“Undisruptable”: How to avoid becoming an obsolescent realtor in a digital world
October 23, 2001 was the day the iPod was released by Apple.
In Canada, all the Tom, Dick and Harrys who led the radio broadcasting world didn’t actually notice or give it merit until years later when the habits of listeners began to change. Consumers no longer needed the radio to learn about new songs or hear the mix they like the most. iPods offered convenience, spontaneity and instant gratification. All things the radio did not offer at the time.
But radio broadcasters weren’t changing, and the introduction of the iPod was set to make the radio industry redundant. Everyone was saying it. If you worked in radio, you couldn’t open a newspaper without reading about how your job was going to be replaced by this digital phenomenon.
It took awhile for us to realize: the key to combat this new consumer habit was relevancy. Sure, a person could find any song, but the purpose of radio (back then, let’s not debate the state it’s in now), was to also give you local information like news and weather, personalities in the morning that were your friends driving to work, as well as a mix of songs that people didn’t have time to sit down and make on iTunes.
We were not only music players, we were entertainers. We were forced to change and really focus our energy on the value we brought to the listener more than anything else. Otherwise, it’s true -- we were just an outdated iPod.
Does this sound familiar at all?
Right now, all you’re hearing is how iBuyer innovation is going to replace real estate agents. That companies like Zillow and Open Door are set to take your jobs.
So tell me, CEO of your own business, what ways are you brainstorming to counter the convenience, spontaneity and instant gratification of this digital world we live in?
Exercise:
List all the things you do for your clients.
Are any of them so unique it’s impossible for a button on a computer to compete?
Market the hell out of that.
The last thing the real estate industry should be doing is ignoring inevitable change. Please do not take 7 years of head burying before you realize you must promote your value.
Your clients love you because it’s you and the person you are. If you are doing a great job for them, they will refer you before they tell their friends to go push a button. We are in the business of making families’ dreams come true. Your worth is in the humanity of it. Build a marketing position on that, and you’ll be riding a high frequency when the dust settles.
I’d love to hear your thoughts. Leave a comment below.
Until then, chin up, keep your feet moving … and burn the white flag.
sz
Copyright 2020 - Shelley Zavitz Realty