Same, same and more same

We are all  familiar with the technical description of the state of inertia from our secondary school physics lessons: “a property of matter by which it continues in its existing state of rest or uniform motion in a straight line unless that state is changed by an external force”. It is one of the fundamental principles in classical physics, and described by Isaac Newton in his first law of motion.

But probably the more relevant definition for everyday use is that inertia is “a tendency to do nothing or to remain unchanged”. And it is that tendency to remain unchanged is what we see in abundance at present.
 
The industrial property market experienced some exceptionally buoyant, and lucrative, times in recent years. Bank finance was cheap and readily available. Every suburban accountant was advising their client to buy rather than rent. Demand was high, values were climbing and there was a fear of missing out on the part of buyers. The market was booming as the government printing presses rolled, rents climbed, and agents collected commission faster than they could list properties.
 
But then of course the music stopped. It always does. As we look back over the decades, bust always follows boom. The roller coaster of boom and bust is in no way a new or modern phenomenon. But because the players change, and humans have a propensity to fail to learn from history, inertia sets in.

It is the type of inertia that has us stuck in our thinking. We get so used to how we have always done things, that we don’t notice that the environment has changed.

And we continue doing or thinking in the same old way. We don’t question the sanity of this behaviour. It’s normal. It’s the way it’s done. And because it is the way others do it, it becomes the way we should do it.
 
But changes in the environment should be what jolts us awake. And recently there have been a number of things which have jolted me awake, and set me thinking that there are other ways of doing things that could lead to better outcomes.

I receive regular updates called “activity reports” from some agents. These reports are generated by TradeMe, and advise the number of views, watchers and enquiries. Essentially telling me how many agents have nothing better to do than look at other agent’s listings. The kind of “activity reports” which would give me more confidence in an agent’s ability to adapt to a changing marketplace would be commentary on how they are adapting to a world with higher interest rates, almost impossible to access bank finance and purchasers who sense no urgency to act.

I receive an ever increasing deluge of emails spruiking various properties, including recently a medical centre in Tauranga, a retail development in Ohakune and bare land in Ruakaka. Nothing more than a hyped description. This approach is of course an example of “spray and pray” marketing, and leads quickly and directly to the delete button on the keyboard. The agents who attract my attention are those whose approach is somewhat more directed and specific and attempts at least to give some reason to consider their listing. I am thankful that there are some agents who understand that shotguns are not effective sales tools in a constrained market.

As commitments are harder to obtain from buyers and tenants, what many agents are doing is reverting to old tactics – just doing more and more of the same. Rather than thinking and adapting to  a changed environment.
 
It’s refreshing that there are agents who are thinking about different ways they could tackle the changed marketplace. Rather than doing the “same old”, or merely copying what others are doing, they are considering other options in order to be more effective.

The same, same and more of the same worldview does nothing to advance us to be  outstanding at our jobs. To stand out and succeed we need to be constantly striving to adapt quicker than the surrounding environment. It is a very different environment than the way we worked a couple of years ago, and it is those agents who adapt quickest are the ones who will survive and thrive.

We are most grateful for those agents who realise that same, same won’t work now, and are changing their ways.
For the others – please note that it is most unlikely Expedio will be purchasing a childcare centre in Kilbirnie, or an ex timber mill in Te Kuiti.