This post was inspired by a retired gentleman we recently met at a dinner party. When he asked us what our profession is, we explained that one of the aspects of our branding services is finding the market category that is uncontested or under served in real estate or any other business.
He knew exactly what we meant by that. He shared his experience as an athlete. In high school, he wanted to be on the track and field team. When he competed for the various events, he was good, but not good enough to make the varsity team in the categories he tried out for.
The coach asked him to try out for the pole vaulting team/. He was willing, and became a winner in the pole vault category. This led to a college scholarship and later to the US Track and field team, where he competed nationally, and was #1.
How does this apply to real estate? Your marketplace does not have to be an entire town. You can define the scope of your market segment. It has to be one that the vast majority of agents is not focused on. That is why we refer to it as uncontested or under served market niche.
To find it, it takes research and an honest assessment of your talents, preferences and values. It can be as narrow as you want as long as it has the potential to fulfill your financial expectations, and more importantly your enjoyment and satisfaction.
You can achieve top-of-mind status in a three block section of a suburb or a community of just 500 homes or by specializing in a certain type of property instead of every community in that market place. Here is an example:
One of our clients was a builder/designer/architect prior to real estate. He channeled these talents into finding and converting small apartments into condominiums. He only selected those that had enough land and space to create private gardens, and rooftop outdoor areas. Together, we determined that the city he was in had a need for this type of housing, as well as the jurisdiction willing to grant the appropriate permits.
His joy was converting those buildings into luxurious spaces, and the gardens into gems of outdoor living. He would have them professionally staged, and they would sell within 3 months of completion. We witnessed instant full priced offers at his open houses, along with requests to buy the staged furniture.
In a sense, he was like our pole vaulting friend. He found his niche and ruled the market Bottom line, it takes research, and willingness to find your uncontested niche. Like our client, you can become the market leader in your uncontested market niche!.