Today, I want to talk about this thing called “MARKETING.”

When used effectively, it can assist in the sale of a product or service, and in some cases, increase the saleability and/or value of that product or service.

If you browse MLS, you’re bound to find examples of this novel concept.

Today’s real estate agents have taken marketing to a whole new level, just wait…

What do you think of when you hear the word “luxury?”

Do you think of brand names, as in luxury goods?  Louis Vuitton, Rolex, Mercedes, et al?

When you add the word “living,” and hear luxury living, do you picture Tom Brady’s house, or Richard Branson’s yacht?

What would you think if you read this caption:

Luxury living.

Hmmm….

What does that look like here in Toronto?

Drake’s house on the Bridle Path maybe?

Nope.

According to that listing above, it’s this:

–

What about the words “bright” and “spacious?”

How bright?  How spacious?

Check this out:

Beautiful!

“Filled with natural light!”

That must be some sight, eh?

Only, not so much…

That’s not really “filled with natural light,” is it?

I suppose this dark, blurry photo doesn’t help either:

Then again, this is your view:

Oh well!

I’m sure they tried to hide this in the listing, right?

Oh, no.

They actually made it the feature photo; number one of fourteen…

–

Speaking of “feature photos,” here’s a real doozie.

I mean, I’m all for giving instructions on where to find a lockbox, but I don’t know if making the lockbox location the FEATURE picture is the best marketing in the world…

–

This is marketing though, folks!

No red underlines here.  The entire thing is genius:

–

What about marketing features and amenities that you might not find elsewhere?

Not sure if this is exaggerated or not, but I like it:

–

Do any of you know the late comedian Mitch Hedberg?

He had this one joke: A friend handed me a photo and said, “Here’s a photo of me when I was younger.”  But EVERY photo of you is when you were younger!

The same can be said of this:

I’m also channeling Derek Zoolander here.

“It has to be at least…………three times this size!”

–

You know those letters that some buyers write to the sellers to try and market themselves to the sellers on offer nights?  What if we looked at the other side of the coin, and sellers started to market themselves to buyers?

By that logic, we could just take photos of a condo while the owner’s kid scrolls through his Instagram in the living room…

–

Bathrooms are tough areas of the home to market!

How about getting creative?

Like, I dunno, say, laying down on the shower floor to take a photo?

Or, you could stand up and take a photo looking down.

You just have to make sure the bathroom shows beautifully, like this one here:

–

Some real estate agents in the city are known for writing brilliant captions on the MLS listings.

Then sometimes, less is more.

Like this one:

Wow!

If that doesn’t say, “My agent is the best,” Then I don’t know what does!

–

How about information that’s not really essential to the listing?

Like this:

I’m still not sure I understand why we needed to know that the listing agent’s son has graduated, but congratulations anyway!

–

A great photo of the exterior of the house is key in marketing!

But if there are cars in the driveway, don’t worry.  Don’t bother moving them.

I mean, it’s only a $2,000,000 asset, right?

–

Speaking of exteriors, for those of you that think “luxury” and think “$3,500,000,” do you also think door?

If so, then this house with plywood and tape in place of an actual door may not be for you…

–

I typically like photos of the inside of the unit, but that’s just me.

How about a photo of the outside of the building?

But wait………..what if people don’t know which unit is for sale?

Well, that’s why Microsoft invented Paint!

Look at the home-owner on the balcony.  I wonder if she knew somebody was taking a photo?

–

And last but not least, folks, how about a listing agent describing “marketing” in the listing itself?

Also, what if we flat-out lied about something, but disclosed our lie in advance – would that make it acceptable?

I have no clue what to make of this…

–

Have a great weekend, everybody!

I have a real doozie planned for Monday.  It’s one of those blogs that upon clicking “Publish” the night before, I just know the next day is going to be tumultuous.  Do you think organized real estate is ready for a complete breakdown of an “offer night,” with all offers and details disclosed?

Until then…