Luxury Real Estate Marketing Tip: Is Your Voice Mail Fresh Or Stale?

Some of the best luxury real estate marketing ideas can be the simplest ones. We recently had the pleasure of speaking with a member of the Language of Luxury community, Sally Uhlmann of Platinum Properties, who shared a simple, yet brilliant, zero-cost marketing tip that has helped to make her the market leader in Bozeman, Montana luxury real estate.  Sally was kind enough to let us share this with you.

When was the last time you refreshed your cell phone voicemail message? Do you have a generic voice message or is it in your own voice? Does your message say the same boring things that almost every real estate agent voicemail message conveys? If so, you are missing a tremendous opportunity to make a great first impression or re-enforce your personal brand in the minds of your current referral base.

Sally changes her voicemail message every two weeks! She believes that in a 30 second message you have the opportunity to identify your unique style, your distinct brand of doing business in a very personal way.

Every holiday is an opportunity to spread good will with a fresh message. Sally’s Valentines message was quite endearing. She advises that you should never get stale or predictable.  Even her long-term friends and family look forward to hearing her latest installment, if they cannot reach her on the spot.

Keep your personal brand fresh in the minds of your target market and referral sources. Refresh your voicemail message regularly.
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

Staying On The Leading Edge of Luxury

Apple store on 5th Avenue in New York. Photo by© Phakimata

It is tempting to dilute your position as a leader in luxury real estate marketing by taking on whatever properties come your way in various price ranges.  The temptation comes either from greed, fearing that you will miss out on other opportunities, or from losing confidence that your chosen niche has the capacity to fulfill your financial goals.

A great case in point is the reversal of fortunes of Samsung in the smartphone market.  After an outright assault on Apple, Samsung surpassed Apple in overall smartphone sales. Their tactic was to create phones in all price ranges and go for sheer volume.

Apple stayed focused on the top-tier where the margins are high and regained supremacy after selling over 75 million phones in their last quarter.  A significant percentage of 2014 sales were in China where competition for lower price range phones is fierce and margins are slim.

Last year Apple unseated all of the iconic European luxury fashion and jewelry brands as the number one luxury brand in China. With the Apple Watch soon to launch, Senior VP of Design, Jony Ive, and the new head of retail, Angela Ahrendts (who was credited for turning around luxury retailer Burberrys) are in the process of revamping the design of its stores. Apple is doubling down on luxury to strengthen its dominance in this arena.

Continuously refining your marketing message and luxury real estate brand esthetics is an important part of staying on the leading edge. It is essential if you want to stay ahead of your competition in the long run.

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

Expressing Your Brand: Finding Your Perfect Pitch

                   
In the art world there are forgeries that only trained experts can discern. But, when it comes to authenticity in your personal luxury real estate brand most people can spot a fake from a mile away. Authenticity is the key to longevity in your business.

If you are a lover of pop music you certainly can appreciate the originality and authentic voice of singer-songwriter Adele.  She has sold over 40 million albums worldwide and has won numerous awards including a Grammy, Golden Globe and Academy Award for “Skyfall”, from the James Bond film with the same name.

This year a new talent emerged to take the top awards, Sam Smith. His golden voice is pitch-perfect.  When you hear Sam, it is clear that you are experiencing the depth of his soul. You hear his truth.
What you are striving for with your personal brand is authenticity in every communication you have with current and past clients, prospects and also with your entire potential referral base.  The clients you want are those who can discern the real deal, the genuine article.  You do not want the ones who can easily be fooled by a false front, a mask, or a people-pleasing façade.

The message from a personal brand that is phony will sound and feel discordant to those who value authenticity. It takes guts to put your authentic self on the front line.  But, in the long run you will strike the right chord with your ideal clients.

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

Setting The Angel Free: Finding Authenticity In The Branding Journey

One of the challenges of branding a luxury real estate professional or company is whittling away at their currently projected image or the hype that is erroneously attributed to their success.  Many individuals and companies are blocked from their genuine selves, what they stand for, and their own personal truths.  In our strategic branding practice, we seek to identify the authentic soul of the personal or company brand and make what is implicit explicit.

We are reminded of one of Michelangelo’s quotes, “Every block of stone has a statue inside it and it is the task of the sculptor to discover it, I saw the angel in the marble and carved until I set him free”.

Recent events in the world of celebrity, sports, and news figures have revealed the shortcomings of some high profile individuals.  They fell prey to the hype of their unauthentic personal brands, driven by the desire to maintain their visibility and marketability.

Sooner or later, they find that they cannot maintain this false image, and are hugely relieved when the truth comes out.  Yearning to be set free from the imprisonment of an inacurate brand identity, it is as if they orchestrated their own downfall.
  For us branding is not about creating a spin, or something that will please the target market. It is a journey of rediscovering and re-affirming our client’s authenticity, and then, developing a brand strategy together that fits like a glove.

When a luxury real estate professional or a company is the genuine article and recognized as such, trust is gained rapidly and referrals abound. An angel set free has no limitations.

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.

Beyonce’s Personal Brand Extension: Will You Bite?

Many celebrities have launched and endorsed their own businesses to leverage and extend their personal brands. Beyonce just launched a home delivery Vegan food service based on her 22 Days Vegan Challenge.  Will you bite?

In our previous post we discussed the importance of researching and anticipating the needs of your target market in your luxury real estate practice.  Beyonce definitely spotted multiple trends that converged in her new business model: the vegan trend, the non-GMO trend and also the trend of home delivery of groceries and prepared meals that can be ordered via the Internet. In selecting this business she is “riding the horse in the direction it is going”.

While home grocery delivery has attracted millions of venture capital dollars, the space is becoming extremely crowded.  Why would anyone enter this highly competitive field at this stage in the game?

Beyonce’s brand extension (beyond singing and acting) exemplifies our approach to this question: identify an uncontested and/or under served NICHE (within this larger category) that you can dominate.  She also has an “unfair” competitive advantage: her personal brand is very well known and she apparently “walks her talk”, i.e., she is a vegan and she looks stunning! 

Often, when we work with incumbent market leaders in luxury real estate, we are asked, “How can I expand beyond my current niche that I already dominate?”  The same approach applies. Once you dominate one niche, your strong reputation as a market leader precedes you if you want to extend your brand into another niche.

By leveraging your strengths you can more readily conquer your next challenge. Your credibility makes it easier for your new target market to “bite”.

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.