Real Estate Marketing Blunders

Until this morning, I couldn't think of a single company that hadn't evolved their marketing tactics since the internet took hold. That is, until I looked at the For Sale sign outside my building.

A Real Estate firm in SF, that we will call "ACME Realty" to protect their identity, is selling a unit in my building. To market the property, they placed a For Sale sign in the front of the building containing paper flyers highlighting the condo details and amenities. While there is nothing wrong with the use of paper flyers, it was the tactics the real estate company used to market the property that has me bewildered.

1. The flyer contained no URL to view the property; not even the URL to ACME Realty. How is this acceptable to the property owner, or to a potential buyer who wants to quickly find more detailed information?

2. Speaking of finding information quickly, it took me a total of eight steps to find the specific property online (over 5 minutes of searching).

3. The agent listed her Yahoo! email address as the method of contact. This was shocking. Not only did this make me immediately question the legitimacy of ACME Realty, but it offered me insight into the lack of CRM tools the company offered its agents.

4. Worst of all, the flyer was out-of-date. The open house dates listed on the flyer had already occurred.

I understand that budgets are tight right now, but I also know the tremendous impact that marketing can have on sales. Below are two quick thoughts on how to improve the tactics this real estate firm is utilizing to market their properties.

1. Make it as easy as possible for a buyer to learn more about the property:
- Include a unique URL on all marketing materials. It can be a unique URL, or something as simple as www.ACMERealty.com/1540lombard.
- Install Bluetooth devices into each sign so that buyers can download all pertinent information to their smart phones.
- Use social networking utilities to communicate with buyers (Twitter, Facebook, etc). This is a simple and free way to disseminate information on new listings.

2. Provide agents with a CRM tool that can aggregate and manage contact information, easily distribute email communications, etc.

Now, I am sure that some would argue that the marketing of properties is the responsibility of the agent and that little support is given to individual agents. While this may be true, this type of short-sighted approach drives me nuts. Here is why.... When making a $800,000+ purchase, I don't want to have to "work" to find a property I am interested in. I want to be given the information when and where I want it. And remember, a potential buyer today could be a seller tomorrow. So, if I have a great experience as a buyer today, the more reason I will have to use ACME Realty when I am ready to sell my home.

No question, ACME Realty has made some silly marketing mistakes, all of which can be fixed rather quickly and easily. I just hope they turn things around for the sake of future owners and buyers. If not, I know of at least one property that will not be sold through ACME Realty... mine!

Thoughts?

- Chris

More Than Just A Morning Ride

Athletics has always played an important role in my life. Playing sports in high school and college taught me the benefits of hard work, teamwork and the value of never giving up. In addition to being a great stress reliever, I now use training for ultra running and Ironman triathlon events as a great way to stay healthy and challenge my body and mind to break-through barriers I previously thought impossible.

While I really enjoy pushing myself both physically and mentally with my training, it is morning's like these that remind me of why I really love being out on my bike. There is simply nothing better than watching the sun rise over the beautiful city of San Francisco. Life is short, live every moment to it's fullest.



- Chris

The Divide Between Media and Creative

With brands trying to find new budget efficiencies, many are consolidating their media and creative with one agency. I couldn't be more happy with this trend. In my experience, it is the collaboration that occurs when Media and Creative professionals get together that results in the most creative, most effective work. A creative who has input into the media vehicles used, the type of ad types that will be created and who fully understands the media plan is more educated and has more ownership in the overall campaign. The same works for the Media team.

That said, some Media and Creative folks just don't know how to work together. It's not that they don't care, or are completely unwilling, rather, I believe it is simply a lack of understanding. While at BuderEngel, it was apparent that the Media team was very interested in working with the creative teams. But, unbelievably, they didn't understand the process in which creative was developed and seemed to be unwilling to raise their hand and ask questions. This lack of communication was also seen on the account and creative side. It wasn't the fault of one, but rather the unwillingness of all parties to raise their hand and ask questions.

It is in the best interest of the agency and its clients that the divide between Media and Creative ends as quickly as possible. Below are some easy ways to help close the gap....

1. Involve both parties in the initial internal sessions, even before a brief has ever been created.
2. Speaking of briefs, involve both parties in its development and internal approval processes.
3. Create open lines of communication between the creative team and the media planners. Encourage them to bounce ideas off of one another.
4. Start the media planning process early enough to allow any creative executions to affect the ad placements that are bought.

I am just scratching the surface here and will put some more thought into how to address this issue..... More to come.

Bike to Work Day

I just got back from a short ride with Pia out to Mill Valley and back to San Francisco. While riding to work is impossible for Pia, we decided to go for an early morning ride and show support to the many riders that we saw along the way.

The "energizer station" that was set-up on the north side of the Golden Gate Bridge was amazing. The station was packed with local news reporters, dozens of cyclists and tables full of free swag, bagels and hot coffee. Best of all, volunteers were there to encourage cyclists to join the SF and Marin bicycle coalitions and help support their mission of creating a more bike-friendly community.

Creating more bike-friendly roads and generating awareness of bicycle commuting (and the impact they can have on the environment) is a very important issue. I only hope that the people who decide to commute today have fun and make it a daily activity.

KFC Debacle

I've been talking about the need for pre-planning before launching any new marketing initiative. Anticipating issues and having contingency plans in place is more than just important, it's critical.

Apparently, KFC would have found this advice very helpful before using Oprah to give away free coupons for their new Kentucky Grilled Chicken product. The video below was created to help remedy the mistakes that were made when customers were turned away by stores that refused to honor the coupon. In the video you will find Roger Eaton, President of KFC. Not only does his apology come extremely insincere, but the whole Australian accent really throws me off.

Word of Mouth Visualized

I recently came across this great illustration from David Armano's blog that helps visualize the concept of WOM. The visual was created by Mario Vellandi and communicates the concept very quickly.

What I really like about this visual is that it places focus on the impact of "detractors." While we all want to think that everyone will love our WOM campaign, it just isn't the case. As a marketer, the impact of detractors must be addressed in the planning phase of any WOM program. A plan should be created to not only anticipate negative forces and create contingency plans, but also to engage with detractors and change opinions. By engaging with detractors a potential threat can easily be turned into a wonderful opportunity.

Thoughts?

- Chris