The summer market is usually a slow one for real estate which means this is the perfect time to take a step back and really give your brand a good once over. Performing a brand audit during slower times is a great way to make sure everything is in tip-top shape and if it isn’t you’ll have ample time to get things ready for the Fall market.

Keep reading for our 5-step brand audit process. 

ONE | Understand your brand 

To effectively know what’s working and what isn’t you have to first have an idea of how you want it to work. So first things first, ask yourself what is your brand is known for, who is your audience ( be specific here, no, not everyone who wants to sell their home is your audience if you live in The Beach, then you might say people who want to sell their home in the Beaches, or better yet, Millennials who want to sell their homes in the Beaches) what is your mission, your values, your unique selling proposition. Once you have these written down it’s time to move on to step two. 

TWO | Assess your marketing material 

Good branding consists of great marketing material that is consistent in tone and execution and delivers a clear message that represents your brand values and offer. Go through the following list with a fine-tooth comb and ask yourself if your brand is being clearly represented through colours, fonts, imagery, tone, values and mission. 

• Logo 
• Brochures 
• Website 
• Social media channels 
• Stationery 
• Print marketing 
• Blog 
• Team photos 
• Email marketing 

 Are these elements of your marketing deliver a cohesive look and feel? How effectively does each piece attract your target market? Give each a score between 1-5 and if you feel there is a lag in a certain area it might be time to revisit those elements with a new approach. 

THREE | Do a deep dive into analytics 

Your website is no doubt equipped with google analytics and this is an amazing crucial tool to have to understand where your traffic is coming from. We use Google analytics at Fourth Street Creative to assess everything from which blog posts get the most traction, to which pages are being landed on the most. It’s an underused and underrated tool that can give you great insights into what is working and what isn’t. 

Some questions to ask yourself are: 

• What is your bounce rate? IF most people are leaving your site right away, it probably needs some tweaking. 
• Who’s landing on your page? Is your target market finding you? Traffic is only good if it’s the right kind of traffic. 
• Where is your traffic coming from? Facebook ads, google searches? Understanding where your traffic is coming from will let you know where you should amplify your budget, and will also tell you what you might need to invest more in. 

Once you’ve done some investigating here decide what 3-5 things aren’t working for you and tweak them. 

FOUR | Probe past clients 

Jeff Bezos said it best when he said “your brand is what other people say about you when you leave the room” YES! Then who better to ask what your brand is saying to people then those that worked closely with you, your past clients. Put together a questionnaire with 5-7 questions about what it was like working with you, think “what are three words you would use to describe me?” or “What was it like working with me?” or “If you had to recommend me to a friend what would you say to them?” send these questions to everyone you worked with in the past year, then find commonalities in the answers given. Do your clients’ answers represent what you thought your brand was about? Asking for feedback can be hard for a lot of realtors, it’s a vulnerable position to put yourself in for sure, but this is one step in the Brand audit that shouldn’t be skipped (really you shouldn’t skip any step) because it delivers to you how others see your brand, and if it doesn’t represent what you want your brand to be, then there is work to be done. 

FIVE | Do some cyberstalking 

Yup, it’s time to creep on your competitor’s social media pages, their website and marketing pursuits. Take a peek at colleagues or competitors in your industry who you envy. How does your brand stand up to theirs? What do you like about their brand, what don’t you like, how are you similar, what do you need to work on to get to their level. Jot down as much as you can about why you love what they are doing and how they are doing it, this will create a great set of tools to pass on to designers and to yourself when you’re re-crafting your brand strategy. Try to be as specific as possible when you’re doing this. Think colours, fonts, imagery, tone, the feel that they convey with their messaging, the way their copy sounds. The deeper you dig the better you’ll understand why they are successful. 

 Phew, that was a lot! Give yourself a big pat on the back for completing such a huge task. You are one step closer to having the brand of your dreams. Need help with the visuals? Check out our ready-made brands.