Staging Diva Graduate Follows Up And Gets 25 Hours of Projects

Summary

Home staging expert, Debra Gould, stresses the importance of following up with prospective clients through an inspirational home staging success story.

Staging Diva Graduate uses follow up skills to gain 25 hours of projects

(UNITED STATES) April 26, 2010 – On a spring day in 2008, Staging Diva Graduate Susan Atwell of New York-based AtWell Staged Home was out touring model homes being built nearby. During her visit, Atwell subscribed to the builder’s mailing list under her personal email account.

A message she received a week later from that builder announced a seminar for potential home buyers with home staging being one of the topics. Rather than seeing this as a pothole on her road to success as many home stagers would, assuming the builder had a solid relationship with a home stager, Atwell saw it as an opportunity.

Atwell knows building a business takes work and she is very single-minded in her commitment to her staging business success. She thought that in view of his upcoming event for home buyers, the builder might be interested in speaking with a local home stager so she picked up the phone and called the manager.

“So many stagers in Atwell’s position would have given in to that voice inside telling them there’s already an experienced local stager and they shouldn’t bother going any further,” states Staging Diva, Debra Gould. She goes on to say, “I’m so proud of Susan for finding the courage to make that call where she ended up learning that there was no existing relationship between the builder and any stager but the builder would be offering a $1000 credit towards home staging for any buyer needing to sell their home before buying.”

The pair ended up having a discussion about the builder recommending Atwell Staged Home to his clients as his local stager of choice and several days later, Atwell got a phone call saying that the builder would be doing just that.

“Of course, Susan didn’t hang her hat on that and sit back waiting for new projects to fall in her lap,” says Gould, founder of the Staging Diva Home Staging Business Training Program. She adds, “instead she continued marketing her business. She started a home staging newsletter and a blog, and listed her home staging business in the Staging Diva Directory of Home Stagers.”

When January rolled around and Atwell had still received no calls from the builder on the onset of a new spring selling season, she decided to follow up under the guise of sharing these new resources she’d been developing.

Within a couple weeks of receiving that note, the builder asked Atwell to present to two potential home buyers, a presentation that ended in two scheduled home staging consultations. Soon after, she was asked to present again and again ultimately securing over 25 hours of home staging projects from that single builder in 2009.

“One of those homes was staged for a couple in the Bronx who were up-sizing to a new home. They got a signed agreement from the first couple to view their existing home making them and the builder very happy with AtWell Staged Home’s staging abilities!” says Gould.

About her great home staging success, Atwell states, “Having a solid business plan is key. Debra Gould’s  home staging program is extremely logical and effective. The beauty is that it is also simple. With a strong IT background, this appeals to me!”

Learn more about how to become a home stager.

About Staging Diva

The creator of the Staging Diva Home Staging Business Training Program, Debra Gould has staged millions of dollars worth of real estate, including seven of her own homes. She is the president of Six Elements Design Group Inc. and has trained over 30,000 home stagers to start and grow their own businesses.

Debra has gained international recognition through features in major media in the US and Canada including: This Old House, HGTV, CNN Money, CBC National News, CBS Radio, Global TV, City TV, The Wall Street Journal, Women’s Day, Reader’s Digest and more.

###