We have hit that time of year when suddenly expert punters appear from the crowds of people whose only equine encounter for the previous eleven months have been the occasional game of pin-the-tail-on-the-donkey or a pony shaped piñata at one of their kids’ birthday parties.
So to get with the Racing Carnival atmosphere, we have put together a list of horse-racing concepts and how they relate to backing a guaranteed winner when it comes to selling your most valuable asset with Wilsons:
“The field”
To enhance your chances of winning in multiple forms of betting on the horses, you can pick “The Field”, instead of just picking one runner. This means that if any of the horses win, you win, rather than pinning all your hopes on just one runner.
With many real estate agencies, the agent’s representative you select is the only representative you get. If they have a bad day, or are “scratched” from work that day, then that is your bad luck. When you sell with Wilsons, you always get “The Field” – our large TEAM of sales agents will ALL be working for you every day to find the best buyer.
“The Formguide”
The best way to predict a racehorse’s performance is to look at their past and recent form, which can be found online, in the newspaper form guide or race book, or tv review videos.
At Wilson Real Estate our form-line is very strong. We have an entire magazine full of glowing testimonials from delighted clients, and scattered through our website or youtube channel are many videos highlighting our winning record.
“Stewards”
Stewards are appointed at horse race meetings to ensure the integrity of events. In the event of a protest, the stewards shall make a ruling based on fairness.
Wilsons is the only “Jenman Approved” agency in South-West Victoria. The aim of APPROVED is to provide the best real estate service in the world based on the highest standards of ethics, values and client-care. If you choose an APPROVED Jenman agent, you have renowned author, consumer advocate and real estate expert Neil Jenman’s personal guarantee that the agent will do the right thing by you. If, during the selling of your property, you are not happy, Jenman will help you. Once you have sold your property, if you show that the agent has not done the right thing by you, you will receive a TOTAL REFUND of any fees paid. Neil Jenman is our “chief Steward”.
“Risk”
Gambling involves Risk. Some betting agencies occasionally offer gimmicks to lessen your risk, by offering “cash back” if your horse doesn’t win. But inevitably, always with gambling, you have to put up your own money, upfront, in order to be a chance of winning.
NOT WITH WILSONS WARRNAMBOOL & DISTRICT REAL ESTATE! With Wilsons, you have a RISK-FREE GUARANTEE that you can’t lose money. The only time you pay a cent to us, is if you are SOLD and happy. We carry all the risk for you, and cover all marketing expenses. Wouldn’t it be nice if you could take your pick in the Melbourne cup, and only pay for the ticket if your horse wins! That’s what it’s like when you sell with us.
“Local trainers and track specialists”
At the recent Spring horse race meeting in Warrnambool on October 16, 2016, seven of the eight winners were trained locally. This is not an unusual occurrence – nothing beats local knowledge and expertise of the track and conditions, and there are often runners who are proven track specialists.
Wilsons are proven experts in the local market, with over 40 years as a local family business. We are “track specialists” when it comes to the South-West Victorian residential real estate market. And just as training plays a massive part in horse racing, there are none better trained than our sales team of qualified negotiators.
“Fashions on the field”
Almost as big a part as the races themselves are the spectators’ outfits, with much time spent in preparations for looking their best for a day at the races.
At Wilsons, while there are no competitions or prizes for being best dressed, we pride ourselves on our professional personal presentation, which for you as a seller is important, because we won’t risk giving a buyer any reason to doubt who they are dealing with, the seriousness with which we take our job, and the fact that they can be comfortable knowing they are dealing with a true professional when it comes to looking at buying your property.
“Fillies, mares, colts and geldings”
Some horse races are restricted to just one type of racehorse, e.g. 3yo fillies, or only males i.e. colts and geldings.
At Wilsons our team consists of ‘young fillies’, ‘seasoned mares’, ‘boom colts’, and a couple of proven old ‘geldings’! We don’t discriminate or look at stereotypes when building our “stable of runners”, and we understand that just as there are lots of different types of customers, lots of different types of sales people is a distinct advantage.
“7 days, 24/7”
It wasn’t so long ago that Saturday was the only horse racing day. And the only time you could bet was on the Saturday, with a bookmaker at the track. Then Wednesdays were brought in, and the occasional Sunday, and now we have horse racing 7 days a week in Australia, some evening meetings, and in addition to this you can turn on the racing channel and have access to gambling on horse races anywhere in the world, at any time of day, from Sha Tin to Turffontein! You can have a flutter on any of these races at any time, at many venues and even online or on your phone.
Many agents are stuck in the old days, only opening their their offices in traditional hours, and restricting inspections to set times on a Saturday. At Wilsons we are open 7 days, and have a 24 hour phone service through our main number – (03) 55612 777 – and we allow totally flexible inspection times to suit the customer – thereby maximising the chances of finding a buyer for your home.
“Gambling and the reality of the odds”
If you back a horse and it is at odds of 10-1 then this means you have a 90% chance of losing. Would you bet your house on those odds?
The most recent Morgan Gallop Poll of professions has real estate agents rated at 10% for honesty and ethics. This puts your chances of winning when choosing an agent to sell your house at about the same odds as backing a 10-1 winner. It therefore makes sense to choose an agent using a different system to the other 90%. That is Wilsons Warrnambool & District Real Estate! And you have our “Sell Safe” Guarantee to make sure you can’t lose.
“Modern Marketing”
In the old days the only way to check the form was to get the newspaper or go to the track and get a racebook. Now, everything is online, and accessible right from your mobile phone. Chances are if you’ve ever bought a ticket to a major race meeting you are on an email list receiving regular updates. Or I bet, pardon the pun, that if you’re interested in horse racing, then you’ve seen racing related media in your social media newsfeed (perhaps that’s where you saw the link to this article).
At Wilsons we know that modern marketing is smart marketing. The world has moved on – and we are moving with it. When you sell with us, your property is directly marketed to over 4500 targeted email inboxes within 7 days of listing, plus featuring on all the major real estate web portals as well as our own new mobile-friendly website. Our social media presence is highly active, and with our flexible open hours and inspections, we also obey the number one rule of marketing – “make it easy for buyers to buy”.
“The mounting yard report”
The late great jockey Roy Higgins made famous his mounting yard reports. Just prior to race time as the horses are paraded to the track they are assessed according to their physical presentation, appearance, condition, and looks. It’s amazing how often the horse that salutes the judge in front is the one that presented itself in best condition.
Our team will help you present your home ready for ‘race day’, and with our help and advice you’ll be sure to impress all the onlookers come inspection time – the real estate equivalent of the mounting yard.
We hope you back a winner on the horses this Spring, for more reasons why you’ll always back a winner when you choose Wilson Real Estate, click this link.
Written by Lucas Wilson