Know-How Exchange : Branding

Make a benefit promise to prospective clients that will capture their interest and encourage them to remember you when they are ready to buy/sell/rent. If you do this right, it will be far more impactful than a bright red envelope. What you want to do is plant an idea in their heads and be remembered for that idea, not for how outlandish your mailing was.

Put your energy (and money) into delivering a compelling message, not into bright colors or fancy shapes.

So what is your unique and important benefit promise? Who is the target audience? Why should they choose YOU?

have you considered asking your previous customers for their perspectives? Why did they select you? How do they perceive you as different from others? Would they recommend you? Why, or why not?

I agree with the others - focus on content. Talk about how you have helped others buy/sell real estate and how you could do the same for new prospects.

Stop. Relax. Take a breath.

Sending a mass mailing to homeowners is one thing. Generating enough responses from your list in order to make the phone ring (and to keep it ringing) is another. To create this response you need to know more about your audience and their short term and longer term needs. I seriously doubt anyone is waiting by their mail box for a mailing from a real estate agent. This means doing some home work on your target audience, and in order to make the most of your budget, you may want to forgo any envelopes and opt for overlarge postcards.

One mailing alone may not be enough, and as for making your mailing different from what you refer to as "the rest" (meaning other real estate agents? Meaning the rest of your mailings?), in the first instance you probably want to look at segmenting your list, and in the second instance, it may mean you needing to invest in the services of a professional copywriter.

What one thing does your ideal client need and what makes you the best person to offer this thing to them? What action do you want respondents to take as a result of interacting with your mailing? What number of pieces will you need to send over what number of ZIP codes in order to generate the 1 to 2 percent response which is average for direct mail?

Being different for different sake is one thing. Being different for effective reasons is another. Before spending the money/time do to a mass mailing, talk to people in your area. What are the perceptions of "your competition"? What do people look for? How do they choose? Figure out first how to differentiate/specialize. Then, realize that a single mailer isn't likely to turn anyone's heads, nor likely to have them remember who you are. So you'll need to decide on a campaign to keep your message and begin to dialog with your audience. Are you expert in a region? On quick closes? On effective staging techniques? Then share your expertise with people - lectures, videos, open houses, etc. Teach them some things that you're great at, and then you'll be able to start branding yourself long-term.

Mass mailing is a good idea to get your name out there, word of mouth referrals is the best way to build actual business. Can you encourage your existing/previous clients to assist you. That old saying is 'its who you know, not what you know'. Maybe coincide the mail out with a free seminar on property appealing to the kind of client you want?