This particular business (let’s call it Property Works) had been trading in an inner city suburb of a major city under the banner of a major franchise group when they first enlisted Barney McGrath’s help four years ago.Back then, they were getting to attend about 34-40% of all listing appraisals in the area and found they were converting about 1 in 3. That left them with about a 12-15% share of the market. Add a major re-branding and fast forward to today - Property Works have about 30% market share and the average sale price has increased by 60%.
On Barney’s initial evaluation of the local market, he found the target market was predominantly in the 35-45 age group; young, savvy, cool and sexy. This age segment also has the highest web penetration. This brought to light the first obvious issue - the brand Property Works had been operating under was perceived as old-school and didn’t match the demographic, who were more attracted to boutique and classy brands. Step one would be a new name for the business.
The concept Barney used behind the new brand was predominantly web-based. The unique message to the market was that expensive print-based marketing campaigns were unnecessary; Property Works promised to achieve excellent results with a marketing plan that would only cost $2200 instead of the $12-$15,000 campaigns their competitors pitted as “essential”. Every Property Works listing would be only advertised on the internet for the first few weeks and supported by database marketing, signage and direct mail. The message resonated with the audience and proved compelling.
This was how the new business was positioned, but it was critical the other components also backed up the promise. A new database tied into the re-branded website and regular client communications were designed to be full of valuable information with the right tone. The look and feel of the brand, website and all the associated marketing material had to be consistent with the message.
The launch of the new brand initially included a significant print component to create visibility. Today Property Works relies mainly on direct mail, as the brand has now developed good momentum. 85% of all serious buyers in the local area at any given time are on the Property Works database and 70% of all sales are to customers on that database.
These results speak for themselves; Property Works has a 95% clearance rate on properties auctioned over the past 12 months. Turnover has grown 2.5 times higher in the four years since re-branding. Property Works now has the opportunity to attend 60% of all listing appraisals and the office’s conversion rate is 50%. The average sale value has gone from about $670,000 to over $1million. The average commission rate has also increased - from 1.45%+GST to 2.2%+GST.
The other significant and positive side effect of having a more effective brand is in recruitment. Originally Property Works had only one other salesperson and had trouble attracting good agents. Now they have seven salespeople in total, some of whom have moved across from local offices that used to be the duo’s biggest competitors.
In the case of this particular business, moving to a predominantly on-line strategy proved to be a cost effective and unique selling proposition to the target market - and one that turned an average business into a dominant player in the local market in just a few years.
*Names have been changed
