When Realtors Become Commodities

Who's Who?
Every realtor's advertisements and business cards look exactly the same. To make one, simply combine these elements:
  • A photo of a smiling realtor
  • A quote about caring about the home buyer or seller--something like, "putting you first" or "because I care"
  • The name of the brokerage firm
  • Contact information
Realtors earn the bulk of their new clients from referrals, so the business cards created with the elements listed above work just fine. All a referral needs to know is the realtor's contact information and what she looks like so that when they meet it will feel a little familiar.

Standing out in a Crowd
But why would a realtor use the same approach in her advertisements as she does in her business cards? A realtor's ad on a billboard, in a newspaper, and in the yellow pages is meant to attract customers that can't be reached by word of mouth via a referral.

If a realtor is going to stand out among the sea of similarity that comprises all realtor advertisements, she needs to specialize her service offerings and tailor her message accordingly. I've put together a few simple examples with corresponding ideas for advertisements. Enjoy them in all their cheesiness, but recognize them for what they are--targeted, distinct, and great attention-grabbers:
  1. Need a real estate miracle? If you've had your house on the market for more than six months, call me today. Working miracles on unsellable houses is my specialty. My success rate is simply divine.

  2. At your service. I only serve six real estate clients at a time so that I can give you the time and attention that you deserve. Call me anytime -- day or night -- and I'll be there for all of your real estate needs.

  3. Family circus. If you're looking to buy or sell your family's home, I'm here to help. I only work with families. I'll work around your family's soccer games, ballet recitals, and music lessons to make showing your house or viewing other properties as convenient as possible. I'll even come and help clean your house before a showing if you're busy with the kids!

  4. Focus on the product. Put more money in your pocket -- I have the cheapest real estate commission rate in the industry. Guaranteed. Why pay more?
Add This To Your To-Do List
Are you or your business becoming a commodity? Do your customers know what makes you different than your competitors? If they don't, then you're headed down a dangerous path of anonymity. But its not too late to stand out, get noticed, and be memorable. What makes your brand unique? It's such a basic question, but finding the right answer is often very challenging in commodity markets. Whether you're a car dealer on a street filled with other car dealers or a family restaurant surrounded by dozens of dining alternatives, you must promote the things that make you unique. If you don't, you'll risk being forgotten.

There's never a lack of ideas.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Porta Potties: Hilarious Product Names

Image
I think the most entertaining product names in any one industry belong to the portable toilet industry. Porta potty names are hilarious! Here are eleven real portable toilet companies I found: The Honey Bucket Johnny on the Spot A Royal Flush Honey Do's Gotta Go Don John's Super Loo Pit Stop Pot-O-Gold Oui Oui (my favorite name) Floaters (slogan: "You Float 'm, We Tote 'm") See how much I love my readers? I researched porta potties for a long time to find these companies. You're welcome! Add This To Your To-Do List Am I right? Are porta potty names the most entertaining? Or is there another industry with even better names? It just goes to show you — sometimes the stinkier the industry, the better you'll stand out with a clever name. There's never a lack of ideas. PS If you're in the mood to see some hilarious slogans from septic tank businesses, check out this Reddit .
Read more

Only Old People Choose Butter Pecan Ice Cream

Image
Adapt or Die   Those who know me best often hear me proclaim my theory that only old people choose to eat butter pecan ice cream. Oh sure, some younger people enjoy its taste, but nobody under the age of 55 ever goes to the grocery store or Baskin Robins and buys butter pecan ice cream. The flavor is simply outdated. What does this mean for ice cream manufacturers? It means they should keep producing the flavor to satisfy current demand, but they had better create new flavors to adapt to changing tastes. That’s why they’ve created flavors like French silk and cookie dough — flavors that didn’t exist 15 years ago. In short, they adapt or die. Add This To Your To-Do List Have you taken a good look at your products or services lately? Are you still investing heavily in butter pecan ice cream and counting on it being your best seller for years to come? If so, you need to invest in innovation as quickly as possible. It could be as simple as offering new items on your menu, new s...
Read more

How to Advertise Your High School Reunion

Image
Welcome Back, Cotter Lately I’ve been spending a lot of time helping to advertise my upcoming high school reunion. For those of us who went to school before Facebook was around, this can be a challenging thing to do – especially with a graduating senior class of 900 students. Information hub. Create a website with a simple URL so that it can be easily referenced in all of your communications. Include all information about the reunion on that website – it will serve as your information hub. You will only have to update information in one place if you consistently refer your classmates to this website for information. Here’s an example . Share your URL with your school. Share the URL of your website with your high school so that they can post it on their website. School marquis. Ask to have the URL of your website placed on the marquis outside of your school for a week during the summer. Not much else goes on during the summer, anyway, so your school will probably be eager to put up ...
Read more