Situation
Kim Dillion, a realtor who had for several years been associated with a traditional realty sales firm, decided to introduce a new realty concept to the area – the homebuyer agency. In providing this option to buyers, Dillion Real Estate The Property Pros gives them an advantage by representing them exclusively.

The buyer-exclusive agency is significant in a conventional market, because while homebuyers assume that their agent is representing them, in actuality, the conventional real estate agent represents the owners of the houses he or she is showing and protects the seller’s position at all times. The real estate agent cannot tell the buyer anything about the seller’s position, and will even reveal to the seller any information she knows about the buyer. On the other hand, a buyer-only agent can reveal to the buyer any information about the property or the seller including reasons for selling, potential concessions, or other information about the home and the neighborhood that may be to the buyer’s advantage.

Problem
Because The Property Pros would not be listing homes, Dillion knew she would not have the benefit of the “for-sale sign” advertising enjoyed by traditional realtors, and in a market that was crowded with realtors, she knew she would need to develop a strong, consistent brand to assure that her new agency and her new concept would get noticed. Also, having recognized a new breed of homebuyer – those who searched the Internet to do their homework in advance – Dillion knew her business would benefit from a web presence that was superior to those of the area’s traditional realtors.

Solution
Dillion asked MillerWhite to create a branding concept and logo that would stand out among other local realty firms, even though it would not appear on signage in front of homes for sale. In addition, she wanted help to embrace the Internet as a useful tool for helping buyers find their ideal homes, and in turn for finding her.

MillerWhite’s branding solution was a savvy and sophisticated but fun logo and an eye-catching orange and black color scheme. The logotype plays off the near-mirror image of the first six letters of Dillion when it’s spelled with a lower-case “d.” In addition to the consistent use of the logo on stationery, business cards, signage, specialty items, print ads, and the web site, it was most noticeable on Dillion’s black Chevrolet SSR truck, for which MillerWhite designed the graphics.

In creating the web site for The Property Pros, MillerWhite concentrated on giving homebuyers a site that was easy to navigate and offered essential features like financing options, relocation assistance and community information, as well as the best search function in the area. MillerWhite identified technology that no other realtor in the area was using, with a search function that allows viewers to search the area’s weekly updated MLS listings by town, subdivision or zip code; square footage, lot size, age and style of home; and home features like a pool, a view, a garage, and more.

MillerWhite also created and placed ads in the local newspaper’s real estate supplement that not only reinforce the Dillion brand, but also educate buyers about the benefits of using an exclusive homebuyer agency.

In addition to a superior web site and hard-to-miss branding, Kim Dillion caters to homebuyers through an education center connected to her office where potential homebuyers can do computer home searches and attend seminars on the basics of homebuying. In addition she reaches out to clients through home shows and other events.

Results
Dillion said teaming up with MillerWhite has resulted in her new business receiving a lot of attention in the market. “From the first time I met with my account executive to explain what I wanted to accomplish in a short timeframe and with a small budget, she put me at ease and got the team started,” Dillion said. “The plan we put together is making Dillion Real Estate The Property Pros a well recognized name in our city, among a myriad of real estate agencies, many of them franchises.” Questions like, "Is this a franchise?" "How many people work in your office?" and "How many cars do you have?" are an indication of the visibility the branding effort has produced for Dillion. “Without the help of MillerWhite, it would have taken much longer than just a couple of months to have made this much of an impression in this market,” she said.

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