Luxury Real Estate Marketing: Apple, What's Your Secret?

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Luxury Real Estate Marketing:Are You Playing Your "A" Game?

June 15, 2011

One of the core attributes of a successful luxury real estate marketing professional is consistent focus. Complacency begets inconsistency. When you get complacent, you are vulnerable to those competitors who maintain their focus.

Notice the consistency of focus in top professional athletes, musicians or entrepreneurs. Let’s use professional musicians as an example of consistent focus.

The very first thing a musician in an orchestra does is tune his or her instrument with the perfect pitch of the oboe playing the key of A. Think of perfect pitch as your pure brand signal. What do you do to align yourself each day with your pure brand signal and your vision for your luxury real estate marketing practice?

Professional musicians practice consistently. Once you have defined your winning formula in your real estate practice you must focus consistently on practicing what works, over and over again, fine tuning as you go along.

We recommend deliberately quieting the mind on a regular basis. When your mind is quiet all opposing or contradictory thoughts disappear and you are most receptive to “possibilities thinking”. That is a good time to contemplate your vision for playing your “A game” in your business.

Take what we call “transaction engineering” out of the picture for a moment. You are expected to be able to see a transaction all the way through to close of escrow. Let’s concentrate here on consistently doing the things that together comprise your “A game”. These are the things that are necessary to get transactions into escrow in the first place. Focus is all about the doing the small things like consistently:

Staying in touch with your sphere of influence
Promoting new business
Returning phone calls and emails in a timely manner
Showing up for appointments on time
Meeting new people who can be referral sources

If you get complacent and neglect these small things you are sacrificing your winning formula that has made you successful. To play your “A game” consistently over time you must find a way to stay focused and stay in perfect pitch. One way that we recommend to do this is to delegate everything you possible can that you do not absolutely love doing. This can be challenging. But, then if you are showing signs of complacency, a good challenge may just be the ticket for you.

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Luxury Real Estate Marketing: So, You Want to Be a Market Leader-Part 7

June 14, 2011

Today, in marketing luxury real estate, being tech-savvy involves much more than just optimizing your website to rank highly on search engines. It encompasses the art of building an audience of raving fans not just through blogging or having a Facebook page, but also through the latest social media practice of creating a “curated” online experience. In this final post in our series, So You Want to Be a Market Leader, we discuss how Tiffany & Company, the leading American luxury jewelry brand, has preempted their domestic and European competitors with this cutting edge, indirect or “peripheral” marketing and branding strategy.

We understand that building an audience was never part of the job description of a real estate agent. We understand that it is time consuming, not to mention a long term strategy. But, it is swiftly becoming a requirement if you want to gain or sustain market leadership. Every incumbent luxury real estate market leader who does not fully embrace the new media is potentially vulnerable to local challengers who are willing to do so.

Leveraging social media and mobile apps was certainly not an aspect of the jewelry marketing play-book either. But, Tiffany & Company is intent on attracting a younger audience and they know that they cannot rely solely on the tradition of their blue gift boxes or the half-century old Breakfast at Tiffany’s movie to win this new business. They are also intent on keeping ahead of their European counterparts, such as Cartier, who is challenging Tiffany’s dominance in the US when it comes to purchasing engagement rings by young affluent customers.

Tiffany has an iPhone and iPad mobile app where you can customize your own engagement ring and design and change the carat size of the diamond. When you place one of the rings that you already own on the screen it will tell you your ring size. But, soon every major jeweler will have their own app and this “feature” will no longer be unique. That is why we say that you cannot count on features as a way to differentiate your brand from your competitors’. Competing on features is not a brand strategy because brand strategy is all about seizing and holding on to top-of-mind status.

Recently, Tiffany & Company launched a new “curated” website called What Makes Love True. Their brand strategy is to “own” the word LOVE in the minds of their target market. If you want to sell engagement rings as your core product that would be an excellent word to own.

Tiffany takes on the role of “curator” of this online exhibition listing romantic places and restaurants to “pop the question”, lists of love songs and romantic movies that you can buy via iTunes, and also videos of customers of all ages who discuss the romantic courtships that lead to their engagements. You can also interact with the site by placing your initials (and your mate’s initials) on a map with your own story of why this location is romantic.

Staking a claim on “true love” as their brand position preempts any other competing jeweler to do so without looking ridiculous as a copycat. Can you imagine Cartier saying, “We stand for true love, too”? Provided that Tiffany continues to develop this site in interesting ways, we believe that this peripheral branding strategy is nothing less than brilliant! It is emotional branding at its best.

As a luxury real estate marketing professional who is bent on gaining or sustaining market leadership, what can you stand for, what word can you own? And, how do you go about executing a strategy to successfully achieve top-of-mind status with this brand position?

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Luxury Real Estate Marketing: The Heart of a Champion

June 13, 2011

If you want to become the dominate luxury real estate marketing team in your marketplace or niche therein, you and your team must have the heart of a champion. This post is dedicated to a true champion, Dirk Nowitski and the entire 2011 World Champion Dallas Mavericks team and franchise.

Dirk was one of only five players in NBA history to win the championship while being the only NBA All-Star on the team. Only Nowitzki and three other players have averaged more than 25 points and 10 rebounds in the NBA playoffs. Only Nowitzki and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar have ever had four consecutive 30-point 15-rebound games in the playoffs. Dirk is the only player in NBA history to get over 100 blocks and 150 three-pointers in a single season.

The Mavericks were not the favored team going into the playoffs. Nor were they expected to win in the finals according to most media pundits. But, they had a strategy. And, at the core of their strategy was their essential strength: cohesive teamwork that was consistently evidenced on the court and courtside.

In marketing luxury real estate as a team, it is essential that you assess your core strengths. Perhaps nothing is more important in building a championship real estate team than strategic thinking. This involves uncovering, identifying, and developing non-obvious opportunities to create value for your target market, extraordinary value that differentiates you from your competition. It necessitates challenging your assumptions about your current value proposition and re-engineering your strategic plan if you already have one in place.

As a team or a company, strategic thinking is best conducted in brainstorming sessions which can be fun and exhilarating if you set the right tone. When you brainstorm you are tapping into the realm of imagination which is the source of fresh, new ideas. The entire purpose of brainstorming in this context is to challenge conventional thinking.

Brainstorming should be open to all team members. However, as the leader of brainstorming sessions it is important to set some ground rules. When we brainstorm with our clients, whether the session is for an individual agent, a team or company, we introduce the concept of the “bulletin board”. The idea here is to just let all ideas that you hatch have a place on the board without criticism or immediate evaluation of its merit. You never know when a fragment of one idea can trigger a flash of brilliance that makes its way to you new strategic plan.

The very process of brainstorming on strategy not only develops a vortex of creativity where great ideas are born, but it also can create an atmosphere of trust that builds cohesive teamwork. If it feels safe to contribute to this “mastermind” everyone can own the strategic plan that emerges. Under these conditions the likelihood is high that the plan will be executed with minimum hassles.

To Dirk, the Mavericks and to all of you luxury real estate teams who have the heart of a champion we salute you. We understand what it takes to establish innovative strategies to out-think your competition and we know that it is cohesive teamwork that is at the core of your success.

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Luxury Real Estate Marketing: So, You Want to Be a Market Leader-Part 6

June 8, 2011

The Latest iCloud Technology- Courtesy of Apple

In our previous post (Part 5) of our series entitled, So You Want to Be a Market Leader, we covered one of the key vulnerabilities that luxury real estate market leaders tend to exhibit: losing focus. In this post we cover the other key vulnerabilities: Being complacent and being “tech-challenged”. If you want to overtake the incumbent market leader, rather than identifying an uncontested market niche that you can dominate, you need to assess your opponent’s weakest link and wage an all-out battle that is 100% concentrated on one of these three specific vulnerabilities.

Complacency, a common vulnerability of market leaders in luxury real estate, usually manifests in the form of neglect of the relationships that got them to the #1 position in the first place. Lack of consistent personal communication with their sphere of influence can create a very compelling reason to switch if the challenger excels at this and offers a remarkably distinct value proposition.

The consistent use of superior technology (especially methods for attracting a high volume of buyers) aimed directly at a market leader who is not tech-savvy, can be an excellent plan to challenge an incumbent. Incumbents who take on over-priced listings that languish on the market may look impressive to luxury home sellers in the short run. But, eventually, the agent who can demonstrate the ability to bring buyers to the table through superior technology will win the listings, too.

If you want to challenge the incumbent who is “tech-challenged” preempt this powerful attribute of being the most tech-savvy. That means, be the first challenger to seize this brand position by “owning” the very words "tech-savvy" as a brand position. Be the first to brand yourself as the tech expert in the competitive landscape that exists, not in your computer or in your office or in some other physical location in your marketplace, but in the minds of your target market.

When you are the first to take on the opposite attribute of the incumbent market leader as your brand position you stand a great chance of at least being #2. That is because you have framed the race for market leadership as a two person or two-company contest: “Tech-savvy” vs. “tech-challenged”. Creating an either/or contest summarily dismisses the rest of the would-be challengers for market leadership who may try to own this attribute in the minds of the target market. Saying "I am tech-savvy, too" is a very weak competitive position. It is like another rental car company besides Avis saying " We try harder (than Hertz), too".

Today, being tech-savvy is much more than just generating leads specifically for properties. It encompasses the art of building an audience of raving fans through social media and engaging in peripheral or indirect marketing. Tiffany & Company has just launched a social media website that we will review in Part 7 of this blog series that positions the jeweler to own the word “love” in the minds of its target market. If you want to sell engagement rings as your core product that would be an excellent word to own.

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Luxury Real Estate Marketing: So, You Want to Be a Market Leader-Part 5

June 7, 2011

In the realm of marketing luxury real estate, we have noticed some patterns of vulnerabilities among market leaders that represent opportunities for challengers. If they do have a chink in their armor it usually comes down to this: 1) they lose their focus; 2) they get complacent, or; 3) they lag behind technologically.

If you want to overtake the incumbent market leader, rather than identifying an uncontested market niche that you can dominate, you need to assess your opponent’s weakest link and wage an all-out battle that is 100% concentrated on one of these specific vulnerabilities.

In this post we look at the vulnerability of losing focus. Maintaining focus over time is one of the true tests of a market leader.

When you are a market leader in a specific category or niche within your marketplace there is always a temptation to lose your focus by diversifying or changing your singular winning formula because you have attracted an abundance of diverse opportunities. If you are the best prime rib restaurant in town, is it not logical that you could also become known as the best seafood restaurant? After all, the fundamentals of the restaurant business are the same regardless of what you serve.

There is a seafood restaurant in Los Angeles that was, year after year, one the highest grossing restaurants in town because of its moderately priced menu, its ideal setting and a bar business that was unstoppable. It appealed equally to families, tourists and young adults. We recently visited the restaurant after over a decade of no longer living in the city, expecting to find the same menu. Instead, they reinvented themselves as an expensive dinner house. They may have needed to refresh their brand, but they completely lost their focus on the core attributes that made them successful for decades. This restaurant is potentially vulnerable to competitors who could reintroduce the prior winning formula under a new brand.

To be successful today, you have to narrow your focus in order to build a position in the prospect's mind. Then you have to stay focused to sustain your market leadership position. A company that has resisted the temptation to diversify and has maintained its focus on its primary winning formula is Gerber.

Just take a walk down the baby food aisle in any supermarket in the USA (and dozens of countries around the world). Gerber dominates this food category and the shelf space as well. The company is owned by Nestlé, the largest food (and nutrition) company in the world, founded and headquartered in Switzerland. Gerber enjoys roughly 80% of the market share. Beech-Nut, a very distant #2, is also Swiss owned by the Hero Group, who makes fine jellies and jams in addition to baby food. With no substantial challenger, only Gerber and Beech-Nut currently have double-digit market shares.

How focused are you in your market place? In our next post we will cover the other two vulnerabilities of incumbent market leaders: Being complacent and being “tech-challenged”.

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Luxury Real Estate Marketing: So, You Want to Be a Market Leader-Part 4

June 6, 2011

One of the best ways to become a market leader in your luxury real estate marketing practice is to carve out a new niche or create an entirely new market category. Why not start out as #1?

There is a huge competitive advantage in being the first in a freshly defined market segment. For example, have you ever tried or heard of 5-Hour Energy, the caffeine and vitamin liquid concentrate that comes in a small plastic bottle and is sold over the counter?

Seven years ago there was no such niche or sub-category of beverages. This energy shot trend was started by 5-Hour Energy. They dominate the category with an 80% market share, according to trade publication, Beverage Digest. Their annual sales are about $1 billion. The next closest competitor, NVE Pharmaceuticals has a paltry 5% market share. 5-Hour Energy, as a brand, has achieved the status of “category killer”.

Some of the best niches are not obvious. In our recent blog series, So You Want to Be a Market Leader-Part 3, we used the example of becoming the expert in ski-in/ski-out properties within the larger marketplace of the entire ski resort town. This is a very narrow market niche, but a potentially lucrative one as these kinds of properties tend to be the most expensive.

Let’s take this example a few steps further. Before you declare yourself the expert, you need to have some ski-in/ski-out property sales (at least one) under your belt to have some credibility. Then, when you take it upon yourself to define or carve out a niche where heretofore the niche was not perceived as a separate area of specialization amazing things happen.

Suddenly, you are perceived differently and so is the competitive landscape. Because you are the first, you literally cause your name to be identified with the new category that previously did not exist. Once this takes place it is very difficult for your competition to dislodge the #1 position that you have secured in the minds of your target market.

When people indentify you as the ski-in/ski-out maven, they will refer you to other owners of such properties (who they probably know very well) as the expert. If you were the owner of a ski-in/ski out property, wouldn’t you want to be referred to the leading expert in this field to list your home, instead of the generalist? That is what branding is all about.

In your luxury real estate practice, the sharper your focus the more you become an expert and the more likely you are to succeed. Concentration in your chosen area gives you a command not only of the nuances of the market segment itself, but also of the mindset of your target market. The depth of your knowledge and your certainty about your niche becomes palpable to potential clients. The sharpness of your focus also enables you to discover opportunities that completely elude your competition. If you are passionate about your niche, you will not need energy shots to keep you awake, lift your spirits or stay motivated .

You may think that it is scary to be so focused within a niche because you have to sacrifice other general business if you give your niche your undivided attention. But, in time your name can become extremely well-known and, ideally, synonymous with the category itself. That is when you become the undisputed category killer. If you sustain your focus, you can become so formidable as the market leader that your would-be competition will not even bother to challenge you.

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Luxury Real Estate Marketing: So, You Want to Be a Market Leader-Part 3

June 1, 2011

See Part 1 and Part 2 of this blog series, So You Want to Be a Market Leader

When you think of the word strategy what comes to mind? In the context of marketing luxury real estate, or any product or service, strategy ONLY applies to gaining or sustaining market leadership. It is just for incumbent market leaders who want to hold on to the #1 position and those who want to challenge the incumbent. More succinctly, it is only about being #1 or #2 in mindshare and in market share within any given marketplace or niche therein.

In the majority of cases the combined market share of #1 &#2 represents the lion’s share of the entire “pie”. These two contenders understand just how much is at stake. Very often, there is a vast crevasse between the market share of #1 and #2. For example, #1 search engine, Google, enjoys about 65% of the market. Yahoo, #2 owns 17% and #3 Microsoft Bing has about 11%.

Bing is trying valiantly to whittle down Google’s market share. Its most recent strategy has been to align with and own a piece of Facebook in order to make search more social (getting recommendations from friends when delivering search results). In a Wall Street Journal interview Google Inc. executive chairman, Eric Schmidt said that one of his biggest failures as CEO over the last decade was grappling with the rise of social identity services such as Facebook. Microsoft seized a potentially threatening strategic advantage with their social search strategy.

The marketing activity of an unmotivated #3 or any of those that are lower on the totem pole is actually not strategy. If you are not striving to be #1 or #2 you are merely engaged in tactics to fight over the crumbs, which may be plenty for some but not for those with the heart of a champion.

When it comes to marketing luxury real estate, keep in mind that you get to define the size of your marketplace if it is based on geography or just how narrow you want to slice your niche within a general category. For, example you can be the market leader in selling sky-in/ski-out properties in Vail Colorado, or in Deer Valley, Utah. The price point of these properties is typically very high and you do not need to sell many homes to earn sizable commissions.

We live in a time-pressed world where the majority of human minds can only remember up to 3 brands in any given category of product or service. Some people can only think of one brand in some categories. That is why being #1 or #2 is the only game in town for those of you who have embraced the unabashed pursuit of market leadership. For you, strategy is the name of the game and the jackpot is achieving top-of-mind status.

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Luxury Real Estate Marketing: So, You Want to Be a Market Leader-Part 2

May 31, 2011

In Part 1 in this series we covered two keys to becoming a Market Leader, as a luxury real estate marketing professional. The first key is to identify an uncontested or under-served market niche in which you can be the dominant player. We wanted to elaborate on this.

If you are the first major player in a new category you will have a tremendous competitive advantage over potential challengers because you become immediately identified with that category in the minds of your target market. You make news when you start a new category or take over an under-served category. But, beware of the temptation to get complacent if you are unrivaled!

If you want to take on an incumbent market leader be sure you are taking on a category or niche or market segment that you believe you can serve better than the leader or any other contender. Here is an example of a 17 year battle to surpass an incumbent market leader who was the first major player in their category.

Take a moment to answer this question: What is the first lemon –lime soda that comes to your mind? Can you think of more than three brands? Most people can only think of one or two.

Sprite was introduced in the US in 1961 as Coke’s response to 7Up, the market leader. To fend off Sprite’s challenge, 7UP launched one of the greatest brand strategies of all time by positioning itself not just as a competitor of Sprite but as “The Uncola”. This worked for a few years. Then, in 1978, Sprite seized the position of the #1 best selling lemon-lime soda.

By the 1980s Sprite became very popular among teenagers. They launched a slogan to cater to this generation that was used from 1987 to 1994: "I Like the Sprite in You". In 1999 7Up tried a strategy known as “taboo” marketing to appeal to the younger generation. “Make 7UP Yours” was their slogan. But, they placed “Make 7” on the front of T-shirts and “Up Yours” on the back. By then it was too late to regain their market leadership position.

In 2004 Sierra Mist surpassed 7Up on the basis of annual retail sales, placing it as the second most-purchased lemon-lime soft drink in the U.S. Sprite still reigns supreme.

In the 60’s, 7Up was essentially in an uncontested market niche enjoying top-of-mind status. Then Sprite came along. Ultimately, Coke had superior marketing muscle and staying power. But, it took Sprite 17 years to surpass 7Up, the incumbent market leader. That should give you an idea of how the first in a category has a tremendous competitive advantage, especially if it does not get complacent.

Find an uncontested market niche that you can dominate and serve better than anyone else in your luxury real estate marketplace. If you do not get complacent you should enjoy a long ride.

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Luxury Real Estate Marketing: So You Want To Be a Market Leader?

May 30, 2011

In luxury real estate marketing and in business in general, market leadership is measured in sales volume and market share. It is also measured with an equally important indicator, “top-of-mind status” because mindshare always precedes market share. Here are the two keys to becoming a market leader.

The First Key to Becoming a Market Leader

If you want to be a market leader, the first key is to identify an uncontested or underserved market niche or category that you can serve more effectively than anyone else. Then become the dominant player in that arena.

Your marketplace does not have to be an entire town. You get to define the scope of your market segment. It can be as narrow as you want as long as it has the potential to fulfill your financial expectations. 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 just in waterfront properties or condos.

The Second Key to Becoming a Market Leader

In any category or niche the battle for market leadership is actually a contest of ideas, and the prize is top-of-mind status. Therefore, the second key to achieving market leadership is to seize an idea that you can stand for authentically and own like “the waterfront expert” or “condo king”.

Do not waste your time copying what the current market leader is doing. And, do not try to compete by using your opponent’s idea. As the famous chef, Emeril Lagasse, said, “Get your own show!”

We have a client in Florida who takes prospective buyers on boat tours of waterfront properties in her marketplace. She not only owns the boat she “owns” this idea of boat tours. To compete with a market leader like this, it would be futile to copy boat tours. Instead, you would need to stand for and own your own idea.

Consider the top wireless carriers. Today, both AT&T and Verizon offer the iPad and the IPhone. The price is the same. Which one would you choose? Verizon stands for and “owns” the idea of “coverage & reliability (fewer dropped calls)” AT&T cannot compete on this attribute. However, it is attempting to acquire T-Mobile so it can compete in terms of size which may translate into “faster product availability” because of the deals they can strike with manufacturers, or “deeper selection” (of bundled of services) down the line. Sprint has the first 4G network; it currently “owns” the idea of “speed”. But, 4G is just a feature that all wireless carriers will eventually have.

So, you want to become a market leader? Find an uncontested or underserved market niche. Then, find an idea you can own in the minds of your target market. Remember that marketing is a contest of idea and top-of-mind status is the prize!

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Luxury Real Estate Marketing: Five Principles of Successful Branding and Marketing

May 19, 2011

Ride the Wave

Last year Apple rolled out the iPad, an entirely new computer category, and they created a tidal wave of change in many industries. We have been following this story closely because it speaks volumes about the principles of successful branding and marketing that can be applied to your luxury real estate marketing practice. Here is a summary of these principles:

Spot the trends, ride the wave. Be the first in a new brand category. Capitalize on your “unfair” competitive advantage. Be the opposite of your closest competition. Take a stance that distinguishes you from your competition and resonates with the core values of your ideal clients. Apply these five principles and you will be well on your way to gaining or sustaining market leadership in your area.

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Luxury Real Estate Brand Strategy: The Perils of Monkey See, Monkey Do!

May 18, 2011

As a luxury real estate marketing professional, imitation of the market leader is definitely not a viable brand strategy for the challenger. It becomes a case of “Monkey see, Monkey do”. Imitation may be the sincerest form of flattery, but it will not result in increased market share.

On a recent trip to Los Angeles, we stopped by our favorite shopping center in Century City adjacent to Beverly Hills. This is an outdoor mall with movie theaters, restaurants, department stores, boutique stores, and electronic equipment stores. The mall is situated between several high rise office buildings with walkways and bridges over the streets that bring a constant flow of people to the center. As we were walking along checking out the latest and greatest we passed the Apple store that was packed with customers, many who were coming out with purchases. Then, several doors down, we noticed the new Sony Store that was not crowded at all.

In Japan, Sony has slipped to #2 with Apple becoming the #1 “luxury” electronic brand. Now, with lost market share, Sony is trying to play catch-up. But, how are they different? What does Sony stand for? Why was Sony not as busy as the Apple store?

In the Sony storefront was a large billboard of leaping young people (pictured above) with the slogan, “Connect/Compete/Conquer”. In front of the billboard are three colorful balls. This message was our first encounter with the brand as a store. What does this message mean in terms of a unique promise of value as distinct from Apple? We are still scratching our heads in wonderment.

If you do not immediately offer a compelling reason to switch brands on first encounter your chances of gaining market share from the incumbent market leader are next to none. The same holds true for marketing luxury real estate.

The Sony store is beautifully designed, and fun to walk through. We donned glasses to view the newest 3D screens, we saw holographic image technology, and we played with their new touch screens. The sales people were very knowledgeable and very helpful. They wore colorful T shirts with Sony logos (just like the Apple staffers). One of the fun things that caught our eye was colorful keyboard covers that would transform an ordinary white keyboard into lime green, hot pink, or orange. But, it was Apple that introduced the concept of multiple bright colors to their product line.

The Sony laptop computers uses the Windows 7 operating system. So do other brands. How are Sony’s laptops different from those brands? Certainly, the feature of applying a colorful plastic cover to your keyboard is unique. But, any other brand could replicate this feature for pennies and render Sony’s keyboards indistinguishable.

A handful of people walked in and out admiring and testing the displays. But, we did not see any products purchased in the Sony store while we were there.

Luxury real estate marketing professionals, take heed! Imitation of incumbent market leaders will get you nowhere as a brand strategy. Think different. That is what Apple has done.

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Luxury Real Estate Marketing: What Is Most Compelling About Your Marketplace?

May 9, 2011

In the field of marketing luxury real estate, one of the true tests of the market leader is the ability to quickly and concisely communicate your extraordinary promise of value. Another test is the ability to articulate the most compelling and unique aspects of your marketplace.

In our area, Santa Barbara, California, one of the most charming attributes is the influence of Mexican culture in architecture and design. For example, the 10th of the California missions, the Santa Barbara Mission (known as the Queen of missions) was founded on the Feast of St. Barbara, December 4, 1786. Over two centuries later, the Mission is still very much alive.

The Mexican cultural influence can also be seen in many of the hotels, and commercial buildings in downtown Santa Barbara. The steps depicted in the photo above are part of the central shopping center on State Street, El Paseo Nuevo. A different tile design was used for each riser of these steps. The Mexican motif in tile work focuses on deep rich colors - reds, cobalt blues and dark yellow. Earth tones are also used to convey warmth and a convivial ambience.

The finest Mexican ceramic tile, Talavera, is 100% handcrafted, hand glazed and hand painted. Many homes in the Santa Barbara area reflect the Spanish Revival Architecture and utilize Talavera title in kitchens, baths and moldings. It is said to be timeless and sets a mood of comfort in the house vs. a more formal feeling.

The semi-tropical climate and the proximity to the mountains, beaches and ocean, in Santa Barbara, lend itself to an ambience of relaxed & casual luxury. And, that in a nutshell, is one of the most compelling reasons to buy a home here.

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Luxury Real Estate Marketing: The "Free" Effect!

May 4, 2011

We have been saying for some time now that there is more to our sluggish economy than real estate and mortgage woes. Two of the non-obvious factors are the disruption of technology and the “Free Effect” that can render entire product or service categories obsolete, overnight. We have all seen the tables quickly turn in the field of luxury real estate marketing due to both of these factors.

For example, an incumbent market leader is being besieged by a challenger who is “out-technologizing” them on the internet and is capturing the lion’s share of the buyer leads in their market place. An example of the “Free Effect” became apparent when MLS search, previously the exclusive domain of agents, was offered as a free commodity to consumers on agent and broker websites without even having to register on the site. The combination of disruptive technology plus zero cost to consumers can have significant ripple effects on the economy in general as well as your personal economy.

We recently read a blog post by Kathy Schowe in La Quinta, CA, about a new iPhone App that does everything a business card scanner does and more. Kathy is also on the Language of Luxury Team of Experts (Desert Homes & Golf Communities). Card Munch is a FREE app that uses the phone’s camera to scan a business card and then sends it to a data center where, drum roll… a live person creates a digital version of the card. Minutes later you are notified that the digital version is ready for use with 100% guaranteed accuracy. If you have Mobile Me (Apple) it syncs with all of your contacts on all of your devices. You can also email the card to your desktop and save it in Outlook, or send it to anyone.

There are even more features that are well worth your investigation of this fine app. Card Munch was purchased by Linked In and they have integrated it with their social media platform as an optional feature. But, what is most amazing is that it can replace business card scanners that sell for up to $400, for free! We have been interested in purchasing one of these devises for years but could not justify the cost. Now, it is a must-have app!

What is more, through blogs like Kathy Schowe’s and the Language of Luxury, we are giving Card Munch free advertising because we are raving fans! No longer are there a handful of journalists that cover new tech products. With spontaneous reviews like ours, the immediacy of social media can literally make a hit out of an app overnight.

Take full advantage of disruptive technology and the “Free Effect”. Better to turn the tables on your competition than vice versa. As a luxury real estate marketing professional, reducing your overhead with the combination of new technology and free apps can lead to a stronger bottom line and a happier disposition.

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Luxury Real Estate Marketing: Peripheral Referral Marketing

May 3, 2011

As a luxury real estate marketing professional, you live and breathe real estate day in and day out. But, if you think referral marketing is primarily about real estate, think again. The best referral marketing is peripheral. Peripheral means tangential or secondary, only slightly relevant to your primary subject of real estate.

This is important to understand when it comes to staying in touch with clients who just purchased or sold a home and also with contacts in general. If you are a blogger, droning on about real estate alone will bore your audience to tears!

Traditionally, a person, couple or a family buys a new home every seven years, on average. For most people, moving is stressful. They have given quite a bit of attention and focus to real estate as a buyer or a seller. But, once they have completed the transaction how much interest do they actually have in the real estate market as a consumer? If you come at them, bombarding them with real estate related information they simple will tune you out.

Perhaps they want to keep abreast with market trends, but on an occasional basis only. Or, maybe they are interested in what the home up the street just sold for. But, after that they are more interested in their lifestyle and enjoying the locale than they are in real estate matters.

One of the masters of peripheral marketing is Ralph Lauren. They provide the outfits for the Olympics Wimbledon and the US Open Tennis Tournament. To get a visceral experience of this company’s peripheral marketing check out: L’Art de L’Automobile—Masterpieces from the Ralph Lauren Car Collection. It is an exhibit in Paris that closes on August 28. You may not be able to attend, but you can go there virtually. Be sure to click on each of the classic car photo to hear the actual engine of the car.

Ralph Lauren is not selling clothes at this exhibit. But, they are selling the affluent lifestyle, peripherally, the lifestyle that characterizes their brand. You do not have to be rich to “join” the brand; you can simply purchase a Polo shirt at Macy’s. But, more likely than not, if Ralph Lauren holds your interest as a brand, you aspire to live the affluent lifestyle.

Think of ways you can stay in touch with your sphere of influence and your audience on the periphery of real estate more so than as your core subject in your communications. If you do your chances for referrals will be much stronger.

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Luxury Real Estate Marketing: The Key to Blogging is Curiosity

April 27, 2011

Our Curious Cat Zoe

This post is dedicated to those of you who have embraced the art of journalism and have become bloggers on top of everything else required of your career in luxury real estate marketing. Consistently producing original content can be challenging at times. But, here is our secret to success: Perpetual curiosity must become your passion. To blog consistently you must become a perennial student and you must be passionate about learning new things. That is where the joy of blogging comes from- a curious mind.

Here are some quotes we found about the subject of curiosity. We hope they inspire you as much as they have moved us.

Luxury Real Estate Marketing: Are Your Clients in Your "In" Crowd?

April 20, 2011

The luxury goods market is conservatively estimated to be 359 billion dollars. It is actually up 6% from last year, according to American Express. After a long period of not spending luxury buyers are obviously getting over their “frugal fatigue which bodes well for those engaged in marketing luxury real estate.

It seems that every study from Harris Interactive to the Wharton School of Business emphasizes the importance of building a lasting relationship with your clients and prospects. Prospective clients are looking for a positive, memorable experience. They may not be ready to buy now, but they still expect you to exceed their expectations by providing them with amazing interactive experiences that you offer (online and offline) even prior to a sale or direct contact with you.

Any one of your competitors can inform their clients about what is happening in the market. But, how much interest is there for that on a continuous basis. Stand out! Don’t just send updates on new homes that come on the market! Send interesting articles about the community, new restaurants or gallery openings.

Better yet invite selected members of your sphere of influence to an art gallery opening, or a special museum exhibit. Word will get out that you are strikingly different. A warm and friendly experience increases trust which means your chances for referrals are that much greater.

Make your contacts fell like they are a part of your “In” crowd. Share with them your special secrets and insights. They will see you as the “go to person”. Emulate the ways that luxury retailers are interacting with their customers by making them part of their “In” crowd.

For example, the designer Kate Spade reveals what inspired her designs with her “special clients”. She has a section on her website called, “Behind the Curtain”. This catalogues her influences, her interests and what she thinks is “hot”. Her comments serve to build relationships with her customers and engage them in conversation.

Recently Chanel rewarded their fans on Facebook by previewing their Chanel “Rouge Coco Shine” lipstick collection and offering them the opportunity to buy it online prior to its debut in retail stores.. The “avant premiere” was featured exclusively for Facebook fans just for two days-- 4/7 & 4/9.

Ralph Lauren released their second interactive children’s story narrated by Uma Thurmond. (See previous post). It is an enchanted story that also prompts readers to buy their new products.

Donna Karan has a column on her website called Donna’s Journal, which includes topics such a women who inspire, the Urban Zen Foundation, DK talk, and ask Donna. The notable here is the Urban Zen foundation

“The Urban Zen Foundation creates, connects and collaborates to raise awareness and inspire change in the areas of well-being, empowering children and preserving cultures. We design forums, partner with existing organizations and bring together experts to define solutions and implement action.” Ten percent of the sales of Karan’s Urban Zen collection is donated to the foundation.

How can you make your existing and prospective clients part of your In" crowd?

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Luxury Real Estate Marketing: The "You" Perspective

April 14, 2011

If you need a mental boost and a new perspective on your luxury real estate marketing practice, here is a tip for you. Get the idea that you are a man or woman living in China and you are granted the wish of stepping into YOUR life, taking over YOUR exact set of circumstances including your business. See YOUR life from their perspective with fresh, appreciative eyes. Wouldn’t you jump at the opportunity of getting to be YOU?

It is all too easy to complain about the economy or wallow in self-doubt or self-pity. Get over yourself and begin your life anew.

Part of the problem you may be experiencing is a result of commoditization, which has rendered your brand of doing business virtually indistinguishable from your competition. In luxury real estate marketing, commoditization occurs when one agent or company’s service offering cannot be differentiated from another. For example, the introduction of the IDX, which gave consumers free access to the local MLS on real estate websites, commoditized that information and leveled the competitive playing field in that aspect of the business.

If you are hard pressed to articulate your extraordinary promise of value as distinct from your competition, you may be suffering from commoditization. But, do not despair! There is always a way to bounce back. The antidote to commoditization is to identify an underserved or uncontested market niche and dominate it with passion! Combining your personal passion with business opportunity is the ticket to success.

Here is the story of Zhu Jin, a 36 year old Chinese woman who seized an opportunity to rise above a sea of competition by creating a luxury service business in a highly commoditized field—the flower business. She bravely moved from being a rural flower grower, where she was faced with fierce competition, to opening a tiny flower store in an exclusive office building in the capital city of the Sichuan province, catering to high-end customers.

Zhu capitalized on her natural artistic talent and her passion, the desire to make people happy with the gift of flowers. She now has six flower stores and nearly 40 employees. To manage cost, supply and demand for exotic flowers, she reinvested her profits and now grows her own.

Zhu did not fall prey to commoditization. She found a way to deliver extraordinary value to an underserved market niche, and rendered her competition irrelevant. Imagine if she had YOUR opportunities and could become YOU instead of Zhu!

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Luxury Real Estate Marketing: Don’t Flip Out, Stick to Your Core Competence!

April 12, 2011

Keeping up with the speed of change in technology, as a luxury real estate marketing professional, can be a daunting task. But, to some extent, it has become an imperative to stay competitive. For example, new entrants in the luxury real estate field, such as tech savvy executives from corporate America, offer a new challenge to complacent incumbent market leaders who have not adapted rapidly enough to the new rules. Yet, if building strong relationships is your strength vs. deploying the latest technology you may be spinning your wheels trying to fend off this new breed of real estate agents and brokers who may not have your particular savoir faire.

Knowing your core competence is extremely important when making marketing and branding decisions. Sticking with what you know and doing it better than anyone else in your marketplace can take you farther than dabbling in aspects of the business that does not represent your authentic brand.

Cisco recently announced that it will discontinue its Flip video camera division which they purchased for $590 million in March of 2009. They spent lavishly to expand the market for the tiny video camera by having celebrity endorsements and paying for product placements on popular TV shows such as “24.” Sales increased at first, then waned as the smart phones, such as the iPhone, began to include high definition video cameras. In just two years, the Flip has practically become obsolete. Cisco CEO, Tom Chambers, declared that the company would re-focus on its core competence, corporate customers, rather than on consumers.

Apple, on the other hand is a master at producing products that consumers love. They are now expanding to include more small and midsize companies as customers through their “Joint Venture” initiative. They have overcome their technical disadvantages in this arena and are going after the incumbent market leader, Research in Motion who produces Blackberry phones.

In seeking to expand market share, it is important to maintain your focus on your core competence, especially in turbulent times. Unless you are thriving in your current area of expertise, this is not the time to expand into other aspects of the real estate business such as commercial or business opportunities. The key, right now, is to stay focused on what you know well and do best.

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Marketing Luxury Real Estate: What Is Your Added Value?

April 11, 2011

Differentiating yourself from others in your area who specialize in marketing luxury real estate comes down to adding value in your service that your competition does not. Here is an example of added value that differentiates the Ritz Carlton Dallas from all the other luxury hotels in that city.

If you are a dedicated runner and want to run in Dallas, the Ritz provides their guests with a hotel running buddy, and will also add a customized fitness and sports massage. According to Noeha Coutry, director of sales and marketing, ““By providing a running buddy, we can provide them [guests] with someone to motivate them during their runs while also providing localized trail and travel information that makes their exercise in a strange town more interesting and more comfortable.”

These running buddies are selected for their background in competitive running, and can adapt to the fitness level of the guest. The Run and Recover program starts at $205 for a one hour run and 50 minute massage and must be booked 48hours in advance. Now, if they only had a program for Yoga, we would sign up.

How can you add value to your service as a luxury real estate marketing professional?

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