The Language of Luxury

Personal Branding Case Studies Company Branding Case Studies

- JOIN THE LOL COMMUNTIY -

GET FLUENT. GET AFFLUENT!

Broker Agent Social, Proxio, Real Town, & Bigger Pockets

Wednesday, December 29, 2010

Three Luxury Real Estate Marketing Trends for 2011

Three emerging marketing trends are worth considering when you develop your 2011 luxury real estate marketing plan. They are 1) The return to snail mail vs. email or social media; 2) The direct approach of using the telephone to connect with prospective clients/customers, and; 3) Consumers are seeking intrinsic value vs. status symbols when purchasing luxury goods. Collectively they represent a larger trend in consumer behavior: Contrarian and independent thinking!

The Return to Snail Mail

24-35 year olds are increasing choosing to connect with their peers, family and business prospects through fine greeting cards and other upscale stationery products. The stationery goods market is a $37.4 billion dollar industry that is not going away any time soon as we move increasingly to digital communication. In an over-communicated world a personal note still shows you care and is a good way to differentiate yourself from your competition. This is contrarian thinking.

The Direct Telephone Call

Over 81 million smart phones sold world-wide in the third quarter of 2010, according to the analysts at Gartner. That is almost twice as many as a year earlier. You would think that more people would use them to make more smart phone calls.

Surprisingly, Google, of all companies, understands the importance of the direct telephone call. They now have a huge sales force that reaches out to local small to mid-size businesses directly by telephone. According to BIA /Kelsey, local businesses will spend about $20 billion online this year in advertising. That number could increase to $35 billion by 2014.

An alarming number of luxury real estate agents do not respond to email in a timely manner, let alone return their phone calls consistently. How can you differentiate yourself from your competition by being more responsive with your telephone calls?

Intrinsic Value vs. Status Symbols in Luxury Goods

High net worth consumers are recovering from frugal fatigue and they are now out spending more. But, they are looking for intrinsic value. No longer can luxury brands get away with hyping the symbol of their brand a means of satisfying the consumer’s need of self-expression to impress others. The goods have to have the goods. Hype no longer sells to luxury consumers who are thinking more independently.

Are you spending your valuable time and money marketing luxury real estate properties that are based on their intrinsic value? Or, are you allowing sellers to dictate unrealistic inflated prices? Luxury consumers are much savvier now, due to the overwhelming amount of information at their finger tips online. Let your competitors work with sellers who are not in tune with the new luxury real estate buyer.

Be a contrarian and think independently! That is what your luxury real estate clients are responding to now.

- WATCH VIDEOS-

Personal Branding Case Studies Company Branding Case Studies

- JOIN THE LOL COMMUNTIY -

GET FLUENT. GET AFFLUENT!

Broker Agent Social, Proxio, Real Town, & Bigger Pockets

Tuesday, December 28, 2010

Marketing Luxury Real Estate: Chart a Steady Course When Targeting High Net Worth Buyers

This is a reposting of an article we wrote in January 2009. It seems that the luxury buyers are still alive and well. Here is a capsule of the spending habits of high net worth individuals that still hold true today. Luxury real estate marketing professionals take heed!

Exclusivity. The desire to have something better and less known to the mass audience remains strong. New niche labels can prosper in these circumstances, such as limited editions or homes with extraordinary architectural features.

Quality, Dependability and Authenticity. The consumer will want to know the provenance of the goods they are buying. They will want the manufacturer to stand by the product and take care of it, if something goes wrong. Social and environmental responsibility is an important key in the purchase making decision. If it’s “green”, they will part with their green bucks. In the days of “shop till you drop”, consumers were fascinated by novelty. Now they want the “real”, the authentic. They are no longer interested in high end reproductions or anything with “faux” in front of it. Along with authenticity is transparency. How someone does business, their ethics, has become an important part of the process.

Translating this to luxury real estate marketing is simple.

Refresh your brand. Make sure your website and all your materials have the look and feel of luxury, and do not look like everyone else’s site. Remember they are looking for the exclusive feel.
Make sure you demonstrate your transparency in terms of your customer relationship management. Your word MUST BE your bond. Go out of your way to provide excellent service. This makes you easy to refer via word-of-mouth advertising.
Describe your listings by emphasizing the quality and the durability of the home’s appliances and finishes. Make sure that those finishes are the “real” thing. If they aren’t, point it out. If you are not sure, find out. This furthers your authenticity and your transparency.

In the long run remember. “A calm sea does not produce a skilled sailor. We cannot direct the wind, but we can adjust the sails. Anyone can hold the helm when the sea is calm.” Tom Culve

Luxury real estate marketing professionals: Happy Sailing and Selling in 2011!

- WATCH VIDEOS-

Personal Branding Case Studies Company Branding Case Studies

- JOIN THE LOL COMMUNTIY -

GET FLUENT. GET AFFLUENT!

Broker Agent Social, Proxio, Real Town, & Bigger Pockets

Friday, December 24, 2010

We Wish You Happy Holidays 2010

Live Orchid Ornament Tree

We took this photo yesterday at our favorite orchid greenhouse, Westerlay Orchids, in Carpinteria, California. This is a wonderful representation of a Christmas tree with orchid flowers. Each flower is attached to a tube filled with water. It celebrates nature and its beautiful bounty.

Merry Christmas, Happy Channukah, Happy Kwanzaa, Happy Winter Solstice, Happy Celebrations of Everyone and Everything that brings us joy and unconditional positive regard for each other.

- WATCH VIDEOS-

Personal Branding Case Studies Company Branding Case Studies

- JOIN THE LOL COMMUNTIY -

GET FLUENT. GET AFFLUENT!

Broker Agent Social, Proxio, Real Town, & Bigger Pockets

Wednesday, December 22, 2010

Marketing Luxury Real Estate: Shoe Biz Buzz Marketing Lessons

Mark Parker, Nike president & CEO and Kobe Bryant

Important lessons can be learned about marketing luxury real estate by studying what works and what does not work in the marketing of major TV sports events. Because the games are live the likelihood that viewers mute the commercials (or not watch them at all in the case of digital video recorders) is considerably less. But, the surest way to reach viewers who have a hot hand on their remote control is “product placement”.

The best form of product placement in TV and movies triggers “buzz” or word-of-mouth advertising. And, buzz marketing is a skill set that should be a top priority for you in 2011.

If the media hype for LeBron James has not been enough for you this year, brace yourself for the basketball game of the year on Christmas Day when the Miami Heat take on the 2009-2010 World Champion Lakers in Los Angeles. Los Angeles is one of the biggest media markets in the United States for television advertising. Watch how Nike, the masters of product placement, will be “killing it” this year. Both Kobe and LeBron are Nike “spokesmen”.

The day after Christmas, Nike is coming out with a new Kobe basketball shoe named after Kobe’s “alter-ego” the black mamba snake, one of Africa’s most dangerous and feared snakes. The shoes are black and grey. But, for the Christmas Day game they made them in green. The LeBron Nike shoe will be in red for the game. Not only will Kobe be wearing the shoe in green but all of those LA ticket holders with courtside seats will get a pair of green Kobe Nike shoes. To afford those seats these people typically have huge spheres of influence (Jack Nicholson for example).

One of the best opportunities of social media is the ability to create buzz through contests. The prize does not necessarily have to cost you anything if you can find a co-marketing product or service provider who is also interested in reaching the same target market as you. For example, this season, one of our luxury real estate strategic branding clients will be raffling off two Super Bowl tickets which is certain to create a buzz.

What are some ways that you can become well known as a luxury real estate marketing professional through buzz marketing in 2011?

- WATCH VIDEOS-

Personal Branding Case Studies Company Branding Case Studies

- JOIN THE LOL COMMUNTIY -

GET FLUENT. GET AFFLUENT!

Broker Agent Social, Proxio, Real Town, & Bigger Pockets

Monday, December 20, 2010

Personal & Company Branding: It Is Written!

A major key to success is identifying and focusing upon a market category or sub-category in which you can become the dominate player. To fully succeed however, it must be a niche that you believe you can do better than anyone else in your marketplace, a niche about which you are passionate. When you are passionate about what you are doing your interest in your work will be sustained, you will continuously be innovative and you will persevere during the most challenging moments in your career.

When you are passionate about what do you also attract people and events, almost magically, that can help you achieve your dreams and confirm that you are on the right path. Here is a fun true story that we experienced about this kind of serendipity.

Several years ago, we were walking on the beach and discussing the fact that we are truly passionate about our strategic branding practice that is focused on the luxury real estate industry. We were wondering if personal and company branding would be the vehicle that could lead to working internationally which was our desire.

Suddenly, we came upon some letters that someone had written in the sand upside down. When we walked around to read it our jaws dropped. A young man had written his own name which happened to be B R A N D! Luckily, we had our camera and took the picture posted above. It was like a “sign” to stay on our path.

Since then, the opportunities that social media has offered in terms of expanding internationally and also meeting more and more fascinating people have enriched our lives and added significantly to our career in strategic branding. There is no question that being passionate your work makes life much more fun!

- WATCH VIDEOS-

Personal Branding Case Studies Company Branding Case Studies

- JOIN THE LOL COMMUNTIY -

GET FLUENT. GET AFFLUENT!

Broker Agent Social, Proxio, Real Town, & Bigger Pockets

Thursday, December 16, 2010

Marketing Luxury Real Estate: What You Know is Equally as Important as Who You Know

Koa Wood Box

As a luxury real estate marking professional you are expected to know your product inside and out. Yes, the luxury home you are selling is a product and superior product knowledge is one of the factors that separate the sales pros from the amateurs. In marketing luxury real estate what you know is just as important as who you know.

Your command of everything from wood finishing to high-end kitchen appliances to the variety of roses in the garden can establish your level of expertise as superior to your competition. It can also determine the speed of trust that you establish with your client as you demonstrate that you understand the nuances of what is or may become their most prized possession.

For example, Hawaiian koa wood flooring found in a mainland home is a rarity. Exporting it from Hawaii is no longer permitted because the koa population has suffered severely from grazing and logging. The word koa itself means brave, fearless or warrior. Hawaiian crafts people have created magnificent hand-carved bowls, boxes and even guitars using this reddish wood which is very similar in strength to black walnut. If one of your listings happens to have koa wood floors you need to be able to passionately convey the significance of this to potential buyers.

One of the best aspects of being a luxury real estate marketing professional is also being a lifetime learner and a perennial student of the language of luxury. We suggest taking the time to go through each and every unique feature of your luxury home listing and doing some research on it. Your buyers and sellers will appreciate your interest and attention to details. Plus, your value as a professional will appreciate over time as a result.

- WATCH VIDEOS-

Personal Branding Case Studies Company Branding Case Studies