Many clients, customers and acquaintances have asked me why we often feed each other on Wednesdays and Thursdays. The reasons are many, and here are the top few, in order of importance. Warning: the words you’re about to read are THE TRUTH!
1. We’re a hungry lot and we like to eat. I always serve home-made or close-to-home-made food to attract the largest numbers of agents and brokers. My pledge: You will NEVER find pizza at a Linda Broker Lunch.
2. We want our seller clients to know that we are marketing their property not just to the public but to the broker community as well.
3. We LOVE to see what the other gals/guys are doing and compare OUR listings to theirs in terms of how well they show, how well they’re priced, and, basically, how much of a threat they are to our listings.
4. We trade market observations, talk about good (and bad) vendors, and, basically, gossip.
5. We want feedback on our properties — good and bad. My experience over the years is that a savvy broker will never really be frank with me — why should they help me sell mine when theirs is just around the corner and has an extra half bath? We brokers live in a state of friendly detente — keeps it interesting and keeps us on our toes!
These gatherings are also a great way to introduce our favorite business partners to the broker community. At my lunch last week at 31 Eastbourne in Rozzie, I had Blair Hamaty (in photo), my favorite staging guy, on hand to meet and shmooze with other agents. The abysmal rainy weather dampened the turnout a bit, but it was still a fun and lively afternoon.
Another great thing about a weekday “open house” like this is I always invite brokers to bring their buyers. So, buyers also get a free lunch and, sometimes, a sneak preview of a property that they might otherwise have misssed!