Why Commercial Real Estate Signage is Big Part of a New Business Tool Kit

In commercial real estate brokerage today, the signboard coverage that you create for yourself on listings and with local properties will always assist in growth of market share.  The agents and brokers with the consequential and comprehensive branding coverage will always get more inquiry; that’s how things work.   It has been that way for years with signage, and only one variation now exists to the rule, and that is how the internet overlays the local signage branding issue at a personal level.  You have to create a solid branding base on both promotional ‘channels’.

(N.B. these ideas are also sent out to regularly to our friends in Commercial Real Estate Online Snapshot to help amplify brokerage results…. Get your access here)

Location Based

When people see your brand locally, both on signboards and on the internet, then you stand a reasonable chance of attracting the interest from the market; enquiry is everything when it comes to growing your property business.  The clients that we serve know the value and relevance of market coverage, and are generally attracted to the best agents for a location.  You can and should build your marketing efforts around that fact.

So how can you achieve that promotional momentum?  How can you tap into the factors that are really important in your property market? In every location, and in every city, there will be opportunities to tap into for brokers and for agents.

Segmentation

Look at the property segments that are active in your location, and connect with the people that are regularly and valuable active in commercial real estate today. Some clients are better than others so you will need to make the right choices when it comes to working with investors, business owners, and property developers.  Choose the best ones to work with.

So let’s get a plan underway. Try some of these ideas to get some momentum:

• Brand coverage – research your position in the local area now by doing a signboard count within specific zones and precincts where inquiry is active and showing future opportunity. Look at the number of exclusive listings that you currently have.  Open listings don’t count, so focus on ‘exclusivity’.
• Broker name – your brokerage name will already have a profile in the location; hopefully it is a positive one. Your personal branding as an agent or a broker needs to fit within the brokerage name and identity. You will need a marketing plan to achieve that local branding target. Look at the ways you can achieve that extra marketing momentum and personal branding coverage. You do need to get involved with the messages, the listings, and the articles that you place online as a dominant agent. You can merge your social media marketing activities into those strategies. If you have a story to tell, put the message out.
• Contact processes – understand how easy it is for people to connect with you and or your brokerage. Most people today will make contact initially from the information that they achieve on and from the Internet. I go back to the point that your online profile has to be attached to every listing, website article, editorial, and case study. When the clients and the prospects seeking property help in your location do so online, your name and your brand needs to be there; stand out above the competition when it comes to a property type in your location. You can enhance that profile through deliberate online marketing initiatives including blogging, search engine optimization, article marketing, and listing activity.
• Specialize in a property type – you cannot be an expert in everything of a property nature in your location even though you may be enthusiastic to help every client and prospect that you connect with. Assess your location for both available opportunities and desirable property types. Avoid the poor quality properties and the stale listings that do nothing for enquiry. Discriminate and be selective when it comes to the types of clients that you will work with and for over time. Soon you will see a property type and client base that you can relate to and grow your business brand around. So the message here is that you can and should specialize as an individual agent or broker. Don’t complicate your personal branding and marketing activities.

So how can you move ahead with this overall marketing process? Keep things simple and focus on just a few specific marketing strategies at a personal and direct level. Be special, real, and relevant when it comes to client contact and local area marketing coverage. Make it easy for people to connect with you when they need property help. Commercial real estate is not complicated, it is just specific, so you can and should develop some real personal skills and market knowledge accordingly.