You’re not an agent, you’re a property psychologist
Victorian agent Mark Di Giulio knows that knowledge of consumer behaviour is what gives top agents an edge.
After almost 20 years in the real estate industry, the Barry Plant Manningham director is being recognised for his years of success. In 2023, Mark Di Giulio came eighth in REB’s Top 50 Agents Victoria ranking, with over 150 sales and over $200 million of total net sales under his belt in that year alone.
What is the magic ingredient that has helped Mr Di Giulio stand out from the crowd? According to the agent, an understanding of human psychology is one core asset.
“I would suggest to the real estate public that they should not refer to themselves as real estate agents; they should refer to themselves as property psychologists or property therapists,” Mr Di Giulio advised.
“A lot of it is not really about selling property; it’s about understanding consumer behaviour.”
According to Mr Di Giulio, the heightened emotions that arise during property transactions can undermine good decision-making, if these are not kept in check. As a “property psychologist”, he believes his role is to “help smart people not make dumb decisions”.
“There are two sets: there is the set of consumer behaviours from a buyer’s perspective, and from a seller’s perspective,” he explained.
“You can have the agent that sells the most, that gets the highest price, that gets the shortest days on market – they are clearly on paper, mathematically, the best person to represent you in the sale of your home. But vendors choose the agent because they like the company colours.”
His role as a property psychologist is to combat this emotion-driven consumer behaviour by showing clients “all the logical data and information” so that they can make the best property decisions.
“It just goes to show you don’t necessarily need to be qualified to win business; you just need to understand human psychology,” he reflected.
According to Mr Di Giulio, going back to real estate basics is crucial in developing these core interpersonal skills.
“Technology is the worst best thing that has happened to real estate, because there is no replacement for our business,” he stated.
“Everyone else is doing the technology thing, and it’s very loud, and it’s very crowded, but I’m tripling down on letterbox drops, I’m tripling down on doorknocks, I’m tripling down on community events and social events, making sure that the face-to-face human interaction is higher than ever.
For young agents who are just entering the industry, Mr Di Giulio suggests that these face-to-face communication skills are a crucial asset to have.
“The other agents aren’t doing it, and that’s where I’ve been successful,” he concluded.
“If they want to go left, I want to go right.”