Bernice Ross

In today’s market driven by AI search, short-form video marketing and shifting consumer expectations, effective branding is the cornerstone of building a thriving real estate business.

If you rely only on your name, a logo and a tagline, your brand is already drowning in a sea of online and offline noise.

People are constantly bombarded with names everywhere they turn – names of people they meet, names in the news, social media handles, influencer names, coupled with relentless advertising for product brands and services.

Making matters worse, even if the customer remembers your name when you first meet, memory research shows that we forget 90 percent of what we have learned within the first 24 hours after learning has taken place.

If you work for a broker that uses names to brand their business (Berkshire Hathaway, Coldwell Banker, Keller Williams), the consumer is more likely to remember the brokerage brand than your name. The reason is that they see it on every just listed card, for sale sign, business card, newspaper ad, social media site and web page the brokerage uses.

So What Works?

An effective brand meets three criteria: It’s memorable, it immediately brings to mind the product being sold, and it identifies a specific market.

One of the hottest new brands today is “Liquid Death” with the tagline, “Murder Your Thirst.” This edgy brand is memorable, it tells you exactly what’s in the can (water, not soda) and it specifically targets a younger, trend savvy crowd that rejects sugary drinks. In fact, they even encourage you to “start drinking on the job,” a nod to their packaging’s close resemblance to craft beer cans.

Unlike all the brokerages and companies using name brands, the company with the best real estate branding in the business is NextHome. Their tagline is “Welcome. Home.” Those three powerful words embody exactly what a real estate company should do.

If you were to meet me at a social event and I introduced myself as “Bernice Ross of ABC Realty and I specialize in probate sales,” chances are you will remember the “blond lady who sells probates, but you won’t remember my name.

That shows why you should focus on creating a brand that clearly describes your market niche and the types of clients you serve. Even if you have established your own name as a brand within your market area, you’re still missing out.

How to Craft a Brand That Sticks Out

How can you create a brand that cuts through the noise? Start by anchoring your brand specifically to real estate and the place you serve.

Being hyperlocal has always been important in real estate marketing. Today’s consumer wants someone who is a specialist in the type of property they’re listing or selling, not someone who tries to be everything to everyone. A brand like “Richmond Historical Homes” hits this nail on the head.

In addition, most consumers search for listings using the city, state and ZIP code, especially if they’re from outside the area. Sadly, a huge number of agents fail to include this data on their website and in their digital marketing.

Moreover, consumers often also search for “Realtors near me.” Consequently, your city, state and ZIP code are essential if you want to be found.

Recent mergers and acquisitions make having your own brand more critical than ever.

If you decide to change brokerages or if your company undergoes a merger, is purchased or goes out of business, having your own brand allows you continue to market without losing momentum.

Specializing in a niche and creating the appropriate branding around that niche will help you attract more leads and position yourself as the local real estate expert. It also lays the groundwork for building additional source of revenue now and well into the future.

Bernice Ross is a nationally syndicated columnist, author, trainer and speaker on real estate topics. She can be reached at bernice@realestatecoach.com.