Branding in the real estate industry can take so many shapes. The posed shot with your clients, at your desk, or simply just the way you tend to dress.
I started as a Realtor in June of 1995, and was at a motivational seminar put on by, I believe, Joe Stumpf. During his presentation he talked about branding and it's importance in the sales industry. He engaged a young woman who was wearing a hat and asked "do you always wear hats?" to which she replied yes. He then went on to explain that perhaps there was an opportunity to brand using the hat. His suggestion to always feature the hat in branding, or a certain way of dressing got me to thinking...I had just started wearing reading glasses pretty much full time, and happened to be wearing red ones at the time. I met with a photographer who was able to take a black and white head shot of me and photoshop in the red reading glasses. This photo has been on my business card since that day in 1995 and will never be discontinued. I have had more fun with this little bit of "Branding" than I ever thought possible, and have kinda become "THE REALTOR WITH THE RED GLASSES"!
Has this branding made a difference in my career. Yes, absolutely! I have people from time to time who stop me to engage me in conversation and I find myself at a loss, thinking that my memory is failing me. They know me by name, and here I am without a clue as to who they are. Then comes the admission, "you don't know me(us), but I see your red glasses all the time! What a great idea, if we ever need a Realtor, we know who to call"...or something like that. I have received many listings because of the branding, and represented countless buyers for the same reason.
I believe that I would still be a very good Realtor without the branding, but I would have missed out on so much fun, and do believe that anything you can do to set yourself apart in our industry, in a healthy way, will always help our careers.
Anyone else out there that has had success with any special branding? I would love to hear your story!
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