Why Agents Need A “Brand Promise” (And Not A Slogan)
One of the first struggles for many agents or teams is putting together their slogan.
A slogan, mission statement, tagline, catchphrase, whatever you want to call it. In real estate, we know that content is king, and making a great first impression with a potential lead is imperative.
That’s because the mere process of real estate is filled with details and research. Well-written content helps to tell that story, and how you help, without overwhelming potential clients.
In fact, when done correctly, effective content can cultivate and establish the “ideal of working with your brand.”
The Basis of Effective Copy
Many agents start by imitating what they know.
That typically involves trying to write something catchy and clever, and that’s totally understandable.
In a world of “Just Do Its” and “I’m Loving Its,” who wouldn’t want to be so easily and instantly memorable?
That in mind, those slogans didn’t just come out of nowhere. They took decades, and millions of dollars, to build on themselves — to the point where something that, on paper, is rather unremarkable, becomes iconic.
Essentially, it’s not that content needs to be clever, groundbreaking, or so “outside of the box” that it no longer makes sense. It simply needs to be coherent.
This is especially true in real estate, where clarity and being able to parse through numbers and market conditions is so pivotal. In fact, it is likely why someone would want to work with an agent in the first place.
That’s why you need a brand promise.
What Is A Brand Promise?
Whenever we start the branding process, our expert copywriters focus on writing a brand promise.
These are only a few sentences, used internally, to help paint the picture of the ideal working experience that someone will have with the client in question.
It allows us to get a handle of what works for that agent, their comfort level with certain turns of phrase of statements, and the essence of what makes them unique (and a pleasure to work with for a client).
The process is that, once you have a coherent brand promise, a trickle-down effect occurs through every piece of your marketing, branding, and more.
It is a promise that you make, with yourself, your team of creatives, or between you and a client, that you can hold onto and allow it to influence every piece you craft.
More than a jumping-off point, it is something of a social contract. It occupies the role of a mission statement while skipping the fluff and serving as a more direct inspiration for other pieces.
Why Not A Slogan Or Mission Statement?
It’s not that a slogan or mission statement is bad. It’s more a question of utility.
Much like a marketing plan versus a campaign, the main point of contention with things like “slogans” or “mission statements” is its inherent permanence. You create it to use it forever.
Agents and teams spend hours, days, even months trying to hammer home the absolute best mission statement. Most of the time, it ends up being either sprawling or far too generic to leave a lasting impression.
That is why, in our eyes, the brand promise route is so much more effective.
While you could use the promise externally, it should instead be used to inform an array of seasonal and market-specific headlines you may use in your marketing. There’s less pressure to “perfect” it and allows for room to play and build on ideas as they come up throughout the life of your business.
It’s more of an issue of mindset. When a team spends that much time hammering home a mission statement, they are hesitant to change it or feel like it needs to be prominent every second someone interacts with their brand. That’s not true, though, because real estate is constantly changing.
A brand promise becomes a well you can pull from, craft content based on, and allow it to guide you like a compass during different (or difficult) periods.
When agents create slogans or statements, they want to keep them forever (because they took time). The problem is, and as we have seen, the market doesn’t stay the same forever — and your new statement may miss the mark.
So, Should I Never Have A Slogan?
No. You can have a slogan, but you should have a brand promise first.
And you shouldn’t be precious about your slogan, either, and be willing to either change it or serve it with other content so it can be appreciated in context.
Having something that can be turned to internally, and can be used as a source of inspiration, is the first step to take when it comes to crafting great content.
That’s because, as is the case with brand guidelines, anyone can pick it up and run with it.
Whether it’s a new writer or designer, a member of your team, or anyone else, it is a springboard for new ideas, not a retread of the same five words or one sentence.
Time To Craft An Effective Brand Promise?
The first thing you should do is work with a team you can trust. At Artifakt Digital, we have spent over a decade crafting brands that leave a lasting impression on their target audience.
As the world is changing, your brand messaging may need to change in kind — is your brand prepared for a turnaround in the market? It’s time to find out.
With up to date marketing trends relevant to today’s market, our report is a selection of curated content, information, and data that will give you an outline of what’s working right now in real estate marketing.
