31 May Why You Need to Build a Brand to Sell More Homes

From the very start, we began building a brand, not just a business.

Going into real estate, we had a couple of stats on the front of our mind.

First was NAR’s stat that 87% of realtors drop out of the industry in the first five years. (Ouch.)

Second, Arizona has over 40,000 licensed realtors.

What this tells us: it tells us we have a lot of competition.

There is a LOT of noise out there. And every one of your clients knows another REALTOR®. Not only are we going up against the other 90% of realtors who have a presence on social media, we are also going up against every aunt Sally who has her real estate license.

If you can’t give a compelling reason for someone to choose you to be their agent, you’re not going to last very long in this business. Because of this, building a brand is more important than ever. And you can be sure that if you’re not branding yourself, your audience and your network will do that for you. They are going to come up with the story of who you are all on their own.

A brand story will build trust and rapport — simply by being “you”.

Here’s the thing: We are consumers by nature. If you really think about it, we don’t need to be “sold”. We love buying things, and we love buying into ideas and movements. What we don’t like, is being hard sold. And, the good news is, most agents don’t like being “overly salesy” anyway! So, what to do?

You build a brand story. You harness the power of storytelling to build an irresistible brand that ATTRACTS potential clients in.

When you build a brand story, you create trust and rapport with your clients. You create the ability to connect with them on a deeper level. Our clients won’t always care about the number of transactions we close or the market statistics. But they will remember and connect with our brand story – especially when it’s done right.

A brand story is what you become known for BEYOND what you do. You need to share why you do what you do. What your hopes and dreams are, what kind of people your unique services can benefit. These are your points of connection with your potential clients and their referrals. The idea is to invite in your audience so that they can see themselves as your client.

Be sure to convey this story through visuals by posting on social media, and through your voice in marketing. Showing the “real you” creates authenticity, and humanizes you beyond just a real estate agent.

Your brand will offer longevity.

If your business is simply spitting out ads and marketing all day with offers that only pertain to those that are ready to “buy now”, you’re sending the message to everyone else that you have nothing to offer them. In today’s world, our audience is one of our greatest assets, and by building a brand, you will cultivate an audience that is excited to follow along with your journey, no matter where they are in the lifecycle of a homeowner.

Think about it: If I built a brand only on selling homes to first-time buyers in my market, the only individuals I would attract are buyers in Phoenix. Otherwise, my content is no longer relevant to anyone else. And, as soon as I convince one of those individuals to use my services, they have no reason to remember who I am. That runs the risk of losing repeat business and referrals – NOT ON MY WATCH!

Share a brand story that shows who you are, what drives you, and what you’re passionate about. Give your audience helpful content based on service, you know, the stuff that they want to hear. (If you have no idea what your audience wants to hear…ask them!)

Give your audience a reason to stick around, and rally behind your business. In doing this, you’re creating not only a growing audience, but also more potential clients, and in turn past clients and raving fans.

Listen – we are ALL in saturated markets, struggling to compete and be heard among the noise. Stop shouting out offers to the masses, and instead learn to whisper your authentic story to keep your audience wanting more.

Building a brand ends the “hard sell”.

By building a brand and adopting the “Jab, Jab, Jab, Right Hook” method, you earn the right to unapologetically ask for business when the time comes. You’re giving so much value to your audience and potential clients, that it becomes a no-brainer to reach out to you when it comes time to buy or sell.

When you’re constantly trying to push sales stats, open house opportunities and new listings, you become a walking billboard for your business. This will only come off as forced and unnatural to those ready to buy or sell. And, it will alienate those who aren’t quite there yet.

When you’re building a brand, you are building a relationship with your audience. So, when the time comes for a potential client to make a move, they are eager to accept your services! The soft-sell is just so much more palatable not only for our clients but for us as business owners, too!