Innovative Marketing Techniques for Buyer Representatives

1. Innovative Marketing Techniques for Buyer Representatives A Program brought to you by The Real Estate BUYER’S AGENT Council Of The National Association of REALTORS®

2. Innovative Marketing Techniques • Housekeeping – Before we begin… • Breaks/lunch • Participation • Language & Anti-trust • Pagers/Phones

3. Top Ideas: • Use the space provided to list the top marketing ideas that come to you throughout the course.

4. Course Objectives • This course addresses marketing for the buyer rep keeping the buyer’s interest in mind. • The course is broken down into an introduction, three modules and generous resource section including two optional modules.

5. Innovative Marketing for Buyer Representatives • The introduction will establish an understanding of innovation and describe rules to follow in establishing and implementing a marketing plan. • Module One will provide resources and an understanding of how to analyze your market and the market trends. • Module Two will provide a focused approach on how to utilize horizontal and vertical marketing strategies. • Module Three will help determine the best way to uniquely position yourselves in the buyer representation business.

6. Class Brainstorm • What is marketing ?

7. What is marketing ? • Marketing defined: • Attracting prospects through the implementation of a systematic plan that uses a mix of activities. • Marketing requires: • Patience • Flexibility • Commitment in writing • Planning • Measurability

8. What is marketing ? • The Marketing Action Plan • Strategy • Budget amount • Proposed marketing activities • Price plan for activities • Timelines • Tracking System

9. What is innovative? • Innovative is defined as: • Creating value out of ideas, products, services or different ways of doing things

10. What is innovative? • Creativity requires: • An open mind • Free of preliminary judgment • Consideration of all ideas and possibilities

11. The Rules • Change Perceptions to See Things Differently • Ask Questions and Test Assumptions • Tap Into Other’s for Ideas

12. The Rules • Tap Into Other’s for Ideas - Two Heads Are Better Than One • Art Fry and Spencer Silver worked for 3M. Art needed a way to mark his place in a hymnbook. Art used a piece of scrap paper that he continually lost. Spencer recommended that Art try a “failed” glue on the paper to hold his scrap paper in place in the book. • Post It® notes was created… Two heads were better than one.

13. The Rules • Change Perceptions to See Things Differently • Ask Questions and Test Assumptions • Tap Into Other’s for Ideas • Eliminate Negative Thinking and Self Sabotage • Take (Calculated) Risk • Measure Your Success

14. The Big Picture • What are you trying to achieve? • Is it working? • Are you successful? • Do you need to reevaluate your priorities and goals? • What do you want to ‘walk away with’ from this course to help you achieve your ultimate goals?

15. Module One: Today’s Home Buyer It is not the strongest of the species that survive, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change. Charles Darwin

16. MODULE ONE: Today’s Home Buyer • Save time and $$$ • Identify your market! • Trying to serve everyone is impossible. • Who are today’s buyers? • What do they think is important? • What are some basic marketing fundamentals?

17. Brainstorm Activity • What’s different about today’s home buyer vs. 10 years ago?

18. Marketing vs. Sales • “Selling” is defined by Wikepedia as “a practical implementation of marketing” • Marketing is the foundation of sales. • Effective marketing approaches should mirror sales approaches • Buyers were different 10 years ago so effective marketing should also be different. • Should the approach to sales be the same as 10 years ago?

19. Old Sales Model Included tips, tricks, gadgets or techniques to “get the attention” of the consumer. NewSales Model: Build rapport and trust in the beginning and throughout. Old Sales Model vs. New Sales Model

20. Out With The Old, In With The New During the consultation phase, focus on the needs of the buyer. Identifying the needs and desires of the buyer will lay the foundation for discussing the benefits of signing a buyer-rep agreement. Note: This information was inspired by Brian Tracey atwww.beststeps.com

21. Attracting Potential Buyer Clients • Identify: • Who are they? • Where are they? • How do you make contact? • What do they want? • Who Is Today’s Home Buyer? • Home Buyers Are Seeking Buyer’s Representatives • Home Searching Facts

22. Home Searching Facts • Buyer’s Representatives are in demand. • Many buyers signed a buyer’s representative agreement. • The majority were repeat buyers who used an agent in a prior transaction. • Buyers who signed an agency agreement had a high rate of satisfaction because the agent’s performance matched their expectations.

23. WWW.REALTOR.ORG TIP: For on-going research visit www.realtor.org and review the field guides.

24. Home Searching Facts • Snapshot of the typical home buyer who used a buyer representative. • General Buyer Information • The buyer wants the agent to find them a home. • The buyer first learned about their home from their agent. • Many buyers surf the Web for homes before contacting an agent. • Buyers want an Internet savvy agent. • Buyers expect to use the Internet in future home searches. • Many buyers said they planned to use real estate agents as an information source in future transactions.

25. Buyers’ Information Sources • INFORMATION SOURCES USED IN THE HOME SEARCH 90% Real estate agent 77% Internet 71% Yard sign Newspaper Home book/magazine Open house Builders Television Relocation company

26. Buyers’ Information Sources • WHERE THEY FIRST LEARNED ABOUT THE HOME PURCHASED 36% Real estate agent 24% Internet 15% Yard sign 7% or less 5 other categories

27. Purchase Factors (reasons for buying) • Neighborhood • Price • Work accessibility • Schools

28. Buyers’ Primary Motivating Factors • Reasons for making a housing change: • Job relocation • Want to own • More space • Investment/Tax deduction

29. California Association of Realtors® buyer research • Market Related Factors Influencing the Home Purchase (CAR) • Interest rates (high or low) • Anticipation of future benefits • Economic improvement • Repeat buyers want to use equity gains to trade up

30. Individual ActivityWhat Today’s Home Buyers Want • Quick survey. Write down what you perceive as the one, most important service you perform for buyers.

31. Buyers want help with… • Finding the right house 58% • Negotiations 9% • Paperwork 9% • Comparables 12% • Affordability decisions 4% • Financing 2%

32. Make Services Tangible! • Reduce your service to writing, e.g. email, follow up letters or text messages. • This will give the buyer something they can see or touch. Communicate often and convey value!

33. Understanding Today’s Home Buyer • Clients are stressed due to problems in various areas of their lives. • Buyer’s rep must identify and understand the problems in order to offer the right solutions.

34. Understanding Today’s Home Buyer

35. Where Are The Buyers? • How Are Buyers Finding Their Buyer Representatives? • Most buyers use the first agent they interview • Most home buyers with buyer representative agreements stayed with one licensee throughout the home purchase transaction

36. Most home buyers… • Most home buyers with buyer representatives were satisfied with their real estate professional. • Most home buyers who signed a buyer representative agreement were satisfied with the services.

37. Where Are The Buyers? • Referral and repeat business is at the core of the real estate business. The two most popular reasons for choosing a real estate professional: • Referral from friend, family member or neighbor • Knowledge of the agent from a prior transaction

38. Where Are The Buyers? HOW BUYERS FOUND REAL ESTATE AGENT USED 44% Referred by (or is) a friend, neighbor, relative 11% Used agent previously to buy/sell a house 7% Internet 7% Open House 6% Yard sign Agent on floor duty (buyer called or walked in) Newspaper/print ad Direct mail

39. Where Are The Buyers? • Fact: Buyers usually stay with the first agent they meet. • Conclusion: The general public does not see a difference between real estate professionals • Use your innovative marketing techniques to become “top of mind” and be the first person they think of, meet and call.

40. Most home buyers… • 85% of buyers are satisfied with their agent and are likely to use the same agent again • But only a small percentage did! • 11%

41. Class Brainstorm • Only 11% returned to the same agent used in a previous transaction • WHY?

42. Identifying Your Market: • Niche Marketing: Who / What Is (Are) Your TARGET Market(s)? • What is your current buyer market base? Do they come from a specific profession, geographic area or do they have another common factor?

43. Where Is Your Market? Individual Activity: •  First Time Buyers •  Luxury Home Buyers • Vacation Home Buyers •  Retirees •  Condo Buyers •  Investors •  Relo Buyers •  Golfers, Boaters, Equestrians •  Other: Markets should be specialized and lawfully targeted.

44. Reaching Potential Buyers • Where Is Your Market? • Where do they live, work and play? • What are they reading? Where do they go for information? • Do you have a presence in these information sources? • On whom do they rely? With whom do they conduct business? • Do you have a presence or connection with these people?

45. Reaching Potential Buyers • Do you understand your target market and the characteristics? Needs, desires, culture, demographics • Why have you chosen these markets? • Have you determined there is a need? Have you analyzed the market? • What are your market’s trends? Use the Marketing Action Plan Outline to assist in analyzing

46. Why Have You Chosen These Markets? • What information do you need to determine if your niche or target markets are right for you?

47. Attracting Inbound Buyers • What is their point of origin? • Are you marketing to those buyers in that market? • Develop your marketing efforts to position yourself in your market.

48. Class Brainstorm • What are your market’s trends? Consider markets that are growing or have growth potential. • Is your market renewable and expandable?

49. Caution • Do not put all your eggs in one basket • If you rely on a single source such as referrals from one corporation, it could spell disaster if the company folds or changes its affiliation.

50. Class Brainstorm • How are you tracking your marketing efforts?