Exactly How
Transparent
Are You?
By Andrew B. Zezas, SIOR
As a commercial real estate broker, you probably consider
yourself to be professional, fair, open, and honest. But are you also
transparent?
In this age of uncertainty, transparency is vital to maintaining
and improving your relationship with your clients, and to building a positive reputation amongst other commercial real estate professionals, as well as existing and potential clients. Clients want
to come to you and know that they have a broker who they can
communicate openly with, who they know will hold themselves
accountable, and who they know has no secrets relevant to their
business. The importance of this cannot be emphasized enough.
People will always be looking for brokers they can trust, and transparency is a large part of what separates the best brokers from the
good brokers.
The following guide of questions and comments will help you
get a better sense of just how transparent you are, and whether
or not your clients view you as someone they can trust with their
money.
•Can you describe the basic principles behind
Sarbanes-Oxley?
• Do you tell clients and prospects that you will be transparent in your dealings with them and on their behalf?
• Are you really transparent in your dealings, or is that just
marketing hype?
• Do you keep your tenants and buyers informed about
your dealings on their behalf and about the compensation
to which you may be entitles when they complete their
transaction?
"Transparency should be an
asset to your business,
not a fear."
