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Tips to Energize Your Leasing Efforts – #3
FEP is the magic ingredient that makes every leasing presentation well, magic! FEP stands for friendly, enthusiastic, and professional. It has everything to do with making your leasing presentation memorable and persuasive. We looked at Friendly last week. Let’s jump to the other side of the FEP acronym and consider what it means to be PROFESSIONAL.
Professionalism starts with how you look. The leasing professional is always well groomed and dressed to do business. That means a polished appearance that is appropriate for the market, community, and resident profile. Look like someone the prospect and residents can trust with their highest living expense; rent. Rarely should one wear anything less than business casual. Tie for men can still be an option. The day of the worn and poorly fitted polo shirt with faded property logo is over. Long gone!
But how you dress is only the tip of the iceberg. Professionalism is so much more than just how you look. The essence of professionalism is how you BE. It is about education and experience. The onsite professional has the skill and background to make decisions faster and righter. Professionalism means having the ability and inclination to say and do the right thing, in the right way, RIGHT NOW! Your supervisor should be more professional than you. That does not mean they are comparatively better or superior human beings. Rather, they have more training, designations, classes, and experience that allow them to zig and zag through property management’s challenges faster and with more effective outcomes.
How do you become more professional? Just like your supervisor: education and experience. Look for every opportunity to attend classes and participate in webinars. See if your company will allow you to earn industry designations like the National Apartment Association’s NALP designation. Take advantage of powerful online training website options such as Edge2Learn. Yet, no training takes the place of your personal on-the-job experience. Take advantage of every success and mistake in your work to make each a lifetime learning experience. Remember that some of the best teachers and mentors might be the very person with whom you share an office right now!
Take charge of your professional growth and look for opportunities to learn and experience. If you wait for your supervisor or company to provide these growth opportunities, you might be left behind. Get FEPped!
