Showing posts with label luxury real estate personal & company branding. Show all posts
Showing posts with label luxury real estate personal & company branding. Show all posts

Monday, April 20, 2015


Your competition                                                                   Your Competition

Why on earth are you in the game of luxury real estate marketing if you are not in it to win it? Sure, there are plenty of agents who just want to eek out a living. But, they are missing out on all of the fun because they do not know the secret of winning the game!

The sweet spot in marketing luxury real estate is making the shift from being what we call a competent “transaction engineer” to being a true market leader. When market leadership is your quest, you become a strategist in a game where power, personal power is the biggest prize and the lion’s share of business follows naturally.  

As luxury real estate brand strategists we advise our clients to look at their competitors as if they were cartoon characters. Do not take them seriously. Factor them out of your mental equation completely and stay 100% focused on your strategy for winning the game, the inner game.

It really gets to be fun when you identify an uncontested or under served market niche that you can dominate, a niche that you can become passionate about.  Then, the competition really becomes irrelevant.  You are not out to “get them”.  You are out to achieve your personal best!

So, what is the secret to winning? Keep your eye the prize of the inner game of luxury real estate marketing-the game of self-actualization! Be in it to win it!

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.

Tuesday, January 13, 2015

Brand Surgery Or Brain Surgery: It Is Not As Simple As Buying A Logo

Refreshing your brand is a very important task if you want to maintain your position as a market leader.  Staying sharp, relevant and up-to-date technologically is imperative!  But, take it from us; get some expert help! Performing your own “brand surgery” is like performing your own brain surgery.

We are just now completing our own brand surgery. It was a grueling experience for many reasons.  The process of further distilling your own extraordinary promise of value to its bare essence and then communicating it with even fewer words and images is a daunting task.

This challenge is exacerbated by the new constraints of contemporary website design that has to work not only on desktop computers but also on all mobile devices (both in landscape orientation and portrait).  We are excited about the results. And, we will share the new Napa Consultants, Int’l website with our readers by the end of the month.

Refreshing your brand is not like shopping for a logo.  Sure, you can update your look. But, a look is not necessarily a brand.  Your brand needs to empower your entire current and future referral base to spread the good word about you. It needs to be remarkable to spark word-of-mouth advertising.

Your website needs to become your silent salesperson. It needs to be a polished presentation that communicates who you are and how you are different from your competition with an economy of words. 

Do not attempt brand surgery on your own. It is hit or miss at best. It took us six months to figure out our own rebranding.  Think of how many homes you could sell in six months.  It is not as simple as buying a logo, get some expert help!

 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.
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Friday, November 7, 2014

The Symbolism and Nuances of the Color Blue in Branding


The color blue evokes consistency in our lives.  The sky is blue, the ocean is blue and they are still here.  It also is associated with reliability, trust, and dependability. We refer to loyal friends as true blue.  IBM is known as "big blue," even though its logo has transitioned to black and white!
The other attribute of blue is that it is restful, which explains why we feel at peace, staring at a body of water or at the sky.  This also explains why hospitals use blue gowns for their surgical staff.
Not all blues are restful; turquoise, electric blue, royal blue engage as well as evoke exhilaration, vibrancy, and drama. Think of the many blue hues in the plumage of a peacock.  Royal Blue, navy blue and teal blue are associated with luxury and are considered rich and upscale.  Navy blue is also associated with authority and power and is seen in uniforms (naval, police, and pilots.)
  In selecting your brand colors is blue true for you?

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.
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Monday, October 13, 2014

The Challenge of Marketing Your Brand Online: Is There A Formula For Viral Marketing?


Given that we are bombarded on a daily basis with thousands of communications from various brands it is important to meet the following criteria if you intend to have your   online content go viral.  When you have these components in your online marketing strategy your chances increase exponentially for your target market to spread the word about you. 


Analyze your online content by asking yourself: 



YOUR MESSAGE


Do I have a strategy to encourage my target market to opt in to my content?  Is my content compelling enough to encourage or inspire my target market to return to my site, without drip campaigns or other incentives?  


Ambush marketing is no longer the answer. Remember that your market can click or swipe away in a Nano-second.



YOUR VALUE

Is there value in my message, i.e. is it useful, or educational?  Am I meeting my target market’s expectations, or am I repeating the same old stuff day in and day out? If the message is the same on a daily basis, you will become irrelevant!

In the beauty products world, Clinique invited beauty bloggers to participate in a live, online video chat with Julia Cox, their beauty expert.  They were able to ask questions, so they were better able to spread the word about Clinique.


YOUR ENTERTAINMENT FACTOR

Is my content entertaining?  With the advent of YouTube, attention is often gained through video entertainment.  Volvo’s Epic Split commercial, showing Jean-Paul Van Damme doing the splits between two Volvo trucks, was cited by Volvo as being one of the reasons that their sales increasing by 31%.  Over 10 million people have watched Virgin Airline’s funny safety in-flight announcement on YouTube. This announcement has created a buzz, a fond perception of Virgin and resulted in more occupied seats on their flights.  That’s Viral Marketing!



Does your content have the potential to go viral?
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. 
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Wednesday, September 24, 2014

If You Get The Itch to Ditch Your Niche, Think Again!



Niche players will always have an advantage over generalists, in luxury real estate marketing, because they are focused on taking care of the specific needs of clients that were not being met by the generalists.  If you are a generalist, you cannot serve everyone, and expect to have client satisfaction across the board. You are vulnerable to niche players who can seize your market share. 

Here is an example in the entertainment industry.  The three major television networks, ABC, CBS, & NBC used to dominate TV programming.  HBO, Netflix, and others identified a gap in that entertainment.  As niche players, they were able to supply a different style of entertainment that was geared to a demographic that the big three networks ignored.  These companies carved out a niche by producing intelligent content that is well crafted with good acting, good stories and no commercial interruptions.

Here is a Real Estate Example. One of our clients carved out a niche years ago by specializing in the newer communities in a particular price range.  She concentrated all her marketing efforts on those communities.  Part of her strategy was to meet and make friends with the HOA boards. She spoke at their meetings on a variety of real estate subjects such as staging a home to sell, curb appeal, and more.

Our client is still the undisputed expert in these communities, based on her knowledge and consistent execution of her marketing plan.  Generalists have tried to dethrone her and have not succeeded. 
So next time you get the itch to move in the direction of expanding before mastering your niche, think again!  Do yourself a favor and buy some Calamine lotion.  

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.
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Wednesday, September 10, 2014

“So Five Minutes Ago?”Or Will It Last As Long As The Wall of China?

The Fashion World’s designers want to stand out among their competition, as much as luxury real estate agents and companies do.  Standing out in one’s field means being top- of-mind and that translates into profit.   September and October are the fashion show months as designers unveil their latest offerings for Spring/Summer Collection 2015.  


The spirit of competition is fierce among the various fashion brands.  Every designer wants to be noticed and first to come to mind.  The showmanship is usually buzz- worthy. However, will the buzz be long term memorable or “so five minutes ago”?

This morning we received a video announcement from Ralph Lauren about the “first ever 4D Fashion Show, A Holographic Runway Event in the Heart of Central Park.” 
 Along with the video of the event, a behind the scenes video was included on the making of a holographic event with green screens. 


It was for us a momentary wow, and then it became “so five minutes ago!”  It was so five minutes ago, because we could envision all the other fashion houses imitating this in no time.  As technology evolves on a daily basis, it can so easily become so five minutes ago,” because the next breakthrough is around the bend.


In October 2007, Fendi made fashion history by hosting the world’s longest runway   show on the Great Wall of China.  The runway was built on top of the wall, and this in itself was an engineering feat. This definitely was a wow for us. The event caught the attention of the global media.     

Seven years later, we are still talking about it.  This event eclipsed all the runwayshows in 2007, and in our opinion was memorable and inimitable.  As much as it was a defining moment for Fendi, it was a coming out party for China, at that time an emerging superpower looking to make its impact on the world at large.  

From a marketing viewpoint, there was an alignment of purposes and a win-win for all parties, and that alignment made it memorable.



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. 
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Tuesday, August 12, 2014

Luxury Real Estate Branding: The Power of Color in .03 Seconds!

When you are refining your luxury real estate branding and marketing package, it is important to focus on the power of color.  The response to color is often subliminal. The eyes see color in .03 seconds equivalent to the blinking of an eyelash.  In that brief moment, colors have to convey the message of the brand which helps create interest and eventually the sale.  This makes it worth the time for a second look.

Yesterday, we were cruising the aisles of luxury stores and looking at different products, and their packaging for inspiration.  We apply the .03 seconds principle as we move through the store.  Will it catch our eyes? Does it appeal to our psyche?  If it does are we compelled to take time to look at it further?  Would we buy it?

Some people may protest at this instant judgment of a product or service without delving in the particulars.  So many times as we speak at conferences, we are often asked the following. “Do people really judge a book by its cover in a branding context?”

Agent “A” got the listing for an equestrian property.  This person does not know the nose from the tail of a horse.” I am an experienced equestrian, a horse judge, and horse owner and they picked agent “A”.  The answer, shallow as it may seem to some is packaging and perception of the brand.

Test the .03 seconds principle. Next time you are in a supermarket, see what attracts you color wise.  Is it worth a second look?  Did you buy it? 

Will your intended target market be drawn to you?

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.
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Friday, August 8, 2014

Luxury Real Estate Branding: Communicating with Colors #3


Our post yesterday sparked many interesting questions that have inspired a series.  Color selection in branding and marketing is a process.  It involves analysis both of the individual/team or company as well as their target market.  The brand should reflect a combination of both the client and the market.


Choosing colors for a brand necessitates understanding the use of color in terms of its impact:  emotional, symbolic, and mood projected.  Moods can be serene, earthy, playful, powerful, mellow, traditional, unique, elegant, and luxurious to name a few.    Moods are communicated with color combinations.


Children are naturally drawn to bright colors. Bright colors are happy, cheerful, energetic, and project a playful mood. Toy and playground manufacturers produce toys in bright color combination, for this very reason.


When you work for a company, and develop your personal brand, their brand becomes an endorser brand, which in most cases have to printed on your cards, marketing materials, and website.  Sometimes, brand colors clash, and there are solutions for elegant integration.


One of our first projects involved creating a luxury real estate brand for an agent working with a company whose brand colors are red, white and blue.  The color combination is not perceived as a luxury.  It is symbolic of Middle America, Mom, apple pie, all things quintessentially American.  Some well-known brands with that combination are Budweiser, Chevron, Pepsi, NFL, Chicago Cubs, and American Airlines.    


Based on her color preferences and the marketplace, she was working in; we created a brand in burgundy, accented it with a metallic gold, and a cream color for the body of the marketing pieces and website.  At first, this clashed with the initial company brand, and they later came out with a single color logo that was complimentary.  As her business boomed, she opened her own firm, and eventually sold the brand and website for a significant sum.

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.
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Tuesday, August 5, 2014

Luxury Real Estate Branding: Communicating with Colors #2

Last week, we wrote a post on the psychology of colors focusing on red and green as part of a brand’s color scheme. Alitalia incorporates these colors in their brand identity, as they are the colors of he Italian flag.  Saturday, while in Beverly Hills, we spotted Gucci’s “camouflage” (barricade), a temporary façade erected during the remodeling of their Italian luxury fashion and leather goods store. 


The barricade looks like a portal into the store. They are actually open for business during the transformation.


Gucci’s brand identity is comprised of red and green stripes on a beige background watermarked with interlocking “G’s”. They also use metallic gold for the name itself at times.  Red and green are highly contrasting hot and cool colors.  By themselves, these colors may not connote a luxury brand.  But, by adding beige and gold as the third and fourth brand colors, instead of white, it can elevate the red and green combination to luxury status.


Paying attention to colors and how they represent your brand of doing business is quite important.  Using the right colors can actually attract more business or differentiate you from your competition in the realm of luxury real estate. The wrong colors can do just the opposite.

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.
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Monday, August 4, 2014

Three Ways to Sharpen Your Strategic Thinking Part 1


If you are going to respond pro-actively to the ever-changing world we live in, it is important that you sharpen your strategic thinking.   This will help you to outthink your competition.

Take time to reexamine your opinions.  Challenge your own premises, and be open enough to admit you may be wrong.  For instance, many real estate marketing professionals are quick to tell you that print advertising is a colossal waste of money.
In our research and experience we have found that in some luxury markets, print ads are a strong source of leads for many brokers and agents.  The same is true in some communities with 55+ homeowners.  

Some luxury marketers are now beginning their campaigns in print first and online second.  This practice is a more effective way to reach their target market.  Research on the subject also shows that the younger generations are responding to print ads favorably.

Realize that opposing views are not negative views, they are just views. Negative views begin, continue and end with insults. Opposing views is simply a view that does not agree with yours. Read articles or have discussions with people with opposing views.  In practicing this you may glean something you are missing in your thinking, and it may actually strengthen your position.  

Take time to recharge your mind and learn something new.   Do something different outside of your routine; adapt it as part of your daily job.  This morning on our early beach walk, we walked to the left rather than our usual choice to the right.  It was a treat as there were tide pools to explore, and also seals and sea lions sunbathing on the rocks. 
We also saw a sign announcing that once again the grunions are running this evening. “Grunion are known for their unusual mating ritual wherein at very high tides, the females come up on to sandy beaches where they dig their tails into the sand to lay their eggs. The male then wraps himself around the female to deposit his sperm and for the next 10 days the grunion eggs remain hidden in the sand. At the next set of high tides, the eggs hatch and the young grunion are washed out to sea.” Wikipedia. This event occurs for several evenings, and we are going to catch the show.

Stay tuned for Part 2.  We will continue to discuss more ways to expand your strategic thinking, and outthink your competition.

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.
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Thursday, July 24, 2014

Luxury Real Estate Branding: Communicating with Colors

There is an entire psychology of color that goes into crafting luxury brands.  This applies to personal and company brands. Certain colors and color combination evoke strong emotions and are also associated with certain things in the minds of your target market.  It is important to become aware of what you are communicating with your brand colors.


When you think of the color combination, Green and Red, what is the first thing that comes to mind?  If you are like most people Christmas immediately is associated with this color duo.  As a result, you rarely will see this combination used when crafting a brand.  But, there is much more to this brand story when you think outside of the holiday gift box.

By using variations of reds and greens tones you can create some spectacular themes.  If additional colors are added to the theme you can evoke excitement and vibrancy, festive emotions.  Setting the right tone and the right mood is an integral part of communicating your brand’s primary message.
The proportions of the two colors can change the brand message all together, making it more or less sophisticated.  For example, Alitalia uses red very sparingly, but still represents the colors of the Italian flag that has equal portions of green read and white.
The more you tune into colors and how they are used in branding the more you can learn about the art of communicating with colors.  What colors are you using in your personal brand?  Do they accurately represent you and your personal brand’s message?

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.
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Tuesday, July 15, 2014

Real Estate Branding: Premium Is The Added Value That Defines Luxury


Borderfree is another nomination for the LOL Luxury Brand of the Year because it helps us to define the essence of a luxury in a unique way.  Borderfree helps USA retailers potentially reach 2 billion foreign consumers by managing retail logistics including customs, shipping and returns hassle-free for retailers and consumers. According to Borderfree, “50% of consumers say they will pay more for a better customer experience”.  And, that PREMIUM (Added Value) is what makes it a luxury brand.

When a foreign consumer shops on the websites of participating retailers, the site is translated into 60 languages and currencies.  Duty, taxes and shipping costs are automatically calculated based on the shipping destination, and paid for upon checkout by the consumer. Some of Borderfree’s clients include Barney’s New York, Neiman Marcus, Saks Fifth Avenue, and Bloomingdales.   

They also offer foreign consumers a USA shipping address where Borderfree repackages USA goods purchased from any number of USA online stores, like Amazon, and then ships the combined merchandise efficiently to reduce shipping costs to the consumer.

Now, from a branding perspective, how do you distill and convey this extraordinary promise of value in a brand name and a logo and the messaging on their website?  These are the cornerstones of our job as brand strategists for the luxury real estate industry.

Take a close look at the logo. The “B” has no borders.  The four corners are triangles pointing in all directions.  The brand name says it all.  Once you here it once you will easily remember it because it names the entire value proposition in with just a few letters.  The very character spacing of B O R D E R F R E E communicates the freeing up of previously closed markets, an untapped reservoir of consumers for retailers and also the hassle-free user experience for which consumers are willing to pay a PREMIUM.

Check out Borderfree.com.  Notice the economy of words and images they use to explain their extraordinary promise of value. It is all distilled again in their three-word slogan: “Going Global. Simplified”.

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.
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Thursday, June 19, 2014

The Triumph of Substance Over Hype: What Color is Your Bus? #2

Making the shift to the “good to great” mindset requires dedication and a mindset of constant improvement.    There are many good real estate agents in this industry, and very few great real estate companies, teams, or individuals.

In the book, Good to Great, Jim Collins emphasizes getting “the right people on the bus, and in the right seats.”  First of all you have to know who you are, and what you stand for.  You have know your brand, so that the right people with the same core values can relate to and join your brand. 

In the case of the San Antonio Spurs, their brand is trust, humility, and teamwork. This is the driving force of their bus.  These are the core values, which their ownership, general manager and coaches embody.  The players are carefully selected in accordance to these values.   Other teams have other approaches.  There is no “right” approach, or “wrong” approach.  

What is important in the “good to great” journey is the discipline to maintain your core values and brand, and not deviate from them, when selecting your teammates.  The key is to know the color of your bus.

In your real estate practice, congruency of shared core values creates substance.  Substance does not need hype; it shines on its own, like a diamond.   
“It is hard to be a diamond, in a rhinestone world.” Dolly Parton

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. 
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Wednesday, June 11, 2014

Every Property Should be Luxuriously Marketed Regardless of its Price!


We have often pondered why every property is not being marketed luxuriously.   After all, everyone in real estate talks about the fact that purchasing a home is one of the most expensive assets that someone will buy. And yet, we are befuddled when we see flyers printed on substandard paper with bad photos, no staging, etc.  Regardless of the price, one is not acting in the sellers’ best interest.

A great example of luxurious marketing can be found in the auto industry.  When selling a Kia, a Fiat or any car at the lower end, the companies print beautiful brochures, create an advertising campaign, and treat the budget conscious buyer courteously and respectfully.   It is no different in the luxury car arena.  In Buying a Mercedes, a Porsche or a Rolls Royce you will still be treated luxuriously, the only difference is the number of zeros in the purchase price.

Can you imagine Tiffany’s snubbing a customer because they want to buy a silver item for $600, or a diamond for only $2,000 or $20,000?  Can you imagine their paying attention only to the customer who is willing to pay $100,000 for a diamond?  

What is different about Kia or Tiffany’s marketing versus real estate agencies is that they are thinking long range.  They understand the value of repeat business.  The buyer of the $600 silver necklace may become the buyer of the $100,000 diamond one day.  The buyer of the Kia, may come back and buy their more expensive model, or return to buy one for his/her children bound for college.

Kia and Tiffany’s have the same goal you do.  They want a customer for life who refers business to them and would not think of buying anywhere else.  To do that, you may have to invest into marketing every property luxuriously regardless of the price.

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. 
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Monday, June 9, 2014

Succeeding with Social Media Strategy: Crowdsourcing: Ten Do’s


If you want to succeed with a social media strategy, here is what has worked for us:

When writing a blog post, be genuine.  It is so obvious, when someone is faking it.  Take notice of media professionals you like, and why you like them.  Think Maria Bartiromo, CNBC financial reporter, Dianne Sawyer, Walter Cronkite, Anderson Cooper, Larry King, they all have large followings of fans.  Why? We are naturally attracted to authenticity, which resonates with who we are.

Do talk about yourself in the First Person, and not in the Third Person.  That smacks of artificiality and the assumption that your reader is too stupid to figure out who wrote the post.  Let your clients (real ones, not your friends and other imaginary persons) write your praises.

Be discerning when you ask someone for business.  Today, we received an email from someone we briefly met 4 years ago, asking us to refer him to our French partners, and “would we put him into touch with the proper people?”

Be modest about your achievements!  There is nothing more boring than someone who talks about themselves and their successes endlessly.  In the movie “Beaches”, you will not doubt remember Bette Middler’s immortal line, “Enough talking about me, let’s talk about YOU, what do YOU think of me?”

Do expand your conversation on line beyond real estate.  Let people know you have more than one-dimension. Look to connect on many levels of interest: gardening, cooking, collecting, etc.  

Do avoid the subjects of politics and religion.  Sell property not politics. Why lose clients because you don’t like their party affiliation?  It is none of your business what people think.

Do read the post you are commenting on, and know the authors’ profile. Your sincerity is on the line here, and people do read comments and form an opinion based on comments.  

Praise your profession.  Every profession has its bad apples. One gains nothing by pointing out someone else’s faults and lacks.

Do Teach instead of Preach.  Assume that your readers want to learn and appreciate your expertise.  Preaching is a turn off, appeal to their eagerness to learn rather than be force-fed.

Remember you are here to interact with others.  Follow the etiquette of social interaction.  Kindness is key.

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. 
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Monday, April 28, 2014

Real Estate Marketing: How to Dominate Your Niche - Part 2


This series is a PREVIEW of our Online Video Course: Which Niche Can Make You Rich!


PART 2:  THE MOST POWERFUL LAW OF NICHE MARKETING

Mindshare precedes market share. Focus on capturing MINDSHARE FIRST.  Market share will follow. It must follow according to this law. 



 

Which Niche Can Make You Rich?

CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR THE LIVE ZILLOW WEBINAR


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.
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 GET FLUENT. GET AFFLUENT! - JOIN THE LOL COMMUNTIY 

Tuesday, April 15, 2014

Luxury Real Estate Personal Branding: Class Personified!

When some people think of luxury they associate the word with a lifestyle of conspicuous consumption, and with being ostentatious, flashy, affected, showy, brazen, flamboyant, and pretentious. This has given luxury a bad name.  For us, luxury is about reaching for the best that life has to offer because it is there to be enjoyed by you, not to impress others, and also because it affirms that you can have whatever makes you happy.  

When in comes to others, luxury is about having class in the way you interact with everyone you encounter, simply because it feels good.

Class is both elegance in style, and excellence in whatever you create. Having class implies that you know how to find the “high road” and consistently choose to take it. Class is not the exclusive purview of the rich and famous. It is accessible to everyone.


As a luxury real estate marketing professional your personal brand is an opportunity to instantly demonstrate that you are someone who has class, and to continuously fortify that fact in the minds of your target market.  It is also a vehicle to attract others who have class by making it easy for them to spread the word about YOU to like-minded individuals.
Recently, a previous client of ours, Maurice Tegelaar, a top agent in Sonoma, California, needed a quick augmentation to his website to help secure a very prestigious listing.  We were able to re-arrange our schedule and mobilize our team to accommodate his very brief window of opportunity.
A couple days after completing the project we received a hand-written thank you note and a box of chocolate from a local wine country chocatier. Sure, he sent us an email thank you. But this extra touch showed class!  It also demonstrated the consistency in his personal branding. 
Notice that his brand strikes the perfect balance between formality and informality that exemplifies the best of the wine country. There is no pretentiousness here, just simple elegance.   It is a luxury to have Maurice as a friend and it is a pleasure to refer him, with complete confidence, to anyone looking for a great agent in his area of expertise.

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.
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Wednesday, April 9, 2014

True Confession: How & Why We Fell In Love with a Brand! Part 3


Whenever you are making a choice to buy a product or a service, there are two types of reasons to buy (or engage a service): logical and emotional.  Emotional reasons sell you; Logical reasons justify your choice. Here are the reasons that led us to buy the Nespresso Virtuoline:

Every aspect of packaging is exquisitely designed


Nespresso, has rekindled our love for that single special cup of coffee (or latte, or cappuccino) in the morning with a freshly baked croissant, and the single espresso (with a tidbit of dark chocolate, of course) after dinner upon occasion, a lifestyle element that we so much enjoy when we travel in Europe.


Capsules contain the top 1% of coffee grown in the world.  Nespresso refers to them as Grand Cru (associating with the wine term meaning first crush)


The enormous amount of crema at the top of the coffee not just the espresso is visually appealing; the texture enhances the taste of the coffee.

Brilliant engineering: The capsule spins; it uses centrifugal force to make sure the hot water hits every ground. They call this their “centrifusionTM” technology.  That is the secret behind the abundance of crema.


The Virtuoline model is two machines in one (coffee and espresso). It takes up less counter space.


Easy to clean). Before Nespresso, we considered having two machines (a coffee maker and an espresso machine) a hassle. We stopped making espressos and cappuccinos at home because the cleanup involved was not worth it. 


Easy to use with easy to read well-illustrated directions.


No more coffee filters to buy, and no need to measure coffee

Customer Service:  We joined the Nespresso Club, which makes re-ordering capsules a breeze.  They handle technical service and repair directly


Environmental Consciousness: Used capsules are ejected in the special container part of the machine.  UPS prepaid envelopes are supplied to send all the used capsules back to the firm for recycling and reuse in manufacturing the machines and new capsules.

The Nespresso brand changed our coffee drinking routine completely.  We no longer drink American style coffee and we actually drink less coffee.  We now enjoy the ritual of making coffee itself and take more time to savor each cup.  It is a welcome lifestyle change. 



Stay tuned for the final article in this series as we cover the brilliant brand strategy behind this outstanding luxury lifestyle brand.

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.

Monday, March 31, 2014

Market Share: Creating the Elephant in the Highways of the Mind First!


Mind share precedes market share; that is the most powerful law of niche marketing.  There is tremendous leverage in this mighty real estate niche marketing law.  Therefore, capturing mind share should be your priority, unless you absolutely have the need to justify your success with a real estate marketing strategy that involves heavy lifting.



Here is a real estate marketing branding case study of a friend of ours, Joe Petrowsky, president of Right Trac Financial Group, Inc., who we met through Active Rain.  This case study demonstrates the incredible leverage you can enjoy if you apply this powerful niche marketing law.


Prior to being a highly successful mortgage broker, Joe opened his own real estate company in 1970. Starting from scratch Joe had no brand name recognition and needed to create an identity in a hurry.


He decided to buy three 40’ trailers at an auction that his brother ran. He had both sides painted black on yellow. They said the following,  “PETROWSKY REAL ESTATE CO. IF YOU DON’T KNOW US YET, YOU SHOULD”. Can you imagine how big each letter was, especially with this color combination?


He then rented three parcels of land that abutted the interstate, two on one side and one on the other. Each parcel was leased for 5 years. Joe figured the state would eventually start an action to have him remove the trailers.  But, between the ostentatiousness of these trailers along the highway that no one could miss and the press that he got (which he made sure of) he was able to capture a huge amount of mind share, fast!



Joe’s company became the number one volume producer in Eastern Connecticut in just 17 months!  He quickly controlled the listings throughout the area.  Then in 1985 he sold the company to 13 of his agents. He had 100 sales people and 5 offices at the time.



If your quest is market leadership leverage the power of niche marketing’s most powerful law: Mind share precedes market share.  How can you leverage this law in your own practice?

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.
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Monday, March 10, 2014

Does Your Packaging Reflect Your Brand Strategy?

As we mentioned in our previous post, being on top of your game means that there is congruency in every way you express yourself including your printed materials such as your presentation folder.


We chose for this post the shopping bag from L’Occitane, (based in the Provence area of France), because their products are similar to Crabtree & Evelyn.  The difference is that their emphasis is on “natural and organic” products, as well as preserving rare species of flowers (immortelle or ageless flowers). 

They are known for their almond and lavender based products (the almond tree pictured on the bag stands in a field of lavender.  The bottom of the bag lets you know that it is made with paper from sustainable forests. Looking at the package transports you to Provence for a moment.


Does Your Packaging Reflect Your Brand Strategy?

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. 
-WATCH VIDEOS-
 GET FLUENT. GET AFFLUENT! - JOIN THE LOL COMMUNTIY