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If It Niches then Scratch It!

By
Real Estate Broker/Owner with Brooks Prime Properties Wichita Falls Texas

Have you scratched your Niche?

Have you been concentrating on a particular Niche Market within your Real Estate business? If you are then now is the time to strengthen your position within your chosen market. Our economy may be faultering but there is no better reason than to recharge your Niche.

What is a Niche Market?

Definition:

Specialized Market~A market in which a limited and clearly defined range of products or services is sold to a specific group of customers. (*)

How does or can this apply to Real Estate? In so many different ways! You can specialize in first time home buyers, Golfing Communities, new builds, Waterfront Homes, Lake Properties,  condos, commercial sales, commercial brokerage, Ranches and so much more. Just look around you to see what there is that would or could require a specialization and find what interests you most.  

Over the course of the next few years there is an average of 32,000 + people hitting the age of 62 on a daily basis in our country.

If that's not a Niche waiting to happen then I've never heard of one!

If you already have your chosen Niche, now is the time to get in there and MARKET YOURSELF

Continue your education.

Look for National Association of Realtors Designations  that would help DEFINE yourself and your Niche  to the public.

Study, learn, and TARGET your MARKET while our business is quiet.

Our business will return and you should be positioned at the TOP OF YOUR FIELD.

If you've not begun to Scratch Your Niche then it's time to get started! Good luck my friends.

Show All Comments Sort:
Laura Sargent
Carolina One Real Estate - Mount Pleasant, SC

Tried and true advice!  Great blog and reminder.  The sea is deep and wide, you just need your perfect fishing spot!

Jun 17, 2011 03:57 PM
Deb Brooks
Brooks Prime Properties Wichita Falls Texas - Wichita Falls, TX

Martha, I'm in the process of changing areas and my niche is staying the same! It's tricky making a change though!

Vickie, thank you! You realize you can choose a niche right here on Active Rain to concentrate on too. Go for the Google juice and reserve yourself a neighborhood or area you want to break into! Good luck and thanks for coming by!

Mimi, isn't that just mind boggling? No wonder they want to slash our SS. At least you and I are the babies of the whole bunch! Yea!

 

Jun 17, 2011 04:22 PM
Lenn Harley
Lenn Harley, Homefinders.com, MD & VA Homes and Real Estate - Leesburg, VA
Real Estate Broker - Virginia & Maryland

Niche marketing is opportunistic marketing.  Determine where the traffic is and focus on developing expertise and advertising your services in that speciality.

This has worked for me for 30 years.

Jun 17, 2011 10:49 PM
Jennifer Fivelsdal
JFIVE Home Realty LLC | 845-758-6842|162 Deer Run Rd Red Hook NY 12571 - Red Hook, NY
Mid Hudson Valley real estate connection

Deb niche marketing make sense.  As Lenn stated it is important to find the traffic and work it.

Jun 17, 2011 11:35 PM
Wallace S. Gibson, CPM
Gibson Management Group, Ltd. - Charlottesville, VA
LandlordWhisperer

I has taken me 30 years; however, I have found a VERY COMFORTABLE and PROFITABLE niche in property management....Kissed a LOT of Frogs along the way - sorry for the mixed metaphors!

Jun 17, 2011 11:44 PM
Anna Tolstoy
Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage - Natick, MA

Deb, lots of wisdom and great advice in your post - niche marketing in gneral, the niche you mention, as well as the fact that we need to market now when biz is quiet... There is a lot we can do!

Jun 17, 2011 11:58 PM
Richard Weeks
Dallas, TX
REALTOR®, Broker

Very well said and what a catchy title for a blog.

Jun 18, 2011 12:10 AM
Harry F. D'Elia III
WEDO Real Estate and Beyond, LLC - Phoenix, AZ
Investor , Mentor, GRI, Radio, CIPS, REOs, ABR

I have developed a few niches over the years in the real estate market place. Keep building and closing deals.

Jun 18, 2011 01:10 AM
Michael Setunsky
Woodbridge, VA
Your Commercial Real Estate Link to Northern VA

Deb, very good advice. In this business you can't be a "Jack of all trades". Thanks for the reminder.

Jun 18, 2011 02:13 AM
Judy Jennings
Top Agent Plus - Middleboro, MA
Tap into Judy's real estate expertise & resources.

Deb - LOVE your title! I found my niche and I am living and loving every moment I get to spend scratching that niche. LOL

Jun 18, 2011 03:18 AM
Dr. Paula McDonald
Beam & Branch Realty - Granbury, TX
Granbury, TX 936-203-0279

Your title is too cute.  I have many niches which I love.  I feel like a hybrid agent at times.

Jun 18, 2011 04:46 AM
Gary Woltal
Keller Williams Realty - Flower Mound, TX
Assoc. Broker Realtor SFR Dallas Ft. Worth

Many Deb with the niche of the senior living are also getting designations like SRES to polish up their training. GREAT thoughts on FOCUS. Why am I thinking dogs and fleas? LOL. Too cute. The post or you? : )

Jun 18, 2011 06:01 AM
Kathryn Acciari
Central One Federal Credit Union - Shrewsbury, MA
Mortgage Loan Originator

Inspiring post, Deb.  Having been in the business, my only "niche" is Internet leads.  It's much too broad and untargeted.  I have about 10 different niches I'd like to get scratchin'.  What's cool is that you can base a niche on location, property type, or populartion demographic.  So hard to choose.

Jun 18, 2011 06:20 AM
Deb Brooks
Brooks Prime Properties Wichita Falls Texas - Wichita Falls, TX

Maggie, with that many boomers, don't you know? wowser.

Tammy, same here. Our lake sales are down but I think it has to do with the gas prices!

Laura, you should do a post on that!

 The sea is deep and wide, you just need your perfect fishing spot!

 

Lenn, you are smarter than the average! It took me a while to learn this.

Jennifer, I'm so glad to see your pretty face here!

 

Jun 18, 2011 06:21 AM
Deb Brooks
Brooks Prime Properties Wichita Falls Texas - Wichita Falls, TX

Wallace S. Gibson CPM * Landlord Whisperer, I love your mixed metaphores! Now, I visited your profile and still can't figure out your name...it's not Wallace is it? Hint: add your name to your ID of the company. I want to know YOU.

Anna, now, I have to work the words! It is quiet here today and usually Saturday's by the lake are crazy!

Richard, thank you! And, I've learned a lot from you along our paths...

Harry, you got it! The closing is the hard part now adays!

Michael, it does help us remain focused!

Judy, just curious...what's your niche?

Paula, lol. A hybrid agent huh? That's funny.

Gary, dogs and fleas...funny, I'm dog sitting at my daughters this weekend as they are enjoying Padre Island with the family. After posting the picture of the dog last night I realized it looks just like Freckles...one of my temporary kids!

Kat, yes ma'am. There are a lot of them! Go for the ones that have the greatest need! You are doing awesome!

 

Jun 18, 2011 06:32 AM
Rosalie Evans
Meritus Group Real Estate - Sioux Falls, SD
The Evans Group, Sioux Falls, SD Homes For Sale

I am set to take my ABR class now and the designation that I am going for after that is the SRES. I am thinking the same thing you are thinking! 

Jun 18, 2011 07:11 AM
Deb Brooks
Brooks Prime Properties Wichita Falls Texas - Wichita Falls, TX

Erica, I know of a man in our area that does 80% of his business on the Golf Course! He's selling high dollar houses. Now, if I could only play Golf! LOL

Rosalie, good luck to you on your designation test! You can do it and you will be glad you did. Boomers are a great way to go and they have the money!

Jun 18, 2011 07:23 AM
Paula Smith
RE/MAX Mountain Properties - Prescott, AZ
CDPE, CRS, SFR, Prescott Arizona

What a catchy post! Okay I am ready to scratch! Thanks for a great post.

Jun 18, 2011 10:12 AM
Hrisco & Associates
Hrisco & Associates - Roanoke, TX
Roanoke Homes for Sale - Roanoke Neighborhoods

Hi Deb, just like Paula said above, what a catchy little post....and so true, I was not a big fan of desitnations over the past 10 years or so, thought they were more of a way to get more money out of us, but am starting to see differently on some.  Like you said, look for designations that will help improve your career in some way.  (also I think personally you aught to get designations that the average Joe Consumer would actually know what it meant without you have to go into to much detail).  Hey sounds like a post waiting to happen...guess I will get on that.  Look for a reblog from me with a follow up post soon.

Jun 18, 2011 05:36 PM
Digital Digital
Alachua, FL
full service

Great Blog!
I recently decided to focus on niche marketing; as a result I am working very hard at being a neighborhood specialist. It was difficult at first to focus and not think about the work involved but I've realized with change it serves us better to embrace and learning from challenges. The good thing is, once you begin each step is a bit easier, provided you've got a good base to build on...

Keep up the good work!

Jun 30, 2011 03:19 PM