Building Trust as a Real Estate Agent

“Many factors go into how a person makes an integrity assessment. One of the more subtle, but nevertheless very real, factors is consistent congruence. It takes only one disconnect, whether it is a messy bathroom, a bad cup of coffee, or an employee with a bad attitude. Anything that might be perceived as inconsistent with the first-class quality you are trying to project will plant a seed of distrust. Once planted, this seed is difficult to weed out.”

—Matt Oechsli, Influence: The ART of SELLING to the AFFLUENT

Standing out from the crowd is not easy. You probably won’t be competing by offering a lower commission or access to exclusive listings. Instead, to differentiate yourself from other agents, you must rely upon branding, marketing, and your charm. In this chapter, I describe how to craft a memorable, authentic brand using your CRM.

Top of Mind in Your Market

If someone asks a friend of yours, “Do you know of a good real estate agent?” you want them to reply with your name. The more likely that is, the more mindshare you have with that person. Your goal is to maximize this mindshare within your sphere of influence and the geographic farm you choose.

You’re never going to achieve 100% market share. For example, imagine your mother has two children who are real estate agents; you’ll probably never capture more than 50% of her attention when she’s considering which one is the best.

An average homeowner lives in their home for about 10 years before moving¹. When they do decide to move, you want to be the first agent they call. That’s why it’s so important to stay top of mind within your sphere of influence. Mindshare means something slightly different for your geographic farm. While people might have your name on the tip of their tongue, like your friends, if they are ever in need of an agent, it is tremendously convenient to select an agent who already dominates that neighborhood. If you have listings in a neighborhood, your yard signs are the perfect way to build mindshare.

In both cases, you must build brand awareness before someone needs your services. Then, when they decide they need a real estate agent, you are the agent they think of. When someone is already convinced you are the right agent for them, it makes converting them into a client so much easier.

You might also consider targeting market segments such as first-time homebuyers, probate sales, new-home sales, hobby farms, and more. Focusing on these areas reduces your competition. When you become the top real estate agent in that niche, word-of-mouth spreads—not just among the people you’re marketing to, but also among other agents. This boosts your chances of receiving referrals.

By focusing on a specific market segment, you can better understand its needs, find the right words to sell your services to these clients, and learn how to handle their objections. You will also gain experience with the typical problems that arise in this type of deal. This approach helps you build relationships with lenders and vendors who understand that particular market segment. These factors lead to greater efficiency and increase the likelihood that a deal will close and result in a commission for you. Building a consistent lead pipeline is essential for your long-term success. If you take the time to thoroughly understand your market niche, you’ll be better equipped to identify which lead-generation strategies are effective and which are not.

You can utilize the categories feature in your CRM to identify the market segment each lead belongs to. For example, you might add the two categories “Buyer, FirstTime” to leads who are first-time homebuyers. This helps you target those leads for specific automated time-release email or printed letter drip campaigns. It also enables you to reach out to leads in a particular market segment with targeted offerings, such as hosting seminars for new homebuyers. Attending bridal shows to inform engaged couples about the benefits of buying a home is another option. You could also offer advice on credit repair. An excellent source of leads is upscale apartment complexes—you can post flyers near entrances and slip your promotional flyers under tenants’ doors. All these marketing methods aim to meet the specific needs of people who haven’t yet purchased a home.

Once you master one niche, you can then pursue a related niche. Use the experience you’ve gained and the connections you’ve built. For example, you might approach a homebuilder to explain your marketing efforts for new home buyers and express your interest in taking on a few new home listings, especially entry-level homes. Show how your current marketing strategies can benefit the new home builder by generating qualified leads who might not normally consider buying a new home.

Crafting a Real Estate Brand

One way to differentiate yourself from other agents is to specialize in a specific town or city. By building a deep understanding of what is unique about living in the communities you have selected for your geographic specialty, you are providing exceptional value that other competing agents can’t. You should include your geographic niche in all your marketing materials. This is particularly important for internet marketing, as it allows search engines to better understand the region you serve. Be realistic about your market area. If you don’t want to drive more than 20 minutes to show a home, draw a circle around your house representing a 20-minute drive, and pick a market area within that circle. Your prospects will appreciate that you know and understand local market conditions. The deeper your knowledge, the more valuable your services are. Each neighborhood has its own charm and personality, and your understanding of what makes it special makes you the best-qualified agent to buy and sell within that neighborhood.

Fit the Family Secret: When you show your buyer a listing, take the time to understand what they are looking for, not only in features, but from the community. Take time to ask about resources they might appreciate such as churches, schools, hospitals, shops, and even consider ages of the children and their needs. By taking a holistic approach to the home selection process, you are connecting your buyer with the neighborhood in ways that build enthusiasm for not just the home, but the community as well.

An understanding of local market conditions is essential in getting clients. We can see this in the National Association of REALTORS’ Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers, which consistently finds that “knowledge of the neighborhood” is a top reason clients choose an agent. This neighborhood knowledge outranks factors like personal recommendations or commission rates. Becoming an expert in local listings, sales, and market trends makes your services more valuable.

Another way to stand out is to associate yourself with a specific charity or cause. Doing so enhances your credibility and trustworthiness. This is what social psychologists call the “Halo Effect.” In his foundational book on persuasion, Influence, Dr. Robert Cialdini explains that a single positive characteristic, such as being charitable, creates a “halo” that makes people view you as trustworthy, likable, and competent overall. For instance, you might volunteer at the local animal shelter. People will associate you with that worthy cause, helping you stand out.

The best causes are those you have a personal connection to. For example, if you are interested in the arts, you could become a patron of the local artist community. You could contact artists looking to showcase their work and arrange to display it in your empty listings. You could place cards describing each artist, where they are located, and how the local artist community helps make the city you love so vibrant. For your open houses, you could even spotlight a specific artist and invite them to mingle with visitors or work on their art at the open house. Throw in some champagne, and you have turned a plain vanilla open house into a memorable experience.

Another way to stand out is to identify what makes you unique and leverage that to set yourself apart from the other agents. For example, if you specialize in selling hobby farms, your marketing materials could have that cowboy vibe, showing photos of you in your Stetson and boots.

Perhaps you cater to the needs of current and former military service members. If you are retired military, that can be an additional connection that increases your value to clients. Military and former military clients have unique needs. For example, Veterans Affairs (VA) loans are different from conventional loans. Active military service members are often transferred frequently, which means they should select a home that can be quickly resold without loss. Finally, for retired military veterans, the proximity to VA hospitals and veterans’ services is also essential. Civilians might not understand or appreciate these requirements. This means a military veteran real estate agent might be the better option for a veteran buyer.

Your branding is the professional identity you create to stand out in the market. It should identify who you are and what you do in a way that is instantly recognizable. Your branding should be included in the emails you send, in each letter you print and mail, and on your website’s masthead. You should also use the same branding across marketing materials such as flyers, yard signs, business cards, and magnetic car signs. You can also use your branding on promotional items like pens, refrigerator magnets, and any other items you can think of. When someone thinks of a local real estate agent, you want them to think of you, and your branding is one of the simplest ways to accomplish that goal.

A truism in advertising is that repetition breeds familiarity. This is why it is important to maintain consistent branding across all your marketing materials. We trust what is familiar—a concept Daniel Kahneman calls “cognitive ease”—in his book Thinking, Fast and Slow. He explains that familiar, easy-to-process things feel more likable, more accurate, and safer.

Branding typically includes your franchise or company logo, your name and title, and a portrait photo of you. The key is consistency. You want people in your neighborhood to recognize your yard sign and your face, and to associate you with successfully selling real estate in that neighborhood. If you were to play an association game, people in your farm area should reflexively have your name on the tip of their tongue when asked for the first thing that pops into their head when I say the word “real estate agent”. If you are at the grocery store, you want people to recognize you and feel free to approach you with any real estate related question.

You might also want to include a catchphrase that identifies the market area you serve or any niche you specialize in. What makes you special, unique, and different from all the other agents out there? Perhaps you specialize in a specific city or town? Maybe you specialize in new home buyers, finding veterans’ homes, and so on. Avoid being too narrow, as it will limit your market and mindshare. So, think about what is unique about you—it might even be something about your personality or history. For example, if you are an agent in Charleston and have a charming southern accent, you might use the phrase “Selling Charleston’s Charm”.

Your real estate CRM vendor will help you build a signature and letterhead and install them in your CRM. The signature goes at the end of your emails and printed letters, right after the word Sincerely. The letterhead is placed at the top of the email or printed letter.

The Scan the Scribble Secret: Emails often feel automated and cold. To stand out you can add a handwritten signature. This small detail makes your communication feel more personal and professional. Sign your name on white paper and take a picture. Upload that picture to your CRM’s signature editor, and now you can include it to all your email and print communications.

You provide your company logo, a portrait photo of yourself, and your contact information to your CRM vendor. They will then take it from there and create a letterhead for you. If you have a website, they will review it to understand the fonts, colors, and other design elements you are using. Once installed, your emails, printed letters, service reports, and real estate calculator results will automatically include your branding. Look for a CRM vendor that offers a complete, complimentary onboarding service (sometimes called a concierge setup), including installation of your professional letterhead and signature.

You might be hesitant to include a portrait photo of yourself, but I do recommend including it with all your branding materials. Not only are you selling real estate, but you are also selling yourself. A large part of your job is to meet new people. Your photo makes it easier for people to recognize you when they meet you for the first time. It also helps people feel comfortable approaching you in public places, like the grocery store. You are a local real estate expert, and it is only natural that strangers will ask you for advice. By using your photo in your branding, you are giving people permission to approach you and ask real estate questions, even if they do not know you personally.

Not everyone has movie-star looks, which is why I recommend hiring a professional photographer for the photos you include in your branding. You may want to bring a few outfits to your photo shoot so you can try out a few looks. Have some photos taken with a blank background and others with something in the background. Each photo style works best for different types of advertising, and having both available lets you choose the one that works best based on the situation.

Do you have a distinctive look? For example, do you always wear a white shirt with your initials monogrammed on the front pocket? Perhaps you always wear a cowboy hat. Your photos should reflect your genuine personality so people recognize you. It is not helpful to have a promotional photo that has been so heavily touched up that you are no longer recognizable. You should use recent photos for this exact reason. Older photos might look more flattering, but they will not help people recognize you.

Branding gives you a consistent look and a professional appearance. People receive a lot of emails on any given day, and seeing your photo and company logo increases the credibility of your emails and makes them more easily recognizable to people who already know and trust you.

I recommend keeping your branding recognizable and straightforward. People will see your branding in emails on their phones, on yard signs, and even on refrigerator magnets. Sometimes your branding will be tiny, like on a pen, and at other times it will be large, like when painted on the side of a truck. Simple, clear branding will produce better results than cluttered branding.

Your signature, which is at the bottom of your letters, is the perfect location for your name, company name, title, license number, phone number, and email address. I recommend including a single phone number and email address. Multiple phone numbers can be confusing and often lead people to call numbers you do not answer. Your signature is also the best place to add any required legal disclaimers.

Consider creating two versions of your signature. Your email signature can include clickable social media icons, leveraging the digital format. For printed letters, a simpler signature is more effective. It saves space, helping keep your letters to a single page, and avoids the clutter of non-functional icons.

Lead with the Letterhead Secret: Many CRMs offer a letterhead feature which allows you to place your company logo and portrait photo at the top of your correspondence. That way, this information is immediately visible when someone starts reading your email. Putting your branding at the bottom in your signature is not ideal. Most people decide if they want to delete or read an email within just a second or two and won’t bother scrolling down to see your email signature. So, to maximize the chances someone will read your email, make sure your branding is at the top of all your emails by using the letterhead feature of your CRM.

Your voicemail prompt is part of your branding as well. You should clearly identify yourself and your organization in your voicemail prompt. One challenge is using multiple phone numbers, each one with its own voicemail box. I recommend that you include your mobile phone number and minimize giving out other phone numbers. That way, you can quickly answer your calls, retrieve your voicemails, and respond promptly. If you have a phone number you do not check often, make sure to state that clearly in your voicemail prompt for that number. When a new prospect calls you, your ability to respond quickly is a mark of professionalism. While there are many reasons why you are the best real estate agent in the world, you should never forget that every real estate agent in your local market can do precisely what you do, which is buy and sell homes. Never forget that your replacement is just a phone call away.

One common question agents ask about branding is whether it’s worth having their own domain name. If you own your domain, you can use it for your website and email—for example, info@SallySellsTexas.com. For agents just starting out, I recommend getting a free Gmail address and using the website your broker provides. As you grow, you might decide it’s time for your own domain name. For email, I suggest using Google Workspace to host your custom domain email. The cost is around $100 a year, and it offers numerous benefits, including top-tier spam detection and the ability to sync contacts and calendars with Google.

You have various options for your website, from simple to a full Internet Data Exchange (IDX) site. An IDX website enables you to display MLS listings on your site. While a powerful feature, it is quite technical and involves setup and maintenance fees. Regardless of which option you choose, always own your domain name personally. This way, you keep your domain name if you decide to switch hosting companies.

If you are working within a team, you may want to use a team photo in your branding. In that situation, I recommend using a role-based email address, such as info@SallySellsTexas.com. A role-based email address is one associated with a job function, department, or group within an organization, rather than an individual. The advantage of a role-based email address is that it allows any team member to use it. So, there is no expectation that a specific person will be reading that email box. This allows the team to delegate activities to different staff members. It also has the added advantage of being fixed, even if your staff might change over time. For example, if you lose one assistant and hire another, the email address remains the same.

Small Talk with Business Cards

When practical, you should match the branding and contact information of your business cards with your other branding. Unified branding provides you with multiple opportunities to build recognition, which in turn builds trust. When a potential client sees your face repeatedly on websites, park benches, emails, and your business card, you are more universally recognizable. Not only did you greet them at an open house, but your image appears on listing after listing as they search online. You are everywhere. You live and breathe this market, and you are the person they want in their corner when they need an agent.

How much contact info should you provide on your business cards? You will want to have your name, title, license number, professional designations, and your business mailing address. If practical, include just one website, one email address, and one phone number. The simpler you make it for someone to reach you, the more likely you are to connect with them quickly. Providing too many options causes indecision paralysis and second-guessing.

Noted Calling Card Secret: Leave the back of your business card blank so you can jot a personal note during conversations. This transforms a generic card into a memorable, customized reminder of your interaction. (Make sure your selected card stock will take pen and pencil, so no shiny backs).

In the real estate business, speed is everything. If someone calls you and you fail to answer, you are allowing that lead to shop around and find another agent who is not too busy to respond. Aim to return missed calls within 5 minutes when possible. Your broker may require an office phone number in addition to your mobile number on your business cards. If that is the case, make sure you have an easy way to access your voicemails remotely, preferably by having them forwarded to you via email. That way, you can respond to any voicemail within just a few minutes.

The same applies to text messages. It can be tempting to use an autoresponder—an automated prewritten reply sent when a message is received—but be careful with this type of technology. If a lead is at the point of sending you a text, they are looking to have a conversation with you personally. We are all used to the inherent delays in text communication, so don’t feel like you need a robotic response to explain that you are busy. The last thing you want to do is give them the impression that you are too busy for them. The impression of productivity can be a good thing, but you don’t want a new lead thinking about all the other clients you might be prioritizing over them when they are shopping for a real estate agent.

Although business cards are typically exchanged one at a time, situations such as trade shows or networking events may involve collecting multiple cards at once. In these cases, the easiest way to enter them into your database is to take a photo of the card using a business card-scanning smartphone app. These apps use Optical Character Recognition (OCR) to convert the information on the business card into a contact record on your phone.

Business cards are a great way to verify that you’ve accurately captured a prospect’s contact information. However, some situations make this difficult. For example, when you provide your business card, but you don’t receive one in return. In this case, you should not rely on your prospect to reach out first. Instead, you need to take proactive steps to confirm their details. One capture method is using the “handshake” or “bump” feature on your smartphone. This allows two phones to exchange contact information wirelessly. For a more old-fashioned digital handshake, you can email or text your prospect and ask them to reply. Having a phone number is typically more helpful than an email. This is because a phone number gives you three ways of reaching someone: call, text, or leave a voicemail.

It is important that your prospect replies to your communication to verify you’ve captured the correct information. This simple back-and-forth will also improve the chances that your future messages will get past any spam filters.

Despite the availability of these modern digital options, exchanging a physical business card still carries symbolic value and appeals to clients who appreciate traditional professionalism. For this reason, you should always provide your business card to everyone you meet, even at open houses and showings.

Consider leaving your cards at local businesses that experience high traffic. Apartment complexes, local hardware stores, banks, and moving companies are all prime candidates, but you could also try your dentist’s office, the local library, and restaurants. You’ll want to get permission from the establishment, of course, but even asking the question could lead to a fruitful conversation with a potential lead or referral source. The practice of leaving business cards in public places is long established. While a passive approach like that doesn’t give your natural charisma and salesmanship a chance to shine the way it would at an open house, it’s just one more place for members of the community to learn your name.

Blogs to Build Authority

One way to build your local reputation is to create and run a blog on social media platforms such as Facebook, LinkedIn, and X. This also helps increase traffic to your website from people searching for local information. A regularly updated blog written in an informational or conversational style will give you the best results. When updating your blog, avoid creating or reposting generic content. Instead, focus on topics important to the local area. Some examples would be writing about local real estate market conditions, such as just-listed and just-sold properties, new housing developments, or changes in mass transit. Your blog is an ideal place to feature a review of a neighborhood donut shop or to announce the opening of a new restaurant or brewery. Your blog can also promote important organizations or events. For example, if you volunteer at the local animal shelter, you could write about a pet who is looking for their forever home.

The Blog the Block Secret: Write blog posts highlighting local businesses and attractions instead of only focusing on real estate. This positions you as a community ambassador who is willing to build relationships with business owners and locals.

You should also consider video blogging on YouTube and TikTok. The advantage of video blogging is that it can reach a larger audience. You should convert the transcript of your video into a text portion of your blog entry so that Google can index your words. That way, you get the benefits of both video and text blogging. Another option is a podcast, which is an audio-only blog.

Blogging takes time. However, nearly all real estate is naturally seasonal. I suggest focusing on blogging during your slow months. For example, in many areas, summer is the busiest season, while winter tends to be the slowest. Therefore, consider blogging during the winter months. You can accumulate your blog entries and spread them out over the year.

As a real estate professional, your personal and business lives are intertwined. You should assume that anything you do online in your personal life can be traced back to your business. Be careful when you post comments on social media. If you would not be comfortable with a client seeing it, do not post it.

Be especially careful with comments that could be perceived as discriminatory, since real estate professionals must comply with strict fair housing laws. Any written comment could become evidence in a lawsuit against you. Keep in mind that online posts can be discovered years later and linked to you, even if you thought they were anonymous. A good rule of thumb is to never post anything online you wouldn’t want to see on the front page of your local newspaper.

Fire & Brimstone Briar Secret: Avoid posting on social media about divisive topics which can harm your personal brand, such as politics or religion.

When you create content, ensure it’s something people want to read. Would you read it yourself? How about your own mother? Would she read it? If the answer is yes, then you’ve got something valuable to share on your blog.

Marketing That Creates Trust

Many people believe that marketing is mainly about promoting the process of buying or selling a home. However, most of your efforts should be directed toward raising awareness of you as a results-driven real estate agent. This requires a multi-layered approach that builds familiarity and trust. To achieve this, adopt a marketing strategy that emphasizes building your personal brand.

A simple way to advertise is to turn your car into a mobile billboard by attaching a magnetic sign. This method builds awareness as you drive through town, turning your daily routines into passive marketing. People will recognize you and might even stop to ask a real estate question, creating opportunities for spontaneous encounters. When you’re working a geographic farm, hosting an open house, or putting up directional signs, your car becomes a noticeable advertisement. Your clearly marked vehicle also helps clients identify you when you’re waiting for them at a showing. When they arrive and see your sign, they feel more at ease. Make sure the logo and your photo are large enough to be seen from afar, and ensure every word is clear so no one is tempted to tailgate you just to jot down your phone number.

As your business grows and you have more capital, you might consider a full vinyl wrap or purchasing a branded moving truck. A truck with a full vinyl wrap serves as a large, mobile advertisement. You can offer the truck to all your clients, including past clients. This benefit is especially attractive to first-time homebuyers or clients with limited financial resources. While the truck is in use, it provides free advertising in that neighborhood. To promote fairness, you might ask anyone using the truck to fill it with gas when they are finished. Although the truck will be used for moves only part of the year, its main benefit comes from parking it in a busy area within your geographic farm. The truck functions as a mobile billboard and is especially useful in areas where yard signs or billboards are restricted by local regulations. You can also use the truck to deliver staging items, clear clutter from listings, and support promotional activities, such as handing out pumpkins in the fall. When comparing the annual cost of a used moving truck to that of a billboard of similar size, the truck is often less expensive and retains its resale value.

You can also build name recognition by providing marketing materials that prospects or former clients would keep. Consider ordering refrigerator magnets with your contact information and branding. You could put a magnet on the refrigerator of each listing and in every house you help sell. For a more ambitious campaign, you could send out an annual refrigerator magnet with timely local information, such as the high school football schedule. While the refrigerator is a fantastic location, a good secondary spot is the furnace and circuit breaker panel, where it can be discovered over time. Custom pens with your contact information are another common and effective promotional item. They are practical, durable, and help promote your name to prospects and their friends in ways business cards do not. If you give a pen to a seller at closing and they later leave it at their bank, your brand is now in the hands of someone new. Small pads of paper with your branding also serve a dual purpose. You can hand out the pads to your clients so they can jot down their impressions of the homes you show them. You can also use them yourself, and any sheet you hand to someone automatically contains your contact information.

Another powerful way to build trust is by investing directly in your community. Billboard advertising, including park bench or bus bench signs, is an effective way to build brand awareness in a specific geographic area. While this form of mass advertising takes time to produce results, it makes sense once your business reaches a particular scale. Sponsoring a local kids’ sports team or advertising on the back walls of a school baseball field generates goodwill with parents, who may be more inclined to use your services.

You can extend this strategy by sponsoring local arts companies and school activities, especially those with newsletters that reach your target neighborhood. You can also pursue alternative forms of advertising that demonstrate civic-mindedness. Adopting a stretch of highway to keep it free of litter is a free form of advertising that associates you with a worthy cause. Similarly, many parks seek benefactors for improvements like benches, trails, and playground equipment, recognizing donors with a small plaque. These activities establish your reputation as someone who cares about the local community, thereby strengthening your brand and building genuine trust.

Forever Home Flyer Secret: Partner with your local animal shelter to feature a “Pet of the Week” on the back of your property flyers. Include a photo of an adoptable animal and a short bio from the shelter. This simple act changes your marketing material into a community service piece. Instead of just another agent with just another listing, you become a friend of dogs everywhere.

While these marketing efforts generate awareness and build goodwill, your real estate CRM lets you measure the effectiveness of each strategy. Make sure to fill in the Referral Source field within each new prospect record, referencing how someone heard about you, whether it was from seeing your moving truck, meeting you at a sponsored community event, or noticing your sign on a park bench. Over time, this data reveals which trust-building activities provided the highest returns.

Your CRM can help you manage the logistics of your promotional activities with task lists. You can use the calendar in your CRM to track the moving truck schedule. In many cases, you can also piggyback on the activities you do when promoting your listings to promote yourself at the same time. Most importantly, your CRM helps you track and follow up with the network of relationships you establish with local business owners, coaches, and community leaders. These marketing strategies build your reputation, and your CRM provides the structure to turn that reputation into a predictable and profitable pipeline of leads and deals.

Endnotes

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