Honesty IncludesMeaning What You SayHonesty: truthfulness, sincerity, or franknessHonesty is important from an ethical, a moral and a legal perspective.However a lack of honesty can negatively impact your marketing and limit your success. In the Zone & Sweating On The ConsoleTo the people who know her, Julie is an honest person. Now retired from her profession, she lives a quiet life in an equally quiet and pleasant suburban community. Throughout her life, Julie has practiced what to me is a strange communication technique. Very often she says things that appear to have totally bypassed her thought process and just pop out of her mouth. By way of background, Julie is not in the least bit athletically inclined. Taking her dogs for a walk around the neighborhood is a notable achievement. It was during a discussion of exercising and working out that one of Julie's most memorable comments appeared. In describing a recent workout on a treadmill, she reported that she was “...in the zone and sweating on the console...” No one was quite sure where this comment came from. Nor did anyone understand why Julie even said such a thing. Knowing what Julie liked--comfort--and what she didn't like—exercise--this comment was obviously absurd. She didn't really mean what she said..and probably wasn't expecting any one to take it seriously. The most likely explanation was that it was Julie doing what she normally did...saying things that she thought people wanted to hear. At one level, Julie's comments are made with the best of intentions—to please other people by saying what she thinks they want to hear. Top The Honesty TestBut at another level, her comments totally fail the honesty test.If for example she has ever been anywhere near a treadmill, it is highly unlikely that she would have worked out on it, let alone worked up a sweat. In all probability her story simply was not true. Was Julie's story sincere, genuine or real? Not likely...even the most gentle of questioning would have brought about a confession that she had heard the tale...not experienced it. And finally, was the story frank and unmistakably true? Not at all. Unfortunately, Julie's story was in all likelihood not an honest tale. On the positive side, few, if any, people have been inconvenienced, let alone suffered from Julie's treadmill story or others like it. Trivial as it appears in Julie's case, the tendency for people to say what they think others want to hear also occurs the real estate industry. A Safe Neighborhood...Not!Several years ago some friends, let's call them the Cameron family bought a big old house in a nearby city.The house itself was run down and desperately in need restoration...a real fixer-upper. Most of the other houses were grand and gracious...some restored...all lovingly maintained by their proud owners. When showing the house, the Camerons' Realtor, whose name I recall was Bruce, referred to some of the well-known neighbors. With such highly regarded people living just north of the house, Bruce concluded that this was a good, safe neighborhood. Bruce probably didn't mean what he said..it made sense at the time and just kind of popped out. The Camerons welcomed Bruce's conclusion because they were planning on raising a family in the house they were looking to purchase. Shortly after the Camerons moved into the house, a bicycle disappeared. A few weeks later one of their cars was broken into and the radio was taken. Within the first month, the other car was taken from the backyard. When discussing the loss of their car with the investigating police officer, the Camerons expressed their frustration at having things taken in 'such a safe neighborhood.' In response, the police officer explained that...yes the area to the north, where the highly regarded people lived, was a relatively low-crime area. However...the neighborhood to the east had a very high crime rate. Some time later, the Camerons discussed the crime issue with Bruce. His response was that the house was in an area outside his normal market...how could he possibly have known about the problem. And besides he added...he was only trying to help the Camerons. In making his well intentioned comment abut the house being in 'a good, safe neighborhood' Bruce was doing his version of Julie's treadmill story. Like Julies story, it failed the honesty test. However, unlike Julie's story it had consequences. Top The CostsBy relying on Bruce's conclusion, the Camerons had no reason to anticipate the possibility of the loss of property...and take appropriate precautions.As a result, they lost a bicycle, a car radio and a car all within the first month. Although less measurable than the Cameron's loss, Bruce's loss is more significant. Ethical considerations and legal issues aside, from a marketing perspective, the cost of Bruce's momentary lack of honesty represents is a huge loss of opportunity. There is a common marketing belief that if you please one person that person might tell some one else. (Applying the principles of referral marketing you can help satisfied clients tell more than one person each about you...but that's another story). However if you upset one person, that single person will tell 19 others. If the Camerons told me about Bruce's unfounded conclusion, how many other people did they tell? However many people the Camerons told, the overall effect will weaken Bruce's personal brand and his brand promise. Bruce has also lost the potential long-term value that clients like the Cameron's represent. Bruce was not involved in the subsequent sale of the house. Nor are the Camerons likely to recommend him to friends and refer others to him. Overall, the impact on Bruce's client pipeline will be significant. Top The Lesson To Be LearnedIf like Julie, you enjoy telling stories that you think will please others, the question of whether not they are totally honest is a non-issue.Julie's stories are inconsequential...no one takes them seriously nor is any one likely to be inconvenienced by their lack of honesty. However, as a real estate professional, you and what you say are taken very seriously. Prospects and clients do rely on what you say. They could suffer serious consequences if your comments do not pass the honesty test. Certainly from the ethical, moral and legal perspectives, it is important to be totally honest in your work. As Bruce's loss of opportunity illustrates, a lack of honesty can also have a huge impact on the overall effectiveness or your marketing...and your ultimate success in real estate. Top
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