Once you clearly understand your core values, and the clients you want to work with, you are ready to build a client interview. The focus for the client interview is to evaluate values and connect with the client or prospect at the trusted advisor level. Here are three rules to becoming that trusted advisor for your client.

1. Trusted advisors ask a lot of questions.

They listen for the answers. This method means we are well scripted and prepared. Too often we begin talking about our companies and ourselves before we determine the clients values and decision-making process. Our job is to find out their values and decision-making process, then identify the problems and help with solutions that align with our clients’ values and our values.

2. Trusted advisors avoid superficial chitchat and bonding with the client.

Trusted advisors have meaningful conversations. We have been taught to bond with the client. In today’s busy world our prospects don’t have time, nor do they want that. The doctor, dentist, attorney we use do not bond with their clients and patients. Yet we have immense respect for these people. We need to use the values conversation to uncover the values of the client and prospect. The values conversation will lead us to the door of being the trusted advisor.

3. Trusted advisors' skill, ability and confidence are obvious to the prospect or client.

The best trusted advisors don’t need to explain their credentials. They posses the confidence and ability that they are the person for the job. This confidence comes from practicing their professional skills.

There are many trainers talking about becoming a trusted advisor. They talk in terms of feeling and focus. They talk as if you are a trusted advisor and can magically achieve that status. Nothing could be further from the truth. For too long we have been taught that being a trusted advisor is being the opposite of a salesperson; being a trusted advisor is a step beyond being a salesperson. You must be a master at sales to achieve trusted advisor status. You pass through being a great salesperson to become a trusted advisor. Knowing what to say and when to say it is crucial for the trusted advisor. You have to master the scripts, dialogues and objection handling techniques to become a trusted advisor. You will have increased confidence, control and commitment if you learn sales skills. You will master the steps to achieve trusted advisor status.

During a client interview the two key elements are building trust and emotional involvement. A trusted advisor goes beyond the needs and wants of the prospect or client to get to the values and feelings behind the needs and wants. These values and feelings have immense emotional power. Independence, sincerity, providing for the family, freedom, achievement, balance, self-worth, inner peace, spiritual attainment are examples of values your clients and prospects desire in life. They may deem these highly important. Your job is to uncover them and integrate your solutions with them achieving these life values.

The "needs and wants" conversations you have with prospects are superficial. The "values" conversations are deep, connecting and meaningful. You must probe through the level of needs and wants and reach the values level. That’s where the prospects and clients start to view you as different than any other salesperson that they encounter. There are five steps to the values conversation, each one building on the next one. Imagine a staircase beginning with the first question and with each following question and answer being one more step up until you finally reach the top step. Each step reveals more of their values and true objectives in life. Then you will be able to help them achieve these values and objectives through their real estate decisions.

Step 1:

The first step in the value-based interview is the hardest one. It starts the process that the clients or prospects have never experienced from a salesperson. They are waiting and ready for you to sell them something. They are ready from moment one for you to begin selling them. You must resist the temptation to move into ‘How great I am’ and ‘How great our company is’ and ‘These are all the things I will do for you’. You must move into the questions. The questions are the process… the answers are the result. The result is guaranteed if the process is performed well.

Here is an example of a value-based script:

(Clients name), I am glad that we were able to meet today. You are investing time to meet with me. This tells me that you must be serious about making smart choices about your home ownership. That’s true isn’t it?

Question #1: Help me understand, what’s important about homeownership to you?

Client: Homeownership gives me security.

Question #2: (clients name), what’s important about security?

Client: Having security allows me the freedom to enjoy my home and family in our own area.

Question #3: That’s interesting. Freedom means different things to different people…what’s important about freedom to you?

Client: The freedom allows me to have more time with my family and have a more balanced life.

Question #4: Now let’s assume, (clients name), that you are in the position of having all the time you want with your family and you are enjoying a balanced life. What’s important about being in that position to you?

Client: That would give me a wonderful sense of accomplishment.

Question #5: Accomplishment…that’s interesting…give me some perspective on that. What’s important about a sense of accomplishment?

Client: By accomplishing time and balance with my family I will feel satisfied that I am achieving my life purpose.

Confirming question: Is there anything more important than feeling satisfied that you are achieving your life’s purpose?

Using this interview style will uncover your client’s values, which will enable you to give better service to help achieve these values and objectives in life. You now have the information from your client that will allow you to impact their life rather than just sell them a new home or sell their home.

Once you have all these core values (security, freedom, more time with family and life balance, feeling of accomplishment, satisfaction and purpose in life), you integrate them into a loyalty or client commitment question.

(Clients name), suppose that we can create a strategy that will help you make smart choices about homeownership. The choices that would help you achieve security and the freedom to spend more time with your family so you can have more balance. That would create a sense of accomplishment and satisfaction for you and your family so you can feel that you are fulfilling your life purpose. If we could do that would you and I have the basis for doing business together?

I have never had clients say no to that. It would be completely inconsistent with their previous answers. You have now set the foundation for your relationship and trusted advisor status. You can now move into the nuts and bolts of your old listing or buyer interview where you look at pricing and their needs and wants. You can now integrate their values into the lower section of your presentation. You can demonstrate through your benefits and services of doing business with you and how they can achieve their life values.

Then by sharing your values with them you will be able to draw them into a deeper trusted advisor relationship with you. They will see that you are both similar in your values in life. That similarity will attract them to do business with you.

By evaluating your values and theirs you will be able to disengage the prospects or clients before you invest too much time and energy. If values are not aligned you should not be in the relationship with a client. There is someone else that would be better to service his or her real estate needs.

The world of sales is changing faster than most of us care to change. The sales model is transforming in the real estate industry, by applying the following steps, you will transform your sales career to the next level.

1. Choosing the clients and clearly classifying them on the first call.
2. Determining your core values.
3. Developing the skills of a trusted advisor.
4. Mastering the values interview.

You will be able to dramatically increase volume and service, while decreasing the time you spend at work. The goal for sales professionals is to dramatically increase the hourly rate they earn. Achieving this goal will give you the options of increased earnings or increased time at home with your family or both. After all, that’s what you do this for anyway, isn’t it?

Published: November 14, 2000

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Dirk Zeller is a sought out speaker, celebrated author and CEO of Real Estate Champions. His company trains more than 350,000 Agents worldwide each year through live events, online training, self-study programs, and newsletters. The Real Estate community has embraced and praised his six best-selling books; Your First Year in Real Estate, Success as a Real Estate Agent for Dummies®, The Champion Real Estate Agent, The Champion Real Estate Team, Telephone Sales for Dummies®, Successful Time Management for Dummies®, and over 300 articles in print. To learn more regarding this article, please visit www.realestatechampions.com.