How to Look Less Like An Agent

Written by Acme Mag

We’re a real estate industry marketing magazine with a difference. How can we say such a statement? Well, look at the name of this article – How To Look Less Like An Agent.

Seems a bit counter intuitive, doesn’t it? We promise there’s a method to this madness, just keep reading. More often than not you’re working with homeowners that are trusting you with one of their biggest assets. That takes a whole lot of trust and assurance; especially when you consider a report by Roy Morgan revealing that only seven per cent of Australians rank agents highly for their ethics and honesty. Yikes.

So, if you have 3-7 seconds to form a trustworthy first impression of yourself to prospective sellers – what do you do? Hint: This is where dressing less like an agent comes into play.

It’s no secret that people instinctively bond with what they are familiar with, which is why you should be dressing to reflect your market in a bid to fast track connections and make the right first impression. Lucky for you, we’ve done the hard yards and delivered four key tips to help you reflect your market and make a smashing first impression.

Start by considering the market that you work in and the general demographic that you meet on a daily basis. This will guide how you present yourself. For example, agents in affluent suburbs may need to dress differently to those in working-class areas.

While you might dress to your market, you still need to dress to your personal preferences. This is important as it ensures that your ‘uniform’ doesn’t inhibit your selling prowess. Establish the image you present or would like to present, whether that be the epitome of professional, credible, polished, creative or charismatic. Once you know how you are defined, combine this style with aspects of your market and own it because confidence is key.

It shouldn’t need to be said, but here we are. Even though you are dressing to your own persona and that of your market, your clothes should still be appropriate for the occasion, the agency you work for, the people you work with and the time of year.

As an extension of how you dress, consider if your market uses particular expressions or body language. If appropriate, you might consider adding these into your ‘professional persona’ to better connect with your market – for example, if your market often uses the phrase ‘stoked’ as a replacement of satisfied/excited you could softly include this in your professional vocabulary.