Six Ways To Add Urgency To Your Presentations

By Claire Collins

1. The first training most of us received as leasing consultants included closing techniques.
We learned about urgency, and one of the examples of how to use urgency is to tell the client "I only have one left."

The next thing we learned was that we should never lie to the client. In times of scarce apartment availability, that's easy. "I only have one left" is not a sales technique, it's the truth. When the market is soft, it gets much harder to qualify this statement with "... on the third floor, facing the woods, that's never had a pet in residence, and has a new refrigerator..."

To give clients a good reason to act sooner rather than later, try:

How soon can you come in? If you've phone shopped your competition, you know that most leasing consultants don't even invite people who inquire about apartments to visit their communities. The ones who do ask something passive like "Would you like to set an appointment?" Get the client moving in the direction of your community by saying "We have an appointment open at 4:45 today, how's that?"

2. Accelerated Be-Back Cards.
$50 reward for returning with an application within 72 hours of first viewing an apartment is just not enough motivation for a client in a concession-driven market. Kick it up a notch by offering more for early response. For example, $150 for return within 24 hours, $100 for return within 48 hours, and $50 for return within 72 hours.

3. The Shop Around and See Technique.
Sure, everyone wants to look around a little more! Encourage them to do so. And offer a small amount of concession for every competitor's business card that they bring back to your community within 24 hours. Set a limit on the number of cards, though you probably won't need to since most clients get tired and return after three or four tours. This shows confidence in your community and works like a charm. (Credit due to Paul Bellantoni of Princeton Green for this technique.)

4. The Apartment of the Day.
Select the apartment home that has been vacant the longest. Set a price below market rent that makes it appealing to clients and that the owner can live with. Offer the special rate to client only if he or she will leave a deposit that day. No be-backs!

5. Countdown Special.
The first three (or four, or five) apartments rented for the week, starting Monday, receive something special. Whether the special is free rent or a ceiling fan, or some other gift, this makes a great hook for follow up. "Jane, I know how much you liked that two bedroom apartment home when you visited our community last week. I just learned that first three people to reserve an apartment home this week will receive a free garage for six months! How soon can you come in to complete your paperwork?"

6. Murphy's Law.
Toni Blake may or may not have invented this close, but she has one of the best ways to present it. "I might not show this apartment for two days or a week, but if you really want it, someone else will too! Murphy's Law, you know."
One final caveat: The key to making any type of urgency work is sincerity.

Clients must feel that any reason or rationale they are given to "Act Now!" is for their own good, not yours. Would you buy a car just because the salesperson needed the commission? Probably not. However if the price were right, you loved the color, and you could get a better deal today than tomorrow, you could find yourself filling out the loan paperwork, all the while thinking how clever you are for making the quick decision.

About The Author
Claire Collins, RAM, NALP, as Vice President of Leasing and Education for Princeton Properties, oversees the leasing operations of 34 apartment communities in three states. Her areas of expertise include market analysis, rehab repositioning, development of marketing promotions, and design and implementation of in-house training programs.

Her involvement within the multifamily housing industry includes NAHB Multifamily's RAM Board of Governors, NAA's Education Committee, and teaching the National Apartment Leasing Professional (NALP) course. Claire began her career in the multifamily housing industry in 1987 as a Leasing Specialist with Certified Leasing and Sales Specialists (CLASS) of Atlanta, GA. She received a BA in Psychology from Emory University.
Phone: (978) 458-8700;
Fax: (978) 458-8701.

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