What is a Pre-Listing Packet?

A Pre-Listing Packet (also called a Pre-Listing Package) is information you share with a home seller to show them your competence as a real estate professional and the benefits of working with you. It’s referred to as a Pre-Listing Packet because it’s sent to the seller before you meet with them to discuss their options and sign a listing agreement. This meeting, referred to as a Listing Appointment, is where you (the real estate agent) works to convince the seller to hire you to sell their home. The information in the Pre-Listing Packet does the work of persuasion before your listing appointment.

What Does a Pre-Listing Packet Do?

A Pre-listing Packet (done right) can do a lot of the work of persuasion prior to your Listing Appointment and secure your success. The Pre-Listing Packet helps you stand out above the competition (especially discount brokers), gives your prospective clients a reason to place a premium on your expertise and preemptively handle objections, such as “why should I use you over a competitor.”

What’s Included in a Pre-Listing Packet?

A Pre-Listing Packet can come in many forms. You can use printed papers and collateral, a binder of information, or a digital format such as email. We recommend using email for your Pre-Listing Packet because it allows you to provide links to videos and other resources more easily. You should modify the media you use based on the needs of your clients.

No matter what medium you decide to use, our Pre-Listing Packet consists of the following sections:

Here’s how the different sections appear in a Pre-Listing Packet email…

Now that you’ve got the basic part of the Pre-Listing Packet, let’s look closer at each section so you can create your own.

How To Create a Pre-Listing Packet?

Since we are using email for our Pre-Listing Packet, we want to make sure we get their attention with a strong subject line. We also want to confirm the day and time of our appointment. Note everything bolded in the email is important. We then address each of the main parts of the Pre-Listing Packet.

Confidence Building

The first thing we ask the client to do is to watch videos of us answering questions they are likely to have about selling their home. These videos build confidence by showing the client our expertise. Other than actually working with us, there’s no other way they can experience what it’s like to interact and work with us… except for video. Video is a powerful medium for creating a connection with the client. In our own real estate practice, clients will often say, “I feel like I already know you,” or “I’ve seen all your videos, it’s like meeting a celebrity!”

Here’s an example of one of the videos we use to build confidence...

Property Marketing

The second section of the Pre-Listing Packet is Property Marketing. In this section we link to the actual marketing plan we use to sell our clients homes. And much like it sounds, the Property Marketing Plan is a list of everything we’re going to do to sell the home. It includes everything from putting a sign in the yard, to the social media campaigns, to all the places (online and physical) where that listing will be displayed and promoted. You can use the Property Marketing Plan to differentiate yourself from your competition and build trust right off the bat by telling and showing your clients what you’re going to do for them.

Checkout this video to learn more about creating a Property Marketing Plan...

The third section of the Pre-Listing Packet is Client On-boarding. In this section we link to our Client Welcome Kit, which is a document that shows new clients everything they need to know about working with us and all the service we are available to provide. Treating a prospect like a client shows them your level of expertise and begins building trust before you even step foot in the door for the listing appointment. 

Our Client Welcome Kit does the following:

• Provides useful tips & expert advice to buyers and sellers.

• Shows the advantages of working with you.

• Makes specific offers of help and programs available.

• Sets expectations on your communications & client experience.

By providing prospects with this resource they now know all the services you’ll provide as well as the advantages of being your client. This helps you set yourself apart from other agents and prevents prospects from falling through the cracks. Set expectations, benefits and advantages of working with you right from the start! 

PLUS, they now have a tool to refer you to other people in their sphere that may be thinking of buying or selling a home themselves. The referral opportunity alone is reason enough to send out the Client Welcome Kit. 

Checkout this video to learn more about creating a Client Welcome Kit...

Seller Homework

The fourth section of the Pre-Listing Packet is Homework, where we ask the client to do two activities on our behalf. The first is to reply to the Pre-Listing Packet email with their home’s best features, improvements and selling points. It’s important to explain how you’re going to use the information. In this case, it’s to create marketing to promote their home. The second task is to get the loan balance for their home from their bank.

In addition to using the “time spent” concept, where they both a time and emotional investment on our behalf, this section of the Pre-Listing Packet uses the "Assumptive Close” principle from sales. The “Assumptive Close” assumes the they are already our client and communicates with them in a manner that assumes you’re working together. By having the client say “yes” to the small requests, you’re creating micro conversions leading up to the big request, which is to sign the paperwork so you can get to work on selling their home.

P.S. / Call to Action

The final section of the Pre-Listing Packet is the P.S. Since people often scan emails looking for what’s most important, we want to summarize the one thing we want them to do or take away from our email. In this case, we’re asking them to checkout our property marketing plan. This tool is extremely effective at making us stand out, communicate our value proposition, and set the expectation that anyone they meet with should provide them with a similar plan. Since most people do not provide their sellers with a marketing plan, you are "ethically sabotaging” the competition by raising the client’s expectations.

When to Send a Pre-Listing Packet?

The best time to send your Pre-Listing Packet to your prospective seller is after you’ve had an initial consultation on the phone with them and have scheduled your appointment. This is typically a few days prior to appointment itself. We recommend sending a reminder email right before the appointment.

One question we get asked is “if you send all this good information before they’ve signed a listing agreement, won’t they show it to someone else?” If the client decides to share it with someone else, the work is already done. You’ve cemented yourself as the new standard of what they can expect. Everyone else will be playing catch up. In all likelihood, and this has been our experience, the seller doesn’t show anyone else and they just hire us because we’ve effectively stood out and demonstrated our value before we’ve even show up for the listing appointment.

Conclusion

Now that you have a Pre-Listing Packet template, and the understanding of what goes into each section, you’re equipped to create your own. There’s a little work that goes into setting it up, but once you do, you’ll have a competitive advantage built into your listing presentation process.