S.E.C. Real Estate Observer

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The Power of the Room
Nick DeMarte, S.E.C.

I often get asked, “Why do you travel all across the country to attend equity marketing meetings?” The answer is simple: “The Power of the Room.”

The Society hosts 5 invitational meetings throughout the year.  We are considered the nation’s premier creative real estate marketing group.  The format consists of a 3-day meeting where brokers and agents come together and are provided with multiple opportunities to present their clients’ properties for sale and/or exchange.  Marketing sessions are cooperative forums focusing on understanding the client’s desired and needed benefits to help facilitate a successful transaction.  Our philosophy is that real estate is more about the “people” and less about the real estate itself.

There are numerous benefits to attending an equity marking meeting.  I wanted to highlight a few reasons I attend meetings.  The first is the creativity and willingness to help others solve problems and offer solutions.  The spirit of cooperation throughout the meeting is unlike anything you will ever experience in the commercial real estate world.  Every meeting is a learning adventure.  The wealth of knowledge and experience in the room is worth the price of admission even before we get into the benefits offered for your clients.  I always leave each meeting refreshed with new ideas and ways to structure deals to help my clients meet their goals and objectives.

Over the years, my family has moved multiple times, and this has provided me with opportunities to meet new brokers and agents from across the country.  As I’m talking with them about what I do and who I am, I’ll often ask the following questions:  When was the last time you were able to bring multiple offers to your clients on the same day?

If I can provide you with a forum that will enable you to present multiple offers to your clients, are you interested in learning more?

Our meeting format offers attendees multiple opportunities throughout the meeting to present the benefits they are seeking or providing to the group, all while looking for “takers” or interested parties to further discuss a possible sale, purchase, or exchange.  The meetings are structured in such a way that you will be able to showcase your client’s properties during formal moderated presentations or through multiple quick-pitch segments throughout the meeting, enabling you to receive written offers to review with your clients for discussion and possible counteroffers.

Understanding your client’s needs and the benefits that they and the property have to offer is one of the keys to keeping the meeting room engaged.  Attendees who take the time to counsel their clients and who are prepared to clearly present the benefits being offered by their clients will keep the meeting room engaged and, in turn, get you offers and ideas on how to structure a successful transaction.  Everyone in the room is looking for a set of benefits.

We have all had that “challenging client.” Another benefit the room can offer us as brokers and agents is an opportunity to help counsel these clients.  Throughout a meeting, you will get offers and feedback on your properties and presentations.  Here is a situation we have all seen and heard before: a client who previously had an offer by a major drug store retailer on a parcel right before a downturn in the market.  Needless to say, it did not close.  Now, years later, the client wants to re-list and sell the parcel, and of course, he thinks it is worth at least the same if not more than it was before.  But the reality is market values in that area have not rebounded.  He does not want to hear any reasoning on current market values; bottom line, he never recovered from the other deal falling apart.  This is how the power of the room can help.  You bring this listing to a marketing session and present the benefits the parcel has to offer, explain the prior situation, acknowledge that the owner is a bit of a challenge, and present the other benefits the owner is possibly willing to provide.  This is an opportunity for you to encourage the room to write you offers that you can bring back to discuss and help counsel your client.  Now you are presenting and discussing actual offers with your client.  These may not be what he wants to hear, but you are just the messenger delivering offers and discussing counteroffers.  You are not talking about what-ifs or trying to convince your client on what you think market value is.  The room is going to help determine what the “value” might be based on today’s market conditions—if you as the presenter keep an open mind and do not shut down the room with statements like  “My client would never do that,” “It’s not what my client wants,” and “That won’t work.” This can provide you with a great counseling tool to help you with that difficult client.  The power of the room can help.

Here are some additional benefits of attending equity marketing meetings and the power of the room for you and your clients:

• Creative problem solvers
• Network of buyers looking to purchase investment properties from across the country
• New formulas and ways to structure deals
• Relationship building with like-minded brokers and agents

Engaging the room and offering in on other properties presented enables you to bring offers back to your clients for discussion and review.

Where else can you go and

• present your client’s properties to a room filled with interested investors?
• offer their property to a prospective buyer for sale or exchange?
• receive multiple written offers for discussion and review with your clients?
• get valuable feedback and formulas to structure a successful transaction?

Are you ready to attend our next equity marketing meeting?  I hope to see you there . . .