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| Building Success |
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When starting out in real
estate, KC focused on working with builders who, in his market, often only
turned to real estate agents in desperation if a spec home didn't sell. K.C.
saw this as a valuable opportunity to convince builders that agents are
useful from the very beginning of the construction process. He explains, "we wanted to
establish a working relationship with builders on the front end." Over time, K.C.
not only built those builder relationships, but eventually applied his
business background and real estate expertise to establish his own building
company, Pillar Homes. Recently, K.C. shared with us some of the keys to his
success. |
Monthly New Home Starts Continue to Hammer Away at Records Savvy Buyers are Changing Channels Small Houses That Require Big Imaginations Agent of My Success – KC Chermak
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"An important thing to remember is that in new construction you're selling a vision – an intangible product – the passion of getting exactly what you want. In resales, it's as if you're buying somebody else's old shoes … they have to settle. New construction isn't about settling for what the buyer thinks he or she wants but actually creating what they want. That's why the promotional tagline for my building company is "I can build your home but I’d rather create your passion." "When you're marketing for a builder this is an important thing to emphasize…" What are some of the keys to your success as a builder and real estate professional? "I like to tell people that I am a businessman who got into building. I have a marketing degree from Miami University of Ohio. I always approach my business from the marketing side of things. I use what I learned at Miami University and added the specialty training of Dennis Walsh. That's the foundation for my business. "People who take Dennis Walsh's Certified New Home Specialist(TM) Training Program will be able to help builders with marketing and sales because most builders don't approach things from an organized business perspective. Someone who understands Dennis's strategies is going to "sophisticate" a builder and bring a professional business aspect to the builder. Effective marketing is going to save that builder money and help generate a lot more money over time." You mentioned that some of the trends in new home construction you see are what you call "specialty passions" and "pampering passions." What are these? "I am building for one of the members of the Twins baseball team and his specialty passion is a batting cage and gym built underneath his garage. He's getting a house attached to his athletic passions and that really makes it the house he wants. I built an English pub in a home for a guy to remind him of a place he and his buddies enjoyed in college. For a customer who owns a liquor store, the whole theme for the house was grapes. We had grapes carved on the front door and custom stair rail balusters with carved grapes as well. "Some pampering passions include heated tile floors, advanced air filters to remove allergens, and water purification systems. I would call these pampering passions because the buyers are saying, 'they’re good for me and they make me feel better when I am in the house.'" How do you find these passions in your buyers? "Part of Dennis's training is keeping track of buyer's needs and motivations through the use of various CNHS organizational forms and checklists … we use a lot of these to stay organized. During the process of buyer decision making – based on comments that the buyers make – we keep track of not only important needs, but even little ideas they like. Then my designers, architects and I incorporate those into the house. "The team I have assembled helps pull those passions out of the buyers – they ask the right questions to help the buyers find the things that are really exciting for them. I tell my buyers, 'you may not know what your passions are until you start down the path with my designers.' The customer with the liquor store didn't really know what he wanted, but once the designer understood his passions and suggested the carved grape details, he flipped out and wanted it everywhere. Do you have any advice for agents interested in new home sales? "I run into so many cocky agents who think they know it all – if they sat through just one hour of Dennis’s training they would walk away with great ideas that would improve their performance. The last time Den and Tree were here to train, I went to the class and they joked, 'what are you doing here, you could teach the class?' That was a nice thing to say, but I feel that no matter how much you've learned, there is always something else you can do to improve. There is always one thing you are missing and that one thing can help set the stage for the rest of your business. You always can learn more." Share your success story email success@sellnewhomes.com... |
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Dennis
Walsh & Associates, Inc. Website
Design, Graphics, Product Logos and Product Interfaces |
Just one of the many
opportunities for real estate agents in selling new homes is to "take a walk
on the wild side" and become a builder. K.C. Chermak is a real estate
professional who has spent years on both sides of the trenches as a real
estate agent and builder. K.C. works as a real estate agent in Wayzata, Minnesota. After many years of success in real estate
sales, K.C. has
also been a builder of high-end custom homes for the past eight years in the eastern suburbs of
Minneapolis.