Will Dylan posted an interesting article this week about capturing market share in your local real estate community.  The approach actually echoes the first lessons that are taught in entrepreneurial classes in MBA schools which is:  In a highly fragmented and saturated market (sounds like the real estate market of today) identify the market leader and develop strategies to take market share.   Although not revolutionary, the article and the concept convey some very effective points that can be incorporated into your own business plan. 

I continually tout the benefits of finding a unique niche  to serve within this industry.  Due to the size and breadth of different mediums that serve the industry, serving a specific niche is the best way to go.  With that in mind however, it pays to find and serve the biggest niche you can find; provided that you can effectively compete in that space.  In addition, if you apply the lessons mentioned by Dylan, target the market leader and position yourself to capitalize on their weaknesses, you can keep your business growing even in a slow and competitive market.

Dylan's example of how this strategy has been successfully applied is that of McDonalds and Subway.  When Subway entered the market, the targeted McDonalds as the market leader and positioned themselves to capitalize on the Fast Food Giant's weaknesses.  As a result, Subway's Eat Fresh campaign, with the help of Jarrod, effectively positioned Subway as the antithesis of McDonalds, and still appealed to very similar customers....  I'm a loyal customer of both... although I need to spend more time at Subway.

Okay, back to the topic at hand.  If you are a small real estate agent or broker, how do you compete with the behemoth that seems to get every listing in your community?  Your can't out-market a deep pockets organization, but you can position yourself to provide the better value to the same customer.  Find weaknesses such as non-personal service, poor customer service, hidden fees, paperwork hassles, etc. and position your business against them.  In addition, include services that the local power house does not such as staging services, traveling notary, closing gifts, customized marketing services, and anything else that will set you apart.

All of these approaches are designed to help you take market share from a market leader.  If you have a dominant player in your area that is not servicing their clients they way that they deserve to be served; find a way to position yourself to take advantage of your competition's shortcoming.