Home Staging Training Tip: What am I paying for?
It's the rush of excitement when you are looking to jump into this new and exciting industry. On a daily basis I receive phone calls or emails of people asking me why to choose one home staging training course over another home staging training course. Of course since I teach, I always have to add my two cents on why my course is of course better - unless for them, it's not. So in this blog I would like to talk about what you may get, or may not get in a home staging training course. Think carefully before signing up for a course and do your research. Remember, just because the money might be similar, does not mean that the courses are!
1. Hands on Experience - for some (most) this is an absolute must. I know, I know, we read and hear all the time that taste can't be taught. Well, since I've pretty much taught my husband how to do this job if needed, I'm here to say it can be... but for the most part that's not the kind of student we want in a class - and it's probably not the one showing up. What hands-on experience does give you is confidence and experience. When stagers get to the house on the morning of class, they are excited and scared to death. Isn't it better to have the scared feeling when you are around others who feel the same way, and not the client? At the end of the day, the stager is thrilled, confident (and probably exhausted).
So does everyone need a hands-on class? Well, NO. If you already have experience STAGING then you probably don't. If you experience is limited to decorating your house and your friends houses... then probably YES! You should have hands-on training!
2. An Instructor who actually stages - like NOW! I know some great instructors who have been in the business a long time.... some still stage and some don't. What have I noticed about the ones who dont'? They aren't up to date on the day to day objections and problems that are happening in 2010. If you havne't staged in 3, 5 or more years, how do you know what's going on in THIS market? In THIS economy? How do you know what agents and sellers are asking for daily??
I'm sad to say too that I've known some home staging training instructors who HAVE NEVER STAGED A HOME! That's right... outside of the class experience, they've never put in a bid, presented in front of a room of real estate professionals (who weren't in class), or had to figure out where to find that perfect piece on the fly...... is THIS who you want training you?
So, how will you know if they still stage? Ask them... Ask this question, "Aside from staging in a training class, when was the last house you personally staged for a client?" See if the question catches them off guard, or what their answer is... make sure you like what you hear!
3. STUFF, STUFF & MORE STUFF - I know, it's exciting! You look at the photos of all the stuff you'll get when you take the class. Some classes will even try to sell you more stuff before you get to class - before you know what stuff you'll need. Then when you get to class, they want to sell you more stuff... Let me ask you this.... are you paying to sit through a commercial and keep spending money or are you ready to learn a business? Do you really need all that stuff? How much of it will you really use? Ask seasoned professionals (who've taken the class you are thinking about and not in your immediate area) if they use that stuff. If they don't... you probably won't either and you can keep that money for marketing your new company!
4. What's their relationship to the Industry Trade Association? For the Home Staging Industry, that organization is RESA (www.RealEstateStagingAssociation.com). Does the training company you are thinking about spending thousands of dollars even belong to the trade association? Sure, they may have their own organizations - but do they belong to the Industry's Organization or are they just trying to make their own little world? Let me ask you this? Don't you want to belong to a company that is trying to make the entire industry better, one that plays by a governing body's rules (ethics, complaince, arbitration, stager on stager allegations, etc) or do you prefer to belong to one that does whatever it wants, whenever it wants?
5. Umm.... You are training my clients how to stage? Yeah, believe it or not, some training organizations have classes where potential clients (agents) are physically in the same class - sitting right next to - the new home stager. They are getting the same information at the same time - including hands-on experience in the same house! Of course it's not like they are paying the same thing.... not even close - Agents usually pay over $1000 less for the same training the new stager receives, in the same classroom... sure, the new Home Stager does get one more day of instruction, but the damage has been done. The agent is leaving class with the idea that they can stage the house themselves - why hire a stager? Is this reallly good for the industry, or the students - assuming that most students are in a relative geographic area?
So, new home stager wannabe.... Are you ready to do your research before you lay out a thousand dollars or more? There are some great home staging training providers out there. You should investigate which one is best for you! Whenever you are in doubt, call RESA.... they are there to help guide you through the questions that you should be asking before joining an organization!
Experienced Home Stagers - chime in...give your two cents about what you think is important in a training company - what do you wish you had known first? What do you wish you had bought, or not bought... Give those just searching some good advice - hindsight is always 20/20... now let's share our knowledge!
For more information on our Home Staging Training Courses, visit www.StagingAndRedesign.com and click on the Training tab....
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Melissa Marro, a published artist, now turned staging advocate and national speaker speaks her mind about real estate and the home staging industry. In her 'no holds barred' approach, audience members find real answers to the industries pitfalls and learn how to overcome them with tried and true information and guidance. With marketing as her passion, she turned a small home based business into one of the nation's largest home staging and training facilities. She now operates as the CEO of First Impressions Home Staging & Interior ReDesign as well as an instructor for Staging And Resign and regularly speaks at the StagerList Expos and Real Estate Staging Association (RESA)'s trade events.
For more information on having Marro speak at one of your real estate functions, please contact her at 843.822.2622 or email at marro.melissa@gmail.com
If you would like Marro's team to provide information on staging a property in the state of South Carolina, or the Greater Charleston Area, please visit www.WeStageSC.com, email marro.melissa@gmail.com or call 843.822.2622.
Hi Melissa,
Thanks for the post. Have a great day.
Melissa- While I certainly benefited from the class I took, I do agree that having my clients/Realtors in class with me was disconcerting for me. I couldn't help but feel it was yet another way to make money, but I didn't think it was in the best interest of the profession.
Hi Melissa, I just got an email this week about this very subject and like you get calls from other inquiring minds. This is a great blog to bookmark and send them a link to because you bring up many points that new potential students may not even think about and they should. Not all courses are created equally.
I'm still of the mindset (and possibly in the minority) that Realtors should know why and how to stage because they still need to be educated on the benefits of staging for their listings. BUT not in the same class as full time stagers. A separate class would be in order for Realtors alone.
Education of the RE industry as a whole on the power and benefits of staging is still lacking and I think it's vital to our industry's growth to help the client we need on a repeat basis (a Realtor) get the full picture of just how labor and creativity intensive our jobs are. My belief is yeah, maybe they'll stage their clients listings until they get too busy and want to do the job they set out to do... sell real estate... but having the knowledge of knowing how to do the job right and then calling the right person to do the job for them is key. They could get their inspector's license, learn how to lay carpet and rewire a whole house too... but is that really what they WANT to do??
Thanks for sharing here, great stuff!
Wow, you really posted many things that should seriously be considered when picking outyour training. I absolutely agree with the problem of RE agents in the same class as the stagers. It really does just widen the gap of how we can be a team. I agree with Karen above about the "how labor and creativity intensive our jobs are." I don't see how someone can give 100% to RE and 100% to a full staging company at the same time. Your client list would need to be small, or you compromise and are single with no family life :o)
Many things to think about! Thanks for sharing!
Julie
Melissa - first of all, any student who was lucky enough to take your training class would be head and shoulders above their competition right off the bat. Having taken some of your webinars, read your publications and attended your seminar at RESA, you are a great, knowledgeable instructor. Ok, back to the blog at hand... I still have "stuff" that I purchased from various staging training classes (I took 3!), including a huge suitcase for my staging gear that cost over $200 and takes up half my car - I've since downsized to a smaller bag. I also have equipment that is still in its packages, where I realized I didn't need it after all.
Melissa this is spot on! I recently was asked what associations and training should a new stager have and I could not recommend the staging training I received for the same reasons you listed here. Not to mention that certain courses are about the promotion of the originator of that particular training and not really the industry. I plan to show this post to a few people who have mentioned that they are interested in staging - thanks!
Good points Melissa, I have a couple to add
#4 is good, RESA your trade association has an ethics procedure, Ask if they have ever had an ethics or other complaint filed against them?
Be careful...for overstatements, things that couldn't possibly be true, like training companies who overstate the number of students they personally trained, but they would have had to train more in a year than they had classes, and/or how long they've been training, and/or that they are the largest. And those that are great, don't have to tell you, you already know.
Get references from the students they've trained, not just the ones they give you, but look others up and ask them.
Realtors take courses all the time on similar and varied topics, we expect to keep up on our skills, but we don't want to waste our time either. The staging training companies are targeting varied skill levels, some are basic, some advanced. Look for a full service and full realm of education that suits your business from start to advanced and make sure they have the credentials to back it up. I chose a real estate company because they are looking at what I need two years from now. Look at the training companies that have received recognition from RESA for doing just that because they'll be here tomorrow and isn't a jury of your peers, the best reference.
I agree with Karen and I would remind stagers that it is called the REAL ESTATE INDUSTRY and REALTORS are the practitioners, stagers are the new kids in the industry. SO if they want you to prove something, that's fair. IF Realtors didn't know something about staging, we wouldn't know enough to call you for staging in the first place. Stagers really should stop focusing on those Realtors who want to do it themselves. If their results suffer, so be it. Go for the evolved and educated, they are your audience. You can't get them all, nor should you, you need to work with people that value your service, collaborators who want you on their team. Other than that you are looking in the wrong place and frustrating yourself.
The best results are not in spite of stager or Realtor but the collaborative model where there is mutual respect. I see lack of mutual respect on BOTH sides of the fence and it's not productive for anyone.
I think that the stagers who want to work with homeowners should do so. It is their business and they know who and how they work best. The statistic in your state might be something like ours, where people move about every 5-7 years. SO, working with the homeowner just seems like alot more work filling your pipeline than finding a few quality Realtors who will give you 5-7 clients each every year, or every month...forging that relationship may be more productive. It's just easier to support each other and do more business.
SO, enough said...Thanks for the thought provoking post.
Sorry for the delay in response - I've been teaching all weekend...
Patrick - thanks for stopping by!
Kathy - I hear this A LOT! This is why I brought it up... thanks for sharing your perspective!
Karen - I definately think Realtors should be educated and some are really good stagers, but like you have said, do they really have the time to be staging? How do their clients feel about it when they are out staging other homes not selling their property?
Julie - exactly!
Sally - Thanks for the input! I know I have made this mistake in other businesses and had to learn the hard way. Thanks for sharing your experience!
Terrylynn - GREAT Comments!! Some of those I had not even thought of.... very thought provoking, particularly the number of students trained in a year. I had NEVER thought of that! That just seems amazing that someone would do that, but then I've seen all kinds of things in this (and other) industries! Thanks for sharing!
Ok, that's it on the computer..... family time tonight since I've spent the weekend teaching! Have a great weekend everyone!