Wednesday, February 03, 2010

Agents aren't normally this shy


OK - I've had a chance to sleep on it now.

Here's my "considered" opinion about winning the Primelocation property blog awards.

Where are all the agents - commercial or residential - why are they not embracing this opportunity?

Some people may think I write about pretty trivial issues, but I do so because my clients & friends are interested in the intimacies of my lifestyle out here. That shouldn't diminish the power of blogging in the property arena.

Want a great example of a serious topic (and a brilliant use of blogging) then click here

These "Notes from Davos" were written by Colin Dyer the CEO of Jones Lang Lasalle. In them he says:

This ‘blog’ was also an experiment in ‘Connections.’

I summarised what I saw, and made it clear when I was giving you my opinion. It gave me a small insight into the life of a journalist, including the feeling I have today, that yesterday’s news is quickly stale!

Want another great example of how a brand can be fortified and stand out from the crowd... then I'd point you towards Chesterton Humberts, read their success story here.

It's not just blogging. A couple of weeks ago I replied to a "tweet" from a journalist looking for comments on a property issue and a few days later found myself quoted in The Independent.

I'm just a one man band "buying agent" in one of the remotest parts of SW France.

OK - I have a lifetime of experience in property marketing but if I can get national press coverage and win a prestigious award like this then imagine what some of the big players in the property world could do!

Social media - it's here to stay and it can bring personality to your brand.

Used correctly it will become an integral part of your marketing strategy and spend (although use it poorly and you'll do untold damage to your business).

Don't be shy now folks.

www.cognacproperty.com

3 comments:

Alison said...

Agree with you, Graham.
But it's a fine line between putting serious content on a blog and recounting all the trivialities of life.

On ours (LTPS), I try to put a solid piece of information as well as a few personal comments, even if the solid piece of info is that you can still buy your knickers from M&S though you live permanently in France...

Anonymous said...

It's a fine line between sharing anecdotes, stories and events from your daily life as an agent, and breaching clients' confidentiality....

graham downie said...

That's a very valid point.

My view is that although it's a very fine line it's also a pretty clear one.

While publicity may be "oxygen" for agents that's not the case for the vendor or purchaser.

Use common sense though and it's possible to be topical and interesting without breaching any confidences.