by Krista Mashore
The real estate industry is beyond crowded — it seems like agents are popping up everywhere and taking aim at your clients. So, how can you cut through all that noise to stand out? You’ve got to become an expert marketer.
Marketing equals attraction
Wondering how you can stop chasing leads and start attracting them? The answer: with a strategic plan and commitment to taking imperfect action. It’s scary but will give you so much momentum … compared to thousands of leftover promotional magnets and sitting idle at open houses. Here are some strategies I used to sell over 2,400-plus homes in my career.
Become the authority
When you’re looking for a service, don’t you want the expert? Don’t you want the top surgeon or the financial planner who wrote the book on financial planning? What you’re looking for is the recognized authority.
First, be recognized. It doesn’t matter how amazing you are if no one knows about you. You need your whole market to know you! Next, be an authority. Many agents slide by with the minimum knowledge they need to get the job done. An authority not only becomes an expert, they also share their expertise.
How? Through strategic video marketing, sharing binge-worthy real estate and community-related information, getting it in front of your ideal audience and positioning yourself as the local expert.
I’ve written four bestselling books, spoken on stages and shared my knowledge by answering questions my audience didn’t realize they had. I became my community’s expert.
Serve, don’t sell
Stop “selling” yourself to people and focus on serving them. Stop convincing, start contributing. When you provide valuable information, they’ll see and understand just how terrific (and different) you really are. When you serve them without asking for anything in return, they’ll trust you, like you and choose to do business with you.
Serve through the valuable information you share. Serve by giving back to your community. Serve by helping promote other businesses in your community. You can do all of this without sacrificing your business. And you’ll end up with local fans that will stop you in the middle of the street asking, “Hey … aren’t you THAT real estate agent!?”
Be unique
If you want to stand out from the crowd, you have to do things differently. Part of branding is about who you are. Are you funny? A local coffee shop or brewery supporter? Want to save local shelter animals? You’re discovering your niche …
You might be wondering, “If I niche, will I lose out on other business?” Not at all. With every video or marketing piece you develop, you will continue to grow your brand as the local real estate authority. Your niche will help you save money, stand out and develop specialized knowledge.
Get started by choosing what you want to focus on. Rural properties or condos? Vacation properties or fixer-uppers? Then starting thinking about who you want to work with. First-time buyers? Retirees? Investors? All of these unique qualities should show up in everything you do, from your business cards to your website to your marketing brochures.
But always be ready to adapt. During the recession from 2007 to 2009, I made myself known as the “Foreclosure Queen.” When the market got back to normal, that identity no longer served my brand — it actually hurt me. I lost luxury listings because no one wanted to list their seven-figure home with the foreclosure expert. So, I adapted. I rebranded myself by using technology to market higher-end homes and became the “Digital Marketing Queen.”
Give awesome service
Doing the bare minimum will never escalate you to top producer. Constantly ask yourself, “How much more value can I give?” Think about all areas of your real estate business. I teach my students to infuse expert marketing throughout the complete sales cycle of their business; which includes areas like branding, lead generation, lead nurturing, conversion, fulfillment, delivery, re-listing and referrals.
Do you have a strategic plan for outstanding and differentiated service in each of these areas?
I’ve seen my students leverage these strategies and achieve incredible results. And guess what … You can dominate your market, too, by becoming your local authority who is unique, gives awesome service and focuses on serving, not selling.
Krista Mashore is a best-selling author and the founder and CEO of Krista Mashore Coaching.
