{"id":22429,"date":"2019-07-12T16:07:18","date_gmt":"2019-07-12T14:07:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.commercialcafe.com\/blog\/?p=22429"},"modified":"2025-03-25T16:09:52","modified_gmt":"2025-03-25T13:09:52","slug":"successful-cre-brokers-persuasion-people-skills","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.commercialcafe.com\/blog\/successful-cre-brokers-persuasion-people-skills\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Successful CRE Brokers Need Excellent Persuasion and People Skills"},"content":{"rendered":"

There\u2019s a direct correlation between how effective commercial real estate brokers are in persuading other people and how successful they are in the CRE business.\u00a0Think about it: brokers need to persuade other agents to co-broker or pay a referral fee. Clients need to be convinced to contract and listing terms and to pay a fair commission. Managing brokers need to be persuaded to keep commission splits and office fees low. Last, but not least, influencing lenders, title companies, property inspectors, and many other parties involved in a commercial real estate transaction<\/a> on countless unexpected issues to keep a deal on track.<\/p>\n

Here are six outcomes all CRE brokers need to achieve and the persuasive skills to use to get what you want:<\/p>\n

Outcome #1: People give you more than they get<\/h2>\n

Also known as \u201cpayback time\u201d, the persuasive skill of reciprocity<\/em><\/strong> makes people want to return favors and pay back what they owe.<\/p>\n

Reciprocity doesn\u2019t have to be simply a quid-pro-quo. In fact, the most skilled persuaders get people to perform much bigger favors \u2013 such as giving them a solid referral \u2013 in exchange for a smaller favor received such as being featured on their blog or taken out to dinner.<\/p>\n

Outcome #2: Prospects do what they tell you they\u2019re going to do<\/h2>\n

Getting people to follow through on what they promise to do is accomplished with the persuasive skill of commitment and consistency<\/em><\/strong>. The more people publicly commit to saying they want you as their broker, the greater the likelihood is that they\u2019ll be motivated to choose you.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s good to get people used to making small commitments to you first, things like subscribing to your newsletter or attending a free seminar. Once they receive consistent value from you<\/strong>, they\u2019re much more likely to commit to buying the office building you have listed or leasing your coworking space<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Outcome #3: Make it easy for prospects to choose you<\/h2>\n

Using social proof is another persuasive technique<\/em><\/strong> that successful commercial real estate brokers use. Think of social proof as a \u201cfollowing the herd mentality\u201d. The more people see other people doing something, the more likely they are to do that same thing. And the \u2018thing\u2019 that you want them to do is to do business with you.<\/p>\n

Some examples of using social proof online and offline include listing the number of people following you on Twitter, testimonials from satisfied clients, and CRE industry recognition rewards or certifications you\u2019ve recently received.<\/p>\n

Outcome #4: Convince people you\u2019re just like them<\/h2>\n

It\u2019s human nature that people want to be liked. They like other people who like them and who have the same traits and values as themselves. Either online or in-person, the persuasive technique of liking<\/em><\/strong> is used in a few different ways:<\/p>\n