Marketing Through Trust
Something I talk about a lot is the fact that people will not do business with you unless they know you, like you, and trust you. If you are driven to work relationally, you likely know people that you like and that like you, but building the key is to build trust with them so that they will refer you business.
When I was first licensed in 2003, my grandmother passed away, and I remember visiting my aunt who co-owned her home thinking “this is my shot, this is a slam dunk. Of course they’ll have their niece and granddaughter sell the property!” Boy, was I wrong.
They definitely knew me. They definitely liked me. But, they didn’t trust me. It doesn’t matter how well you know someone, if they don’t trust you, they won’t hire you.
Now, marketing is something that can gain you the trust you are looking for, but there are so many misconceptions about what marketing is. A lot of people think marketing is just a logo, color scheme, or a font -- that’s branding. Marketing is how you can use your branding and your experience to get your contacts to trust you in your business.
Consistency is Key
You can’t just drip out an email campaign or a mailer and think you are marketing. You have to create a system that is managed and consistent so that people trust you. Something I’ve done a lot of research on is the value of trust. How do you get people to trust you? Do they see your name on a postcard or in an email and immediately trust you know how to do business?
Communication Methods
I am passionate about using traditional mail to connect with my contact list. One of the ways I do that is through postcards. I create postcards that are relevant to the needs of my contact list and create a personal yet professional message to reach the people I mail them to. I do this to get them thinking about why they like me, why they want to work with me, why do they want to trust me?
I send out monthly email newsletters with videos on relevant subjects to share my knowledge with my contact lists so they know that I am experienced and a professional in my industry.
One new method I love is Social Media. I am a huge fan of social media because it gives you the ability to market yourself personally and professionally. This lets your clients see a different side of you from your business and professional life. You are able to share your interests and passions with your clients while sharing your business to your followers.
Personal AND Professional
Marketing needs to be about two things: Personal and Professional. Personal is the character side of you, it’s who you are. Professional is the competency: are you good at what you do?
Are you only posting about listings?
It’s time to get real: The only people who care about your listings are the people who are buying or selling. While I’m not saying to stop marketing your listings, I’m saying that if you want to build relationships, you need to post more than just your properties. People need to know more about you and what you do to service your clients. Think of marketing in the eyes of your clients -- What does it feel like to work with you?
Think about marketing as three categories:
Personal: information about yourself, what you do and like, stories with your clients
Professional: information about your industry, sharing your knowledge of the real estate market, educating
Real Estate: your listings or sales
If you aren’t getting the referral business you are looking for. You aren’t giving your contacts a reason to trust you. Choose your marketing wisely. Personal and Professional marketing will build the trust you are looking for with your contact list.