I've always been in awe of successful realtors, as it must be the most competitive business out there!  I feel like I can throw a snowball out my front window and hit a Realtor or two!

With the intense competition, I've always been amazed at how and why a potential customer will 'choose' a realtor to represent them. Some of the reasons are so absurd it makes my head spin:  "I go to church with their wife's mother"; "I receive a calendar in the mail every year"; "I receive your postcards", etc. 

I just can't wrap my head around why someone would choose someone to represent them in the largest transaction of their lives.... because they receive a crappy calendar in the mail!  I just don't understand that logic!

Having worked with Realtors on internet marketing for almost a decade, I can vouch for the fact that all Realtors are NOT created equal.  I've met and worked with some (far too many, actually) that seem overqualified to work at Radio Shack!  Since the barrier to entry into this profession is so low, there really isn't one. Have a few bucks for a license?  Can you memorize some facts into your short term memory?  If so, it appears you can "become" a Realtor with very little effort!

One of the few benefits of our lovely economy is that many of these Realtors will leave the business.  Since deals aren't falling into their laps as they were for many years, and Realtors are having to really show their marketing and negotiating muscle in this economy just to stay alive, the strong will survive and the weak will go back to Radio Shack (assuming Radio Shack is still in business!). 

One of amazing things in this business is how everyone can compete when most Realtors "appear" to be the same.  Their business cards are the same (it seems most companies order their business cards from the same place!); their websites are the same (so many have Z57, Advanced Access, etc. template sites... they actually ARE the same!); their marketing pitch is the same (most use the same prepackaged propaganda from their broker); and most franchised companies ARE essentially "the same" (Realogy anyone?). 

I have worked with Realtors in designing websites and marketing online for many years.  One of my goals has always been to figure out ways of making my clients "stand out" from the clutter of their competition.  For many years, there was always "something"....  at first, just HAVING a website set you apart... then having a website with IDX search capabilities set you apart (all the rest were just "about me" puff pieces).

I started doing single property sites with unique domain names about 5 years ago - now everyone does them.  Big deal.

Blogs were (and to some extent still are) were a unique voice (and still aren't the norm), but they are gaining popularity fast.

Doing an online visual presentation of the property was a way of setting your listings apart.  I started doing large format Flash slideshows way back in 2002 to help set my clients' listings apart.  Everyone else just put up their tiny MLS photos... a few brave ones did those horrible spin around "fun house" virtual tours.

Today?  Everyone is using these zooming slideshow programs.... VisualTours, RealEstateShows, Zipvo, etc.  They're all inexpensive.  They're all effective.  And they're all over the place - they're commonplace now. And they all look exactly the same, therefore you are not setting yourself apart from your competition - you're just doing the same old, same old.... 

This is why I started my business doing full motion, real estate video tours over 3 years ago.  Not only because it actually does help generate more interest and therefore, sell properties quickly, it also helps set the listing agent FAR apart from their competitors.  Three years ago a Realtor literally had an edge over literally every other Realtor in the marketplace by using video.  Today, it still is THE single marketing platform that can set you FAR apart from literally everyone in your marketplace!

Niche marketing always works - keeping a sharp focus on your specialty can make your website stand out from the rest - and make YOU stand above your competition. Many realtors are afraid to niche their business for fear of losing business.  I think niche marketing is the key to successful business period - online AND offline.  Pick a niche, become the professional... the expert....   it shoots you away from all of the "same old, same old, I do everything" competitors... who just get lumped together in a big blur.....

Lately, many realtors are focusing on new markets, such as bank owned properties and short sales.  As a perspective customer seeking out this type of property, wouldn't you rather deal with someone who really specializes in these types of sales, rather than someone who might reluctantly take on such a task?

What are YOU doing to set your self apart from the masses?  How are you making YOURSELF a brand?  Why would a perspective client choose to work with YOU over your many competitors?