Meet Joe Summers
Joe Summers knows the multifamily world inside out. With a career spanning over 25 years, he's led major shifts in the industry—from fax machines to AI-driven access control systems. But Joe isn't just a tech-savvy operator or a serial entrepreneur with nine companies. He's a storyteller, a listener, and most importantly, a problem solver. His signature sales philosophy, "Getting to Hell Yes," puts people first, asks the right questions, and removes friction from the buying journey.Where It All Begins
Joe launched his career in 1999 at Apartment Guide in Washington, D.C.,. Back then, sales relied on relationships. Joe visited every property each month,to lend an ear & understand how things work.. That approach taught him an early lesson: “I wasn’t sure I was solving problems back then... but I was definitely being an ear. And that is solving a problem.”He recalls paper guest cards and TRS surveys sent by fax, managed by community managers smoking at their desks. It was analog, inefficient, and built on personal connections.“They’d say, ‘I love you, Joe. You brought me 10 leases last month.’”That old-school foundation grounded Joe in the value of human connection—a quality he believes today's sales environment often lacks.When Sales Stop Working
Fast forward to today. Technology makes buying easier but selling harder. There's too much noise, too many similar solutions, and not enough personalization.“Technology makes younger salespeople lazy,” Joe says. “They rely on email campaigns and forget the consultative approach.”Even with more tools, multifamily sales spin in circles. Turnover rates remain stuck at 50%, just like in 1999. Despite all the dashboards and data, the core challenges haven’t changed.Joe also sees a structural problem: a disconnect between owners and managers. Owners focus on NOI. Managers focus on daily operations and incentives. Selling to one without aligning with the other leads to failed deals.“If you pitch ROI that works for the owner but not the manager, it won’t land. The manager is the gatekeeper.”He adds, “If you're not keeping the regional layer informed, you've got a problem.”That misalignment causes ghosted emails, endless follow-ups, and stalled decisions. Competing interests, unclear goals, and murky decision paths clog the buyer's journey.Getting to Hell Yes!
Joe's philosophy, "Getting to Hell Yes!", fixes this broken system. It doesn’t push harder. It listens better, asks smarter, and solves honestly.1. Ask, Don’t Tell
Sales should never start with a pitch. Start with a question.“Never go into a situation selling. Go in knowing you have the right solution for the problems they will tell you about.”When prospects speak their challenges out loud, they engage with the solution. Their words create emotional investment. When your solution matches their language, they trust you.Joe reminds sellers, “Don’t tell them their problems. Help them discover it themselves.”2. Capture Urgency, Don’t Create It
Joe avoids fake urgency. He knows buyers act when they feel ready.“You can’t rush people. Just be ready when their urgency kicks in.”At Gatewise, his access control company, urgency often arrives naturally—when a gate breaks. Joe's team responds quickly with empathy and simple, effective solutions.“You capture urgency by understanding what makes that client tick—and how their CEO and CFO think,” Joe explains.3. Remove Friction
Complicated solutions stall deals. Joe makes everything easy to understand, install, and explain.“Make it easy for them to say yes. That’s your job.”Gatewise proves this daily. Sales reps demo the product on their phones, live and in person. Prospects see the system in action. The conversation shifts from “How does this work?” to “Where do I sign?”Joe also trains teams to identify all decision-makers. He tells reps to ask:“Guillermo, I know you juggle a hundred things. Who else makes decisions on this project? Let me help make your life easier.”He adds, “If you don’t ask, you’ll never get the answer.”A Better Way Forward for Sellers
Today, Joe leads nine businesses with this philosophy. Whether mentoring a startup or scaling a new acquisition, he stays focused: people first, process second.He prefers bootstrapped companies. Why? Because constraint forces clarity.“When you don’t have extra capital, you focus. You make smarter choices.”He avoids over-automation and prioritizes relationship-building. He even steers clear of calling himself or his team “vendors” unless absolutely necessary.“Time is diminishing. If you’re not accounting for it in your pricing and life, you’re doing it wrong.”His advice is humble and practical:- Never stop learning.
- Always be kind.
- Hire people smarter than you, especially those who fill your gaps.
What Getting to Hell Yes! Really Means
- Ask First, Solve Second
Great discovery leads to great solutions. Let buyers voice their pain in their own words. - Build for Their Reality, Not Yours
Remove barriers. Understand how they operate. Tailor your offer to their world. - Make it Easy to Say Yes
Involve them in the experience. If your solution is confusing, they'll walk away. Friction kills momentum.
Closing Thought
Joe Summers proves that the best salespeople don’t pitch—they solve. "Hell yes" isn’t a gimmick. It’s the result of clarity, alignment, and respect.In a noisy world, his philosophy stands out: be real, be relevant, and be ready.Because when the time comes, it won’t just be a yes.It'll be a hell yes.Ready to get your clients to Hell Yes?
Start by asking better questions, removing friction, and aligning value with what matters to them. Whether you’re selling tech, services, or strategy—follow Joe’s lead.📩 Want to build a sales team that listens, not pitches? Reach out today to learn more or get connected with Joe Summers.👉 Let’s start getting to Hell Yes—together.Our mission is to simplify the homeowners & home builders customer experience. Let Iris do the work.
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