The bottled water industry has always amazed me. I mean truly amazed me. I am able to watch this over $35 billion (Beverage Marketing Corporation) industry as though it were a sporting event. Most recently I have realized that it continues to evolve and the latest evolution is most definitely in the packaging.

Bottled water is using the same approach as the wine industry. It's use of various packaging and its method of story-telling is just now breaking the surface. Case in point: FineWaters.com

"GOTA- The Guaraní Aquifer, located beneath Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay and is one of the world's largest aquifer systems. Named after the Guaraní tribe, it is estimated to contain about 37,000 km³ of water, arguably the largest single body of groundwater in the world, with a total recharge rate of about 166 km³/year from precipitation.

Bottled at its source and extracted from an 250 ft (80 m) deep well under the highest safety and quality standards, no additives or processes are inflicted to this water."

Doesn't this sound like a description of a great bottle of wine? If you are still not convinced, be sure to take a look at this ad for Gota Water. Categories like Balance and Hardness prove that this industry is after the most elite water snobs.

Water is just one way in which an industry has completely found a Blue Ocean Strategy. 15 years ago no one ever considered purchasing water in an individual bottle let alone buying a $9 bottle of water that was imported from a far away Antarctica glacier (could this be the reason our glaciers are melting? :-) )

Are there ways in which real estate may be able to find these Blue Ocean strategies within our own industry? The answer is we already are! Real estate websites like Trulia are finding ways to enhance the search process and are attracting a different demographic then what the usual MLS systems can do. Companies like Xpressdocs are creating easier ways to use direct mail and email marketing with greater capabilities and are designing them with the real estate professional in mind. Companies like Redfin are redefining the transaction process for the real estate world.

The truth is, your real estate package is much more difficult to change then simply changing the shape of a bottle. Your unique real estate business involves great thought, turnkey solutions, and a style that no one else can duplicate.