after the smallest piece of red meat like a pack of hungry wolves leaves consumers angry.   This is supposed to be a service industry….So are we truly serving the public – or just helping ourselves?

© 2010 – Ruthmarie G. Hicks – https://thewestchesterview.com – All rights reserved.