You don’t want to be that agency that gets ostracized for being insensitive in their marketing campaigns. You need to have processes in place that safeguard any of your online sharing: be it your brokerage site or social media. Once it’s out, you can’t get it back – people can take screenshots of any of your online activity even if you decide to pull it down later on. As a real estate broker, you’re responsible for anything that comes out on your brokerage behalf, period.
Have these 3 safeguards in place to avoid marketing and PR blunders:
-
Vet all your marketing materials with gender and racial diversity filters.
Never view any of your brokerage messaging through your personal point of view and no one else’s. You can land in hot waters very easily. Review any message that's going out and apply filters of race, gender and socio-economic standing to it. If some elements feel off-balance, go back to your drawing board.
-
Have a group of people who can be your sounding board.
Recruit a trusted group of people composed of agents in your office, your coach and family and friends, who can objectively review any marketing content you’re putting out. Ask for their honest feedback and be ready to act on it if necessary. You want them to speak the truth so the marketplace doesn’t have to.
-
Apologize the right way.
If you did mess up – apologize. Not ‘we’re sorry to have offended you’ - that is not a sincere apology. When you’ve made a mistake, don’t blame your audience for it. They’re not emotional – they are wronged. Own up to your marketing mistakes: state what you did and why it was wrong; then explain how you plan to do much better next time. Your intention matters – execution matters even more. Make your apology count.
To learn what Not to do, check out this flyer posted by Costello brothers that caused a firestorm in the real estate industry and beyond.
What has worked for you when sharing content online? Share in the comments below.
Want to establish your brokerage's brand and do it right? Download this free Broker Branding Worksheet.
Comments(13)