Personal Branding for Real Estate Agents: Are You a Secret Agent?

As a luxury real estate marketing professional, have you ever asked yourself any of these questions*?

1. Why am I cash rich some months and cash poor the next?
2. Why are some of my competitors, who have less talent, getting the lion’s share of the business?
3. I close at least 70% of the business I get. Why is it so hard to get more business?
4. Why am I the best kept secret in my marketplace?

If you have been pondering these questions you most likely are a secret agent. But, there is help, if you want to become the standout in your marketplace: Real Estate Agent Personal Branding. The biggest struggle most luxury real estate agents have is not standing out in the minds of their target market.

To stand out you must stand for something that is remarkable. This gives people the opportunity to remark about you to others. The missing ingredient that personal branding offers is making it easy for other to tell others about YOU! If you are blending in you are missing out on the leverage of word-of-mouth marketing which personal branding accomplishes when it is well executed. The lack of a personal brand is what is making your job more difficult than it has to be.

If you no longer want to blend in and be a secret agent, you must become remarkable. Start by asking yourself these new questions: How am I extraordinary, amazing, notable, outstanding, noteworthy, significant, incredible and astonishing?

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Personal Branding for Real Estate Agents: Stretching Your Marketing Dollar with Buzz!

Got Milk?

The aim of personal branding for real estate agents is to communicate, in a instant, the essence of your personality, your personal values and why someone should do business with you instead of your competition. Successful communication occurs not only when your ideal clients recognize that you are someone they can trust, but also when they can easily convey to others why they chose you for the job in a few words. If you get the message right you can spark word-of-mouth advertising or buzz marketing which is the best way to stretch your marketing dollar.

The right message triggers an emotional response by quickly establishing your professionalism and your likability. It also compels people to do business with you because it transmits your unique selling proposition, your promise of value to them, in a nutshell. The ultimate message, conveyed by a symbol, a slogan or an image creates buzz. It gets people talking about you.

Did you ever see the commercials for Charmin toilet paper with the fictional grocer, Mr. Whipple? George Whipple told customers, "Please don't squeeze the Charmin!" in more than 500 commercials between 1964 and 1985. The promise of value of this product, softness, was conveyed in just five words, in seconds. But, it compelled customers to do just the opposite: to squeeze the product and buy it. Was this product actually softer than the competitor’s product? Most likely it was not. But, it got people talking about Charmin not the competition.

Perhaps the most famous and most imitated product slogan is “Got Milk?” which positioned milk as the drink of choice with cookies, cakes, peanut butter, etc. This campaign was credited for reversing a 20 year slump in milk sales. It has been running since 1993 with no signs of the buzz ending. With this slogan, they summarily dismissed all other potables and captured an indelible place in consumers’ minds. According to the Got Milk? website, the campaign has over 90% awareness in the U.S. In 2002, the ad was named one of the ten best commercials of all time by a USA Today poll.

The power of a great slogan leverages viral marketing and can save you a bundle in marketing costs. How can you stretch your marketing dollars with a great slogan?

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Personal Branding for Real Estate Agents: Using the Right Slogan to Distinguish You from the Competition

Fauchon fashion eclairs,note Mona Lisa eclair above!

As a luxury real estate marketing professional one very important way to distinguish you from the competition is with a great slogan. Here is an example of a luxury food brand that gave itself a facelift and a terrific slogan that turned the company around.

Fauchon is a luxury food shop whose flagship store in Paris was founded in 1886 by Auguste Fauchon. In 2003, faced with severe competition and debt from rapid expansion, Fauchon hired a new CEO, Isabelle Capron, who had an extensive background in public relations and marketing. Ms. Capron embarked on a two-prong strategy: focus on the traditional strengths of the brand, and innovate by finding a new way to position the brand in the minds of luxury consumers.

Capron’s Strategy:

1.  Maintain tradition by continuing their famous annual éclair exhibit that honors the celebrated fashion shows in Paris

2.  Redesign the stores to look like an haute couture boutique, rather than a food emporium. Go international-export the essence of Paris (high fashion and culinary extravagance). Create an avant garde slogan: “Paris On Your Lips!” reverberates the affluent French lifestyle to its core.

Fauchon now places ads in fashion magazines and on billboards above their stores that are eye catching, ads that are very edgy. For example, one ad shows a table setting with a silver face, hot pink lips with a fork and knife on each side of the lips. The Fauchon website features the Eiffel Tower with lips for the base of the tower. The subtle reference to haute couture as the undisputed arbiter of taste and relevance distinguishes Fauchon as the experts in the luxury food arena throughout the world.

By 2007, Fauchon opened the largest retail store in Beijing. Voila! The public perception of Fauchon took an about face; the turn-around was complete! And, people, like us, are buzzing about “Paris on Your Lips”, one of the best slogans we have ever heard. Why? Because, with this slogan they have staked claim to Paris itself—Faucon “owns” Paris, its place of origin.

How can you stake claim of your marketplace and distinguish yourself from your competition with the right slogan?

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Personal Branding for Real Estate Agents: Maintaining Your Consistency & Traditions

One of the keys for success in personal branding for real estate agents is keeping your brand consistent. This is especially true for luxury real estate marketing professionals who have been in the business for some time. You can update your technology and even refresh your look, but there is much to be said about tradition and the brand equity it can build.

Take See’s Candies, founded in 1921 and purchased in 1972 by Warren Buffet’s Berkshire Hathaway. The company's distinctive white stores are ubiquitous in nearly every U.S. state west of the Mississippi River. See's also offers its product in select markets in kiosks at malls, airports and other shopping centers.

See’s optimizes consistency and tradition. And, you always get a free sample of their candy when you buy something. Mary See’s picture is still in every store.

If you have been in business for some time, don’t change the fundamentals of your brand. Instead, capitalize on them and stay consistent. Tradition is a strong competitive advantage.

How can you maintain your traditions stay consistent and build personal brand equity?

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Luxury Real Estate Marketing Essentials: Exemplary Client Service

As a luxury real estate marketing professional, developing ways to provide exemplary client/customer service should be a continuing pursuit. Providing great service in ways that differentiate you from your competition is the best of both worlds.

On our drive back to our headquarters in Santa Barbara, California from Los Angeles International Airport last week we stopped in Century City for dinner at Gulfstream, in the Westfield Mall. From our perspective as commercial real estate brokers (we were broker/owners of a commercial real estate firm in Beverly Hills), this is, by far, the most exciting upscale shopping mall in California. They really set the tone for exemplary client/customer service.

The Westfield Group is an Australian company and the largest property group in the world by equity market capitalization. This multinational company owns and operates shopping centers in Australia, United States, New Zealand and the United Kingdom.

Century City is a highly trafficked, densely populated area, adjacent to Beverly Hills. Parking places here are at a premium and parking can be extremely expensive especially in the office buildings. The Westfield shopping center has emerged as a hub and meeting place for LA’s Westside population for movies, dining and shopping. Ease of finding parking here is mission critical. With retail tenants paying very high rental rates, Westfield must deliver extensive foot traffic, both at night and during the day.

Prior to Westfield’s ownership of the center parking was particularly difficult. Frustrated shoppers would often leave the center without being able to find a parking place. This could easily deter them from returning at peak hours of the day. Valet parking is an option, but an expensive one.

Westfield minimized the stress of finding a parking space with a very simple, yet extremely effective use of technology. When you enter the parking garage, you can easily scan the spaces that all have light sensors indicating if a given space is occupied. A red light indicates an occupied space, a green light indicates a vacant space and a blue light indicates a vacant handicapped space. Now, that convenience not only represents exemplary, distinguishable customer service, but assures more walking traffic for tenants (Westfield’s’ ultimate customer)!

How can you demonstrate exemplary client/customer service in your luxury real estate marketing practice?

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Real Estate Agent Personal Brand: Learning from American Idol Part 14

This is part fourteen of our blog series entitled: Real Estate Agent Personal Branding: Learning form American Idol. It is a fun and easy way to learn the principles of personal branding. You do not have to be an Idol fan to enjoy!

Reclaiming Your Brand Signal

As a luxury real estate marketing professional have you ever experienced the feeling when you are right on your personal brand signal? Have you ever experienced the discord of being “off-key”?

Lil Rounds has been struggling for the past three weeks on American Idol. She has a major talent and a unique style. But, she has lost tract of her distinctive sound. you”. Last week, she sang/imitated Tina Turner's signature song, "What's Love Got to Do With It?" Here's what the judges had to say: Simon told Lil "It's literally like we have lost you". The new judge, Kara said, “We still haven't seen you leap from a singer to an artist”.

Now, this is not a bad thing! Sometimes you need to experience the discomfort of being off signal to more clearly define who you are and what you stand for. As long as Lil doesn’t implode and uses this to hone her brand signal instead, she will re-emerge and have a personal triumph.

Obviously, her fans are rooting for her to reclaim her brand signal. She was in the bottom three last week which meant she is in danger, but she survived. Judge Randy says, “You are a mad talent”.

Personal branding for real estate agents is not just about getting a new look or a new website. It is all about finding your authentic brand signal and projecting, broadcasting your singular signal to your ideal clients. It is about accelerating the speed of trust in new business relationships. It is also about articulating your distinct brand signal in such a way that you make it easy for another to talk about you to others. Facilitating word-of-mouth advertising is essential!

If you find yourself, lost and “singing off-key” and not being “on-signal” realize that at the root of this is trying too hard to please other people, the judges in your life. Define who your ideal client is. Realize that your ideal clients, just like Lil’s fans, are rooting for you to be your authentic self, at ease with yourself. Hone your signal by sensing the difference in how you feel when you are on or off-signal then leap from agent to super-star agent!

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Personal Branding for Real Estate Agents: Differentiate Yourself in a Nanosecond

As a luxury real estate marketing professional it is absolutely essential to sharply differentiate your brand of doing business from that of your closest competitors. When you are in a listing presentation, you must let your prospective client know, in a nano-second, how you are distinct from the other agents they may be interviewing.

A new airline, Virgin American, which launched in December 2007, demonstrates the power of brand differentiation in the fiercely competitive regional California market.

In this market the choice is between:

1. Alaskan, 2. United, 3. Jet Blue, 4. Southwest,5. Virgin America

Last week we visited a client in San Francisco for a half-day meeting which required that we fly up and return on the same day. Since there are no direct flights from our headquarters in Santa Barbara we drove to Los Angeles to catch a 6:30 am flight to SFO (returning at 3:30 in the afternoon). For this trip we chose Virgin America airlines over our favorite, Southwest. The price was virtually the same but the in-flight experience was completely different.

From the moment we walked into the plane we experienced Virgin’s unique selling proposition:

1. the cabin featured mood lighting and mood music

2. an in-flight entertainment console with a touch screen, located above the seat-back table

3. multiple emails before and after the flight to establish a loyal relationship

The novelty was striking but was it enough to get us to come back? No! Flight time between L.A. and S.F. is only about 45 in-air minutes. Entertainment and mood enhancement is not our thing. Our inbox does not need more mail from vendors.

But, Virgin America did an outstanding job differentiating itself in an overcrowded market. Those who resonate with their differentiators will definitely gravitate to them and will most likely stay loyal if they keep up their good service.

Southwest will win our business back next time. We prefer what makes them different:

1. no penalties for changing reservations

2. a much easier online reservation and check-in system

Think of your closest competitor! How can you differentiate yourself in a nano-second as a luxury real estate marketing professional?

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Luxury Real Estate Agent Personal Branding: Know What is At Stake

 Photo by UCLA 90024

As a luxury real estate marketing professional it is crucial to understand what is at stake by seizing the market leadership role and being the first to come to mind when potential clients (or referral sources) think of the best agent for the job. The difference between the “top of mind” agent and the next few is significant.

You want to be the Google of your marketplace. Google comes to mind first as the search brand of choice three times more often than its closest competitor, Yahoo. That’s how much business is at stake for the market leader.

This Saturday we spoke to an MBA class at UCLA (Anderson School of Management) about creating a personal brand in the workplace and just what is at stake in this context. These are dedicated students who are also juggling full time management jobs, and families. A number of them drive several hours from different areas of the Los Angeles Basin. Others drive in from the San Diego area, and several fly in from San Francisco, just to attend classes.

These committed students want to be the leaders in their corporate communities. They want to be first to come to mind for a promotion, a new job, or a new project. To accomplish this they have to clearly define who they are and what they stand for so that, in a nanosecond, the decision makers do not hesitate to choose them over their competition.

What is often at stake is a 20-25% increase in salary, opportunities for more satisfaction on the job, as well as experience which can be valuable when they decide to change jobs or companies. Like luxury real estate marketing professionals, they have to Stand Out from the other candidates who are competing for the same position. They have begun to Stand Out by enrolling in a 2-3 year MBA program, giving up some of their leisure time.

As a luxury real estate marketing professional, you must know what is at stake if you want to Stand Out. The competition is always ready to take up the slack you are leaving behind. If you want to be the market leader in your community and get the lion’s share of the business, you have to keep up with the latest developments in real estate. The common excuse, “I do not have time” just does not hold up. Take a page from these MBA students: Stay focused on what is at stake and catch your competition off-guard!

Do you know what is at stake?

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Real Estate Agent Personal Brand: Learning from American Idol Part 13 (B)

DIAL IN TO YOUR UNIQUE BRAND SIGNAL

This is part thirteen (B) of our blog series entitled: Real Estate Agent Personal Branding: Learning form American Idol. It is a fun and easy way to learn the principles of personal branding. You do not have to be an Idol fan to enjoy!

Perhaps the biggest challenge for luxury real estate marketing professionals, when it comes to personal branding, is consistently maintaining your true brand signal. It requires factoring out what other people think about you. Marketing is matching the needs and expectations of your target market. But, dialing into your own original signal and staying true to it without imitating others can be a daunting task. You must strike a balance between giving people what they want and expect and delivering that in your own inimitable way. Playing it safe by conforming to what has been tried and already accepted can become a trap if approval of others is what you are seeking. Pleasing yourself is all important. Imitation is a copout.

For the past two weeks, Lil Rounds has not been on her brand signal. You can almost hear the static in her voice. Simon said, “This was, to me, you singing to stay in the competition with a safe song”. In earlier weeks, Lil was an original. Once you have heard her clear, pure signal it is not difficult to sense when she is off signal. Sometimes, though you just have to get off signal to clearly know how to dial back in. It is a matter of fine tuning. This applies in all forms of branding. In the case of American Idol, the contestants get instant feedback from the judges.

But, you can be master the personal branding “dial-in” process yourself without outside judges. Just become sensitive to the way you feel when you are on your true signal and recognize how you feel when you are off signal. Being spot on signal feels great. Everything else does not feel as good.

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Real Estate Agent Personal Brand: Learning from American Idol Part 13 (A)

This is part thirteen of our blog series entitled: Real Estate Agent Personal Branding: Learning form American Idol. It is a fun and easy way to learn the principles of personal branding. You do not have to be an Idol fan to enjoy!

How to Discover Your Unique Signal, Imitation vs Artistic Interpretation

Artistic Interpretattion of floral arrangement

In luxury real estate marketing the tried and true fundamentals still work. For example , rapidly returning phone calls and emails, staying in touch with your data base, remembering birthdays, giving great closing gifts will always help to build a successful practice. But, what is your personal interpretation of these fundamentals, your personal brand, your own brand signal, (your own artistic flair) for executing the basics?

The performances on last night’s American Idol show revealed that some of the contestants were in search of their authentic signal. One of the ways you can hone in on your signal is trying out someone else’s. This is what Anoup did by imitating Usher’s performance. Because it was an imitation, it came across to the judges as a “wannabee” performance, rather than an interpretation of the same song. Imitation is known as the sincerest form of flattery. Interpretation is taking the established form and pushing it in new dimensions that are uniquely your own. This was evident in Kris’ performance of “Ain’t No Sunshine, When She Is Gone!” A 30 year old song became new again.

How can you interpret the fundamentals in a new way that makes you stand out?

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Real Estate Agent Personal Branding: Learning from American Idol Part 12

This is part twelve of our blog series entitled: Real Estate Agent Personal Branding: Learning form American Idol. It is a fun and easy way to learn the principles of personal branding. You do not have to be an Idol fan to enjoy!

Tapping Into Your Inner Voice

This week, Allison Iraheta sang “Papa Was A Rolling Stone” which brought rave reviews from the judges. She found her voice, found her brand signal and connected to the core of her being. What is particularly remarkable about Alison is that she is only 16 years old. In this performance, according to one of the judges, Alison tapped so deeply into her inner voice, her unique brand signal, it was, “from God, you cannot teach that!”

Once you find your unique wavelength, once you tap into your inner voice, you cannot go back to the same old way of doing things without a feeling of angst. Your talent grows; your performance gets better and better. You cannot accept anything less.

This also applies to those in luxury real estate marketing who seek to gain or sustain market leadership. The pursuit of market leadership may seem on the outside like acquiring the lion’s share of market share. But, it is actually the quest for tapping into your inner voice. True market leaders compete only with themselves. They constantly keep reaching for their best and look to improve no matter what the circumstances are. They like the leading edge, they constantly explore it. They don’t let themselves be swayed by events of the day. They mind their own business. They consistently stay on their brand signal.

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Real Estate Agent Personal Branding: Learning from American Idol Part 11

This is part eleven of our blog series entitled: Real Estate Agent Personal Branding: Learning form American Idol. It is a fun and easy way to learn the principles of personal branding. You do not have to be an Idol fan to enjoy!

A Moment of Transformation

Last night’s American Idol featured some stellar performances. Several of the contestants found their brand signal. Their voices and their performances were authentic –matching their talent and their innate artistic style. When you hear it you know it. The judges referred to it as having a “moment”.

In sports, the term most often associated with this is “being in the zone”. It is a time when what seemed unattainable manifests. It is a time when everything clicks. It is when a real estate deal falls into place and all parties are aligned. It is when you are in the flow of life.

On Adam Lambert’s performance, Simon remarked,” tonight you have become a star”. His performance moved Smokey Robinson, this week’s mentor and songwriter (“Tracks of My Tears”) to give him a standing ovation. This was Adam’s transformational moment.

As a luxury real estate marketing professional, have you had your transformational moment?

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Real Estate Agent Personal Branding: Learning from American Idol Part 10

This is part ten of our blog series entitled: Real Estate Agent Personal Branding: Learning form American Idol. It is a fun and easy way to learn the principles of personal branding. You do not have to be an Idol fan to enjoy!

Liken Your Personal Brand to What is Already Known

When you introduce a new brand it helps to liken your personal brand to what is already known. The American Idol voters picked the top ten they would want to see on tour this summer. Each of the contestants has a distinct personality and musical style. You can even hear the judges liken members of the new "touring company" to particular musical stars. After Matt's first audition, Simon compared hime to Elliot Yamin. This week Matt was compared to Justin Timberlake and Michael Buble and Lil Rounds was compared to to Mary J. Blige. They are labeling and branding the contestants to help the voters pigeonhole them in a particular genre. As such they are positioning the contestants in the minds of the listeners.

It is easy to communicate using known commodities such as labels. The process of understanding and promoting quickens. A line from a Robert Altman’s film, The Player illustrates the point humorously. A screenwriter is hawking a new movie and describes it as a Bruce Willis film, "Ghost meets The Manchurian Candidate."

Here is an example that can apply to real estate practice: If you are launching your new blog that features local restaurant reviews you might want to call yourself ”the Ruth Reichl of [your town’s name]”. Ruth Reichl was a famous food editor for the Los Angeles Times and is now the editor in chief for Gourmet magazine. The purpose of personal branding is to create your own label. You are telling people how you want to be perceived.

How can you liken your personal brand to something or someone your target market already knows?

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Real Estate Agent Personal Branding: Learning from American Idol - Part 9

Diana Krall

This is part nine of our blog series entitled: Real Estate Agent Personal Branding: Learning form American Idol. It is a fun and easy way to learn the principles of personal branding. You do not have to be an Idol fan to enjoy!

Part 9--“Own” Your Brand Category

American idol had a surprise ending in Wild Card round. They selected four additional contestants to go through to the Top 12 making it a baker’s dozen (13) instead. Keeping your brand fresh is very important and this twist did just that for the show. But, it is important to stay on your brand signal. This applies to real estate personal branding as well.

A very clear example of a distinct talent that stayed true to her brand signal was Megan, who sings jazz.. She has a very marketable appearance and a great voice. There is no question about her talent. But, what makes her stand out is her brand category. No other contestant “owns” jazz.

The ideal opportunity in branding is to own your category. When you think of a MP3 music player what brand comes to mind? IPod is by far the winner.

Think! Who’s the first female singer to come to mind in the current, contemporary jazz category? Diana Krall now owns the category. There is definitely room another singer in this category.

What do you think Megan’s chances are of being the next American Idol? Let us know your opinion.

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Luxury Real Estate Personal Branding: Learning from American Idol: Part 8

Part 8: Can You Hear Your Own Voice?

This is part eight of our blog series entitled: Real Estate Agent Personal Branding: Learning form American Idol. It is a fun and easy way to learn the principles of personal branding. You do not have to be an Idol fan to enjoy!

David Cook, American Idol, 2008

There is much more involved in real estate agent personal branding than creating a look and a logo. Essentially, it is the process of discovering and consistently broadcasting your own unique voice. Only by hearing you own voice can you know when you are on and off your brand signal.

Last year’s American Idol, David Cook, consistently broadcasted his authentic brand signal throughout the entire season beginning in his first audition. He knew his mind and constantly chose the right songs. His pop rock brand was apparent in everything he sang, even Little Sparrow by Dolly Parton. He definitely is not a musical comedy artist. But, his version of Music of the Night from Phantom still showcased his outstanding vocals.

Cook’s song choice in the final sing- off was not Billie Jean, the obvious crowd pleaser. David took a huge risk in favor of artistic integrity and it paid off, much to the surprise of Simon who thought he blew it. This victory may have been even greater for David Cook than winning the top prize.

David exemplified the principle of striking the balance between commercialism and artistic integrity. You CAN please others and yourself simultaneously. It does not have to be either-or. When you pick the right brand category and the right song all is aligned. Only then can you hear your own voice and share it with the world.

David Archuleta, American Idol Runner Up

Although, David Archuleta was (and is) adored by millions of fans, his American Idol journey was more of a roller coaster in terms of being on or off his authentic brand signal with his song choices. However, when he sings Imagine by John Lennon it is as if you are hearing an angel; his signal is that pure.

Listen to his video. Can you feel the oneness between the right brand category (pop) and the right song? Can you hear Archuleta’s authentic brand signal, his voice?

This purity comes from the absence of contradiction between artistic integrity and commercialism. The personal branding process is all about dialing into your authentic brand signal and consistently staying on signal.

Are you broadcasting your authentic brand signal? Can you hear your own voice?

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Luxury Real Estate Agent Personal Branding:Learning from American Idol, Part 7

Part 7: Test Market

This is part seven of our blog series entitled: Real Estate Agent Personal Branding: Learning form American Idol. It is a fun and easy way to learn the principles of personal branding. You do not have to be an Idol fan to enjoy!

Jordin Sparks 2007 American IdolOne method of discovering the balance between commercial success and artistic integrity is test marketing. Determine what is needed and wanted by your audience. Then find a way to deliver just that, but in your own inimitable way. To be able to say, “I did it my way” is extremely satisfying. This is the sweet spot of commercial success in any field: Not compromising and still winning it all.

In the case of real estate personal branding your audience is your target market of buyers and sellers. Find out which niche has the most underserved demand. Then find a way to serve that niche better than anyone else in your marketplace. That is the ultimate purpose of test marketing.

On American Idol, choosing the right song within the right brand category or genre is of paramount importance. The right song needs to appeal to the widest audience in order to win the most votes. With instant audience feedback, test marketing can be very effective, but risky. Perhaps, this is the case of Adam Lambert.

What is your take on Adam Lambert, the Top 12 contestant? Adam definitely has talent and is therefore marketable. What we know about his background story, apart from living in Los Angeles, is that he toured in the Broadway play, Wicked. Can you name his brand category? Does he want to be pigeonholed as a musical comedy singer based on his background? Here are the songs and the brand categories he has chosen to test so far:

Bohemian Rhapsody by Queen, the British rock group

Some Kind of Wonderful, by the American R&B group, Soul Brothers Six

Believe, by Cher (pop)

Satisfaction, by The Rolling Stones (Rock)

Adam is obviously very popular. But, have we experienced his authentic brand signal, yet? It will be interesting to see if this becomes clearer throughout the show. He has changed genre several times. Is he showing us a wide range of possible brand categories to avoid the “pigeonhole trap”. Or, perhaps he is just “test marketing”.

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Luxury Real Estate Agent Personal Branding: Learning from American Idol, Part 6

Part 6: Pick the Right Brand Category: Pick the Right Song!

This is part six of our blog series entitled: Real Estate Agent Personal Branding: Learning form American Idol. It is a fun and easy way to learn the principles of personal branding. You do not have to be an Idol fan to enjoy!

American Idol judges seem to admire those contestants who know who they are in terms of their brand category (country, rock, rhythm and blues, etc) and those who stay within that genre. Real estate agent personal branding requires the same clarification of brand category. That is why selecting a niche and sticking with it is so important.

American Idol, Carrie Underwood’s brand category is country. David Cook’s category is pop rock. Fantasia’s category is rhythm and blues. Once you clarify your brand category you must find your own “voice” or your authentic “brand signal” within that category and you must choose the right songs to showcase your unique talent.

Song choice is extremely important. Many artists fall into a trap when it comes to choosing songs. They encounter what appears to be a paradox: the choice between artistic integrity and commercialism. The trap is that the two are considered to be in opposition. Commercialism is considered the excessive emphasis on profit making. If you opt for commercialism you are selling out. But, keep in mind that American Idol is about creating commercially successful stars!

The underlying false premise here is that there is a scarcity of songs from which to choose. The truth is that there are plenty of songs that may be chosen that are both commercially appealing and right on your brand signal.

In part 3 we referred to the two blue collar workers, Michael and Matt. Michael, the oil rigger, was voted through to the top 12. Matt, the welder chose one of his favorite songs but it was unanimously considered the wrong song choice by the judges. Matt insisted that he would still have picked the same song even if he was warned not to sing it prior to the live show. He fell into the “either-or” trap!

As we mentioned before, Matt already had the odds against him because his competitor, Michael, in “the blue collar” brand category went through; the likelihood of the audience selecting two in this category was already very slim.

Who knows? Perhaps the judges will reconsider Matt for the wild card round. Although, we doubt it!

Real estate agents beware! Pick the right brand category. Pick the Right Song!

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Luxury Real Estate Agent Personal Branding: Learning from American Idol, Part 5

Part 5: Know Your Brand Signal

This is part five of our blog series entitled: Real Estate Agent Personal Branding: Learning form American Idol. It is a fun and easy way to learn the principles of personal branding. You do not have to be an Idol fan to enjoy!

In our previous post, we said: “If Nick stays true to his unique brand signal and gets some coaching to hone his signal, he could have a meteoric rise to success, faster than any other contestant at this stage because of his distinctiveness in a sharply defined brand category”.

“Does Nick have enough empathy with the audience to be voted through to the top 12? His chances are very good if he has an outstanding performance in week 2 that is ‘right on signal’. We shall see”.

Well, Nick may have blown a major career opportunity unless a sharp talent coach or agent picks him up! He sang a song from Dream Girls (the Jennifer Hudson show stopper). He was definitely in the right brand category (musical comedy) vs. country or rhythm and blues, etc. But, his performance was neither outstanding comically or musically/vocally. Had he come out and shown his vocals as Nick and thrown just a slight comedic twist (as Norm) in an understated way, he could have done it.

What was so exciting about Nick was that he broke all of the rules. And, the judges were willing to give him the benefit of the doubt. Just based on the comments we received on our blog post, he had support of a large segment of the audience who was rooting for him to pull it off because of his unconventionality. But, he was unsure of his brand “signal”.

In real estate personal branding it is important to know your authentic brand signal, clearly define your personal brand category and then stay with it. American Idol makes this point very clearly.

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Real Estate Agent Personal Branding: Learning from American Idol - Part 4

Part 4: What is Your Personal Brand Category?

This is part four of our blog series entitled: Real Estate Agent Personal Branding: Learning form American Idol. It is a fun and easy way to learn the principles of personal branding. You do not have to be an Idol fan to enjoy!

It is extremely important to understand the concept of brand categories because that is how we remember brands. So much is at stake, in terms of market share for any product or service, if yours is the first brand that comes to mind when your target market thinks about your brand category. In the cola brand category #1 Coke outsells #2 Pepsi by 2:1. Three times more people choose #1 Google over #2 Yahoo when it comes to the category of internet search, with MSN a very distant third.

There are many categories of music from classical to heavy metal. American Idol is all about the category of Pop. But, there are many sub-categories of pop such as pop soul, pop rock, pop rhythm and blue, musical comedy, country, etc. When you think of the category of 50’s pop rock and roll what name comes to mind first? Most people would say Elvis, by a vast margin.

This year the American Idol judges selected someone who is both a singer and a comedian with a very quirky personality. He has two names, his real name, Nick Mitchel and his alter ego, Norman Gentle. Because of his uniqueness, Nick is a one-man-brand, a category of one. Nick has absolutely NO COMPETITION in his brand category. He IS the standout in his category. He definitely has talent, marketability as a musical comedy star and has a funny story. It doesn’t even matter if he becomes the next American Idol or goes on to the next round. He has already won the competition in his category! All he needs is a bit more exposure and the branding process will be complete in the minds of the audience.

Once branded however, it would be extremely difficult for the audience to take Nick seriously as a pop rock star like Chris Daughtry. If Nick stays true to his unique brand signal and gets some coaching to hone his brand signal, he could have a meteoric rise to success, faster than any other contestant at this stage because of his distinctiveness in a sharply defined brand category.

Does Nick have enough empathy with the audience to be voted through to the top 12? His chances are very good if he has an outstanding performance in week 2 that is "right on signal". We shall see.

Think about how you can strike a chord with your audience, and be distinct from your competition in a sharply defined niche or brand category in your marketplace.

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Real Estate Agent Personal Branding: Learning from American Idol - Part 3

Part 3: Watch Out for the "Pigeonhole Trap"

This is part three of our blog series entitled: Real Estate Agent Personal Branding: Learning form American Idol. It is a fun and easy way to learn the principles of personal branding. You do not have to be an Idol fan to enjoy!

In the selection process to determine the top 36 contestants for 2009 American Idol, the judges called two contestants in for a final sing off: Matt Breitzke and Michael Sarver. Why these two together? Because they are both blue collar workers, married with kids. They were “pigeonholed” in the same brand category by the judges: burly blue collar workers. From a personal branding standpoint, this is perhaps one of the most important stories to watch on the show.

Based on appearance alone, one could say that they do have similar body types. But, this competition is not about acting based on looks, it is about having a great voice. In post #1 we said, “If you have talent, you have marketability”. Both guys have talent and marketability.

In post #2 we talked about the importance of your background story as a building block of your personal brand. But, what if you have virtually the same story as your competitor like Matt and Michael? How do you stand out? How do you differentiate yourself from your competitor? This is the most important question about real estate agent personal branding!

We will answer this question of differentiation and also explain how to avoid the “pigeonhole trap” in subsequent posts in this series. But, here we look at what can happen if you fall into this trap.

In the case of Matt and Michael the judges decided to let America vote instead of picking one or the other. Both contestants went on to the top 36. The sing-off on TV essentially created a brand category by linking these two together in the minds of the voters, a brand category that may not have been formulated otherwise.

It was Michael Starver, the oil rigger, who was voted into the top 12 in the first week of audience participation. His counterpart will come up in the second week. What do you think the chances are the Matt will also make it?

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