As a follow-up to Property Remains King and Some Buyers Really Suck, I would like to share the goings-on with the buyer who was the subject of my angry tirade. I just got off of the phone with said buyer and it appears that in addition to some blatant miscommunication on both of our parts (she still admits trying to cut me out of a deal at a new development), she alleges that she was completely unaware of my displeasure with the course of events that took place after our initial meeting and she had some complaints about how she felt she was "neglected" from the start of her search.
In the spirit of giving back to my industry as well as becoming better at servicing my clients, I share a list of my mistakes/shortcomings that resulted in this client's dissatisfaction (BTW...it doesn't matter if these things are accurate from my perspective because the client's perception is generally all that really matters when judging the service we provide):
- I didn't ask her enough questions about her perceptions of each property (I thought I did?)
- I assumed that the price range that she gave me was firm and accurate. (I pride myself on listening carefully to what my clients tell me but need to be more cognizant that often times price ranges are flexible)
- I spent too much time on my BBerry while we were together. (GUILTY!...I have to work on focusing on the task/client at hand)
- I wasn't clear with our next step after the initial showing. (I absolutely should have be more clear with how the offer process would play out)
- I seemed to be "inconvenienced" by her presence. (WOW!!! This is shocking but something that I will be acutely aware of so that it doesn't happen again)
Moral of the story: When something goes awry in my business, I make every effort to listen to criticism and correct anything that I may have done wrong. In an industry of independent contractors running our own businesses, I answer to a multitude of bosses...my customers!
Of course none of this changes the fact that this buyer tried to get a better deal for herself by removing me from a transaction. But after speaking with her at length this morning, I completely understand (I DON'T AGREE) with how she came to justify her actions. She felt that I really brought no value to the transaction and therefore she was comfortable "cutting me loose." After our conversation, she seems to appreciate the value that I can bring and YES, we are resuming our search together. Stay tuned for more...
译文:
买卖间的误解
接着我以前的文章“房产火爆，客户难缠”，我想谈谈与那个令我恼火的买家的一些后续事件。我一挂下那个买家的电话，就觉得我们之间的误解似乎加深了（她还承认试图让我在一个新的项目上碰壁），她说她根本就不知道我对我们首次碰面时发生的事情有什么不快，而且还抱怨在找房子一开始，她就觉得自己被“冷落”了。
为了做好生意并更好地服务客户，对于此客户不满，我有一份记录我的缺陷和错误的清单（顺便说下，我不关心这些内容是否符合自己的看法，因为在评价我们的服务时，客户的看法说了算）：
Q 在了解她对每处房产的看法时，我没有问足够多的问题。（我认为我问的够多了？）
Q 对于她给我的房价的价格范围，我自以为是地认为是精确和固定的。（我很骄傲我能仔细听取客户说的内容，但是我也应该认识到客户给出的价格范围是灵活的）
Q 当我们在一起时，我在我的黑莓手机上花了太多时间。（罪过！...我得先照顾好手上的客户和工作）
Q 在初次带她看了房子后，我不清楚下一步做什么。（我必须更清楚的了解提议过程是怎么泡汤的）
Q 和她在一起时，我似乎有点“不自在”。（喔!!!这令人震惊，为了不让类似事件发生，我要对某些东西更敏感些）
这件事的道德教训：当我的生意出问题时，我会努力听取人们对我的错误的指正和批评。在一个独立承包商横行的行业，我有很多老板要伺候...我的客户们！
当然，没有什么能改变这样的事实：把我请出这项交易是因为这位买家想得到一个更合算的交易。但在今天早上和她长谈之后，我彻底理解了（尽管我并不认同）她是怎样为自己的行为辩解的。她觉得我在这项交易中没起什么作用，因此“把我晾一边”也没有什么不妥。在我们结束谈话后，她似乎又开始欣赏起我能做的一些事情。是的，我们又一起继续搜寻她感兴趣的房子了。好戏还在后头...