Issue #30 | 3.6.2014 | 282,547 members

3 Reasons to Build Your Agent Brand

One of your chief aims as a real estate agent is to get your name out to as many people as you can. By doing this you increase your exposure and hopefully increase your sales. You can brand your business well enough by handing out business cards, putting up signs, and getting information to home buyers and sellers. But what about your personal brand? Are you really letting people know who you are and why you are better than other agents?

Now more than ever it is important to develop a personal brand. This lets people recognize you, relate to you, and become more willing to take action and hire you as their real estate agent. Using generic marketing materials from your brokerage just is not enough anymore. You need a personal brand, and here are the reasons why:

Stand out from the crowd.

Want to earn more commissions? When people can easily identify you from the rest of the agents out there, it gives you a competitive advantage in gaining their business. With visibility and a brand presence, there is less fear of the unknown; you are seen as more trustworthy and reliable than an agent clients do not recognize.
There are thousands of real estate agents in your area. What makes you special?

Gain credibility.

It is fairly easy for anyone to enter the real estate industry. An individual can go out, get a real estate license, sign with a brokerage, and proclaim themselves as a real estate agent with far more ease than many people face in other professions. Because of this, it gives off the impression that the talent pool of agents has been diluted. Credibility is not based on your professional title; it has to be earned through effort. 
When you put out the extra effort to create your own personal brand, you are not only self-promoting. You are telling your potential clients that you are a serious professional worthy of their time and consideration. You are creating a relationship with your audience that goes beyond the norm.

You may not stay with the same brokerage forever.

The real estate market is constantly changing. Because of this, opportunities constantly arise that can affect your financial standing and career developments. You may also decide to get a change of scenery and move to another region. In these cases, it may be in your personal and professional interests, or just a necessity, to switch brokerages.
If you do not develop your own brand you are likely to lose your entire brand when you do make any changes. If all of your marketing materials are related to your previous brokerage firm, you will have to completely start over when you switch companies. This can cost you far more time, money, and hassle than continuously working on your own personal brand.