The Language of Luxury

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Tuesday, August 6, 2013

Personal & Company Branding: What Is Your Unique Promise of Value?

In marketing luxury real estate you only have a Nano-second to capture the attention of your ideal clients and communicate your unique promise of value. If your message promises to solve a problem or add significant value you have the best chance of gaining a new client.

When your branding is spot on it is your shortcut in this communication process. Your personal or company brand must send a clear, succinct message to your target through words, symbols and sounds, a message that must encapsulate the distinct benefits that will be derived from doing business with you vs. your competition. Identifying, then distilling your unique promise of value into a concise message is an art. Here is an example of one company has mastered this art.

Coffee is one of the most ubiquitous commodities in the world. As such it poses one of the biggest branding challenges on earth. We give Seattle’s Best very high praise for breaking through the clutter and standing out in this highly competitive food category.

They came up with a suite of 5 different coffees that suit the needs of the majority of coffee drinkers. Their unique promise of value: making it easy to choose the perfect cup of coffee for you. They call it the Level System. From light and bright Level 1 to dark and bold level 5 they claim that they have an expertly blended level for everyone.

Can you see the brilliance behind this brand strategy? The next time you need to buy coffee you do not even need to remember the brand name. Just remember a number between 1 and 5. First they take the guesswork out of selecting the right blend. Then, they make it impossible to forget your preference or the preference of whomever you are buying for. “I’m a #2 and my roommate is a #5”.

For those, who are time-starved they just made life a little bit easier. They solved a common problem How can you distill your luxury real estate marketing message to accomplish the same goal?

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Tuesday, November 20, 2012

Luxury Real Estate Marketing Trends: My Kitchen has Bedrooms

As a luxury real estate marketing professional you understand the importance of an outstanding kitchen design when it comes to marketing luxury homes. You would be the first to advise your seller to remodel or upgrade the kitchen in order to get maximum value for their home.

An interesting trend has emerged in building or remodeling high-end homes. According to the National Association of Home builders, the average square footage of kitchens has increased by about 50% in the last 30 years (from 303 to about 450 square feet on average). In the fourth quarter of 2011 the American Institute of Architects Home Design Trends Survey also noted that the size of the kitchen’s footprint in a home was growing.

Joanne Hudson, a Philadelphia based kitchen designer, says: “This trend is partly driven by a shift toward a more casual lifestyle, where people often want to prepare food with company either watching or helping them cook the meal. More people are cooking at home for health reasons—as well as wanting to show off the latest in increasingly pricey commercial-grade home cooking appliances.”

Toll Brothers has added an option for a 440 square foot kitchen in their model homes. Other builders, such as KB homes and The New Home Company have remarked that kitchen sizes, on average, account for about 15% of its homes' total floor plans in a typical 4,800-square-foot model. This is up from 10% of a similar home's plan seven years ago.

What comprises a supersized kitchen? These kitchens now include a great room, a family room and are often connected to an outdoor kitchen. It is as if the kitchen has bedrooms and that make it a home.

How much does a supersized kitchen cost? Investing in a major kitchen remodel in an upscale home costs $111,000, on average. 57.4% of the costs typically are recouped in a resale, according the most recent annual Remodeling magazine report.

An extreme kitchen home in Beverly Hills is currently in escrow with an asking price of $58 million. The home has a 5,000-square-foot kitchen with seating and dining areas, a glass walk in refrigerator and freezer as well as a butler’s pantry. The entire room opens on to a beautifully manicured formal garden.

Become knowledgeable not only about kitchen design but also about top-of-the line appliances. That way you can advise your clients about the potential value they can add to a home either as a buyer or a seller. Your expertise in this arena will also add value to the service you provide and enable you to run circles around your competition.

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Monday, November 19, 2012

Luxury Real Estate Marketing Tip: Pick Your Niche Wisely!

Courtesy of Microsoft

Identifying an undeserved or uncontested market niche, then dominating that category is the fastest route to market leadership in the field of luxury real estate marketing or any field of business for that matter. To be successful in your chosen category, however, it must be a category that you or your company, can serve better than anyone else.

When Steve Jobs first introduced the iPad he presented perhaps the best demonstration in the digital age of this fundamental principle of brand strategy. On the screen behind him was an image of the iPhone and a MacBook laptop, with a space between them. He posed this very important question: “Is there room for a third category of device in the middle?

In this article we are going to use Steve’s logic to analyze whether there is room for yet another category in the middle between a smartphone and a laptop. This is the question to which Microsoft answered, “yes”, with their new Surface device.

According to Jobs, to qualify as a legitimate third category the iPad would have to do some things far better than either of the other two devices. For example, browsing the Internet, or using the device for email, photos, video, games and eBooks would have to be a far better experience than doing the same thing with a smartphone or laptop.

At the time netbooks were selling like hotcakes. But, Steve summarily dismissed the netbook as a “cheap laptop” not a new category. With over 100,000,000 iPads sold to date consumers have confirmed the need for this distinct third category.

When you are on the lookout for a luxury real estate category to dominate keep this netbook example in mind: You need to define a niche that is clearly distinct from other categories, a niche to which you or your company can add extraordinary value.

Microsoft’s Surface is their first foray into the category of tablets and laptops. In fact it is a hybrid of the two categories. A flat keyboard (which costs extra) can snap into the tablet, while the tablet is in standing mode, and turns the tablet into a laptop. But, at the end of the day, doesn’t that turn their tablet into a netbook—another cheap laptop?

No doubt Microsoft is following in Apple’s footsteps in attempting to control the entire user experience from hardware to software. Surface runs on Windows 8, which is a completely overhauled version of their flagship product that now works with touch screens.

Windows 8 may help Microsoft become a distant third major player in the tablet arena in the same way that #2 Google became a challenger to #1 Apple with their Android platform used by multiple manufacturers of tablets But, the Surface itself does not create a new product category because it does nothing far better than a laptop (that can also run Windows 8) or any other tablet on the market. As such, it confuses consumers as to which devise category it belongs. Is the Surface a tablet or a laptop?

Select your luxury real estate marketing category wisely. Pick an underserved or uncontested market niche that you can serve better than anyone else!

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Tuesday, November 13, 2012

Luxury Real Estate Marketing Tips: These Boots Are Made for Sparkling…

Co-branding is a synergistic marketing strategy involving two or more brands that can each benefit by expanding their marketing reach because they share the same target market and the same brand values. The challenge of successful co-branding is picking your co-branding partners wisely so that you do not confuse your ideal clients or customers. Co-branding is an excellent strategy for leveraging marketing your marketing dollars and it is underutilized by luxury real estate marketing professionals.

The idea behind co-branding is to act cooperatively and leverage the strengths of the each brand. It is a great way to differentiate products and services in a highly competitive marketplace.

We offered an example of successful co-branding in our post about two Italian brands, Pellegrino and Bulgari, who teamed up to create colorfully bejeweled bottles of the sparkling water at Holiday time. An example of a co-branding fiasco was covered in our post about Barney’s (an edgy New York based high fashion brand) and Disney (traditional family brand) who triggered extreme controversy that tarnished each of their brands in the process.

This picture (above) is an example of a co-branding that is harmonious and works extremely well. Stuart Weitzman is an international high end shoe company. This company is known for using unusual materials in manufacturing shoes such as cork, vinyl, Lucite, wallpaper and 24kt gold. Their attention to detail has created a worldwide following.

Stuart Weitzman teamed up with Swarovski, the premier manufacturer of crystal. Swarovski is well known for their sparkling crystals designs in sculpture, chandeliers, and jewelry. This is a perfect match. Adorning evening and holiday footwear with Swarovski crystals fortifies the unique shoe perspective of Stuart Weitzman and also promotes the sparkle of Swarovski.

How can you co-brand with luxury services and products that are harmonious to your luxury real estate marketing practice and leverage your marketing dollars by doing so?

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Monday, September 24, 2012

Luxury Real Estate Marketing Tip: Differentiate Yourself with Substance

If you are going to take the trouble to brand yourself as the “go-to” luxury real estate marketing professional in your area, make sure that your marketing message clearly and sharply differentiates you form your competition. Your marketing message must have substance and leave no room for guessing about what you are trying to convey. That is, if you want gain more market share.

Your substance is the essential nature that makes you stand out. It is what we call the DNA of your personal brand. Most importantly, it is that which is inimitable about you in a business context, expressed in such a way that it instantly addresses your target market’s most pressing needs better than your competitor does. Here are some examples of marketing messages that are devoid in substance and effective brand messaging.

As we were perusing our menu at the Cheesecake Factory, we noticed this Diet Coke ad, which in our opinion says absolutely nothing about how Coke is different from Pepsi or other competitors (see the image above). What is the message here? Is a bottle of Diet Coke a liquid asset (in financial speak)? Does drinking Coke assure that you will “stay extraordinary”? We can only guesstimate the huge amount of money that went into this campaign and completely missed its target.

A VW commercial opens with people of all ages laughing, which is always a delight. It ends with the VW logo and the slogan, “It’s not the miles; it is how you live them.” A great thought, but does it compel you to purchase one of their cars vs. a competing model? They want you go to a website called, whyvw.com, and read about VW values: quality, safety, value (for the price), environment and performance. These values should be every car manufacturer’s values. It still leaves the question, “Why VW?

A large institution recently purchased one of the local banks in Santa Barbara. Their ads are everywhere in town attempting to promote how they are different. Each ad focuses on a single word that is supposed to communicate this. Here are the words: integrity, friendliness, trustworthiness and teamwork. Is that not what banks are supposed to have? Would this campaign get you to switch banks?

Luxury real estate marketing professionals often try to differentiate themselves by touting their integrity or their friendliness. Isn’t that the price of admission for any professional? Dig deeper and identify what is substantive about you, and how that can meet the needs of your target market. That is what branding is all about.

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Friday, July 20, 2012

Personal & Company Branding: How Strong is Your Brand Recognition?

The branding goal for luxury real estate marketing professionals is instant brand recognition. When you first saw the image above in this post, what thoughts came to mind? First, did you recognize the brand? If so, how long did it take you to recognize it? If you are like most people who are attuned to popular culture you know that this is James Bond’s logo and you recognized it in a Nano-second.

Isn’t it amazing how three numbers and a gun can communicate such a potent message? That message is spy story (suspenseful action-adventure with international intrigue). It conjures images of the main character in the story that has mass appeal. He is an archetypical action hero who is suave, debonair, charismatic, sexually attractive, a lady’s man, with tongue-and-cheek humor, who is bent on protecting mankind from evil.

Likewise, the words, “double 0 seven” have a similar impact. So do the first seven notes in the James Bond sound track (brand perfection in 7 notes). That image, the words and the sounds have made an indelible impression in your mind over the years and will likely be accessible to your recall for life. That is the power of branding!

This is the 50^th anniversary of the famed James Bond franchise. The 23rd James Bond film, Skyfall, is coming out this winter, starring Daniel Craig. The James Bond fan club is global. Are you thinking of seeing it?

Marketing luxury real estate at the level of market leadership requires that you establish an indelible brand in the minds of your target market. It requires instant brand recognition to sustain market leadership. How strong is your brand recognition?

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Wednesday, July 11, 2012

Personal & Company Branding: What Is Your Unique Promise of Value?

For those, who are time-starved they just made life a little bit easier. They solved a common problem How can you distill your luxury real estate marketing message to accomplish the same goal?

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Monday, June 4, 2012

Luxury Real Estate Website Design: Are You Unforgettable?

More often than not the first impression you make with new prospects, as a luxury real estate marketing professional, occurs the first time they encounter your website. Are you making a lasting first impression or are you forgettable?

It is human nature to rely more on sight than any other mode of sensory perception. That is why excellent graphic design is so important in capturing and holding the attention of your website visitors. Great design is your sure-fire method of making a lasting first impression. It is an integral part of capturing significantly more leads especially when it sparks a positive emotional response and resonates with the values of your website visitors.

In the course of marketing luxury real estate, how can you expect to capture an online lead if you cannot first capture the attention of your prospect? People do “judge a book by its cover” or wine by its label or products by its packaging This is true particularly when a recommendation from a trusted source is not a factor in the buying decision or when choosing a service professional.

We recently found two wineries that exemplified this principle by incorporating metal in their labels, something we have never seen before. These bottles definitely stand out which is exactly what you need to do if you expect to capture and hold the attention of your web visitors.

Keep in mind that your competitors’ sites are just a click away. That is why it is imperative to grab your visitors’ attention with compelling graphic design. But, even more important than a great look, your graphics must communicate the essence of your brand values. Ideally, your graphics should tell the entire story of who you are in a nano-second! That is the true test of great branding!

If you want to be the standout in your marketplace your website must make a strong, positive first impression. Otherwise, you and your website become forgettable.

Are you unforgettable?

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Monday, May 14, 2012

Marketing Luxury Real Estate: The Ultimate Service- Providing Peace of Mind

Recently we were reading some of our clients’ testimonials, and one of them inspired this post. Here is a direct quote, “This individual (agent) is truly a professional who can manage all the details involved in selling my home, and does it so effortlessly that I never had to worry about a thing.”

Given the rapid rate of our lives, we all want someone who gives us service at the level where we do not spend time worrying. Worry is defined as: “ thoughts, images and negative emotions in which mental attempts are imagined and discussed to avoid anticipated potential threats.”

What is peace of mind? The dictionary defines it as: “The absence of mental stress or anxiety, and the presence of serenity, calm, quiet, comfort of mind. That is exactly what a buyer/seller wants when working with you.” Ultimately, they are signing with you because they feel that you will provide them with a seamless flow in reaching the grand finale of selling or buying a house.

How valuable is peace of mind? It is so valuable that many agents who give this type of service are given a constant stream of referrals. And, in many cases their clients are also giving them a closing gift.

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Monday, May 7, 2012

Luxury Real Estate Marketing Tip: Staying on the Leading Edge

Photo by Chris Dorney

Complacency is one of the top vulnerabilities of market leaders. For Luxury real estate marketing professionals who are bent on gaining or sustaining market leadership staying on the leading edge is not an option, it is an imperative. Harrods’s department store in London exemplifies this principle.

Harrods is already known for its outstanding service private client service and was recently given an award at the Luxury Briefing awards for its customer service. According to Luxury Briefing, “Beyond is an extension of Harrods’ service available to private clients and goes above the realms of what consumers expect from a department store.” So why would they send their employees to study with Minding Manners (etiquette and protocol consultants) to learn about etiquette? The employees enrolled in a two full-day sessions that emphasized etiquette aspects of multi-cultural awareness.

Global capital cities as well as globally known luxury resort destinations are regularly visited by buyers of goods and real estate from all parts of the word. What is considered to be great manners in the European or American cities can be interpreted as an insult in other parts of the world. Since Harrods has an extensive VIP clientele from the Middle East, Asia, Europe and the Americas, the training by Minding Manners covered all aspects of meeting, greeting and interacting with cross-cultural respect.

At one time, every shopper entering the store was greeted with a handshake and a glass of champagne. Now this tradition has been revisited as many cultures and religious sects practice alcohol abstinence, and do not shake hands with women. Also the friendly Western physical touches are not necessarily welcome, particularly when it comes to opposite genders. How to dress is also important when meeting customers from other countries if not in a standard store uniform.

Whether or not you are dealing with an elite global clientele or culturally integrated Americans, it is important to avail yourself of the knowledge of every community’s cultural and religious preferences. In order to stay on the leading edge and successfully earn the trust of global communities, take the cue from Harrods. Impeccable cultural etiquette is one way to differentiate you as a luxury real estate marketing professional. To stay on the leading edge avoid complacency at all costs.

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Monday, April 9, 2012

Marketing Luxury Real Estate: The Power of Passionate Messaging

WE WERE
MADE FOR
EACH OTHER.

What you get from us isn't just a product; it's the ability to do more of what you love, for as long as you want. That's our promise.

The faster you can create an emotional bond with your target market the faster you can build trust. And, trust is the prerequisite for buying products or hiring a service professional.

Then, Smartwool goes on about “The Power of Comfort”. They say,

“When you're comfortable, your body performs better, allowing you to forget about what you're wearing and enjoy the moment”.

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Tuesday, April 3, 2012

50 Top Luxury Real Estate Markets in the USA: Steamboat Springs, CO

Steamboat Springs has a reputation as being one of the friendliest resort towns in the USA. The townspeople have a tradition of genuinely caring for each other, an “Old West” ranching tradition, that is engrained in the soul of the community. And, they are proud of it. Come Winter Olympics the entire town gathers to send off their local Olympic athletes. If a neighbor needs help they are there to help them.

To view the beautiful homes of Steamboat Springs,

Click to read more ...

Friday, March 30, 2012

Marketing Luxury Real Estate: Tour and Brew to Impress

When you are marketing luxury real estate, here is a fun way to impress your clients while driving them from property to property. Why not offer them an espresso?

Handpresso, a French company is the creator of an outdoor version of an espresso machine powered by a hand pump which is available in the US via importika.com, $199.95. This model comes with 4 cups, a serving flask, and two small napkins in an elegant black carrying case, As you are touring the gardens of a home you are showing, you can relax with your clients as you discuss the property and serve them a freshly brewed espresso. We would suggest packing a tin of biscotti and some chocolate to sweeten the deal making process. The coffee pods are also available in decaf.

The other gadget is a personal one. Since 2008, European drivers have had the advantage of being able to brew a creamy cup of espresso in their car. This is very handy when you are rushing out of the door and have no time to stop at your favorite coffee place. The new gadget, HandpressoAuto, made by French company Handpresso is due to arrive in the US later this year (Christmas present?) plugs directly into the cigarette lighter of your auto. It takes two minutes for the portable machine (size of an average thermos) to deliver a cup of espresso. All you have to do is pour water into the thermos, place a coffee pod, hit the “on” button, and enjoy the hit of caffeine. The personal one presently retails for 150 euros.

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Thursday, February 23, 2012

Luxury Real Estate Marketing: Pruning to Insure Your Success

What are the sweet spots in your business? What are the most fruitful aspects of your luxury real estate marketing practice? What is working to produce results consistently? These are the questions that can get you focused on what works and know what needs to be discarded or pruned from your winning formula.

Once you are aware of the fruit bearing sources of your business, it is important to strengthen these sources. A business can be likened to growing a fruit tree. You need to prune and feed a tree in order to produce a healthy and bountiful crop. The main reasons for pruning a tree are increased productivity, health and aesthetics.

It is crucial to your success to prune all those unusual solutions and business practices that that has not borne fruit—the time wasters. Think of your luxury real estate practice as a money tree. You need to eliminate all crossed branches that are at cross purposes to your success.

Pruning may be a horticultural practice, but it truly does apply to marketing luxury real estate. Are some of your clients draining your energy and your resources by distracting you from those activities that bring you the best results? It may be time to prune some of those toxic clients. If you are a broker, is it time to prune the dead wood in your office, the non-producing agents on your team? These questions may sound harsh, but it is the health of your business and your own health that is at stake here.

Without pruning you cannot see the orchard through the trees! Pruning lets in the light and allows for better air circulation which prevents disease as well. Your luxury real estate marketing practice should be a thing of beauty. It should be healthy and it should be bountiful. Let in the light!

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Tuesday, January 31, 2012

Luxury Real Estate Marketing: Say “Audi-os” to Vampires

Photo by Garytnt

One of the best venues to understand the marketing arena is by watching the Superbowl. The Superbowl reaches over 90 million viewers, and the advertisers’ intent is to generate “buzz”, and to firmly establish their position in the marketplace. As luxury real estate marketing and brand strategy consultants, we pay close attention to how luxury purveyors are differentiating themselves in their arena.

Luxury car makers such as BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Lexus, and now Audi are competing for eyeballs during the time outs of the most watched football events of the year. In 2011, Audi clearly wanted to continue establishing itself as the “new” luxury car. Its message was, “escape the confines of luxury.” It showed wealthy people imprisoned (prison with gold bars) by their old standards of a chauffeur driven Mercedes and listening to Kenny G. This commercial translated into measurable post game sales.

This year Audi has turned to vampires. In its new commerciall, a vampire driving his Audi S7 on his way to join his vampire friends drinking blood cocktails in the woods around a bonfire. As he approaches the grounds, he eliminates all his buddies because of the powerful LED headlights. These lights are according to Audi the closest to daylight.

Here is what Andrew Lipman, communications manager of Audi had to say about this commercial, “Audi’s upcoming spot puts Audi signature LEDs up against the focal point of today’s most ubiquitous pop culture craze: vampires. As the most-viewed television program of the year, the Super Bowl is one of the best platforms to showcase a brand’s creativity and voice. The S7 is the epitome of luxury.”

As viewed by Ron Schott, senior strategist at Spring Creek Group, Seattle. “I think this latest campaign is definitely a way for Audi to actually get a little closer with the average consumer during Super Bowl time, I really don’t think it portrays Audi as luxurious .”

This commercial is humorous and entertaining. However, it does not communicate with the luxury consumer whose interest in vampires is minimal, and who is definitely not the average consumer. Will the luxury buyer buy the epitome of luxury to kill vampires?

This is a clear case of competing on features rather than differentiating yourself from the competition. Mercedes already has LED lights around its headlights. LED lights are not a unique feature, and installing enough of them to mimic daylight is not a differentiator.

As luxury real estate marketing professionals it is important not to depart to stay the course of your position (stay in your niche), and to compete on your fundamental difference (not features) in the marketplace.

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Thursday, January 12, 2012

Luxury Real Estate Marketing: Redefining Luxury in 2012

One of the leading trends in the affluent sector that impacts luxury real estate marketing is the change in how the affluent define luxury. The affluent are becoming “value masters”, the new badge of smart consumers. The annual Ipsos Mendelsohn Affluent Survey (by Ad Age) is a nationally representative behavioral study of more than 14,000 adults living in households with at least $100,000 in annual household income.

Value Matters
89% responded “When I decide to purchase a luxury item, I go out of my way to find the best price possible.”
60% responded “Even though the recession is 'officially' over, I am still spending money much more cautiously than I used to.”

Quality
78% responded "When it comes to quality, I believe you get what you pay for."
18% responded "I tend to buy based on price, not quality."

Online
68% responded "When I go shopping online, I usually know exactly what I want to buy."
64% responded "I regularly read online reviews of products before making an online purchase."

Offline
63% responded "When I go shopping in a retail store, I usually know exactly what I want to buy."
47% responded "I regularly read online reviews of products before making a purchase in a retail store."

In buying a luxury home whether as a primary or secondary residence, the new affluent buyer is researching the market place. With value as the objective rather than the old paradigm of “being able to afford anything I want”, the premium of perceived value (i.e., buying on the “right” street or the “right” neighborhood) does not have the same importance as it once did. They are also willing to wait for price reductions. Given the new shift in psycho graphics in the affluent marketplace, how will you adapt as a luxury real estate marketing professional?

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Wednesday, January 11, 2012

Luxury Real Estate Marketing: The Difference between a Trademark and a “Trustmark”

From a branding standpoint, there is a huge difference between a trademark and a “Trustmark”. If market leadership is your quest, this distinction is of paramount importance.

Trust is the expectation that promises will be kept. Trust is earned by the demonstration of kept promises. In the context of market leadership trust is the consistent delivery of an extraordinary promise of value that results in achieving top-of-mind status in a given product or service category (or a niche within a category).

Obtaining a trademark is relatively easy. But, it takes the constant, steady, unswerving delivery of your unique value proposition to build a dependable, reliable name for yourself or your company, a brand that your target market can trust over time. Only when your reputation becomes highly regarded on a consistent basis does your trademark transform into a “Trustmark”.

In the realm of luxury brands there is a full spectrum of highly regarded Trustmarks that range in categories from small indulgences to extravagant products and services. See’s Candies, an example of a small indulgence, is a market leading company that has consistently earned the trust of millions of people for over 90 years. Every time you purchase candy at See’s you get a free sample and the quality is always a constant.

Hermès has been a trusted name in high-fashion, perfume and lifestyle accessories since 1837 and enjoys an impeccable reputation for standing behind their products. A young woman recently brought in a saddle to a local Hermès store that needed its stitching repaired. Although, the saddle was purchased decades ago by her grandmother, Hermès repaired it at no charge. Stories like this one exemplify the level of legendary service that can always be expected at Hermès. And, that is what makes the difference between a trademark and a Trustmark.

As a luxury real estate marketing professional in pursuit of gaining or sustaining market leadership, building a personal or company brand that becomes a Trustmark vs. a trademark should be one of your primary goals. How can you develop a reputation for legendary service and consistently deliver on your extraordinary promise of value?

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Tuesday, December 27, 2011

Personal & Company Branding: The Benefits of a Single-Word Brand Name

Choosing the right name for your personal or company brand can help you achieve a strong competitive advantage. One brand strategy that can help you to reach top-of-mind status in your marketplace, as a luxury real estate marketing professional, is to distill your brand identity to a single word.

Many celebrities have been successful at doing this, including Oprah, Cher, Madonna, Beyoncé, Rihanna, Daughtry, and of course, the Donald. We are not suggesting that you must change your name or the name of your company to a single word. But, the one-name brand reveals three important branding principles that are definitely worth understanding and applying.

SHORT NAMES ARE EASIER TO REMEMBER: A one-name brand makes it very easy for your target market to remember you. Therefore, when you chose or change your brand name keep this principle in mind: Make it as easy as possible for your target market to remember you after their first encounter with your name.

SINGLE-WORD BRAND NAMES ARE INIMITABLE: Once you stake claim to your single word as your brand name, it makes it difficult for someone else in your marketplace to copy you if they want to stand out

CONVERTING A COMMON NOUN INTO A PROPER NAME COMMANDS INSTANT ATTENTION: If your one-word brand can be converted from a common noun to a proper name it can immediately grab the attention of your target market.

A name like Sting or Seal simply cannot be ignored because it is such a departure from the norm. You hear the name once and it sticks in your mind.

Both Sting and Seal were born in England. Sting’s original name was Gordon Matthew Thomas Sumner. Seal was born Seal Henry Olusegun Olumide Adeola SamuelIt. Both had the good sense to condense their names to a single syllable. If you can do the same, you could have a distinct competitive advantage in your luxury real estate marketplace.

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Thursday, December 22, 2011

Making the Non-obvious, Obvious: The Role of a Brand Strategist

A brand is the highly focused, abbreviated communication that conveys the essence of what makes you or your company different from and better than your closest competition. It is the distillation of your extraordinary promise of value expressed graphically and in the fewest words possible so that your target market can quickly grasp that you are a match for them. People like to do business with people like themselves, people they feel they can trust. Therefore, a successful brand accelerates the speed of trust and empowers potential referral sources to easily spread the word about YOU.

In our Language of Luxury blog we often offer examples of non-real estate related products and services that clearly illustrate these branding principles. And, we often are asked how this applies to luxury real estate personal and company branding. The fact that this is not obvious is what prompted this post. The principles of excellent branding and brand strategy are the same for all products and services. And, the role of the brand strategist is to make the non-obvious, obvious.

A strong brand makes what is implicit about you or your company, explicit, and does so with an economy of imagery and words. A great brand is like a flawlessly cut diamond that allows the maximum refraction of light. All of the individual facets of a great brand work together to communicate a singular message that creates demand and compels action to buy products or engage service professionals.

The role of a brand strategist is similar to a diamond cutter who knows exactly how to take a diamond in the rough and bring out its utmost brilliance, which is not obvious to the untrained eye. What is truly unique and valuable about you or your company may not even be obvious to YOU. It is often the case that your ideal client is not obvious as well. These factors must be discovered and articulated first. Only then can you develop a brand strategy.

Our case study of Cuties, a brand of California Clementine oranges, illustrates what can happen, from a strategic standpoint, once you fully articulate your unique promise of value. They were able to exponentially expand their target market by accentuating and amplifying their distinguishing value proposition. They now target BOTH parents and kids as their ideal customer because their fruit is not just sweet and seedless like other oranges can be. Because, Cuties are small they are easier to handle and easier to peel (for small children and seniors) than other oranges.

There is a tremendous amount of focus that goes into crafting a strong brand and also into developing a powerful brand strategy. But, it is an exercise in futility if the aim of branding is not fully understood. The purpose of brand strategy is to achieve top-of-mind status and secure the lion’s share of the business. Brand strategy ONLY applies to what we call the “unabashed pursuit of market leadership”. If you are not interested in being #1 or #2 in your marketplace or a niche therein the purpose of brand strategy simply will not be obvious to you.

Please understand this: Making a good living in marketing luxury real estate does not require being a market leader. But, gaining or sustaining market leadership, if that is your choice, requires expert brand strategy.

As brand strategists, we only work with luxury real estate marketing professionals who are either the incumbent market leader or the challenger in their marketplace (or niche therein). We seek a 360 degree perspective in the “discovery process” through which we ask dozens of questions to identify what is unique about our client.

One of the first things we do is meet our clients, in person, in their marketplace. We ask them to take us on a tour of their world. We want to see the homes they represent, the homes they have sold, and the homes they are targeting to list. We want to understand their neighborhoods, the lifestyle, and meet people that live there. We ask them to treat us like someone who has come to buy real estate in their town.

We immerse ourselves in the marketplace, in the buyer’s/seller's point of view and also in the point of view of our client. Then, together, we analyze the competition, which often reveals what we call “an underserved or uncontested market niche”. We look for the vulnerabilities of the competition and determine how best to position our client as distinct. Finally, we develop a brand strategy that can either secure our client’s top-of-mind status, if they are the incumbent, or displace the current market leader, if they are the challenger.

Only when all of this is accomplished is the new brand identity crafted through graphic design and website design. Their brand strategy usually requires an expertly built and optimized website to execute their strategy which we also create for them.

Making the non-obvious, obvious to a clearly defined target market is our role as brand strategists in luxury real estate marketing and also the marketing of other products and services. It takes precision to craft a strong personal or company brand. And, it takes an energetic entrepreneurial spirit to embark on the unabashed pursuit of market leadership.

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