Real estate is now primarily a marketing exercise.
Like any successful product it has to be packaged properly.
Today’s market demands that property receives the attention of a skilled and enthusiastic team that cares. These days, time is a limited and precious resource, especially quality family and leisure time. These increasing time pressures have been instrumental in changing the way real estate is bought and sold.
The internet has done wonders to the real estate industry by shifting the marketing plan to something that is more internet-friendly. The buying habits of the buyers also have changed drastically. NAR’s (National Association of Realtors) new statistics said that now 80% of buyers shop online first before actually seeing a home.
I recognize this, and that the role of the property consultant has changed from being a salesperson, to being skilled marketers and negotiators.
Staging is a must in order to market a property as widely and as effectively as possible to attract as many potential buyers as are available.
Rapidly dollars heretofore spent on traditional print media marketing will shift to staging.
A staged home not only increases the curb appeal to the buyers, it also help potential buyers to move in mentally. It slows down the buyers during the touring process and helps them to remember the listing. You can really wow a potential buyer with staging. A staged home photographs better than a vacant one or a non-staged, lived-in home because it’s more edited and styled professionally to appeal to a broader range of buyers and to showcase the pluses and spatial relations of the listings through the photograph. So staging will help to move buyers to the open houses and increase foot traffic. A staged home sells faster in any market, no matter hot or cold.
I was introduced to staging by my partner, Debra Donnelly. After putting staging on the map in Calgary, Canada, Debra moved back home to Southern California and immediately engaged my lifelong passion for architecture, design, packaging, and marketing. I grew up with the influence and inspiration of such local architects as Frank Gehry, Tom Black and Bill Odoud, Craig Ellwood, Robert Graham, Richard Meier, George Wyman, Pierre Koenig, Frank Lloyd Wright, Richard Neutra, James Tyler and more. I have been passionate about interior design and architecture since I was a young boy.
Staging is growing. It is a disenfranchised business made up of mom and pop operators nationally. I recognize that until one company can develop a consortium or deliver significant staging service geography, real estate brokerage and marketing companies are going to have a hard time supporting a meaningful staging initiative.
I am working with Real Estate Marketers and Furniture Rental companies to expand their scope of service in support of the growing staging industry.
I am also the Co-Founder with Debra Donnelly of Westside Staging and Design and Oceanview Staging and Design
www.westsidestaging.com www.oceanviewstaging.com