Effective Staging: cuts through the noise.

I wrote my last blog "Quasimodo Kristal... the Hunch Back Realtor of Notre Denver" for two reasons. First I wanted to entertain abit, but second was to make a point.

The point I wanted to make was that like ANY media over time it becomes harder for one's message to be heard. And as wonderful as blogging is, it will be increasingly difficult to cut through noise and stand out as more and more people join and start sharing in their own blogs.

Effective marketing considers the media in which it is occurring and "cuts through". Humor is one way to cut through (for now). But it is not always appropriate. Pictures or a great head line can always help.

So bottom line...consider the medium and your audience and CRAFT your message. I once heard it discribed as "Speaking into the listening of your audience."

Keep this also in mind when you are looking for a real estate stager in your area. A good stager understands that the service they provide is a marketing tool that helps the seller cut through the noise. It is NOT interior decorating. If the stager doesn't ask a core and simple question, "Who will most likely buy this property?" then I would be suspect of their skills.

Craig

Quasimodo Kristal... the Hunch Back Realtor of Notre Denver

Recently Quasimodo Kristal, the Hunch Back Realtor of Notre Denver http://www.kristalsellsdenver.com/ sought us out… she needed help with her own personal transformation.

Unafraid of challenges, we at Real Estaging took Kristal on… after all transformations are our business.

We brought into our studios and worked for days... and I must say our stylists once again earned EVERY penny. We are proud of our work, whether it is in a home or on an utterly disgusting grotesque face like Kristal's.

Our transformation of Kristal brings forth the inner-beauty of Kristal to the outer-ugly of Kristal. (Oprah would be so proud!)














Smile... it's the weekend,
Craig

( KRISTAL... THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU... for being such a good sport and a sweetie!)

Lesson learned... take the higher ground.

So I call this blog my brain dump... and find it a valuable way to capture my thoughts and quickly document my days. (Oprah has her journals... I gotta blog. For some reason "gotta blog" sounds about as exciting as Charlie Brown when he was tricker treating... " I gotta rock.")

Well I just had the oddest/bizarre telephone call at 11:30 PM. I was startled as I woke to answer it... thinking it was one of those middle of the night emergency calls that makes your heart stop.

But it turned out it was a realtor that was first a friend and then a client.... in fact, it was the person I must give credit to for introducing me to the staging concept 2 1/2 years ago.

Recently things between us had changed... While I was grateful for the staging leads he provided us, early in our business he also pushed us to rent office space from him. My partner and I decided we didn't need additional office space as we knew it was more important to invest in our Prop Library. In hindsight, this decision to invest in our Prop Library was wise and critical to our success; it has been key in differentiating us from other stagers and gives us a very unique tool and marketing advantage.

So last May, when I learned he had found another staging resource for his client's needs... I was glad for him and respected his decision. I knew it was best to disassociate ourselves professionally in the hopes to save our nearly 20 year friendship. (But I now guess that can't be, as his call was abusive and full of anger.)

So the lesson I learned is... when you don't work well with someone it is smarter to take the higher ground and walk away... and respect each the other's differences. At least that's what I am going to do.

Craig

Marketing/Staging outside YOUR box

Today I had a very cool marketing conversation with a guy that was "thinking outside of the box". It was surprising considering he typically thinks IN BOXES (he operates STORE-TO-DOOR container storage solutions in Libertyville Illinois).

Anyway, Marty Freed of Store-To-Door http://www.storetodoor.com (with locations in 5 cities across the US) is looking to market a storage service package directly to home sellers. He knows that clutter kills equity... and wants to create a "no-brainer" solution for people that need to clean out the clutter. He asked us to be the "clutter" cops and come and point out what can stay and what NEEDS to go.

I thought it was a very clever idea... but what makes such a great service is the simplicity and ONE stop resource Marty is trying to be for his clients. He knows that what he can be is MORE than not just about packing up and storing "stuff"... it is about being a resource and how he can help making the WHOLE selling and moving experience as easy as possible.

The lesson for me was that we can all benefit by looking to each other to see who we like and who we can team with and provide our clients with the BEST real estate experience as possible... and while it is good for us, it is better for the client too.

Craig

AUTHENTIC & UNIVERSAL Credentialing for Stagers

A realtor collegue from Florida contacted me and shared the perfect parallel to help explain my concerns and wishes for AUTHENTIC and UNIVERSAL Credentialing of Stagers. (Now why didn't I think of this? LOL)

Anyway, JoAnn Guida made the GOOD POINT that ... "Once upon a time Interior Designers weren`t licensed either today they have to be a member of the ASID." She went on to ask, "Do you believe the same will hold true for staging?I believe this is exactly where this is heading."
So actually ASID is an impartial society that requires members meet a few acceptance standards: they must have a combination of accredited design education and/or full-time work experience and pass a two-day accreditation examination administered by the National Council for Interior Design Qualification (NCIDQ).

Interior Designers with ASID credentials after their names... have been trained outside of ASID. AND the NCIDQ exam is much like what an accountant would have to take in order to become credentialed as a CPA. The National Council for Interior Design Qualification does not teach... it sets the standards and tests the standards... for the safety and well being of the public.
To be honest I am not sure just how to best structure Staging Accrediation... all I do know is that "credentialing" would tell a more truthful story if it were created, administered and monitored by an IMPARTIAL 3rd party.

If a person wants to boast that they were trained at a particular school/methodology... that is FINE with me. And that is really what these "credentials" that you now see are. AND I do think that there are better schools training staging than others. Think Harvard vs. Lewis University... both schools have an accounting program. But JUST because a person went to Harvard does NOT mean the are better.

But this alphabet soup of credentials that people are throwing around staging world really MEANS NOTHING.

Let's put it this way... being a stager I could start teaching staging classes and after a person paid and sat thru my training I could give them a credential... like PSA - Professional Staging Associate. SOUNDS good but who the heck am I to define and determine what constitutes quality in an industry that operates in North America and Europe and beyond?

Thanks JoAnn for taking the time to ask and listen...
Craig

REAL ESTAGING announces a whole new level of service!

Here at Real Estaging we are constantaly trying to offer the best in real estate staging services. That is why we are proud to announce that we are the first staging company in North America to offer this level of service. We call it Real Erazing... perfect for properties that have no hope, and home sellers that have no clue.

Bruno Bulldozeroni, our lead stylist in this newly formed department, will be happy to tear down and destroy any listing of your choice, AND for a limited time... his cousin "Knuckles" will be happy to "persuade to reconsider" any seller who insistes they know the best asking price that their property should be listed at.

(This offer not valid in New Jersey, New York, Chicago, Las Vegas or Celebration FL)

Smile!
Craig

Stepping on "accredited/certified” stager’s toes…AGAIN!

I've said it before... staging talent is NOT just acquired by sitting in a weekend seminar or EVEN a week-long workshop. I have worked with people that have NO formal training and they have "it".

Real Estate staging is having an eye for symmetry, balance, scale, proportion, and color. It is also a keen and innate talent for marketing and visual merchandising, as well as, having a sense of organization, cleanliness and flow. It is an understanding of sales demographics and how they can impact the "setting" of a property for sale in the market place.

I DO NOT think that what I described above is something one "certifiably" LEARNS in a weekend workshop. I question what the industry is NOW calling "accredtied/certified" stager.

WHERE is the test of one's TRUE understanding of EACH staging skill I describe above? If a Realtor must be tested, if a Mortgage Broker must be tested, and if a Home Inspector must be tested... then why not a Real Estate Stager? If it is an "accredited" SKILL then let's do so, but not by paying $300 to$3,000 and sitting for a long weekend in a hotel conference room. LET'S accredit/certify stagers based on tested KNOWLEDGE and SKILL.

But if for now, one gets in touch with these skills, talents and passions by attending a seminar or workshop ... THEN it is money WELL SPENT. But just because one has spent the money does NOT make them qualified or suited to do what it takes. It only can make them aware to what is possible, but ultimately they need to have TALENT.

I am passionate for providing the public with a service that ULTIMATELY benefits them. I do not want them "bamboozled' by amateurs. It makes my job harder and more importantly ROBS sellers from what REALLY is possible when a professional is hired. It is NOT much different than the argument of what a WELL TRAINED professional Realtor has to offer when compared to a discount broker.

In my opinion (and that is ALL a blog is to be)... "Certified/Accredited" stagers shouldn't be so quick to defend their training... I believe one should be quicker to fight for and defend the benefits staging brings to a seller and make certain EVERYTHING in the industry protects those benefits.

I am not better... I am just ahead of most (not all) other stagers. I learn more and more every day.

Craig