In 2005, the National Association of REALTORS® Public Awareness Campaign, funded by a special Realtor dues assessment, paid annually by all Realtors, added important communications components to the already strong campaign that has been running for the past eight years. To piggy-back upon NAR’s Public Awareness Campaign, the Staten Island Board of Realtors® also launched a major marketing campaign to educate the local community on the value that Realtors bring to the real estate transaction.
REALTORS® everywhere are being challenged by non-real estate entities competing for homebuyers and sellers. This year's rendition of the NAR Public Awareness Campaign met the issue head on with real life buyers and sellers stating the importance of contacting a REALTOR® first, no matter what type of transaction: selling, buying for the first time or a commercial property transaction.
The effect of these campaigns has been to create a preference in the consumer marketplace for working with REALTORS® over licensed real estate sales personnel who are not REALTORS®. The campaign has significantly heightened demand for people who are recognized, or "branded," as REALTORS®.
SIBOR, using it’s 90th anniversary to kickoff the local campaign, began by focusing on the long-term benefits of real estate ownership “Real Estate Ownership Builds Wealth”, and by reminding Staten Islanders that SIBOR Realtors have been, and are, integral to the development of the community. The next phase of the local campaign will move even closer to the national campaign with a new slogan, “For your home, and for your life, the right choice is Realtor, Realtor, Realtor.” This slogan will be seen on billboards, buses, bus shelters and will be combined with images that will stress that Realtors take the difficulty out of the buying and selling process.
In 2005, the national REALTOR® campaign returned to prime time network television. For eight weeks in the spring, NAR's messaging was seen on such popular programming as West Wing, Law & Order, CSI Miami, ER, Without a Trace, Cold Case, Dateline and American Dreams , as well as newly launched series CSI New York , Clubhouse and Center of the Universe . All totaled, 25 prime time spots aired during the key spring real estate season. The Public Awareness Campaign was featured on NBC's Today and Saturday Today, ABC's Good Morning America and CBS' Sunday Morning News, as well as NBC Evening News, and during late night programming — ABC's Nightline, CBS' Late Show with David Letterman and NBC's Tonight Show .
New to the 2005 schedule was a six-week sponsorship of PBS' Nightly Business Report. On Cable, ads have been running on A&E, The Food Network, Fine Living, Home & Garden Television, DIY, TLC, Discovery Home, and The History Channel, among others.
The REALTOR® message can also be heard nationwide on such popular network radio fare as ABC, CBS, Premiere Radio Networks, MarketWatch, Dow Jones Money Report, Wall Street Journal Radio Network, and Morning Edition and All Things Considered on National Public Radio.
For the second year, the campaign sponsored ESPN Radio's coverage of Major League Baseball. Spots aired weekly on ESPN Radio's Sunday night Game of the Week, as well as ESPN Radio's Baseball Today on Saturdays. Activity will continue throughout the playoff season and culminate in The World Series.
NAR also continued its inaugural sponsorship of XM Satellite Radio's new Public Radio (Channel 133) and The Bob Edwards Show. Approximately 285 spots air weekly, on XM Public Radio and other XM Satellite Radio news-oriented channels, from February through September, for a total of more than 9,000 spots.
New in 2005, the National Association of Realtors® is sponsoring Metro Traffic reports with live-read announcements. This medium provides a means of breaking through the clutter and reaching consumers in their busy lives.
Begun in February, and airing through October, all in all, the Public Awareness Campaign will be seen and heard for a full nine months.
The campaign to keep the Realtor in the center of the transaction needs the help of every broker and agent. The problem is that many REALTORS® do not identify themselves as REALTORS®. Therefore, the consumer is sometimes unable to act on their preference and REALTORS® may be losing business to licensees simply by failing to communicate their designation. Tell them. Show them. Wear your REALTOR® pin with pride. Put the Realtor R on you business card and all of your advertising. Download the new SIBOR slogan and use it. Realtor is a brand. Building the brand is important to all Realtors! And in today's real estate environment, where competition has been increasing with non-real estate entities fighting for a role within your transaction, it's more important than ever to establish yourself as a professional by making sure that your REALTOR® designation is out there working for you.
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