The Easy Way to Stand Out from the Competition for Real Estate Success

1.3 million real estate agents operate in the U.S. 300,000+ started in the last five years. You need a serious strategy to stand out.

An immense amount of growth in the real estate industry over the last five years has heightened competition in nearly every market. Real estate success is harder to come by when more and more people are after your clients, your listing opportunities, and your chance to grow a successful business, so it's critical to separate yourself from the pack and stand out as the expert agent. And it's also easy.

Most agents are time-strapped and don't know what "down time" even looks like, so strategizing how to stand out can seem like a tall order. But, when it comes to successful real estate business ideas, it's just about highlighting your strengths and staying open to new ideas.

Veronica Figueroa of the Figueroa team sat down with us to share her own strategies. As the leader of the #1 RE/MAX team in Orlando, she knows a thing or two about standing out. She's built a brand that draws people in and is synonymous with real estate success.

Here are her two most important things:

1. What Can You Offer that Is Unique?

Determining your unique value proposition—what you have to offer your customers that other agents don't or can't is the first step. The Figueroa Team highlights their team members to help build a very authentic brand. Their marketing is highly personalized.

"We are authentic to ourselves. We are fun and quirky. That is who we are and people want to do business with us because they feel like they know us, they can trust us, and can tell we will go all in with them."

Make sure your website and collateral reflects the personality of your team.

The Figueroa Team has an "about us" section on their site that showcases the typical head shots and bios for team members, but they also have another portion to highlight the "back end." These are shots of each team member that highlight their passions. One is a foodie, one loves horseback riding—you get the idea. It's a great way to connect people with common interests and position team members with their own unique value propositions.

Leverage videos with a powerful CRM to create personal messages that build strong connections.

Veronica and her team create video messages regularly. They throw together quick videos to post on social media to answer questions and join in conversations and also incorporate them into nurture campaigns in the CRM. These videos range from welcoming new prospects to congratulating buyers on going under contract. It's an easy way to keep up the "face time" with prospects and clients while still maintaining efficiency.

Publicly celebrate team successes and wins to intrigue consumers, highlight your skillset and attract talent.

Veronica and her team know how important it is to build a brand that consumers feel. They celebrate achievements (both personal and professional) on their social channels to highlight the human side of success. When prospects see how successful they are they want to work with that team, and the same goes for talented agents who might be a great fit for the team!

The main goal is to offer prospects an experience that isn't easily duplicated. The Figueroa team knows they can stand out because their prospects got to know them, and got to see their personalities. Pull together a public relations plan for your business, and make sure your marketing efforts are showcasing your most authentic self, especially in a crowded market.

Bonus! Want some real estate business ideas from Veronica?

Here are some of the things her team uses to stand out!

• Agent DJ: That's right, one of Veronica's agents has a passion for music. His DJ hobby also helps his clients. When one of his buyers closes, he personally DJs a housewarming party at their new home. How's that for celebrating wins?
• A Crafty Closing: Another agent is an expert on all things cute and crafty. When closings come her way, she whips up something creative and personal to highlight the occasion and leave a lasting memento of her valuable service. I bet that serves as a wonderful reminder when her clients are asked about referrals or it's time to move again!

2. Never Shy Away from Innovating and Learning

You've determined what makes you and your team unique. You have a plan to play to those strengths in your marketing and communications, but the next piece is to continue your momentum with constant innovation and new sources for real estate business ideas.

"Don't get caught up in what everyone else is doing. Don't follow the shiny new thing, and remember that you can't go cookie-cutter status quo and stay ahead."

In order to set yourself apart and stay successful, you have to keep putting yourself out there and stay far away from your comfort zone.

Shake hands with the competition

Veronica hit the conference circuit hard. She hustled and introduced herself, pulled a seat up at the table where people she wanted to talk to were sitting and she made sure she was in all the places where she could connect with people who were doing great things and figure out how she could learn from them and help herself stand out in real estate. Her brand wasn't just for prospects, it was for colleagues and fellow real estate agents too. And she's built one heck of a referral business from her efforts.

Don't be scared to take risks

Don't shy away from learning and innovating. From great risks come great payoffs. The Figueroa team were some of the trailblazers who tried ZIllow's instant offers platform. She said there was a lot of backlash, but she learned so much, her team learned so much, and she ended up receiving Inman's Innovator Award for most Innovating Real Estate Team. Not bad! That award threw some serious industry street cred her way and is something they can tout for their clients too.

It's all pretty simple when you think about it. Play to your strengths, showcase your value, and surround yourself with the tools and people to help you learn and grow. The more you invest in practices that help you build strong, supportive relationships with your buyers and sellers and help them succeed, the more you stand out and stand to gain. Real estate success is yours!

To view the original article, visit the BoomTown blog.