I think this post has been screaming to get out of my head ever since I left the first real estate firm I joined when I moved to NC. But, before I unleash my wrath let me first provide you newer agents with some background on Branding.
Before joining any firm, a real estate agent should become very familiar with the firm's marketing philosophy and over-arching goals. Is the firm focused on building their name and services in a way that supports their agent's business OR is the firm building their name and services to build their direct income at the expense of the sales associates? In other words, are they agent-centric or firm-centric?
I remember first thinking about the term brandingwhen I become Director of Business Development for a family-owned 3-office firm in Pasadena CA. in 1999. At that time, the giants like Coldwell Banker were busily gobbling up their competition and creating the mega-name they are today. To compete, my president and I focused on creating a marketing strategy that would "brand" us as THE local, privately-owned real estate firm. Our goal, of course, was to continue to attract strong agents and to build our brand or name awareness in the community. This was in every way meant to support our agents' own efforts to get listings and build their businesses.
When my husband and I fell in love with Lake Norman and moved here in 2005 I decided that I needed to, against my better judgment and what my gut was telling me, join the biggest firm with the largest market share in the area since absolutely no one knew me. New agents usually benefit from an association with a firm with a strong presence in their area. I just chose the wrong firm.
This particular firm was and still is branding themselves to feed their bottom line and in many cases places themselves in direct competition with their own agents. I had never before worked for a firm where I felt more, well, violated.
The genius behind their firm-centric business model is that they are so large that they can afford to design a comprehensive marketing plan and transaction management and MLS systems that puts them completely in the driver's seat. Hidden behind the sales contests, marketing blitzes, and hoopla are a well designed back-end set of systems that feed almost every lead through the company thereby allowing the company to request a referral fee of up to 35% depending on the lead. And, their database management program allows the company to have access to the agent's entire client database!
The most egregious aspect of their systems was their touted agent websites. Each agent got a website under the umbrella of the firm. However, EVERY request for information, CMA, or email that was sent from the agent's website to the agent was actually directed to the FIRM'S "Net Relations" department, NOT to the agent directly. Very clever but very uncool.
After a year of extremely low commission splits, high referral fees and yet very few actual leads or referrals, several run-ins with the management in an effort to fight for my client's rights I left and went to a local RE/MAX office where I am very happy.
My intent in writing this post was not to tout any one real estate firm but to make you all think about your own firm in a more big-picture way. What is their mission, their branding goals and how are their lead generation programs handled and distributed?
The moral of my story is that the biggest isn't necessarily the best for even the newest of agents. Do your homework and then follow your gut instincts!
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Yeah, I have to agree, I made the mistake of joining Keller Williams only to find out I came across the brokers left and right as competition....big mistake that was!