In order to make yourself stand out in the Real Estate industry, you need to find your UVP. For those ofyou who haven’t come across this, it stands for UNIQUE VALUE PROPOSITION. In other words, what sets you apart in your marketplace? What makes you special? What can you offer that others can’t?
Once you figure this out, you’re ahead of the game!
Here is the story of how I found my UVP, and I hope this helps you in your business.
In my first year of real estate, I sold a few homes. I did what others suggested and I put my clients into a follow up database to ensure they would be getting regular contact from me. I sent them monthly e-mail updates and quarterly newsletters. I even sent them a fridge magnet.
Around a year later, I called to follow up since they hadn’t responded to my personal e-mails and I said “Hi, it’s Sarah Kiraly calling…”
Their response was “Sarah who?”
I said “Uh..Your REALTOR®, Sarah Kir….”
“Oh, the lady from the fridge magnet?”
WHAT!?!? How could they not remember me?
They hadn’t received ANY of my e-mails due to their spam filter (Strike ONE), they had glanced at my newsletters, but discarded them as junk mail (Strike TWO), and I was officially the lady from the fridge magnet (Strike THREE)!
I finished the call and decided to re-think my strategy, and later that week I still knew one thing for sure, which became the start of my UVP…I promise to be more than a fridge magnet.
There it was, an odd statement, but let me work backwards for a minute.
I had already determined what type of business I wanted, and that was a referral business. This is because I enjoyed building relationships and I knew I was good at it, cold calls were not my forte and I didn’t have much of an advertising budget.
With my new UVP in mind, here are a few of the changes I made:
I now call my clients on a regular basis and take the time to get to know them personally. I use my database program to note the discussions with important things to remember such as names of children and pets instead of scheduling automatic e-mails.
I send handwritten birthday cards and home purchase anniversary cards that are personal and thoughtful (the kind that I hope make it to the mantle!)
Most importantly, I made a list of things that I like spending time on such as skiing, dog walking, gardening, summer BBQs, going for drinks and more. I try to find a way to connect with every client using this list.
For example:
- Offering to help bring the front garden of a recently purchased home back to life on the first sunny day of spring.
- Inviting clients with pets to go dog walking together.
- Offering a private ski lesson to clients with kids (I am a ski instructor on my weekends off).
- Offering to cater a house warming BBQ party for home buyers, and they will sing your praise.
- And I can’t leave out catching up at local pubs near the homes that were bought.
All of these personal touches are fueled by my UVP and 6 years later, my biggest source of business is referrals! Now that I have an advertising budget, I incorporate the essence of my UVP in all of my marketing. But most important of all, I have found something to offer clients that is truly unique and much more memorable than a fridge magnet.
That’s my UVP, what’s yours? Please share your Unique Value Proposition and how it has impacted your business.
Sarah Kiraly, OREA YPN Committee Member & Guest Blogger
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