Real Estate Marketing

Citation

Dr Clive M.J. Warren (2015), "Real Estate Marketing", Property Management, Vol. 33 No. 2, pp. 205-206. https://doi.org/10.1108/PM-02-2015-0008

The art or science of marketing is not one which readily comes to mind when considering the role of the property manager. It is, however, in my view an important element in the management of any real estate portfolio and it is essential that as property managers we gain an appreciation of the marketing role. This text ‘Real Estate Marketing’ has been specifically designed with the real estate student, either undergraduate or postgraduate in mind. It is also a useful reference for those who perhaps need an update on the important role marketing plays in achieving optimal return on investment.

The author is Professor Joseph Sirgy, who is Professor of Marketing, and Virginia Real Estate Research Fellow at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech). He has published extensively in the area of marketing, business ethics, and quality of life. The text, while targeted at students and as a teaching resource for lecturers, is inevitably based on the American real estate industry and practices. That said, many of the broad marketing principals apply equally in any jurisdiction and most of the concepts can be translated into any local market.

The book is divided into five parts. Part One is dedicated to introducing the reader to the fundamental concepts of marketing as a business philosophy and strategy. This section focuses on developing the basic concepts including strategic analysis, including product and place strategy, identifying the target market, and the four key elements of the marketing mix: property planning, site selection or location aspects, pricing of properties, and promotion of properties.

Part Two on the sales professional focuses on the part played by the real estate agent. Commencing with a discussion relating to the agents relationship with the vendor, it evaluates the tools used to market to prospective sellers. The final chapter in this section reviews the role of the buyers’ representative. This growing area of real estate agency practice describes the process of identifying potential clients, the analysis of their property needs, and conversion of those needs into an achievable procurement strategy.

Part Three is dedicated to the art of negotiation of real estate transactions. How do effective real estate professionals use negotiation approaches such as collaboration, competition, accommodation, and compromise in closing a deal. Aspects of personality and culture are discussed, describing the different negotiation approaches appropriate to different situations. This part provides some useful tips on negotiation that reach beyond the marketing focus of the book and can be applied in many areas of professional property management.

Part Four deals with recruitment and training of real estate sales personnel. It addresses issues leadership within the organization and how to maintain moral. There are also sections on performance management and remuneration.

The final part, Part Five, enters the tricky area of ethical and legal issues in agency. Obviously much of this section is specific to the USA and the legal framework under which agents act. The ethical issues while interesting are also presented within the context of the American agents’ code of ethics, that said many of the ethical problems discussed can be easily related to other jurisdictions.

There are a number of texts available which deal with the legal aspects of real estate agency and many books which deal individually with marketing strategy, negotiation and human resource management, however, this book brings all these aspects together and presents them within the specific context of real estate agency practice. There are few texts that provide this level of property insight into the marketing process and I think this is a very useful addition to the texts available to students. I would recommend it to anyone looking for an introductory real estate agency practice and the marketing of property for teaching purposes.