One of the hardest and most frustrating tasks in leasing is getting a prospect to show up for an appointment.  Let’s face it, leasing consultants get stood up more often than Ted Nugent on a vegan dating site.  We can set appointments, but prospects do not respect the appointment time.  They are going to come in when they feel like it!

There are many ways to combat this problem, and the best way is to develop rapport with our prospects.  But sometimes rapport is not enough.  If you are experiencing problems getting prospects to keep an appointment, try scheduling your tours at quarter of and quarter after the hour.

The benefits of scheduling appointments at these times are numerous.

First, the prospect will feel a sense of urgency.  If they say they want to come in at 2:00, and you tell them you only have an opening at 2:15, then they will feel that like the property is popular.  In a world where social proof is vital to making a sale, giving the impression that the property is busy immediately gives you an edge.

Second, it portrays an exact appointment time.  While 2:00 means “early afternoon” and 5:00 means “late afternoon”, 4:45 means 4:45. 

Third, it stresses the importance of the appointment.  Most prospects view an appointment as an open invitation to drop by, rather than a scheduled event.  We have conditioned prospects to think this way by not stressing the importance of an appointment time.  When they say they will come by tomorrow around 3:00 and you ask them if 2:45 is possible, the prospect will be more likely to keep the appointment because you illustrated to them that the time matters. 

By applying this simple technique you can immediately increase our phone call to walk-in conversion ratio.