Every home has a story

by Mark Broady on Saturday, August 15, 2020
Episode 33

Congratulations to the two winners of our contest! If you recall, in episode 31 -which went out on July 31st... we asked our readers for some suggestions for ideas for upcoming blog posts. We had offered to give away gift certificates to Le Gourmand restaurant in Pointe-Claire to the two best submissions.
 
 Well... the prizes go to Roueida Salame of Kirkland, and Suzanne Bonn of Beaconsfield.
 
 Roueida's suggestion was to write about how certain events or experiences that a person goes through can change their lives, and how to handle it victoriously. Roueida lost her eyesight when she was caught in a bombing in Lebanon during the war in 1983. Hers is an incredible story of perseverance, courage, and strength which I'll be writing about in next week's Log.
 
 Suzanne was the inspiration for today's entry... where she suggested we ask some of our clients about what they appreciate about their neighbours and neighbourhoods.
 
 Her idea immediately set off a lightbulb for me, because this is something we've been doing for almost 2 years now with many of our home sellers. We call it "STORY-BRAND MARKETING".
 
 It sort of happened by fluke when I was working with a couple who were selling their home in Lachine. Brian & Elen MacPherson had lived in the same house on 49th Avenue since 1980. That's almost 40 years in one home! When I sat down with Brian to discuss the "selling features" of the home... he began to tell me stories. It became clear to me that the value that Brian & Elen saw in their home lay not in the bricks and mortar, but in the experiences and memories that unfolded within and around those walls. We realized that the most important selling features were not the granite counter-tops, or the ensuite bathroom... but rather the INTANGIBLE nuances of the street, the community, the lifestyle, and the history of the neighbourhood itself. After some copious note-taking, I turned to Brian and said, "Can we use this in the listing description? This stuff is pure gold!" He agreed of course, and that gave rise to our first "Story-Branded" marketing plan. 
 
 Since then, we have sold dozens of homes using this unique marketing strategy. Each time we do it, we get better and better helping our clients craft their stories, and presenting them in a way that gives potential buyers far more to think about than just the physical characteristics of the home.
 
This week, in fitting with Suzanne's suggestion for our topic - we have decided to showcase one of our most recent success stories using this approach. Our clients Tanis & Chris, who just sold their home on Sunnyside Ave. in Pointe-Claire, have agreed to let us share their story... and what a great story it is!
 

This was our first home. The home we moved into 3 weeks before we got married! We moved from a loft in NDG when we realized we needed more space for our business and our dog.

 We own and operate a company called “Tanis Fiber Arts” where we focus on producing sustainable, organic yarns in bright, versatile and inspiring colours. I started the business (TFA) in January of 2008 with no real plan, I just loved yarn and I loved colours! The TFA story has very humble beginnings - at first it was just me, conducting dyeing experiments in the kitchen of my old apartment. It’s hard to believe how far we’ve come!

 Sure, we’re still working from home, but now we have a proper home office space and a lovely little backyard studio. And instead of being alone in the kitchen, I get to work with my husband and best friend Chris all day. We’re a real old fashioned, family run business. The day to day operations are handled by just the two of us, but it would never have been possible to get here without all the love and support of the knitters out there. We are fortunate to have a very strong niche market behind us!

 We loved this home the moment we saw it, the extra space in the bonus room off the kitchen sealed the deal for us. We could really see ourselves building our lives here.

Over the years we've found great joy in renovating and redecorating every room in the house. We finished the basement, opened the kitchen to the rest of the living space on the main floor, renovated 2 bathrooms and built our atelier in the back yard (a fully insulated, heated and plumbed studio on slab) and decorated a nursery and a kids room as we grew our family.

 Discovering our new neighbourhood was a thrill. A block below us is Sunnyside Park (the cutest tobogganing spot!) A block in the other direction is Arthur Seguin playground, Sunnyside pool, tennis courts, baseball diamond with an outdoor ice rink in the winter. The cherry on top of our sweet little spot is that we are steps away from the walking trails in the forests of Terra Cotta woods. A Nature reserve with maintained trails and foot bridges over little streams.

 Over the years we've grown our family to include 3 beautiful children. Bringing them home from the hospital into the comfort of this home are the moments we will never forget. It will always be a special place for us and our hope is that the next owner finds as much comfort and joy in 149 Sunnyside as we have.

 

We've included some images to show what our property stories look like. This one in particular had exactly the effect we aim for when we create a piece of marketing like this. 
 
 1. It attracts the RIGHT kind of buyer... and REPELS the wrong kind of buyer. This helps us laser-focus our message to the ideal purchaser. It's like a dog whistle to them!
 
 2. It focuses on the dream. It allows the potential buyer to imagine themselves creating their own memories, and paints a clear picture for them in their minds of what that could look like. 
 
 3. It makes everything else about the house seem unimportant - especially if there is work needed. Once a buyer falls in love with the IDEA of what their life will be like once they live in that home... they tend to be less concerned about having to re-shingle the roof or re-pave the driveway!
 
 But most importantly - what the stories do is create a CONNECTION. And once that connection is established between the buyer and the seller, the entire process is that much more enjoyable and rewarding. 
 
 In fact, what's particularly touching are the letters we receive in response to the stories. Whenever we've sold a home that included a story, we've received a letter from the buyer to the seller, explaining how much they loved the story - and often sharing a story of their own.
 
 

We hope you enjoy the story.
 
 Signing off...
 
 Capt'n Mark