5 ways to make your brokerage stand out in a crowded marketplace

Attraction. Attention. Mindshare. As a broker, how do you command more of it?

I don’t care if you are doing business in Duluth, Minnesota, or in Miami, Florida — in every single real estate market in the U.S., you are competing against a very crowded market with everyone vying for attention, all trying to get that new buyer, seller or agent to work with you and your team.

To be successful in real estate, you need mindshare. If people are thinking about you, always bringing your name into the conversation, you will be successful. 

Here are my tips for moving the needle in 2022.

1. Be visible

As the old adage goes, “out of sight, out of mind.” If you are visible to your buyers, sellers and agents, you are in the game. You also need to be visible both physically and digitally. 

However, each audience needs a different strategy: 

Buyers

Just because it’s a seller’s market, don’t give up on buyers. Buyers are your future sellers. You need to plant many seeds in your area for your business so they grow into real listing market share in the future. Also, nothing wins more sellers than controlling the buyer market. If you have a lot of buyers, things will happen. 

Where are buyers?

Open houses. Local search portals (Zillow and realtor.com). Local review sites (Yelp). Social media (Facebook, Nextdoor, etc.). Wherever they are in your market, you have to be there.

Sellers

Listing market share is ultimately how you measure the strength of your brokerage. Listings beget listings. Listings bring buyers. Listings bring agents. 

Where are sellers?

Nextdoor. Yelp. Home on their couch. Walking in their neighborhood. At their local coffee shop. Again, wherever they are in your local market, you have to be there, too.

Agents

You must continuously engage with your existing and prospective agents. Find them at their own listings. At local and industry real estate events. Touring properties with their buyers. Social media — you need to be there, too, and you need to continuously impress them. 

2. Multiply the marketing for your listings

You need to make your brokerage listings look like three times that number. More signs. More ads. More listing parties. More social media. More emails. More promotion. Teach and help your agents with programs designed to multiply marketing.

Take what you did in 2021 and triple it. Yes, triple it. Just because a listing sells fast doesn’t mean you shouldn’t market it. If it sells immediately, you still need to give it the full marketing treatment. This hot seller market won’t last forever, and you have to “make hay while the sun shines.”

• Open houses: Put up lots of open house signs. Take your normal number per listing and see if you can double or triple it. This obviously works for reaching sellers and agents, too. They will notice and remember.
• Your local search portal (Zillow, realtor.com). If Zillow is the place, teach your agents how and why to buy as many ads as possible. You want your logo everywhere, and your troops need to do the advertising.

3. Train agents to do more marketing

A brokerage needs to train its agents to spend more on marketing — you can’t pay for all of it, obviously. Train them (and help them) to grow their businesses. As they grow, so will you. Present their success as case studies to other agents you are recruiting, and show how they have flourished at your brokerage. 

4. Go big on social media

Hire a college student, or outsource social media to people who will drive followers, likes and engagement. Don’t forget: Posting and engaging your audience are two different functions. 

• Post prolifically: That doesn’t mean a lot, but it means regularly, with brand consistency.
• Make your channels the place for information: New sales, new agents, new information for buyers, sellers and competing agents. Don’t forget renters and landlords, too.

5. Develop and showcase real estate leadership

Be the local source for information for your local area or property focus to provide insight and commentary.  

• Reach out to local publications and broadcast stations, or host a podcast. Host events for all agents, not just your own.
• Host experts. Invite local and industry experts and make big events out of them.
• Invite everyone. Teach your agents to invite their leads and clients to them, too.
• Be consistent.  Once you find the activities that work for your brokerage, keep the momentum going, and find ways to go bigger and better for the next event.

Remember, if you have the mindshare, you’ll generate market share — and nothing retains and recruits agents better than that. Be the place to be, and even in a crowded market, success will follow.

Mark Choey is the founder of HighNote Labs and co-founder of Climb Real Estate in San Francisco. Connect with him on Instagram or LinkedIn.