Training & Business Development: Creating a Real Estate Brand for Life

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Customers can and will develop a powerful affinity for the brands they love
RISMEDIA, March 15 ? Whether it’s the trendy Nike brand, or the 105-year-old Quaker Oats brand, customers can and will develop a powerful affinity for the brands they love.

Likewise, they will remain your loyal customers, provided you maintain your brand recognition while innovating new ways to excite and intrigue them. Real estate partners Debra Berman and Pat Kandel of Marina Del Rey, California, have long relied on their branding campaigns to grow their business.

Why is branding such a vital aspect of this team’s growth strategy? The benefits are huge: in 2005 alone they drew in over $85 million of business, a large part of which was catalyzed by their consistent branding exercises. Berman and Kandel explain, “The primary benefit of a brand is remembrance. You need something catchy, something that has some impact. Our first brand was so successful that we actually lost name recognition in our own market!”

Both partners admit that, “The biggest challenge in establishing and maintaining your brand is to commit to invest the funds you need to do it right and do it frequently.” Agents often give up on branding avenues like direct mail or billboards because they don’t have the patience or coffers to see such campaigns flourish over longer periods of time. It’s not impossible, though ? Berman and Kandel began their branding efforts with a combined piggy bank of just over $2,000. How did they find such success?

“Repetition is the key to sustaining the power and mindshare of your brand. Just do it over and over and over again, in everything you print, your website, business cards, your flyers ? everything, all the time.” The initial investment may have required a leap of faith, but the results were overwhelmingly positive.

During the course of their careers, every once in a while Berman and Kandel decided it was time for a change. In fact, over the years they admit to changing their brand four or five times. Their reasoning is almost as intriguing as how they define their success, “When you get sick of your slogan, you know your branding is successful. Our branding changed when we grew, and subsequently and our target audience grew as well.” Now, well into 2006, Berman and Kandel’s branding continues, as does their exponential sale volume.

On this week’s RISMedia/iSucceed Business Development and Training Call, Berman and Kandel believe that if you understand the basic steps required to leverage your brand across your business and marketing efforts, you can build a solid, respected, durable brand in your real estate market. The interview, hosted by iSucceed’s own Kelly Kelley, will be available from March 15-21 at http://www.isucceed.com/rismedia/interview.

Berman and Kandel amassed 143 transactions with total revenue of $64 million during 2004’s super-heated Marina Del Rey market. In 2005 they generated an impressive total sales volume of $85 million on only 76 closed transactions ? a 32% increase in revenue with a 53% decrease in closed transactions! Berman and Kandel have been Realtors for 28 years, and are celebrating their 20th anniversary as partners in 2005. They have fine-tuned a system that capitalizes on each other’s strengths and emphasizes a tag-team kind of synergy, not to mention allowing each partner to enjoy three months of vacationing every year.

Next week, enjoy an ethical conversation with Dianna Ivas, who explains how to successfully foster and maintain long-term relationships with your clients by building a basis for mutual respect, trust, and honesty formed through repeated demonstrations of goodwill and promises kept.

Every Wednesday, the RISMedia/iSucceed Business Development and Training Call offers valuable real estate strategies and introduces listening agents to the full 30-minute iSucceed Weekly Counseling Call, available only at www.iSucceed.com?the largest online repository of the best real estate tips, tools, secrets and success strategies from over 175 of the industry’s top-producing agents.

Listen to this week’s interview at http://www.isucceed.com/rismedia/interview.

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realestatemagazinefeedback@rismedia.com.