The concept of targeting a market is where many agents stall in their commercial real estate marketing. Most are terrified that if they call themselves “retail specialist” they’ll be out of every industrial, office and land deal. The purpose of marketing is to identify a target audience of exactly who wants your services and advertise to those people; it doesn’t mean you have to turn work away.

When we’re dealing with target markets, the answer, “everyone is my target market” is not a valid marketing plan. It’s easier to hit a target when you aim, almost impossible when you’re shooting blindly.  Here are some helpful tips to get you started.

Targeting by Industry

This is the most common and easiest way to identify your target market. The most successful people in commercial real estate choose from the following: office, medical office, retail, industrial, land, or multi-family.

• Retail: store managers and store owners within an area
• Industrial: plant managers and manufacturing business owners within an area
• Office: insurance agencies, law firms, accountants within an area
• Medical Office: doctors, dentists, surgeons, or nursing services within an area
• Land: investors, land acquisition departments for real estate developers, or home builders within an area
• Multi-family: landlords, owners of apartment complexes leasing within an area

Targeting by Location

If you insist on being a jack-of-all-trades, consider advertising to a limited area within your city. This doesn’t mean you have to turn down business in other areas, but you should only be focusing your advertising on a small area like a master planned community or within specific areas “Northeast ” or similar. This will keep your marketing costs low and your target specific. Most agents that go this route choose an area close to their work or home to lower their travel time and cost.

Targeting by Client Type

Focusing on client type is how a lot of people get rich, but it can be a risky move. When you target by client type it’s usually focusing on 4-5 clients with large real estate portfolios. These people need someone who can manage the entire life cycle of a real estate deal from acquisition, filling vacant space, managing the property and finally selling it years later.

The biggest issue with this model is your entire business depends upon the interests and needs of a few people. If they pass their real estate portfolio onto a family member, or decide to go with someone else, you’re out a big client very quickly. Proceed carefully with this one, as losing one client can have you pivoting into a different set of demographics.

Targeting will make you Happier

Ideally, your target market is who you want to work with, so why not? Remember, just because you’re advertising in a certain target market it doesn’t mean you have to turn down clients that don’t meet those criteria. Make money where you can but advertise to the people you want to work with.

If you’re ready to start working on targeting your market, the first step is getting a website.  It’s easier to bring in new leads with a website that generates leads!

Anyone can create a pretty website, slap buttons on it and claim it’s “lead gen.”

I’m the only one offering the CRE Sales Funnel Masterclass to give you strategies on how to drive traffic to your website, create lead magnets that work, and nurture your leads so you can bring in more sales.

A website without the ability to generate and nurture leads is jewelry.  It’s nice, but not useful.

Without a sales funnel, you won’t get long lasting results, period.

If you’re nodding along, let’s get started!  Schedule a call or zoom.

I’m out to take the “broke” out of commercial real estate brokerage. 

I want to start with you.

You ready?  Schedule a call or zoom.