In the following interview, Rosemary Allison, Estates Director at Coldwell Banker in Ventura County, Calif., discusses her marketing strategies, and how her branding drives leads and referrals.
Region Served: Ventura County
Years in Real Estate: 40-plus
Your brand, name and image are associated with real estate all over Ventura County. Can you tell us what this does for you?
To succeed in branding, you must integrate your strategy and message at every point of public contact. As potential buyers begin to identify with you, your image will live in the hearts and minds of customers, clients and prospects, and they’ll connect with you on an emotional level. Branding reinforces a reputation that can help you receive referrals. I think branding is important for anyone in any business. For your branding to be effective, there has to be integrity behind the brand in order for people to understand that you do a good job in everything that you offer. Quality of customer service is the most important thing to longevity in this service.
How are you targeting your marketing to reach the consumers you will be most successful with?
I have a large advertising budget and utilize realtor.com® so potential buyers know who I am, and I pay for the Local ExpertSM City package so that my listings are featured when consumers visit the site. I also utilize print media, including Homes & Land, a kiosk displaying my listings in the local shopping mall and local social magazines with full-color ads of my listings.
Are you able to track the success of branding on realtor.com®?
Realtor.com® has always been a large portion of my advertising budget, and I really enjoy their executives calling me about their new products. With realtor.com®, there’s a dashboard feature where you can see who is clicking on listings, and I’m able to send my clients a weekly market report.
How are you using this on the seller/listing side?
When I can offer sellers prominent placing when someone searches locally, that’s something that’s of great value. The weekly reports that realtor.com® offers are an easy way to provide clients evidence of your marketing efforts.
You said that your primary business is referrals. Has realtor.com® had an impact on repeat business and referrals?
What’s interesting is that I sold a wonderful couple a home almost 30 years ago, yet I hadn’t talked to them in years. They were poking around on realtor.com® and they saw my name and contacted me. It’s possible that they would have called me anyway, but I feel that the reinforcement of seeing my realtor.com® offerings reinforced their decision to call me.
Final Questions…
What is the key ingredient to building client relationships?
I think it’s the listening, the giving and the caring for your clients.
What is your best tip for providing a great client experience?
True customer service can only come from the heart.
For more information, please visit realtor.com/sales.
Liz Dominguez is RISMedia’s associate content editor. Email her your real estate news ideas at ldominguez@rismedia.com.
