Brand Marketing: Pushing or Pulling?

Recently, when shopping on line, I have noticed the frequency of annoying push marketing.  I often look at an item to get a better idea of where it is made or what it is made of, etc.  Then, I click on something else.

An hour later or day later, I will get an email from the vendor showing a picture of the item with the headline, did you forget something?  I usually delete, only to have it appear a week later.

Now, the push has become even more annoying.  I was looking at shoulder bags on a sight.  Thus far, I have received three emails, "save on shoulder bags we think you'll love!".  This comes with a line-up of pictures of shoulder bags.

As a real estate marketing professional you should understand the difference between push  and pull. Pull, Don’t Push … .For instance, bragging about your accomplishments is definitely a push strategy and a turn off.

If you are tired of unwanted digital ads and unsolicited email marketing, join the crowd. Most of us do not like having advertisements or information “pushed” at us.  

The ideal marketing relationship between a customer or subscriber to a digital newsletter is “pull marketing” vs. push marketing”.  Keep this in mind when you think of sending out your own real estate e-newsletter.

Pull marketing is information with advertisements that is sent to you because you are asking for it.  You may ask for a “free report”.  That sometimes leads to a daily, automatic “drip” campaign chock full of unwanted information, products and services.  Where is that Unsubscribe button?

At a family celebration this past Sunday, one member mentioned how agents come around to persuade him to sell his home. And they list all the benefits of selling NOW!

He bought his beautiful craftsman home for a pittance, (by today's standards) years ago.  He does not want to sell.  He loves his home, and is not moving.  The agent shakes his/her head and says, "you are making a big mistake!"

There will come up a point, when the market will turn and it will be a buyers market.  In some markets inventory is non-existent.  

In the meantime, staying visible is important.  In several recent instances our clients have listed properties, because of their pull visibility.  Their strategy is to be active in their community.

One of the best ways to create pull is to be involved in your community and responding to its needs. Two of our lender clients regularly sponsor educational projects for the kids in their community in honor of their wives who were formerly teachers. 

They believe in education, and they spend part of their marketing dollars to further their community. People needing loans are drawn or pulled towards them, and regularly refer them.

When considering a sponsorship as a pull strategy, it is important that you are aligned to the cause and it is something you believe in.

Savvy Brand Marketing: Is Your Marketing Remarkable or Ho-Hum?

Pictured above is packaging for coffee that I spotted on this Monday morning, while shopping a Trader Joe's. I was impressed by the packaging, the colors and the graphics that went into selling coffee beans. There is nothing ho-hum about this packaging. Note the red color on the side of the bags, as well as the gold lettering!

And here is the full display of the vignette they took time to create and build. Given the price of each bag is $9.99, the packaging is worthy of beans priced at $19.99. This may not be your taste in color, however, you cannot deny that it is remarkable!

Being at the top of your game as a real estate marketing professional regardless of your niche requires being consistently remarkable.  After all, you are selling one of the largest investments your clients may make in their lives.

Your marketing materials are your silent brand messengers.  This includes your web site, your marketing message, as well as any printed material you share with the public as well as other agents, such as postcards, presentation folder, and handouts at broker opens or open houses. 

These need to stand out and communicate your identity and its congruency with your target market.  And they will communicate to your intended market your savvy in brand marketing!

Are your marketing materials remarkable or ho-hum?

Savvy Brand Marketing: How Potent is Your Message?

Do you keep repeating the same marketing message without satisfactory results? Perhaps it is time to create a better message that distills your value proposition to its essence.  

The key is to condense your marketing message so that it is both instantly appealing and memorable.  When crafting a brand strategy for any niche of a real estate marketing professional or company our job to distill our client’s extraordinary promise of value into a very brief message.  

The discipline is very much like writing haiku, the Japanese poems of just seventeen syllables, in three lines of five, seven and five traditionally evoking images of the natural world.

Trust us when we say that trying to come up with this potent, concentrated message on your own is not easy. Often people opt out for copying slogans of other agents in different geographical markets.

But, when you nail it, it is like hearing a clear radio signal without any static. In just four words,  Fed Ex said what it stood for, "The World on Time!"

Distilling your brand message to its essence helps spark word-of-mouth advertising.  If the message truly resonates with your target market it can “go viral” and spread quickly like a quote from a famous person that you keep hearing even after the person is no longer alive. 

Pictured above is Albert Einstein who said,

““The definition of insanity is doing something over and over again and expecting a different result”.”

So, if you find yourself repeating the same marketing strategies and not getting the results you deserve, it may be time to change your message. 

Clarify your unique promise of value and then go into the operating room.  Or, give us a call. Happy to help.

Does Your Message Distill Your Value Proposition To Its Essence?

Branding Moment: Branding Explained in a Nutshell of a Quote!

"The rose is without 'why'; it blooms simply because it blooms. It pays no attention to itself, nor does it ask whether anyone sees it." 

~ Angelus Silesius

Angelus Silesius, born Johann Scheffler and also known as Johann Angelus Silesius, was a German Catholic priest and physician, known as a mystic and religious poet. Born and raised a Lutheran, he adopted the name Angelus and the epithet Silesius on converting to Catholicism in 1653. Wikipedia

This quote describes perfectly what makes a brand stand out.  I happen to find it as I was looking for rose quotes as this rose photo pictured above caught my attention.  A good brand is obvious, and needs no hoopla, explanation or justification for its existence... 

It is daunting task for many to reach this goal, as one our recent commenters stated. It is doable.  It may be difficult for some,  because one has to shed all the preconceived notions, opinions and inculcations of many well-meaning souls. 

Happy Wednesday!

Savvy Marketing: The Antidote to Blogger's Block!

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As a luxury or any other category in the real estate marketing profession, consistently adding fresh, new, original content to your website by blogging is good for your ranking on Google.   

However, your readers should matter more than Google. They are interested in reading your posts, because you have something to say that is original. 

Furthermore, it can help expand your sphere of influence. That is, if you are writing original content that is buzz-worthy, share-worthy, newsworthy and follow-worthy. But, how do the best bloggers avoid getting stale?  How do they prevent Bloggers Block? 

The antidote to Bloggers Block can be summed up in this way: BE CURIOUS   When you are passionate about your subject matter, you naturally become interested and open to new, fresh information that others do not even bother to perceive. You become a magnet for news! 

One of our favorite pastimes is strolling along the beach in Santa Barbara.  We discovered early on that the beach is never the same from day to day.  The tides continuously change. They bring new creatures and sea treasures to our attention every time.  

The people are new. Even their dogs are new.  We have learned about so many breeds of dogs that we did not know existed. 

Recently, we passed by a couple of young girls who were squealing about some discovered treasure that was clinging to the base of a garland of kelp. It was a bunch of sea urchins. Pictured above, they are the spiky purple creatures.  And yes, they are edible. 

We had not seen one up close before that day (except at the seafood market, and those were black). Yet, sea urchins are known as “Santa Barbara gold” because they grow in great abundance right off our coast where they are harvested.  They used to be exported to Japan.   

However, with the growth of Japanese restaurants in the United States, the majority are shipped to New York. One sea urchin diver told us that there are more sushi restaurants in New York City than in Tokyo. 

Had those girls not been so excited we probably would have passed that kelp plant right by.  Instead, we were enriched by their discovery and our research on the subject. 

As a journalist, blogging can introduce you to new worlds and new people who can become potential referral sources for your luxury real estate marketing practice.   

So, if you are suffering from Bloggers Block, just be curious.  That will get you right back into the flow of following your passion.

Are You Blending in Like a Chameleon on a Leaf?

In certain cultures it is frowned upon to stand out from the crowd.  However, if market leadership is your quest  in luxury or any other real estate niche blending in like a chameleon does to camouflage itself is simply not an option.  

 This is a time, when competition for attention continues to escalate. Developing a highly distinguishable, consistent personal or company brand is important. As we say, Stand out or Bow out™!

Many agents and companies fall into the “chameleon trap” because they simply do not want to make waves.  Instead when they come up with new colors, their intent is to blurr the competition by doing something similar, to fit in with a similar look. 

 Blurring confuses the marketplace as to who is who among the brands to choose.  A perfect example can be seen in car design...Even the Bentley blends in as one of the newer auto companies has copied its styling and logo. 

Changing your colors to please others, to blend in or to avoid the pursuit of your competition is the antithesis of establishing your brand position and sticking with it steadfastly.   Instead of standing out you blend in, like a chameleon into a leaf.

Are You Blending in Like a Chameleon on a Leaf?

Marketing To Delight & Entice: Florida Luxury Home Video!

19 Sunrise Cay, Key Largo, Florida

 Our team member and cherished collaborator, two time Emmy award winner videographer recently created a video, of 19 Sunrise Cay, Key Largo, Fl., for our client's listing. This is Kerry McNally first luxury real estate video. 

We have always felt that real estate marketing videos should be short like a fine store window display.  It makes one want to go into the store. Simple, short and elegant is an invitation to inquire with 01.54 minute video.   

Videos that are chock full of details are often 5-10 minutes long, and will often overwhelm someone, and cause them to turn it off.  Instead, this video generated  serious interest and many showings. 

We loved his "first effort"!  We wanted to share it with all of you. It is a fine example of showing a home beautifully and briefly. There are no words, just music.  We think this style of marketing can easily apply to any priced home.  

This is marketing to entice and delight.  It is what every home deserves.

Savvy Marketing: Co-Marketing Dole Pineapple & Disney's Pixar!

We noticed this unusual co-marketing while shopping in the fruit aisle.  We both were intrigued by the tag attached to a Dole pineapple.  And we wondered why Disney's Pixar is co-marketing with Dole.  

We turned the tag over (pictured above), and there was a vague explanation (both in English and in French). It was an invitation to visit their website.

On the website, you will find digital downloads of Dole and Pixar stickers.  You can make your own chef's hat, download a ratatouille place-mat, and view easy to make recipe videos.  Additional recipes can be printed.

We were impressed by this video.  It was well done and easy to follow.  The idea behind it was to engage the adults and children to have a good time being together (especially during this of health crisis) and include cooking together.  This also incorporates the message of healthy eating, and they even included a vegan recipe.  

And of course, it was about keeping the Disney brand alive and visible while the parks are closed. In our opinion this was very well done.  Bravo to both!

Branding Moment: Perfect Branding & Slogan!

It is always a delight for us to discover perfect branding with a perfect slogan.  Pictured above is an example of a place we frequent. This is definitely a place that the gardeners and landscapers in the area frequent.   

You have to know where it is because it is easy to miss as one drives along Milpas Avenue.   You enter via a driveway, and drive out the alley behind the store.

Since we had planned to move our dwarf Meyer lemon trees to bigger pots, we asked them if they could recommend soil that would enhance the life of our trees, (organic preferably).  Pictured above is the potting soil that they keep re-ordering to keep it in stock, because all the local pro gardeners and landscapers love it.

And service was impeccable.  We drove in yesterday and today for more soil, we popped our trunk open and they loaded our car.  Ron went in to pay with his phone.  Within minutes we were on our way home.

The brand and slogan are perfect.  A three word brand tells you who they are and what they do.  And the slogan attracts people like us who enjoy gardening and growing like pros!

Written by Ron & Alexandra Seigel-

ABOUT:  Napa Consultants, International is the leader in brand strategy for the luxury real estate industry.  They work exclusively with professionals who are passionate about gaining or sustaining market leadership. With an expertise in personal branding, company branding, luxury real estate website design and social media marketing they help their clients become the breakaway brand in their marketplace.

Instead of Just Fishing, Go Where the Fish Are Biting...

On our beach walks, we meet fishermen and women who fish.   When we ask how do they determine where to cast their lines, their response is:  " Look where the birds are in the distance! That is where the fish are!"  And sure enough, as we look in the distance, we can see flocks of pelicans, cormorants  and other sea birds enjoying their meal!

On a whale watch in the Santa Barbara channel, the naturalist mentioned that the whales on their migration to Alaska follow the dolphins to feed. Like the birds,  the dolphins know were the fish are. And the moment the lookouts see the dolphins, they steer the boat in that direction!  It is one way to spot the whales.

In real estate, take the time to become objective and analyze the sales statistics of your marketplace. Exactly what is selling and where? The first key is to discover where the fish are biting. Then go fishing there.

But, you better have a clear sense of how you can serve this faster paced market segment better than your competition.  Your unique value proposition must be superior and it must be communicated explicitly through your personal or company brand.

We say, when you get your branding  spot on you actually do not have to go fishing for prospects, the fish will start jumping in your boat.  If you are able to clearly articulate your distinct promise of value to your target market sales should become irrelevant because you are succinctly letting them know, with certainty, that you can resolve their most pressing challenges.

While others are fighting for the prestige that comes with winning a fewer number of trophy listings, you could be out-thinking them by selling a higher volume of mid-range properties. 

One of the mother and daughter teams we worked with had settled on working in a super exclusive area.  When together we analyzed the market place, it was obvious that were rarely a fish in this market place. One or two homes a year sold there.

The hot market was elsewhere.  It was in the mid-range condominiums, that were being built in the downtown area. The daughter was on the board of the city redevelopment group as the downtown area was being spiffed up.  This became their fishing ground, and once in a while they listed one of the ultra luxury properties.

This price range, as a niche, is often overlooked by those vying for the big fish and can thus become under-served.  Develop an outrageous and extraordinary promise of value. Bowl them over with service that makes you stand out and you will have a winning formula for success.

Marketing Madness: Just One Look-That is All it Took to Toss This!!

Great marketing is achieved with the thorough understanding of who are the people you are marketing to.  It takes research to target that exact segment of the population in order to get a positive response from those you are addressing. It has to be designed and executed with that in mind. 

Without taking those preliminary steps, you are likely to be wasting time and dollars.  Here is an example of what we would refer to as marketing madness or what were they thinking?  

Pictured above is a marketing piece that I received this Saturday.  Just one look, and I was ready to toss it in the shredder without opening it.  My second reaction was to take a photo and write a post.  And now it has been shredded.

The aim of marketing is to know and understand the customer so well the product or service fits him and sells itself.

Peter Drucker

Brand Story: Telling Your Brand Story From Three Perspectives

In the art of marketing YOU or your business, we like to emphasize that telling your story should have three perspectives: Stories of LOVE, stories to INSPIRE, and stories of SOUL.  If we were to tell the story of the beach/ocean we love, here is one way we would say it.  Pictured above is a view of the ocean and the sea wall that protects the homes above it from the winter high tides.

The next photo is of the colors of boulders in the sea wall which also illustrates the power of the ocean as it lodges large pieces of driftwood between the boulders. From our viewpoint, it INSPIRES the appreciation of Nature's artistic hand.

The picture above represents the SOUL of the ocean. The ocean waves and winds carved a pool in the rock. That tiny pool that is generating new life. Mussels are growing, along with sea moss and other shells.  

A well told brand story from these three perspectives creates an instantaneous bond between you/your company and your intended target market. They can relate to you because your story resonates witth their perspectives.

Does your brand tell a story?

Branding Moment: Chocolate & Zucchini!

One way of coming up with a brand name is to describe what you do is to find a way that cleverly expresses one's range of services and products.  Here is an example of this concept in branding:

In her Alphabet mysteries, Sue Grafton immortalized Santa Barbara (Santa Theresa) with her ace detective heroine, Kinsey Mullhone. She planned to write the series ending with Z, and sadly passed away in 2017.  Her first book was A for Alibi, and her last book was Y for Yesterday.  Rumor has it that Z was for Zero....The Alphabet concept was a great brand.  When you heard the words, Alphabet mysteries, that was synonymous with Sue Grafton, who prior to writing books was a script writer in Hollywood.

Years ago, when we were doing research on the idea of blogging, we came upon this odd name for a blog, "Chocolate & Zucchini".  The tag line accompanying it, is, "Simple recipes from my Paris kitchen."  It illustrated perfectly who the author was and her reasons for blogging.

In the words of the author, Clotilde Dusoulier, when asked Why Chocolate & Zucchini? 

It is a good metaphor for my cooking style: the zucchini illustrates my focus on healthy and natural foods: fresh produce, artisanal goods, organic and local ingredients. And the chocolate represents my decidedly marked taste for desserts in general, and chocolate in particular. I even belong to a French chocolate tasting society". 

Clotilde left the Bay area (San Francisco working in tech) to pursue her dreams of becoming a food writer, and moved back to her native France. She accomplished  her dream by writing her blog for 17 years, and writing for a variety of food publications.. In our opinion, this is a wonderful brand!

Branding Moment: Should You Use Your Name As Your Brand?

Coco Chanel 1928 

Should use your name as your personal brand in all branches of  real estate marketing?  The best test to determine this is to ask yourself, “Am Iready to achieve celebrity status in my marketplace?”  If you are prepared to have your name stand for a particular market niche that you can dominate, we say, “Go for it!”

Think of some of the most recognizable personal brands:  Seal, Sting, Cher, Oprah, Ellen, Coco.  What category of celebrity comes to mind for each? 

Chanel to this day remains as one of the most famous fashion design houses. Some of the original and iconic styles (shoes, purses, suit styles) that Coco created remain part of the line to this day in 2020.  Although there have been numerous knockoffs, they pale next to the original. She was the master of what she termed "expensive simplicity."  She wanted her clothes and her design to stand out with their impeccable standards.

The company founder, Gabrielle Bonheur “Coco” Chanel, was one of the most highly recognized personal brands in her time. In fact, she was the only person to be named in the field of fashion on the Time [Magazine] Top 100: The Most Important People of the [20th] Century.  

Clearly, Coco enjoyed top-of-mind status in the field of high fashion as a personal brand, a status that extends to the company brand as well, to this day.  Top-of-mind is the goal of any real estate marketing professional  aiming for market leadership and celebrity status. 

Are you ready for celebrity status in your luxury or any other real estate marketplace? If not, you might want to consider a different tact when approaching your personal branding, other than using your name as your brand.  

Branding Moment: How to Stretch Your Marketing Dollars!

There is no doubt that a well created brand does not need to outspend the competition to market themselves, if they understand what branding really is. So many mistake a logo or color as a brand they can identify with. These just represent the harmonious aesthetics, rather than the heart of a brand.

The aim of branding for real estate agents, companies and all other professions is to communicate in an instant, the essence of the brand's personality, the core values of the brand, and why someone should do business with this brand instead of your competition.

Successful communication occurs when the ideal clients recognize that your brand represents someone they can trust. Your clients/target market can easily convey to others why they chose your brand 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 gets people talking about you, and sending you business.

Marketing Savvy: The Importance of Marketing Perspective!

In answering a question as to whether or not to discontinue marketing for the time being in the face of collective global adversity, we said yes, continue marketing.  

However, this is the time to review, reassess and rethink your marketing.  You cannot continue what you have been doing.  We have always said that marketing is a fluid act in motion that must be in harmony with the current climate which requires perspective--in other words encompassing a 360 degree view of the present.

Recently everyone has received emails and postcards from those vendors want your business.  We have deleted the majority of the emails from companies whose marketing/ad companies have not bothered to analyze how to approach a new situation.  Here is one guideline.

Do not tout your brilliance and accomplishments as a means of marketing yourself!  It may brand you as someone who has no heart to the person who receives your victorious postcard!   Here is an example:

One of those emails that we read was from an airline touting its work in helping re-patriate US citizens who happened to be overseas at this time.  Their CEO was complimenting the company for its efforts of maintaining its scheduled flights and good citizenship, and dedication to American citizens in the face of the global issues that everyone is facing.  

When I read this, I was delighted because my niece was confirmed on one of those flights home.  A few hours later, she texted us to let us know that this airline had cancelled its flight from South East Asia. Make sure that what you are saying is the truth, nothing but the truth...Fortunately, our niece is a savvy traveler and for the moment is staying put in a safe place free of the spread of the virus.

Stop referring to the virus in the headlines of your posts, articles or printed materials.  At this point it is the most overused keyword by everyone which includes the media.  Just because it has a high ranking place on Google, squeezing this Google Juice causes more fear and pain and stress for everyone who glances at these headlines.  Here are two examples:

One of the luxury sites I subscribed to lauded in gleeful terms how some of the luxury brands were creating masks to match their Spring outfits. This was their way to stand out at the Spring fashion shows. It was creative, no doubt about that...but I would not have applauded this at all.  

One of our formerly respected publications has a weekend column with interesting articles on tech and lifestyle.  We have since unsubscribed to that feed as it became another Google ranking opportunist, with every article headlining the virus.

The rule of successful marketing is at all times being aware of the perspective of your target market at this time in history,  Be kind, be compassionate, be carring.  Not one person needs the added burden of fear.  As Maya Angelou said:

“I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”

Spread the good news, and yes there are many good news in town, in the United States at large, and globally.  Here is one for you:  Did you know that drive-in movies are making a comeback world wide and in many cities in the United States and in the world.  If our town had one,  we would have sent a postcard to our sphere with these news.  We would also found a way to pay for the first 50 that responded to our postcard or email!

If your marketing budget is stretched, share the video of good news that Debb Janes EcoBroker and Bernie Stea JD shared in their post yesterday afternoon...

Market with perspective.  Be kind, caring and compassionate.

Marketing Savvy: Spring Cleaning and the Eiffel Tower!

Since many of the various real estate sectors have slowed down with the current global conditions, this a great time to do some spring cleaning, and take a look as to how you can improve or innovate your marketing.

We have been reviewing our website, removing broken links, updating our photo and our elevator video.  We bought a new elevator. This was a decision we made because the last frame of the video had a shot of the Eiffel tower.  The new elevator is the one you will see at the Eiffel tower!  We felt it made for a better video and demonstrated our attention to detail and congruency!

Happy Tuesday, Happy Spring Cleaning!

Branding Essence as Expressed in Three Portraits of a Rose!

I( A) was experimenting with the portrait function on my phone yesterday.  The phone has functions of lighting that one can experiment with.  Pictured above is what is called "high key mono"  It is quite dramatic'!

Here it is in "stage lighting"---another dramatic effect.

This is the original photo.  Three ways to perceive a rose.  One can change the name, the color, or the lighting.  What one cannot change is the true essence of it, as Shakespeare said in Romeo and Juliet.  And that is what a brand should represent--the true essence of the individual or the company.  

"A rose by any other name would smell as sweet" is a popular reference to William Shakespeare's play Romeo and Juliet, in which Juliet seems to argue that it does not matter that Romeo is from her family's rival house of Montague, that is, that he is named "Montague". Wikipedia

Marketing Savvy: Which Comes First, Mind Share Or Market Share?

Mind share precedes market share. This is one of the most important marketing laws.  What is mind share? It is a hold on the intended market's attention, that is attained with a smart brand strategy followed by a remarkable marketing campaign. In other words, those you market to are aware of your existence, 

It also means continuous smart, creative marketing to stay top of mind in a marketplace.  One cannot slack off, and take a break from marketing, because your target market will quickly forget you.  We often hear agents feeling betrayed by long time clients. They did not stay in touch, and as result they were forgotten.  Here is an example of what can happen, when you neglect to keep your mind share alive and well.

One client told us this story of meeting up with her long time friend/client at the grocery store.  (She had sold 6 houses for her and her relatives), and when she asked her why she listed with another agent, the answer was, "I thought you were dead!"

If you are going to create a campaign to garner mind share, be sure that you know what you are talking about, and that the campaign does show your savvy off.  Otherwise, it will be clear to your target market that you spent a lot of time and money saying nothing at all or showing off your ignorance...no one believed that you could do it!.

Savvy mind share will get you market share, which means in real estate terms sellers and buyers.  The market will be referring you,  because you have planted yourself in their minds. However, you will still have to maintain that mind share to maintain your market share.  

If you need more convincing, think about this.  Tide is the number 1 laundry detergent in America.  Every time we pick any print publication,Tide has an ad in that publication. Many would say, "What a waste of money, they already are #1!"  And we say, they are maintaining their mind share!  

Are you maintaining your mind share in your marketplace?

Pole Vaulting To Success by Finding the Uncontested Market Niche!

This post was inspired by a retired gentleman we recently met at a dinner party.  When he asked us what our profession is, we explained that one of the aspects of our branding services is finding the market category that is uncontested or under served in real estate or any other business.

He knew exactly what we meant by that.  He shared his experience as an athlete.  In high school, he wanted to be on the track and field team.  When he competed for the various events, he was good, but not good enough to make the varsity team in the categories he tried out for.

The coach asked him to try out for the pole vaulting team/.  He was willing, and became a winner in the pole vault category. This led to a college scholarship and later to the US Track and field team, where he competed nationally, and was #1. 

How does this apply to real estate? Your marketplace does not have to be an entire town.  You can define the scope of your market segment.   It has to be one that the vast majority of agents is not focused on. That is why we refer to it as uncontested or under served market niche. 

To find it, it takes research and an honest assessment of your talents, preferences and values. It can be as narrow as you want as long as it has the potential to fulfill your financial expectations, and more importantly your enjoyment and satisfaction. 

You can achieve top-of-mind status in a three block section of a suburb or a community of just 500 homes or by specializing in a certain type of property instead of every community in that market place.  Here is an example:

One of our clients was a builder/designer/architect prior to real estate.  He channeled these talents into finding and converting small apartments into condominiums. He only selected those that had enough land and space to create private gardens, and rooftop outdoor areas. Together, we determined that the city he was in had a need for this type of housing, as well as the jurisdiction willing to grant the appropriate permits.

His joy was converting those buildings into luxurious spaces, and the gardens into gems of outdoor living.  He would have them professionally staged, and they would sell within 3 months of completion.  We witnessed instant full priced offers at his open houses, along with requests to buy the staged furniture.  

In a sense, he was like our pole vaulting friend.  He found his niche and ruled the market  Bottom line, it takes research, and willingness to find your uncontested niche. Like our client, you can become the market leader in your uncontested market niche!.