The real estate industry by its very nature is a highly competitive business. Seeking effective and professional brand services is crucial for real estate brand strategy. Companies must think about a number of components like real estate website design and marketing to elevate themselves above the competition. In today’s digital market, generating online leads is crucial for any real estate business. In this article, real estate branding experts discuss 9 essential tips that will help your real estate business stand out.

Tell Your Story And Strengthen Your Online Presence

“Here are some tips to stand out in real estate branding:

1) Tell your story – You’re not the only one who can be creative beyond doubt in real estate branding. Your competitors can think of the same strategies you’re thinking, so telling something that’s original is crucial in real estate branding. Share to your customers the struggles you’ve encountered, countermeasures you’ve executed to solve problems, failures and successes, and how your business can serve them. Create an identity that will make them say that’s ‘you’ once they hear something that rings a bell.

2) Strengthen your online presence – Providing a simple yet well-managed website is one good tip for real estate branding, and constantly improving it by making yourself available anytime online is another. Presence is very much needed by your customers so they know they can rely on you. Acknowledge their inquiries, feedbacks, or criticisms because that may greatly guide you in improving your service.”

Willie Greer, Founder, The Product Analyst

Build And Establish Your Local Brand, Competitor Research, And Online Testimonials

“Some of the helpful online and offline marketing strategies for real estate are as follows:

Make sure to Build and Establish your local brand and Online Presence. Every visitor who is thinking to become your customer will always look out for your local real estate and your online presence. When the client finds you online or through social media, they can easily find you with all of your business information to prove your authenticity.

Markets shift and change all the time, start by pitching to the right customers. Grow your business by taking a step back and looking at the broader picture to which untapped markets can benefit your offerings in ways you have not considered before. Just because your customer has always fitted a particular profile, does not mean that it will always be the case.

Technology is marking its feet in the world of sales and marketing. You can make the most of marketing and sales by looking at the channels through which you are engaging with your clients and evaluate which channel is performing well.

Always do competitor research in terms of what your competitors are doing, what campaigns they are running to get audience engagement and then analyze what activities you need to do to reach and connect with customers.

Never underestimate the power of online reviews and testimonials. 84% of people trust online reviews as much as personal recommendations. There is so much to choose from for consumers out there today that these reviews can really make or break a customer’s decision to use you over another realtor.”

Rameez Ghayas Usmani, Digital Marketing Executive, PUREVPN

Gifting From A Strategic Perspective

“Most real estate agents don’t think about gifting from a strategic perspective, and this is absolutely the biggest overlooked opportunity in their business. National Association of REALTORS (NAR) publishes a very detailed annual survey that provides some startling statistics that are widely available and spotlight the issue. Consider these pieces of information – 90% of buyers surveyed say they would gladly refer or reuse their agent’s services, but in reality only ~12% actually do. About 37% end up never recommending their agent, while those that do recommend their agent, the median number of referrals is only one! And here is the kicker – when someone is shopping for a real estate agent to help them buy or sell a home, 75% end up going with the first agent they visit with, and another 15% end up with the second agent. So put those two sets of data and let that sink in. if you are an agent, 90% of your clients say they’ll refer you, and if they did, 75%-90% of those referrals would sign up with you for your services!

So the $64,000 question is how do you make that happen? You must take a strategic approach to gifting, and you have to mesh with the buyer/seller customer experience, i.e. their emotional journey, and have your brand, your outstanding service, and your personality emotionally linked with the successful conclusion of their buying or selling journey. We now know that presentation details and environment, and timing and frequency of client touches makes a huge difference. Lastly, we’ve found that the overwhelming majority of agents give a closing gift that is consumable in nature (gift baskets, bottles of wine, champagne, etc., or various gift cards) – and essentially these are here today, gone tomorrow; and that gifts more durable in nature are typically quickly relegated to a shelf or low-traffic area. The gift category that actually has proven to drive the most long-term value in terms of increased referrals and improved retention is something that is literally used by the client on a daily or near-daily basis, and in a manner central to the home and family, and it should be high quality and have a long lifetime (think five, ten, or more years). Lastly, it should be branded with the agent’s information – this is a point many agents are uncomfortable with initially, but it really is a non-issue among most gift recipients, and it is the key to keeping the agent’s brand top of mind awareness with the client. And when a referral or reuse occurs, that behavior should be recognized, encouraged, and rewarded.

At the end of the day, the clients surveyed indicated a willingness to refer their agent, and most new clients sign on with the first or second agent they meet, so it is up to the agent to create an environment that encourages and rewards the referral behavior. It is up to the agent to help the client bring them referrals and to even bring their repeat business when the times come. And the rewards can be staggering – reduces sales and marketing efforts and costs, easier customers to work with and higher profitability – it is commonly cited to be 5X easier to work with a warm referral or a repeat client, and 25% to 75% more profitable, too!”

Jimmy Rushing, Closing Gifts & More

Go Niche

“My advice is to go niche. Real estate agencies are a dime a dozen. That’s why it’s so difficult for prospective buyers or sellers to decide who they want to work with. There are so many available options. In order to stand out, I recommend specializing in a certain segment of the market. For example, this could be a specific geographic area in a large city or type of real estate such as rental properties. When you brand yourself as an expert in a specific niche, the amount of potential clients you will be able to work with will likely decrease, but it will be easier to become the go-to expert in your domain. 

Once you have decided on which area you want to specialize in, it’s all about creating consistent messaging to help establish your expertise. That means your website and social media channels should provide content that highlights your knowledge and experience. Case studies and blog content can be an effective way to do this. In addition, your personal image or the image of the management team at your agency should reflect this messaging. For example, if you focus on luxury properties then you likely would want to show your team wearing formal attire in their pictures on LinkedIn, Zillow, and on the website.”

Ricardo Mello, Manhattan Miami Real Estate

Build Relationships And Be Client-Centered

“Get crystal clear on what type of client you want to attract and what your mission is. Be consistent in your branding and your message so people have a strong sense of who you are. We are sure to use the same colors and fonts on everything we do so we are instantly recognizable. You will not be the right fit for everyone, so be true and honest about who you are and what you can offer to clients so you attract the right clients.

I created my brokerage around the idea of helping people create emotional and financial stability through homeownership. We pride ourselves on building our business on relationships and being client-centered. That’s why we never brag about ourselves and It’s evident in our Settle Down name as well as our thought-provoking slogan, Where Do You Want to Wake Up? Everything on our site is focused on the client and how we can serve them, except for the agent section which introduces our agents and shows their human side. You will never see us brag about how many houses we sold or how much money we make. This message is conveyed in everything we do. 

Our open and friendly vibe is carried out in our colors, logo, and even the shape of our signs. It shows that we are independent, creative, and flexible so we can help our clients with their needs.

People know who we are and what we stand for through our consistent branding. It has helped attract the right clients and weed out the ones who aren’t a good fit.”

Janis Benstock, Broker/Owner, Settle Down Philadelphia

In this our digital age, having an excellent online presence is imperative for real estate branding. Real estate companies should understand how everything from logo design to social media management are all components in formulating a strong and consistent brand identity. Ultimately, successful brand marketing will increase sales for your real estate company, and create the much sought after, brand loyalty.

Sarah Bauder

Sarah Bauder is a senior content specialist at Little Dragon Media. Sarah has a degree in journalism and has a decade of experience writing content at numerous renowned publications. She enjoys writing about digital marketing, business, entrepreneurship and more.