I stumbled upon a small town coffee shop while skiing up north a little over a year ago.
The name of this coffee shop totally inspired me and the direction I decided to take my business. I walked through the jingling door of Contrast Coffee Co. and on the wall behind the counter where you order, was the definition of the word contrast.
Contrast: The state of being strikingly different. This is such a powerful definition, I almost considered changing my business name to something along these lines (still considering?!?!)
This marketing genius of a coffee shop owner nailed it on the head of how to stand out from the crowd. Now I admit, I am picky about my coffee (and coffee shops) so we passed a few others before arriving here! But this one really stood out! Yes, there are a million coffee shops on this planet. They all have lattes, pretty coffee sleeves, Jack Johnson-esque music playing in the background and usually some kind of comfy seating! But I wanted to stop here!
I realized no matter how saturated you think your industry is, (how many “coffee shops” are on your block), you can still stand out! By doing this, you will start to attract your ideal clients! So how can you apply this in your real estate business? Find your “CONTRAST”. Decide what makes you different. Don’t overthink this, just figure out what makes you, YOU! Start showing this personality in your social media, your marketing materials and when building new relationships.
Let’s look at this example, Say you are in the market to buy a house and you reach out to two different real estate agents, Nick and Jack. Nick sends you a generic email telling you how he loves helping buyers and wants to set you up on a home search. Jack sends you a video, introducing himself, telling you he has 3 kids, he loves classic cars, and he brews his own beer in his free time. He asks you about yourself, sends you the info you need to get started and tells you he wants to make sure you are a good fit to work together. Who would you be more likely to want to work with? The person who sent you a generic “first contact” email or the one who took the time to tell you about himself and get to know you before diving headfirst into business. Who is standing out and building trust with you up front?
It can be as simple as that! Figure out what makes you, you and what you are passionate about. Give this personal touch when you’re thinking about how you’re marketing yourself (especially on social media) and how you communicate with potential clients. This doesn’t mean your ideal client has to love the same things as you, but they might be someone who appreciates you sharing your personality, therefore making it easier to form connections and build the know, like, and trust factor. At the same time, it will help repel the people who would not be a good fit to work. And trust me, that will save you so much time in the end, leaving you more time to attract clients who will LOVE working with you!
Cheers to finding your CONTRAST!
Chelsea
