It goes without saying that in Real Estate, communication is key. In order to stand out and ensure that you are providing your vendors with the best and most effective level of service,  it’s important to build strong and lasting relationships with them by creating open channels of communication.

An often overlooked tool that is extremely effective in doing so is a vendor report.

Why? A vendor report is the quickest and most effective way that you can portray everything your vendor needs to know about their listed property.

It allows them to feel in control of the listing process, and able to have a say in what is and isn’t working. It also highlights your achievements and success as an agent, showcasing the results you’ve achieved for the property.

It also provides your agency with a level of protection by ensuring transparency along the sales process.Gone are the days where vendors are often happy with just a brief phone call or email update on the process of the sale.

A vendor report provides that next level piece of communication that will ensure your vendor is updated every step of the way.

What is a vendor report?

Your vendor report is the centrepiece of this chain of communication. You’d be surprised at the number of agents who neglect this important weekly task, believing that a cursory post-callback Monday afternoon chat is sufficient to educate their client about market sentiment and the price they can reasonably expect for their asset.

A vendor report is an effective way to create an open and reliable communication pathway between agent and vendor. It showcases the value that the agent brings to the buying process, and informs the vendor every step along the way.

It’s a more extensive piece of communication than an email or phone call, and provides vendors with a comprehensive overview of the progress of their listing.By combining regular communications with a formal weekly vendor report, your vendor influence will increase exponentially over the duration of a property’s sale.

Why should you write a vendor report?

Great agents are – above all – great influencers. An ideal vendor report offers agents the chance to show value and expertise to their vendor, whilst simultaneously educating them on price and the market response to their asset. The vendor report isn’t necessarily for the agent’s benefit – it’s a tool to help agents assist vendors make the best decision about their property.

This includes ensuring the agent sets clear expectations with their owner during the progress of the sale.

For example, if the vendor wanted to list the property at a higher price than you recommended in the appraisal, and you’re therefore not seeing the predicted number of leads come through.

A vendor report also helps the agent communicate effectively with the vendors and allows them to see the value that you as an agent bring.Agents who don’t create vendor reports often cite being time-poor as an excuse.

A CRM such as Agentbox worth using will come replete with a library of vendor reports to swiftly tap into. We know agents don’t have time to build thorough reports from scratch, which is why we offer an array of customisable, easy-to-use vendor reports useful for both client education and listing presentations. Did you know that a vendor report is also a listing tool?

When to use a vendor report

There are numerous ways to use a vendor report, however an effective way to use them is during the appraisal process. If you’re appraising a property in a street you’ve recently sold on, bring along a vendor report for the previous property which showcases the large number of buyers who are interested in properties like your potential client’s right now.

You can offer to SMS all these buyers immediately upon their signing of an exclusive authority with you – potentially saving your vendor funds in marketing and showcasing your local buyer influence. Using a vendor report in this way is not only a golden nugget for an eager vendor, it also demonstrates that you are a progressive and invested agent who cares about having open communication channels & saving your vendors time and money.

What to include in your vendor report

What makes a good vendor report and what should you ideally aim to include? It’s definitely more involved than ensuring that the vendor receives the ideal number of hits on their online marketing listing.Elements which should be included will cover a broad range of metrics, allowing your vendor to have a holistic view of everything that is happening with their listing. These items include:

• A weekly summary of marketing activities (including the amount which has been spent) Try to outline the different types of marketing activity and the results achieved through each of these channels
• Core statistics around the number of days on the market
• Number of enquiries made
• Section 32s requested
• A record and number of private appointments
• Repeat viewing clients
• A summary of all offers made

Whether you write vendor reports on a daily basis or only when necessary, it’s important to remember that they can help you avoid bad vendors, stay compliant with agreements,  save time and allow you to put your efforts into more promising prospects.

Agentbox CRM is leading the way with vendor reporting, allowing you to compile reports efficiently and effectively all in-platform. If you’re wanting to learn more about Agentbox’s vendor reporting, you can see how Agentbox can help your agency grow, you can book a demo with our team.