Skip to main content

Numbers Don't Lie, But Wherein Lies the Truth? (Posted November 21, 2016)

Said with enough conviction, you can make almost anything sound true.  Preface the fabrication with “according to a recent bi-partisan government study,” and you’re three quarters of the way to selling the lie to a lot of people.  Seriously, try this.

The next time you’re at a dinner party or having coffee with friends, pepper this little tidbit into the conversation: “I read something really interesting the other day.  According to a recent bi-partisan government study I think it took them three years to get it all done middle-aged men who drive either a Toyota Camry or a Honda Odyssey have more testosterone than younger men who drive either a Ford F150 or a Dodge Charger.”  You’ll get some raised eyebrows and looks of mild disbelief, but don’t let that deter you.  Just lift up your hands, palms outward, and say, “I just think it’s interesting, and it makes sense when you think about it” and then change the subject to something completely unrelated.  Guaranteed, your friends will repeat what you said in another setting no more than two or three days later: at the office, standing in line at the grocery store, overthrowing a Marxist regime in a third-world country, etc.  It’ll take on a life of its own, believe me. 

In the real estate and mortgage world, we’re driven by data and that’s not necessarily a bad thing.  We want to be sure we’re spending our time and resources wisely, so we want to know what’s been proven successful and where the next trend is going to take us.  However, we have to be careful how we receive and interpret that data it behooves us to do some digging and get to the heart of whatever piece of information is being shared with us.  Here’s an example and it’s true:

•  A study conducted this summer revealed that an overwhelming majority of a person’s “digital time” is spent on a mobile device (smart phone). 

If you took that at face value there’s nothing false in what was stated that might lead you to believe that you should devote all your marketing budget to mobile devices or that you should spend all your time house hunting only on your phone.  Before you do anything hasty, here’s the statistic in its full-blown glory:

•  A study conducted this summer revealed that 57% of a person’s “digital time” is spent on a mobile device with 32% spent on a computer and 11% spent on a tablet.

Nothing in the first statement was false or even misleading.  A “majority” simply means the bigger half the use of the adjective “overwhelming” is simple poetic license.  However, if you took that statement to mean that you’re wasting your time on anything other than mobile devices, you’re cutting yourself out of exercising 43% of your options.  If I’m an agent, I’d rather have 100 potential clients than just 57.  If I’m looking to buy or sell my home, I’d rather have an agent who reaches 100 people than just 57. 

For example, whether you’re an agent or a client, telling someone that you won’t entertain a VA loan offer because “they’re too complicated” or “they take too long”, you’re cutting out a large number of potential buyers and you’ve obviously had a bad experience with the wrong lender because neither of those reasons is remotely true.  There’s something to be said for the old saying, “You can’t be everything to everyone.”  However, the more options you make available to yourself, the better off you’ll be.  That’s simple logic and you don’t need a bi-partisan government study to tell you that.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

An Age-Old Concept Reaping Future Rewards

W hy are social media like Facebook and Instagram so darn popular among real estate and mortgage folks?   Hint: the top reason might be an endless supply of memes, cat videos, and the chance to be snarky, but the other reason runs a VERY CLOSE second.   Give up?   Answer:   They’re free – and they really help even the playing field by enabling a one-person shop look and market like an organization who employs an army of wordsmiths and graphic artists. This new century is glorious, right?   With that in mind, let me re-introduce you to a centuries-old concept that is equally glorious – and can help IMPROVE the playing field for you, regardless of the size of your team: karma.   On the subject of “free”, I’m not suggesting that you work for free, but when you freely give of yourself and your knowledge, you’ll see a greater payoff, I promise! Recently, an agent came to us with a question: she has a client who is looking to sell his condo.   It...

KNOWING is Half the . . . Problem

If you’ve learned one thing from reading these columns, it’s this: I don’t read a ton of books by or about the French philosopher Descartes or spend large amounts of money traveling the world to view the Masters’ paintings in far-flung museums – my entertainment and sources of knowledge run to the more . . . mundane, if you will.   Well, I’m not about to disappoint.   In the movie Men in Black , the two main characters J & K (played by Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones, respectively) have recently met and K is trying to recruit J to join the clandestine government agency that monitors aliens on planet Earth.   Agent K has just shown J a lot of things that are hard to believe/explain and urges J to keep them secret.   At this point, J interrupts him, and this piece of dialogue ensues: J: Why the big secret?   People are smart.   They can handle it.   K: A person is smart.   People are dumb, panicky, dangerous animals, and you...

The Power of Doubt

We find ourselves in that weird week between Christmas and New Year’s – that week that feels a bit like the Twilight Zone where no one’s sure what’s real and what isn’t.   Because of that, most people tend to focus on one of two things: eating as much as possible or setting goals for the upcoming year.   The former is squarely focused on the present – how much can I stuff into my gaping maw at this very moment before I pass out and/or puke – while the latter is focused on the future.    Last week, before the Twilight Zone kicked into full gear, I read a short article that resonated with me, and I think it’ll prick up your metaphorical ears, too.   The author of the article is a gentleman who professionally trains Olympic athletes, and he highlights the talents of a particular athlete from the Philippines who is training to be a marathon runner.   He points out that this runner is not a professional athlete, nor does she receive any type of financ...