The Devil is in the Clever Little Details: Your Real Estate Vision

If you take anything away from this insight, it’s this: Sweat the Small Stuff. The details of your real estate brand DO matter.

It’s a common misconception that a real estate project or property only needs a logo and some one-pagers before you’re good to go. More and more, those looking for the next hip apartment complex or up-and-coming neighborhood are looking first at the branding, design, and messaging. And they aren’t just looking at your logo, they are paying attention to the way you bring your brand and vision to life in every aspect of the development.

A brand’s identity includes all the tangible and intangible characteristics of personality, appearance, and behavior, and an easy way to make sure this comes through in a way that connects best with audiences is through placemaking.

A Placemaking Refresher

Placemaking involves strengthening the connection between a development project and the people who will utilize the space. In other words, it imbues physical buildings and property brands with meaning by putting people first — it’s all about paying attention to the details.

Projects that take placemaking into account every step of the way have a greater chance of successfully convincing audiences to live, work, or play there. Real our placemaking guide to dig in even more.

Starting with a Vision

A shared vision seeks to develop consistency within a project and ensure the end product has cohesion. In other words, it is a mental image of the look and feel of your development and what it will mean to the community. Check out the vision statement we wrote for The Calo to see how a real estate vision statement works and how it brings the brand through in all aspects of the property.

You create and execute your vision by:

1. Being collaborative with all involved.
2. Asking questions.
3. Writing an official statement.
4. Setting strategic goals and a plan.
5. Aligning early with creatives.
6. Considering the vision throughout every step of the process.

Why Are We Telling You All of This?

You’ve got a lot of competition. In most markets, there are new and exciting apartment complexes and real estate developments popping up everywhere. Your prospective buyers have to sift through dozens of search results, social media posts, ads, etc — what is going to make them choose YOU? The details.

Good branding doesn’t always mean the best real estate, a powerful brand (versus a standard brand) will capture attention, connect with audiences, and continue to be present, reliable, and trustworthy throughout a buyer or renter’s entire experience with you.

A recent Salesforce study showed that 80% of customers say their experience with a developer or company is much more important than the actual products. It’s not enough to have a fancy logo, smile at your customers, and help them sign the lease, they want a full experience when interacting with your space and brand. So, how do you do it?

The Small Stuff

Your Brand & Building

Make sure your brand is clear, cohesive, consistent, full of content, and connects with the community. This is the first step. In other words, after you lay the groundwork with the basic aspects of your brand, consider:

1. Ensuring the colors of your brand make an appearance on all collateral, maybe even on the carpet of your lobby or even the ties or socks of your sales representatives.
2. Training your employees to talk in the correct tone and voice of your brand. Are you overly friendly? Professional? Approachable? Hip? How do you talk to your customers? Make sure it comes through in all interactions.
3. Developing a tagline or slogan, something that stands out from other nearby complexes or developments. It isn’t truly that common for developments to have slogans, so consider what it might say about you in a few short words.
4. Creating personas and studying your audiences. Who are they? What do they like? Are you building an apartment complex in the foothills of the Rockies for young college students who love to be outside? Maybe include a rock climbing wall in your gym.
5. Who your audience is and how your brand has developed when starting on your architecture. Is there a pattern in your branding that can be shown on the wall or in the tiles in the sales centers or lobbies?
6. Making your logo impactful. Consider your surroundings and what influences might help your logo seem relevant and interesting. What are you trying to say about what it means to live or work where you’ve developed?
7. Developing swag. Everyone loves swag, and it’s the perfect opportunity to consider what your audience likes and how you might bring your brand through to it. Are you a dog-friendly office building and coworking space? Maybe give out some dog bowls with your logo on them.

The Online Experience

In our post-COVID era, most begin their search for a new home or office space online. That means you need to look at how your brand is showing up behind the screen. We know you may have a website already and your logo is up there in the corner, but to really stand out you need to zero in on the details and sprinkle them consistently in more detailed places:

1. Consider using your color scheme for all content related to your property. Use it in social posts, make sure it appears on landing pages and on one-pagers, and keep it in profile pictures and even emojis.
2. If you’re using videos to promote your properties, create an end card or opening sequence that reflects your brand.
3. Brand your email signatures.
4. Add a logo watermark to your photography content.
5. Create branded letterheads for quick emails and informational online handouts.

It’s Time to Consider The Details

Think about your audience, think about the culture and community surrounding your development, understand the ins and outs of your brand, and bring it all together when tackling your next real estate development project. Don’t forget to sweat the small stuff, because connecting with your audience best starts with the clever little details.

Reach out if you want to learn more about building a great brand and ways you can get creative with your real estate marketing.