Open Houses offer a proven way to generate interest in listings. When it comes to residential real estate, no one buys a home without first checking it out. People now prefer to actually visit their homes, although they can do so online with virtual tours. Open houses allow you to interact with hundreds of thousands of potential buyers over the weekend.
Some of the people who visit will be looky-loos who want to see what the Open House Mississauga is used for and how it compares to their own in terms of price and size. But oftentimes genuine potential buyers may come in and you can’t always tell the difference, so it’s best to be professional, and friendly, and build a relationship with everyone. You’ll know something’s up when you see prospects come second or third.
So how can you make the most of your open house? See below for 6 ways to attract people to your open house and make it successful.
- Go online
It doesn’t matter how prepared you are or even how beautiful your house is if people don’t know. In today’s world, people find everything on the internet. When it comes to housing, it is usually the first place they go (especially for younger first-time homebuyers). According to the National Association of Realtors, more than 90% of homebuyers rely on the Internet to conduct searches.
In fact, many people are using smartphone apps to find open houses near them and compare their sale prices to competing properties. Make sure you register for your open house online.
- Use signs to get drive-bys
Use banners and directional signs to direct people to your open house. Print out a map of your area and mark the location of all signs before Open House. Install on nearby roads with heavy traffic. When setting it up, make sure it stands out and is easy to follow. If there are not many visitors, you can drive by following all the signs to avoid tipping over or getting stuck.
- Bribe
One of the first recorded uses of incentives to attract buyers. A realtor in Dallas offered free soft drinks to visitors and to lucky buyers. The promotion drew 30,000 people to the open house. How do you bribe a buyer today?
Add refreshments and snacks. Is the weather cool? Prepare hot chocolate and paper cups on a large tray of freshly baked cookies. Is it hot? A large pitcher of iced lemonade will help each visitor relax and cool off as they walk through the house. If you have a big game that day, put it on TV.
- Follow-up
Have a signature sheet ready when they come in. Ideally, when you request an email address, you should have something to offer, such as a special report outlining the key features of selling homes in your area or an inexpensive way to improve home value. After the open house, email a copy of the listing flyer and thank them for coming. You can also use this opportunity to showcase similar properties and other upcoming open houses in your area.
- Building Partnerships
Let local artists and interior designers do their work, using your home as a platform. Show off your home and work at the same time. For a new home, having furniture makes it much easier to imagine each potential customer living there.
- Be generic.
You want other people to envision the house as their own. You also don’t want them to feel like strangers passing through someone else’s house. It’s awkward. If you are showing a house that still has tenants, remove all personal items if possible.
Put away the family photos framed around the house and doctor visit reminders pinned to the refrigerator. Turn off the volume of your answering machine so that visitors don’t hear new messages. If a particular room is full of furniture, see if you can move the extra furniture to the garage to create more space during the open house.
Creating an open house is not a two-hour picnic. It takes time to get people to show up, host, and follow up after the event is over. It takes a lot of prep work, a positive attitude, and great communication skills.
