Today let’s get a new perspective on the way you do business by thinking about what it’s like to be your customer. You already know how you go about your daily routine and what that’s like for you. How does your average client experience your brand?
Your marketing approach represents you, and determines how your customers perceive your brand. This is usually the first impression a new customer will have of you. Will you be connecting with your clients in a personal, emotional way? Or will your message be just another advertising mailer in their letterbox? Make sure you are delivering dynamic, quality marketing that lets you stand out from your competition.
One of the ways you make and keep connections within your marketplace is to be consistent with your communications. Establish a schedule of regular messaging and follow through without fail. This can be email or print, text or video, but it has to be personalized and it has to be delivered consistently. You must also be available for questions, consultations and appraisals. And make sure your marketing reflects the kind of business you want to build as if you were already at that level.
Some examples of effective marketing campaigns include a monthly video sent to potential sellers, market appraisals and past clients. Tactical mailers sent out at pivotal times of the year can help you establish relationships, too. Timing your communications for events like Easter, the financial year end, Christmas and the beginning of the school year puts you in position for the times people tend to make changes in their lives that involve turning over properties. Once you establish your marketing strategy and determine what works, you can simply update your messages each year instead of creating a whole new campaign.
As you develop your marketing approach it is helpful to have a particular customer in mind that you want to connect with. We call this idealized customer an avatar, and we use this avatar to build targeted marketing that communicates effectively. Imagine where this person lives, what level of income they make, what kind of car they drive, whether they have kids and if so, where do they go to school and what are their ages? Most importantly, what do they want to achieve with a sale or purchase of property? What might be holding them back? Using an avatar this way makes your marketing approach far more relevant and personal to the people in your marketplace.
The main thing you want to avoid is doing the same things in the same ways that the rest of the industry is doing. Avoid using the same tools and tactics as your competitors. You want to set yourself apart and above the rest. Think beyond what you see other agencies doing and find new ways to connect with customers. Create different kinds of promotions. Work more with video and mobile technologies. Be the first to meet and welcome new businesses to the area and establish relationships with them. And the greatest skill you can develop is to be able to design your marketing from the customer’s point of view.
Of course, your foundation for success is still maintained by making those phone calls, meeting appointments every day, and keeping relationships fresh with past clients and other people you already know. Dynamic marketing and consistency in doing business is the way you grow.
I hope you’ve enjoyed today’s Coaching Tip, and I look forward to seeing you here again next week.
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