Commercial Real Estate Brokers – How to Grow Your Business Client List
When you fully understand your client’s business, you can start to match the best property solutions to the client and their future needs. You can take action in a timely way.
There are plenty of opportunities to tap into when you fully understand the business client and their property challenge. Take the time to get closer to your clients and their current property situation.
(N.B. these ideas are also sent out to regularly to our friends in Commercial Real Estate Online Snapshot to help amplify brokerage results…. Get your access here)
How do you do this?
Look into your database on a regular basis to understand exactly who those clients are when it comes to property change and property churn. Stay close to those clients and corporations over time and merge them into your prospecting model. Provide them with plenty of local information relating to property supply and demand.
It’s all about business
So these very special business related clients are out there in your local area. Make sure they remember you when they need the help and the specialized services of a local property agent. Keep in touch in a regular and ongoing way, and stay relevant as part of that process.
Here are some interesting questions to investigate and address with those special clients:
- What will be the best time of year for business to consider change and relocation?
- What are the best locations for the business to move into?
- What types of improvements will be business require in the next relocation?
- How will that change or relocation impact staff and customer issues for the business?
- How can the move or relocation be made more convenient and less painful?
- How can you add value to the property change that they cannot avoid?
Many of the clients that we work with need plenty of help it comes to looking for the next property to handle the next phase of growth and expansion.
It is quite common for business clients and corporations to consider their property needs on an annual basis. That will usually be before the start of the new calendar year or new financial year. When you understand that fact, you will know the best time to approach these high value clients to address property changes and opportunities.
Business client facts
Here are some ideas to help you work with this commercial real estate opportunity and these very special business related clients in your local area:
- Who are the people in charge? – You will need to undertake a reasonable degree of research so that you know the right people within the business to connect with. They may be several layers of people to work through to get to the ultimate person in charge and the decision maker. There may be a board of directors, and or a group of people influencing the decision of the person in charge. Explore the relationships and the people of influence within the business and the company.
- What are the priorities in changing property and location? – There will be a list of issues that must be addressed as part of the relocation. Some of those issues will be more important than others. Property improvements, the size of the property, the layout, and location will usually be high on the agenda when it comes to setting relocation priorities.
- Do they have a budget that relates to the property change? – As the local specialist commercial real estate agent you will know the trends and the opportunities within market prices and market rentals. Can they afford the change? Do they understand the realities of market rental and market prices as they apply to the property type and location?
- When will they need to make the relocation or change? – Some businesses can relocate only at special times of the year where the seasonal cycles of production and client interaction are minimized.
- How can you save them time and or money in the relocation process? – Many of these businesses and corporations can be quite prepared to appoint you as their property specialist in any property research and relocation matter. That is of course if you have the necessary local skills and knowledge relating to the property type and the area. In this case the business or company will be your client and they will be paying your commission. It is wise to work with the larger companies and corporations locally for this very reason. They need specialized help when it comes to property change.
So there are some different ideas to look into here as you move into the groups of local businesses and corporations. Every business will be unique and different. Choose the larger businesses as part of this prospecting process and cycle.
Get to know exactly what they’re looking for when it comes to the next property change and relocation. Establish good channels of contact and communication with the right people in an ongoing way.
(N.B. these ideas are also sent out to regularly to our friends in Commercial Real Estate Online Snapshot to help amplify brokerage results…. Get your access here)
