In the ebook that I’m offering for free here in the sidebar, our heroine, Marty Maven confronts the chicken or egg question all newbie agents, no matter how well they are trained, must ask themselves, “Do I promote myself to get experience or get experience that I can promote?”

I can remember vividly as a new agent reading a real estate advice column in the newspaper that was responding to a consumer’s question about how to select a real estate agent.  The answer of course was to find somebody with a lot of experience. I wonder how many other newbie real estate agents were discouraged by seeing something similar?

Frankly, I thought that was bad advice then when the boom was in full swing and is worse now in a depressed market. Here’s why.  Not all experience is the right experience. Most practicing real estate agents today built their careers during the boom years when marketing homes was easy. The tough part was getting clients.  The ones that I admire the most are the ones that worked hard for their clients, communicated well with them and quietly built a following based on a solid reputation. Most of these folks probably didn’t think of it in exactly these terms but they were also building a solid referral base that precluded the necessity of any additional marketing. Others approached the business by “building a personal brand”  and spent tons on refrigerator magnets, farming neighborhoods, glamour shots, web sites, personal brochures, bus stop benches and even billboards.

Like Marty in the story, I got my first experience sweeping up the leftover crumbs of a couple of the first type of agent. My listings were those they didn’t want to mess with.  I also helped the vets measure houses, held open houses in their listings, crawled under houses during inspections for them, did final walk-throughs on their behalf, etc., etc. until I could walk the walk as well as talk the talk.

The irony of all this is that the radical shift from a sellers market to a buyers market has left us all in the same boat.  The new emphasis on marketing will not be on marketing ourselves or competing with other agents for business, although neither necessity will go away.  The new emphasis, especially for those of us who want to control listings, is our ability to market HOMES and compete for the sale with dozens of similar listings.

In the story Marty brings some credibility to her role as a pioneer in the field because of her marketing experience in other industries.  Most of us don’t have that advantage.  However, if we build a learning community of passionate agents willing to share experiences and help each other, we can get there.   If you think that community might include you, I invite you to join the 4 Ps movement. All that is required is your name and email address. Marty’s story comes with it.

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To me the concept of the “marketing mix” has always conjured up an image of a mixing bowl where a bunch of different ingredients are combined synergistically to produce something tasty. The problem with that analogy is that it implies that when you follow the recipe things will turn out fine.

Marketing homes may more resemble a game of cards where the 4 P’s, Product, Price, Place and Promotion, represent the 4 suits, with jokers like the economy and client personalities part of the game. In other words, the skill is playing the hand you’re dealt. Occasionally you have to just fold and wait for the next hand.  Then too, sometimes you get all the aces and make a killing.

The other thing I like about this analogy is that playing cards is competitive. Especially when you are representing sellers in a buyers market,  skillful play can make all the difference.

In my particular conception of this game, the Product suit trumps all. With the Ace, King, and Queen of Product, only modest support from Price, Place and Promotion are needed.  When weak in Product you better have a strong Price card or no amount of Place or Promotion will triumph.

The vast majority of hands are neither exceptionally weak nor exceptionally strong, so a strategy and smart play  are what makes a student of the game a consistently good player or a good listing agent.

That’s what 4 P’s Real Estate is all about…students of the game sharpening their playing skills so they can be winners no matter what cards they are dealt.

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