More and more we as an industry have distilled ourselves into the lowest common denominator. You see it on the plethora of real estate agent’s websites – “we work with buyers and sellers, investors, renters, those thinking about any of the above now or might be thinking about any of them in the future”, in one or more cities, counties and God forbid, states.  In fact, truth be known, most of the agents you know would work with almost anyone who would fog a mirror. 

I understand why people do this, they come from a place of scarcity and fear.  I mean, what if I lost the opportunity to close one sale, another opportunity may never come along again.   Most of the industry has never figured out the lead generation and rainmaking piece of their real estate business so every prospect is treated like it is gold.  Trust me, your attitude changes when you go from getting the random one new lead a week to having a steady flow of 100 a week. 

The problem is this – if we never focus, we never really get good at anything.  We become a jack of all trades and a master of none.  Being an expert is much more than declaring yourself one on your latest postcard.  It is really knowing the community you live and work in.  Not only where the schools are, but who the teachers are.  Who local business owners are, where the best places are for a romantic dinner out.  When are the best community activities and what are the future plans at city hall.  Much less how much Mr. Steven’s house down the street sold for.

Establishing value and creating a business that is worth having demands we get to the point where we can outshine every other agent in our area in something and the only way to get good at one thing is to give up holding on to the many things. 

Carpe diem,

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There’s an old sales adage that says “People buy from people they know, like and trust,” and public relations (PR) is one of the most cost-effective ways to build the awareness, goodwill and credibility that help influence buying decisions.  Not that we would suggest that REALTORS® use PR to the exclusion of all other marketing tactics, but a healthy dose of PR, combined with a little advertising, direct mail, or other tactics, can provide a big sales boost for many small businesses.

But how can you determine if the campaign is worth the investment?  You might think that gauging a campaign’s impact on immediate sales makes the most sense, but bear in mind that only a direct sales campaign can be measured that way. 

Most marketing programs for small businesses, especially retail, professional services (REALTORS®, CPA’S, etc.) serve to generate a pool of potential clients.  The onus for converting prospects into customers rests with the client, not the campaign.

Here are a few ways to measure the results of your campaign without relying on raw sales data. As with many marketing tactics, tracking the results of your PR campaign can be difficult if you don’t know what you’re looking for, so consider using some of these techniques:

• Track the number of inquiries or leads your business receives via phone, drop in or web visits.  You’ll need to start by establishing a baseline for each inquiry stream before your campaign starts so that you’ll know whether or not your campaign is actually drawing in more leads.
• Ask your prospects how they heard about the real estate services you offer.  Know that many people may not remember exactly where they heard about your business, unless it was the result of research such a through the Yellow Pages.  This is good, because it means that your PR campaign is working!  PR is supposed to have a “ripple effect” so that one person who sees a story tells another,  adding to the pool of people who are informed about your business through the PR, plus adding the weight of personal sanction to the referral.
• Create a campaign-specific offer through your web site with a unique URL, such as a coupon or special program that is only mentioned in your PR.  By isolating an offer this way, you can see how effective your pitch was by counting exactly how many people respond to your offer (of course, that’s assuming the offer is enticing enough to draw interest).
• Compare historic sales patterns for each year by month to see when or if your business has seasonal sales cycles. Keep in mind that it is always easier to boost a high cycle season’s sales because there are often external factors that drive customers. For example, as a REALTOR® if you work in a ski resort area, perhaps you’ve noticed a jump in sales during the holidays. That time of year (and right before) would be the perfect time to add PR to your marketing mix so that when potential clients are ready to purchase, your Resort Expertise has top-of-mind awareness.

While your story in the newspaper or on TV may motivate someone to get off the couch and take action, an actual buying decision may be based on price, location or convenience.  That’s why developing clear goals and measurement metrics for your PR campaign are so important, so that you can get the maximum return on a minimum investment.

Carpe diem,

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Every once and a while I get something that is just too good not to share. Dean is a fellow Master’s Program Graduate and is the CEO of one of the finest Ad agencies I’ve ever been exposed to. I received this article last week from him and thought it dovetailed into the branding series I just wrapped up. I hope you enjoy Dean as much as I do -

Take care of your customer or someone else will
If you don’t have the right disciplines in place to super-serve your clients, you will lose them and your reputation.

In one of my recent articles, I wrote that one of the main opportunities that exists in marketing today is exemplary client care. Unfortunately, most companies devote little time to this lost art and many are clueless about the negative ramifications poor client care has on their business.

My goal is to drive home the understanding that if you don’t have the right disciplines in place to super-serve your clients, you will lose them and your reputation. If you do serve them well, you will get more business, more often, and you’ll get more referrals. Guaranteed. Here’s a few thoughts.

1. The first step to amazing client care is just that. You must care. You can’t fake caring. Clients can spot a self-serving sales geek a mile away. If you are out for yourself rather than for your clients, go find a tree, sit under it for a while, and get clear on what it will mean if you get in touch with genuinely caring for your clients. This is client care 101.

2. Next, clarify the expectations of each client. They’re all different. So learn the needs of each and learn what has frustrated them in working with past vendors. You know, learn from the ones they fired. Often, sales people don’t know what to deliver because they don’t ask, or they assume all clients want the same thing. At our agency, we use a questionnaire to clarify client expectations and it works wonders.

3. Invest some up-front time setting up your processes and technologies to automate and simplify servicing your clients. The easier you make it, the more you’ll do it.

4. Make it easy for the client to do business with you. By finding out how they like to work, you can create a client service model for each client. Then review it with them to demonstrate how you see serving them best. This blows clients away and puts you front-of-mind every time.

5. Conduct a client survey when you’re well into the relationship to take a pulse-check on how you’re doing. There have been times I thought I was doing great with a client when in fact, they had quite a different perspective… the perspective that matters. Plus, surveys are useful tools to discover how you can do more business together or ask for referrals. Clients love to know you’re striving to make their lives more efficient, more productive and more enjoyable.

6. Ahhhhh, client problems. Inevitable? Yes! Destructive? It depends on how you handle them. Somewhere in every service person’s mindset there is a twisted idea that problems will disappear or tone down if you postpone dealing with them. When a problem arises, deal with it as if your pants just caught fire… that fast. Also confirm the client is satisfied with how you handled it every time.

7. Keep your commitments to your clients. Sound elementary? You’d be surprised at how many people keep just 70% of their commitments and call themselves pros. Show up on time, deliver when you promised, and follow-up when you said you would. Can we keep every commitment every time? No, but you can often renegotiate it prior to the commitment deadline if you’re having difficulty. That’s your lifeline.

8. Don’t stretch the truth with your clients. For example: “We can get that in four weeks,” when you know it will take five. “We have 45 full-time professionals, “when you only have 35. “Our client satisfaction rate is 100%,” when it’s pushing 80%. We call these sales exaggerations and they’re as common as breathing. If you tell the truth, your character conviction will multiply your results, make you feel better about yourself, and you will create stronger relationships. If you tell little white lies, well, you’re simply a liar.

9. Exceed customer expectations. You don’t have to do it every time, but make it your goal to try. If you exceed expectations occasionally, your client’s perspective will be that you do it all the time.
In closing, you’ve heard the old adages, “poor client care conversations spread like the plague” or “it takes 10 times the effort to get a new client than keep an old one.”Whatever the adage, make it something you commit to simply because that’s who you want to be. The money will follow and so will your clients, wherever you go.

Carpe diem,

Secrets to Successful Branding – The Law of the Word

If, we, as the real estate community really understood the concept of branding and its importance, we would save a fortune by cutting the misplaced dollars we are spending in the name of “getting their name out there.”

Most of us are re-treads – people who fell into this business and came from some other background. In 15 years of asking, I’ve only found one person who grew up wanting to be a real estate agent (and she is no longer in the business). I can’t tell you how many people I’ve interviewed as a Broker that said the reason they wanted to be an agent was because they liked houses and people. If that is the sole reason they are here my advice to them has been – “Don’t get started in this business because in 6 months you will hate them both.”

Those that make it in this industry in today’s world are those that approach it with an amount of business prowess. Unfortunately, that isn’t taught in the “learn everything you need to know to become successful in real estate in two weeks” class. So, we throw the newbies to the vultures (vendors who sell BS products that do nothing but line the pockets of the vendors and serve as filler our nation’s dumps). We let them sling mud on a wall and see what sticks and hope against hope that they will be one of the very few fortunate ones who will survive the first three years.

Over time, those that emerge as mega agents realize that to truly win in this you must realize that it is a business not a career (and there is a major difference) and start learning how to become the “RainMaker.” Although we have dozens of proprietary campaigns to generate more leads, from time to time, we need to strip back to the basics and dive into the philosophy to align ourselves with the right thinking to launch our business to the next level. This week, it’s all about how to brand effectively so that you may maximize your ROI in any marketing or advertising program your engage in. From Al Ries, a master of marketing and branding in the retail sector, we take the lessons and apply the fundamentals to our real estate businesses.

In Branding , There is the Law of the Word

There is a limited amount of real estate in our consumer’s active memory. The lion’s share of the space going to the things that weighs most heavily on their mind. Because this resource is precious and limited your brand should strive to own a single word or concept in the eyes of the consumer. You are not competing with other agents; you are competing against every other professional and service industry. You have an advantage because real estate and the client’s home equity can be leveraged as an important value on a constant basis with spikes of interest as it comes time to move. But you must keep the importance on the consumer’s top of mind with all the other competing interests vying for attention.

You want to establish yourself as the expert and go-to person for real estate regardless of where they are in the buying or selling process. Become their resource and contact. Ideally, you want to get to the point where when your perfect client drives past a competitor’s sign, they think of you.

Carpe diem,

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Ever wonder why some shoe-string start-up real estate businesses succeed wildly, while some well-funded ventures tank big time? Contrary to what you might believe, spectacular success does not require a huge advertising budget, celebrity endorsements, or an MBA. Here are the ten simple steps that will lead your business to spectacular marketing success:

1. Create a clear picture of your goals and what you’re going to do to achieve them. You can’t figure out how to get someplace without knowing where you’re going, so you need to document your plans by quantifying your goals (how much revenue you want to generate), outlining your strategies and tactics (what you plan to do to attract, acquire and retain your clients), and finally, scheduling your activities (when you’re going to do all these great things).

2. Understand why you are in business. You have your own business not because you want to work for yourself, but because you have something of value (a service or information) that someone is willing to pay you to get. Period. You may have a personal agenda (or three), such as making a huge profit or tithing 20% or pursuing your artistic passion, but those reasons are not why people pay you, so they are not reasons why you are in business.

3. Identify your best or ideal client. There is no service or piece of information on Earth that “everybody” wants, including yours. Heck, we can’t even agree on the same soda pop, for goodness sake, so why would you think that everybody in the world would want what you’re selling? Chances are there are people out there who really want and need what you’ve got to offer, and once you figure out who those people are and where you can find them, you’re in the money.

4. Identify your solution. Another tricky step, because most people try to sell the process, not the outcome.  If you think you know what your clients really want, ask yourself this: Why does my client want that? The answer to this question is probably the solution you offer.

5. Articulate your solution. Distilling your value to a particular client base in seven to nine words is a great way to articulate your solution (I call this a “Sound Bite”).  Let me use an example from a friend of mine who is an image consultant.  She would say that she dresses women who want to look their best. Nice, but so what? What do her clients really want? Here’s a hint: Her new “Sound Bite” is that “she helps women look 10 pounds thinner and 10 years younger.”

6. Spread the word. People have to know that you exist and that you can solve a particular problem for them in order to take advantage of your real estate services. Tell everyone you know (and plenty of people you don’t know) about your business. Too modest to talk about your own great self? Let your clients do it for you, by quoting them on your web site or in your marketing materials, or having a notebook of letters from satisfied customers.

7.  Ask for business. Kids working the counters at fast food restaurants have no problem asking if we want fries with our orders, but many REALTORS® are hesitant to ask for business. Remember two things: People like to be invited (so invite them to work with you), and you’re offering a viable solution to someone who would benefit from your service, not trying to pick his pocket. So ask.

8. Provide great service. Think “service” isn’t part of your business? It’s part of every business, but the type and quality vary wildly. Maybe your restaurant doesn’t allow substitutions, but your servers are helpful and friendly, your restrooms are spotless, and your products are delivered to the table piping hot (or ice cold, as the case may be). That’s good service.

9.  Appreciate your clients. Nobody likes being taken for granted, especially your clients.  There are many ways to demonstrate your appreciation, including personal notes, multi-purchase programs (buy 10, get one free), longevity discounts (after a certain number of purchases, the client can purchase at a lower rate), and even verbal expressions (“Thank you!”). Make sure your clients know that YOU know they have a choice of vendors, and that you’re happy they chose you.

10. Take personal responsibility for your success. Whether or not your real estate business succeeds or fails depends on you, not market conditions, competition, or other outside forces. Obviously, you want to confirm that there is a market for your product or service before sinking your last dime into the business, but know that once that market is identified, the only thing standing between you and success is you. Thinking otherwise gives you an excuse to fail, and that’s not the way to spectacular success.

Spectacular success is less a matter of chance than choice. If you choose to follow these steps, success will follow.

Carpe diem,

You can also click on one of the following links to have the mastery coaching blog with helpful life and business tidbits geared to real estate’s elite delivered to your computer,

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 For what it is worth, here’s some of the lessons I’ve learned from blogging –

1. If you want your blog to be read, you have to be controversial.  Vanilla posts get regulated to the bottom of the stack very quickly.  If you try and please everyone and write a very nice and cute post about “why can’t we all get along” no one reads it, even fewer comment (even to get 25 points) and it is never shared.  Even if it has great information, if it isn’t edgy or offensive to someone won’t get the readership or Google juice to make it worth writing.  Write something that alienates some and you will start building a following.

2. People like pictures and visuals.  I have gone back and updated the look and feel of some of my first posts and the response rate is 10-1, with the exact same copy, with posts with pictures vs those without.

3. Blogging works.  Every time I put something or someone in my blog, the Google juice is immediate (ok within 45-60 minutes) and so are web traffic and phone calls to both my website and theirs.

4. People like bullet lists.  You can rant in story form and get away with it but information needs to be in bite sized chunks and highlighted.

5. Blogging brings more business than national advertising.  I get 50-1 inquires running the exact same ad in a blog forum as in a national ad to my core audience.  Yes, 50 to 1.  Blogging requires me to be interesting, learn to write, and be consistent.   National ads require me to spend lots of money.  Based on the numbers to get the same level of leads I need to multiply the national ad budget by 50 if I want the same results as my blog.  I’m not saying there is no place for print advertising, just that I don’t recommend picking up stock in newspapers or magazines.

6. Give it away.  There are no secrets.  They are all out there; the only unique thing you bring is insight, personality and perspective (with that said, please don’t steal someone else’s insight, personality and perspective). Quit hording good ideas and share them with the community.  First, it is a good thing to do and second, it will increase your business.  That includes withholding your comment.  If you have something to contribute, contribute, even if it is a word of encouragement.  

Carpe diem,

You can also click on one of the following links to have the mastery coaching blog with helpful life and business tidbits geared to real estate’s elite delivered to your computer,

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1) Remember that you can have the most incredible website in the world, but, it is TOTALLY WORTHLESS if you do not DRIVE TRAFFIC TO THE SITE.

2) The primary purpose of a branded website is to VALIDATE YOU by giving the visitor a ‘place’ where they can learn all about you in a controlled environment and on their own time.  Consider it an electronic brochure on ‘you’.  The site should be ‘clean and professional’ as well as easy to navigate.  Avoid ‘artsy’ and ‘cute’.  Let the site talk about you.

3) You want to do as much as you can to KEEP THE VISITOR IN YOUR SITE – don’t let them ‘link’ out.  For instance, if you have a link to a City Government, Chamber of Commerce or the many other ‘seeming innocent’ sites – INCLUDING Realtor.Com and your Franchise Brand, remember that most of these types have search engines WITHIN their site that could lead YOUR VISITOR to a COMPETING AGENT!

4) I DON’T recommend that you post ‘your’ listings on your site.  Either give your viewers access to ALL LISTINGS or NONE.  Today, there are services where you have the capability of displaying ALL LISTINGS in your MLS.  If you are going to provide ‘inventory’ for visitors to see, you are serving them better if you show ALL LISTINGS – not your handful of personal listings.

5) When you are ordering or designing your site, avoid INTRO’S (sometimes referred to as FLASH INTROS).  Most viewers want to ‘get to the meat’ and want to avoid ‘cute’.  Also, if the viewer is at work, they typically have their sound turned down and can’t hear anything.  There are many people out there who want to take your money by selling you sizzle, but, at the end of the day, your viewers want STEAK (content).

Carpe diem,

You can also click on one of the following links to have the mastery coaching blog with helpful life and business tidbits geared to real estate’s elite delivered to your computer,

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You don’t sell houses. Let me say it again, you don’t sell houses. Not in a successful marketing campaign. You sell your USP or Unique Selling Proposition. There are hundreds of thousands of agents in world today. If all you do is sell houses, then there are at least a few others that are willing to do the same thing. What makes you better than any other? Why should a client hire you? As an industry, we have been caught without enough distinction which is why over the last few years we have experienced such a high level of “Commission Compression.”

Here’s an example - If I were to buy a new BMW 7i and one dealer had one the car for $80,000 and another dealer could get the exact same car for $72,000 which would I choose? All things being equal, price will become my determining factor. But let’s say that I just wanted to buy a car that allows me to get to and from work in a safe comfortable manner. What makes me consider an $80,000 BMW versus an $18,000 Kia? Price no longer becomes the only factor. BMW knows they aren’t selling a car or mere transportation; they are selling “The Ultimate Driving Machine.” In fact, they’ve done quite well getting buyers to buy to satisfy the buyer’s own ego needs. And more interestingly, how many BMW owners would cop to ego being their primary reason for buying the car? With that said – let’s not beat up on the BMW crowd too bad, the same could be said about Lexus, Mercedes and others and they don’t have the distinction of being the “Ultimate Driving Machine.”

What is your USP? What are your strengths? What can and do you do better than anyone else? What are your values? What do you care about and hold most dear? Market around those things and you will find yourself in the rare air of those agents who make the rules about how the real estate game is played and who hold the top %1 who dominate the marketplace.

Carpe diem,

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I highly recommend the book The Starbucks Experience by Michelli. It’s a great read on why people will stand in line and pay $4 for a cup of coffee. As I read through it, I thought I’d share a few of the principles from the book in a condensed form as well as some of my thoughts on how they apply to your business.

Principle #1 – Make It Your Own
We all have common objectives. Our goals and those of each of our clients are similar in their construct. Where we soar is in the individual creativity and passion that we apply to what we do. It is in those things that we form the bonds so that people will continue to come back. It is there that we connect, discover and respond. It is in our core values and strengths that we learn to love what we do.

Principle #2 – Everything Matters
In a service industry, everything matters. Every detail, every conversation every nuance makes a difference. Master the simplicity of the basics and spend the rest of your time perfecting your game. It is in the details that the pros stand out from the masses.

Principle #3 – Surprise and Delight
Pursue “wow” moments. Think through your business and ask yourself – “where can I give a ‘wow’ moment to my clients? Those are the moments where you have exceeded expectations and delivered something above and beyond. It is in these moments that we demonstrate and prove our value. We need a certain amount to justify our compensation, we need more to create buzz. Deliver the exceptional, surprise and delight at every opportunity.

Principle #4 – Embrace Resistance
Change is going to happen, people are going to complain, life is going to hurt at times. Learn from it all. Everyone has something to contribute, every challenge offers an opportunity. Be open to hear about your faults and shortcomings and where others are disappointed. Learn from them and except that you are a work in progress, not perfection.

Principle #5 – Leave Your Mark
What do you leave behind? I’m not talking about a notepad either. What is it that has added value and where have you invested in others? Success is sweet, but significance, yes significance, is what brings glory to our soul. Joy and peace, the deep internal kind that marks your life and the lives of those you come into contact with is manufactured in spades in significance.

Carpe diem,

You can also click on one of the following links to have the mastery coaching blog with helpful life and business tidbits geared to real estate’s elite delivered to your computer,

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Questions to ask yourself to see if you are effectively using ways to engage visitors-

• I offer a free teleclass or webinar they can sign up for online.
• I offer a free newsletter or tip broadcast they can subscribe to online.
• I offer a free consultation or sample.
• I offer a chat room at my site.
• I offer a discussion board at my site.
• I offer a free report (related to my subject or field) via auto-responder.
• I offer a book, CD, or Podcast they can buy or get for free.
• I offer visitors referrals to someone who can help them.
• I offer visitors a list of links worth remembering that will help them continue their journey.
• I offer visitors a chance to say hello to me personally.
• I have widgets with active updating content.

Carpe diem,