There is one word that opens more doors than any other in commercial real estate. Do you know what it is? It is an adjective and it might very well describe you. You might have made a significant investment of time and money to feel comfortable using this word to describe yourself. You might know this word already, but do you know the fastest and easiest ways to get others to ascribe this word to you and thereby open their doors to you? Behind those doors are high-lifetime value accounts for you and your company. The one word that opens more doors than any other in commercial real estate is Expert, with a capital E. If you want to know the fastest and easiest way for you or your company to become known as THE EXPERTS, then read on…
Not long ago, I was attending a commercial real estate networking event, where another company owner and broker approached me. He told me his company had just spent a considerable amount of money on a consultant. He wanted to find out how to best influence his target market to perceive his company as the market experts. His company was told they needed to write and publish a book on commercial property leasing and/or commercial property investments to become instantly recognized as the market experts.
The expensive consultant was right. Journalism is one of the two fastest ways to be perceived as an expert on any subject. The other is to teach. Teaching however, is far less visible to the general public than journalism. How do I know that he was right? Because, for many years, I used journalism to convey the message that I am the market expert. First, as a regular columnist for the Commercial Property News (San Francisco) and later for the Bay Area’s largest independently owned newspaper. This was in addition to writing for my own company’s tabloid publication. Getting those columns published netted me some very large commissions, both directly and indirectly.
Marketing has always been at the heart of my success and can be at the heart of yours, too. If you use journalism as a way to market yourself, it will help you stand out from the competition and save you time scouring the market looking for qualified prospects. This could mean becoming a regular columnist for a CRE news source or by publishing your own book. Whatever you choose, using journalism is the fastest and easiest way to become THE EXPERT.