Know-How Exchange : Strategy

You need to start by defining your target audience as tightly as you can. Commercial or Residential? What City/State/Region? Investors or Owner/Residents?

Then you need to understand how your primary target audience selects a real estate broker. What factors do they consider? How do they determine who is in the consideration set? Do they seek recommendations? Read the ads in certain newspapers and magazines? Search online?

Then you need to identify what makes your firm different from, and better than, all the other brokers in your area. WHY should someone in the target audience pick YOU? What unique benefit do you offer?

Before you begin any serious activity, you need to cover these basic areas. Otherwise you'll be spinning your wheels and spending your resources (time and money) inefficiently.

Very very tough job you have :) I don't envy you.

Having said that, the Indian real estate market is currently in the middle of a huge boom so now si the time to make hay.

If real estate brokers in India are anything like in other SE asian countries where I have some experience, then trying to build the image and reputation of the brokerage is a lost cause.

Correct me if I am wrong but for SE asian buyers, the broker is just the person who gets the commission on the sale and other than that, there is no loyalty from the buyers.

It is first an foremost about the property that they want to get so they don't really care whih broker sells it to them? AM I right?

Any way, what you need is buyers, buyers, buyers.

So the best way to start is to place yourself in the shoes of potential buyers. Go out and talk with soem of your recent clients who bought. invite them for tea and spend a couple of hours asking them important questions about what tipped them over the edge in making the buying decision.

Was it price? or as I suspect, was it availability of credit terms that they could afford?

Was it location? was it reputation of the developer / contractor?

Once you have figured out what are the key drivers that cause buyers to make that big decision, then you will kow where to focus your marketing efforts.

Online is probabaly not the place to spend you money initially other than just a listing service maybe.

During your tea interviews, don't forget to ask them, how did they first hear about the property that they decided on.

TV ads? news paper ads? flyers? through a friend? through a broker? other?

I have a million more ideas but no more time I am afraid :))

Good luck with your project and never stop asking questions.

Matthew

this question has been asked before... and one place that you can look for ideas is by searching previous questions on this forum.

You can use the "search questions" box at the upper right of this page... but I personally prefer to use Google to search the site since it allows me to use more powerful Google search functions.

for example, if you do a Google search on the following:

+“Real estate” site:marketingprofs.com/ea

You will get over 600 hits. Many of them are questions about real estate taglines... but some of them contain ideas and tips and discussions from over the past several years.

Happy hunting, and good luck!