That said, I choose to work around people who value hard work, integrity, customer service and who yearn to increase their knowledge.

It is pretty impressive that every Starbucks you go into has that same feel from a customer's perspective. You know what you are going to get. They all get it. It would be nice if customers of real estate agents knew what they could expect from their agent. It is something we can all strive for.

On another note, rarely do I hear talk about the image of a real estate company in the community and I don't mean whether the company is the biggest or most successful brokerage. I'm talking about the community focus of the company. Does the company care about the community? Does the company give back to the community?

It's important to me to work for a brokerage that "gives back" to the community.

@Ardell. Happy New Year to you as well. I agree, colors are indeed critical. I've written several posts last year about branding and the five senses and believe strongly that the staid Gold and Black color palette, while recognizable, means very little to the consumer. Like the encased in glass red, white and blue barber shop pole. You see and you know the establishment cuts hair. But how good they cut it or what they stand for is lost in the ambiguity of the brand.

@Tyler. The reason you experience that from Starbucks is by design of course. At the heart of a good franchise is the cloning of a perfected model that never deviates. This guarantees the customer a stable, reliable experience everywhere they go. You could say with conviction that every Barista at Starbucks is approximately equal in their abilities and execution of service and product.

Which makes one question the legitimacy of a real estate franchise where quality, processes and service is never enforced by the franchisee to a point where you can bank on a standard from one office to another let alone one city to another.

@Jonathan. The fact that brokerages don't do much to differentiate themselves is a sad testimony to laziness, lack of creativity and a clear indication that a brokerage still views their customer as the agents, not the public.

This spells opportunity for any brokerage to come along and win market share by building a strong brand. Equitable Real Estate did it a few years back in Phoenix and quickly asserted itself as the new luxury brand of that area. Today, through an M&A, they are now Russ Lyon Sotheby's International Realty and they own market share in that area.

Blueroof was another new brand that successfully built niche so quickly in Salt Lake, they were bought up within the first year of being in business.

With the right team, the right brains, the right ideas and the right desire, any brokerage, old or new can jump ahead of the pack.

I think many Agents jump on board a Brokerage because of one of a few things:
1. A Broker's Market Share
2. Commission Split
3. They have friends at that Brokerage

Maybe there are a few other reasons…but typically not many.

We're in an industry in which competing businesses (i.e. brokerages) really don't do too much to differentiate themselves…so agents don't really have to dig in too deeply in order to make a decision.

When I initially got into the business 5 years ago, I interviewed at 3 brokerages…and went with the biggest firm with the organized 'training' program (don't laugh…I now know it was worthless).

However, the point is that they differentiated their sales pitch to me by saying 'we're big and we have the best training.' Since nobody else really had any way to differentiate themselves, the decision was pretty easy.

Things are changing, though. Brokerages are starting to (though slowly) develop business plans on deeper ideologies and beliefs.

What does this mean? This means that the Brokerages that do it right will recruit (and retain) the right agents and will, therefore, build a brand culture from the inside out.

Building a solid brand is the foundation for success in any industry.

That said, I choose to work around people who value hard work, integrity, customer service and who yearn to increase their knowledge.

It is pretty impressive that every Starbucks you go into has that same feel from a customer's perspective. You know what you are going to get. They all get it. It would be nice if customers of real estate agents knew what they could expect from their agent. It is something we can all strive for.

I mostly dropped by to wish you a Happy New Year.

In answer to your question, I have had to "choose" a brokerage more often than many, given I have been licensed in five states. I know one thing…there is one Company I have firmly decided years ago never to work for, ever. Why? I don't like their "colors". Gold and Black.

It's a personal choice, but how many hot pink cars are driving down the road today?

Something as simple as logo colors can have an impact.

It's still mom and pop; hit and miss –more miss than hit.