A guide to winning the business!
Too many tenant representatives frequently ink new clients even though they are absolutely clueless about the business of their clients. If the tenant representative is successful with this approach, it is probably more a function of blind luck.
Before the tenant representative even walks in the door to meet the client for the first time, he or she should already be prepared to converse effectively with the client about their business. This will enable the tenant representative to understand the client’s “needs” and to provide the “solution” needed.
Consider the age-old adage of “Sell yourself before you sell the product”.
Proper research and education will provide an edge before going in for the sales pitch. Yes, it’s elementary, but many commercial real estate prospectors fly-in blind. Breaking the ice with knowledge about the prospect makes a great case for yourself as their representative. Foremost, check-out the individual(s) with whom you are meeting, perhaps a LinkedIn profile. “I noticed you went to Stanford; my brother went there”, or “I see you’re a Cap’s fan”. You get it!
Suggested procedure: At a minimum Google the business as well as the players. If the company is listed on an exchange, take a look at the company’s performance. Look at the chairman/CEO’s forward in their annual report. Checkout their product lines.Continuing Education to Increase Your Acumen!
- A course in Accounting 101 (even if you took it in college). This will enable the tenant representative to thoroughly understand the components of an income & expense statement and balance sheet along with the significance of cash flow vs profits.
- A Course in Business Law 101
- A Course in Financing the Business Enterprise
Why is increasing your business acumen relevant? You are doing your client’s bidding in terms of articulating the business and the significance of their financial statements. If there are obvious negatives, these may be of concern to the landlord’s representative, the asset manager, and the decision maker. Understanding the negatives will help the tenant representative to put them in perspective and perhaps even take them out of the conversation.
It is all about PREPARATION, the most important word for a salesperson! It is not intended to be a guide for the entire sales process.
Scott Elkins has been a CRE practitioner for 27 years in the Washington DC Region. Previously he spent more than 2 decades as a senior lending officer, most recently as Senior Vice President for Corporate Banking for Sovran Bank NA in the Washington Market.
Clients included, Mars, Inc, Kay Corporation, Gannett, Marriott, and Equitable Life. Included locally, Jack Kent Cooke and the Redskins, Clyde's Restaurant Group, and the Brown Automotive Group. However, his experience included many small and middle-market borrowers as well.
Too many tenant representatives frequently ink
new clients even though they are absolutely clueless about the
business of their clients. If the tenant representative is successful with this approach, it
is probably more a function of blind luck. Before the tenant
representative even walks in the door to meet the client for the
first time, he or she should already be prepared to converse
effectively with the client about their business.
This will enable the tenant representative to understand the
client’s “needs” and to provide the “solution” needed.
