When you think of Tiffany's, the Eiffel Tower, or Mount Rushmore, there is a timeless quality. No matter what else is happening in the world, Tiffany's will always be the ultimate in sophistication; the Eiffel Tower will always conjure up Paris, and Mt. Rushmore will always symbolize leadership. So, too, with the timeless techniques and dialogue in The Floyd Wickman Program. The sales technology in The Program has always worked to:

• Generate leads
• Convert leads to appointments
• Deliver a persuasive listing or buying presentation
• Handle hesitations, stalls, conditions, and objections
• Build lifetime client relationships

But will it always work no matter what the market is doing? Our team gets together four times a year to review these techniques and dialogues and ask, "Is this technique still relevant? Does this dialogue apply as is in today's market? Do we have to 'modernize' this tool?"

What we have discovered is that while market extremes have tested the applicability and timelessness of the material, (the Gulf War recession, the foreclosure, and short sale era, or the lopsided pandemic market) – everything we teach works in any market when you understand the principle behind it.

For instance, I heard a student say, "Those words won't apply in this market." And what does Floyd say about word-for-word scripts? "The words you use are not important. It's what you accomplish one step at a time. Scripts only work if you can give the customer their lines in advance."

Another example. When rates were falling to record lows, someone objected to using The Financial Risk Analysis with a procrastinating Seller because it says, "Rates might go up." Well, if you wait long enough, guess what? Rates are going up. What's the principle? They might not go up, but they could, and what if they do? Always prepare people for the worst, not the best.

This market (extremely high buyer demand, extremely low inventory supply) has really tested the applicability of The Buy/Sell Analysis – a tool that originated in a time when listings were plentiful and paying full price was next to unthinkable. Buyers often made offers below the asking price and wanted to negotiate. It was a time when buying first meant you were in a weak negotiating position, so you paid more, and then you had to sell at a discount to sell quickly and avoid owning two homes at once. Understanding the Buy/Sell Analysis prevented people from selling and buying in reverse and costing themselves a small fortune. Not so today.

How many potential Sellers have been talked out of entering the market for fear of not being able to find anything to buy? Listings sell before they hit the market. And if a listing does actually last long enough to go active, it creates a buyer-feeding frenzy and bidding war. On the surface, you might think these conditions make the Buy/Sell Analysis irrelevant. But let's look at the principles at work here.

The first principle, the Buy/Sell Analysis is a bird's eye view of how we coordinate a purchase and sale for our clients, so that they get maximum market value for the home they are selling, and avoid running out of time to find what they want. That applies here.

The next principle is never to tell people something you can also show them, and The Buy/Sell Analysis shows people what could happen if they do things in reverse. As you know, making an offer to buy with a contingency on selling is a non-starter.  In a competitive bidding situation, the cleanest offer always looks better to a Seller. That also applies.

Finally, fear of loss is a greater motivator than the opportunity to gain. In this market, cash is king. Turning a Seller into a non-contingent cash buyer without selling their house first is very expensive and time-consuming. They lose some of their hard-earned equity before they sell; and when they do sell, they can't afford the time to be as selective in finding the buyer with the most favorable terms.

When you understand the principles behind the dialogue and techniques, you can look past the words and will see how they apply in any market. That's timelessness.

The Floyd Wickman Team blog by Mike Pallin