Brand positioning is one of the most misunderstood concepts in marketing. Yet, it is, by far, one of the most important concepts for you to understand as a luxury real estate marketing professional if your quest is market leadership.
To accelerate word-of-mouth advertising, you need to make it clear to your target market exactly what category of services (or market niche) your brand stands for. The goal is to be the first brand name that comes to mind in your chosen category or niche.
Positioning your personal or company brand in the minds of your target market enables YOU to establish the brand category with which YOU want to be associated in their minds. If you do not make your brand position abundantly clear by staking a claim to a specific category, or if you try to be all things to all people, they will undoubtedly pigeonhole you in the wrong category.
We know a very talented real estate agent who dabbles in many categories including investments, single family homes, condos, REOs, fractionals, foreclosures, international, commercial, etc. She is a “jack of all trades” and not a master of one. To her credit, she makes a decent income by most standards. But, she does not even come close to realizing her full potential as a market leader, which is easily within her reach if she were to focus on a single profitable category or market niche.
Companies spend millions of dollars each year trying to get their products’ brand names to come to your mind first when you think of their product categories. Here is an example of brand positioning that illustrates the importance of “owning” a single category.
Did you ever hear the commercial about a couple arguing over the subject of mints? One says, “Certs is a candy mint”. The other says, “Certs is a breath mint”. Then, the announcer says, “Stop! You are both right. Certs is the only mint that is two, two, two mints in one”. Obviously, the company positioned their product in two categories.
Here is the challenge: If you personally wanted to buy a candy mint would you think of Certs first? Or, if someone asked for a recommendation for candy mint would Certs come to your mind first? Ironically, this product does not contain even one drop of oil from a mint plant.
Later, they focused their ads on a single brand category (breath mints) with laser sharp communication. They magnified the pain of having bad breath and also the need for their product with a crystal clear value proposition in this brilliant slogan: “ If he kissed you once, will he kiss you again? Be certain with Certs!”
In marketing luxury real estate you already have narrowed your category in the overall real estate field. Now, narrow your category further. Position yourself or your company as the expert in that niche! Become the big fish in a smaller pond, provided that the category has the potential to generate the income you desire. Go for the lion’s share of a smaller category and “own” the category in the minds of your target market. Only then can you capitalize on the amazing economic benefits of word-of-mouth advertising, because your brand comes to mind first in that category.
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