The real estate brokerage business is perhaps one of the most competitive service industries out there. And in our eternal quest to gain market share we real estate agents continually play a game of marketing one upsmanship. We say things like,”hire me and I’ll market your property in this magazine, that newspaper, and these internet sites”. And then the next agent will say, “I’ll do that as well, and on top of that I’ll add x, y, and z too!” And the icing on the cake is that all of this “stuff” that we’re giving you will sell your property “quickly and at the highest price”
Here’s a reality check that’s likely to put me at odds with many of my colleagues: No marketing, at any time in the history of real estate, has ever sold a single piece of property. I’d love to take credit for this eureka statement, yet my humble respect for Mr. Jay Schweppe prevents me from doing so (more on him in a future post maybe). Even yours truly, with a degree in marketing, has seen the light.
Here’s the logic: Marketing can sell products. Marketing can sell services. Is your house a product or a service? Or perhaps it’s something else. Truth be told, real estate is a commodity, and no amount of marketing, no matter how good, can sell it. When was the last time you saw an ad in The Wall Street Journal reading “great deal on wheat futures”? Yet wheat futures sell every single trading day. There are always buyers, regardless of what the market conditions are. And what ultimately determines how much sells, is whether there’s a perception of value for the commodity on that day.
Real estate is no different. The buyer pool remains relatively constant, yet it’s the perception of value that changes. Is the perception of value for real estate in 2011 different than it was in 2005? Of course! So what’s a would-be home seller to do? Make no mistake about it; the only tool that a home seller has at their disposal to create a perception of value for their property is the asking price. “So why all the fancy schmancy marketing?” one may ask. That’s a good question.
One must be able to reach as much of the Buyer pool as humanly possible. So it stands to reason that the Seller who employs the most prolific, extensive, interactive, targeted, cutting-edge, and technologically driven marketing platform, will ultimately reach the entirety of the buyer pool. Couple this with a well-positioned property that creates the necessary perception of value, and the net result will be a sold property. Happy selling!!!
