What is your brand right now? What recognition does your name have in the real estate industry?
You should have a brand that lets your business grow. Whether you are the expert in your area or specialize in a certain niche. What won't work is to use your brokerage's brand, if you work with one. Out of 70 percent of sellers contacted just one agent sealed the deal then and there. The broker’s brand is just an afterthought. There is no second chance when creating a first impression.
You can use your company's assets, and you probably should if they’re right for you. But you don't lean too heavily on your brokerage to define what makes you different from the next agent at your brokerage. So many great agents work for a brokerage but have their own separate and recognizable brand that still separates them.
Anybody can create a brand for themselves. It doesn't matter if you're a brand new agent or have been around for a couple of decades.
What a Brand Is
A brand is a type of guarantee and a promise that you make to your clients, prospective clients and anyone else. It’s a real promise to your client about the way that person can expect the business to go and the process to play out.
Find out what you're best at and make those promises to your clients. If you've been in your area for a very long time and know the market there as well, brand yourself as the expert realtor in that area.
If you specialize in finding people the home they want fast, you can talk about that. You just need something that is going to make your name stand out.
Growing Your Brand
You already know you should have your own website and email campaigns that you send out. So your own logo with your name in it is recommended. With these and your listing presentations the details are what's going to build your brand up.
How you respond to any inquiries, questions and anything online is how you're going to constantly represent the brand you're trying to build up. In real estate, it’s nearly impossible to maintain a separate personal and professional life.
Your social media accounts are a giant part of your online portrayal. Use that to help your brand thrive.
Build it Slowly
It doesn't, and probably shouldn't, need to have every detail and nuance at first. The key to this is to build upon each part and build upon each interaction. It's not going to happen all at once. Another part of this is to not build any part poorly or cheaply. If you cut corners with some customers or even respond in a visible place without representing yourself like you want, eventually those things may come back to you. So take pride in the details.
Have a Gameplan
Have you honestly looked through your business and figured out what your brand is going to stand for? For example, at Smart Agents we offer ghostwritten books for those who want to be branded as the authority.
Lay out a budget and a plan on how you want to methodically go about building yourself and brand, mostly online probably. Do your research and find out what you need to do and spend for this to happen. If you aren't able to articulate what you’re trying to do, you’ll throw money away on marketing tactics that have little chance of working.
Try and Keep It Connected To Your Company's Brand
Keep it connected and try to use a lot of the smaller aspects to help that cause. Handle your leads and responses like someone from your branch would. Don't be all their brand's style, but make it clear you do work for and represent them. How do the other agents in the company represent the brand?
Are you proud to be associated with your broker’s brand? Your brand should work well with it.
Make Sure to Use All the Tools You Have
Use SEO to hone in on your keywords in search engines. Really reflect what you're building your brand toward on social media. Blogging is another great way to authenticate yourself and then parlay that with your social media accounts.
You should be putting as much effort as possible into building your brand.It offers the best opportunity to gain leads and referrals.
Joe Nickelson is a real estate professional dedicated to helping home buyers and sellers achieve their dreams of owning property, and helping real estate agents stop using the sometimes-vicious tactics that weigh on their consciences. He believes that the Smart Agents books will, quite literally, change people’s lives for the better. Check out his full bio here!
