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For Sierra Fulcher, business development manager at Ray White Ascot, the industry’s long-standing playbook - win the listing, move on, repeat - is actively costing agencies clients.
“‘Bespoke’ to me means relationship first and transaction second,” she said. “I’m not just asking what return they want on their investment. I’m asking what drives them, why they’re investing in the first place," Sierra said.
That philosophy is landing at a moment when investor dissatisfaction is becoming harder to ignore. Across agencies, the same complaints surface: poor communication, lack of transparency, and a sense that once the paperwork is signed, the service disappears.
“Everyone says they want ‘good communication,’ but what that actually means is completely different for each client,” she explained. “One person’s ‘too much’ is another’s ‘not enough.’ If you don’t ask the right questions upfront, you’re guessing, and that’s where things fall apart.”
A turning point
Sierra learned that lesson the hard way. Early in her career, she secured a high-value client with multiple properties. Confident in the win, she moved quickly, only to lose the entire portfolio before management even began.
“I didn’t ask enough questions,” she said. “I was focused on securing the business. What I didn’t realise was that he expected daily updates, even if there was nothing to report. I missed that completely.”
The experience reshaped her approach. “That was a turning point. I stopped focusing on winning business and started focusing on understanding people. Now, I don’t even send a Form 6 unless I know exactly who’s on the other end of it.”
When property is personal
That shift is most visible in the moments where property stops being purely financial. One client relationship began not with an appraisal, but with grief.
A couple approached Sierra after losing their son. The property they inherited wasn’t just an asset, it was a deeply sentimental space they couldn’t bear to sell.
“I brought them a coffee and sat with them for two hours,” she said. “We didn’t talk about forms or fees. I just listened.”
Other agencies had taken a different approach, pushing contracts, suggesting the removal of furniture that held emotional value. “If they had taken five minutes to understand the client, they would have known that furniture was part of the story,” Sierra said.
Instead, she kept the home intact, found tenants who appreciated its significance, and leased it within days at a record result.
“That wasn’t about maximising rent. It was about respecting what the property meant to them. The result was trust, and that turned into a long-term relationship and referrals.”
Going beyond the job description
In another case, the stakes were more commercial, but the approach was no less personal. A local investor, juggling multiple properties across agencies, had high expectations around presentation and rental return. When one newly purchased property fell short of those standards, even after professional cleaning, Sierra stepped in herself.
“I went back after work and cleaned it,” she said. “It wasn’t perfect yet, and I knew how important presentation was to her.” She documented the process, kept the client updated, and ultimately secured a lease at the target price, bringing the entire portfolio under one agency.
“As a BDM, you weigh risk versus reward,” she said. “A few hours of my time to secure and retain three properties, and build a long-term relationship, was absolutely worth it.”
The scalability question
Critics might argue that this level of service isn’t scalable in an industry driven by volume. Sierra disagrees.
“It’s actually more efficient once you understand your clients,” she said. “Not everyone wants constant updates. Some want to be completely hands-off. When you tailor your approach, you stop wasting time on unnecessary communication.”
The key, she said, is alignment - ensuring that what’s promised in business development carries seamlessly into property management. “We’ve built processes so everything I learn - communication preferences, expectations, personal details - flows through to the PM team. The experience has to be consistent from day one.”
A broader industry shift?
Sierra’s approach reflects a growing sentiment among high-performing agencies: that the traditional, transactional BDM model is losing relevance in a relationship-driven market.
Particularly in communities like Ascot, where reputation spreads quickly, the margin for error is thin. “It’s a very tight-knit area,” she said. “Word travels when service is good, and even faster when it’s not.”
Her takeaway for others in the industry is simple and is one she learned from Mark McLeod. CEO of Strategy at Ray White. “We’re not in the property business,” she said. “We’re in the business of trust.” It’s a mindset shift she said changed her career overnight.
“When you focus on building genuine relationships and actually caring about the people you’re working with, everything else follows. The results, the referrals, the growth - it all comes from that foundation.”
