Commercial Real Estate Brokers - Tips to Negotiating and Closing

Listening to the client in commercial real estate presentations is an important negotiation tool. We call that an effective listening process. It is not just a matter of listening to the discussion, but taking in the bigger picture of what the client is saying through various channels.

The channels you use will involve observation of body language, positioning in the room, responses to questions, emotions, and content of the discussion. Taken in balance, they all tell a complete story. They help you see what is really going on with the client.

In a listing process or the proposal presentation, you would normally be talking about:

• The rentals in today's market
• The prices in today's market
• Competitive properties in today's market
• The tenants looking for a property at the moment
• The buyers looking for property at the moment
• Property performance trends and results
• Marketing alternatives that work given the existing market trends
• What has happened with the property
• What the client wants from the property
• The timing of the process

So when questioning the client about their property needs, direct your listening to what is important to them and the outcomes they require. If they indicate ambiguity or lack of clarity, always question further and drill down. Your ability to dig into the true property situation will allow you to convert the listings with greater frequency. Every client has some form of property pain. The trick here is to find it and help them with it.

Given the pressures and changes of today's property market, it is not appropriate to take on every listing you come across unless the client is realistic in the elements of pricing, rental, and marketing the property. You can waste a lot of time and energy with poor listings and unmarketable property. Not every listing is a good listing, so be selective.

What you want in today's market is a property that is priced well, being offered to the market through the most effective method of sale or lease possible, and giving clear set of features and benefits to the purchasers or tenants out there (as the case may be). All of this should be built around the ideal target market that you are chasing.

A significant part of the listing process is the observation of emphasis and emotions in the words uttered by the client. Look for situations where they appear disturbed, uncertain, challenged, or unfocused. When these appear or rise to the service and the discussion, you can drill down and give or get the real facts of the current situation.

Your ability to question and observe will significantly assist your listing conversion process. Take time to practice in improve your skill in this regard.