We’re very proud that Pacific Union International’s longtime friends and partners at 1000watt have launched their first book.
“Turn On” is a collection of writing by the oh-so-smart principals behind 1000watt, a marketing, design, and strategy firm focused on real estate.
Aimed at an audience of brokers, agents, and folks who make their living helping real estate professionals succeed, their observations and insights on branding, marketing, and the real estate industry are forward-looking and on point.
They also pull few punches and relate their advice in straightforward, humorous, and often snarky ways (which we love).
An excerpt about branding:
Branding isn’t about pulling a slogan out of some slogan grab bag. It’s not about letting your website vendor or marketing guy scribble the same tried and true words and phrases they bestowed on others.
Branding is not about presenting yourself as someone or something you would like others to think you are in hopes that someday you might embody it. Or worse, fool people into thinking that’s who you are. … A brand isn’t created. It already exists. A brand is your morals. Your beliefs. The natural organic culture of your organization. It is the lines you draw in the sand that you would never cross. Not even at gunpoint.
Thoughts on agent jargon:
If you’re branding yourself as a “top producer,” what is it that you produce? What does this term mean to the user? What is your site doing to support that claim and extend a top production experience to the user? If you are a market specialist, what does that mean? What is a market anyway? This is an industry term that means nothing to a person who lives, buys and sells inside cities, towns, villages and neighborhoods – not markets. When you claim to be a market specialist, how are you extending that claim on your website in a profound way so that your positioning statements are supported?
And here’s some commentary that really resonates with our digital media and content team:
Social media is not a cosmetic for fundamental business blemishes. In fact, it may actually aggravate them. A bad blog is worse than no blog. … New applications are great, but that’s the easy part. Content creation is the hard part. It’s less sexy, but it is what will win in the long run. This applies both to online real estate companies and brokerages.
Want to read more? Here’s how to get “Turn On”:
- Pick up the print edition at Blurb.
- Buy the Kindle edition at Amazon.com.
- Download it from iTunes.
- Or, for the best deal, download the ebook for free – all it’ll cost you is a sign-up to 1000watt’s email newsletter, which we actually consider a bonus.