Sellers who opt for the view-by-appointment system of marketing their homes are almost certainly selling themselves short says Ronald Ennik, an executive director of Leapfrog Property Group and head of its Sandton branch.
 
“A structured sole-mandate marketing campaign on a home – with a show day as its centrepiece – is, and always will be, the most effective way of selling to achieve the best possible price,” says Ronald.
 
He says some of the many good reasons to have a show day are: 

• on a Sunday the show house can be “stage set” to look its best 
• many buyers view the house over a period of hours rather than weeks (as in the case of view-by-appointment selling) –  thus creating a platform of competition between interested parties 
• if the house is not on show, the target market is reduced by at least 50 per cent, because a large proportion of buyers will only visit houses on show days
• the inconvenience of constantly preparing a home for viewing by appointment is avoided
• it costs the same to advertise a home for  view by appointment or on a show day – but the benefits of the latter option are 10 times greater
• show days enable people to view the property in a much shorter time
• buyers are able to make comparisons more easily because a number of show houses are  accessible at the same time
• on show, the buyer has the freedom to discuss the property face-to-face with the agent in an uninhibited way, as the seller is normally not present

“Buyers in the Gauteng market are particularly well disposed and conditioned to the show day option. Sellers who leverage off that could reap considerable benefit,” Ronald concludes.