Charlotte Property Management Weekly: Coke vs. Pepsi vs. Your Real Estate Firm- What’s the Difference?

“I can’t believe that millionaire CEO who just moved to town is looking for houses with Jimmy “The Home Seeking” Missile. Doesn’t he realize Jimmy knows more about weaponry than he does real estate?” (Baffled Charlotte Real Estate Agent)

Coke and Pepsi have been warring over market share in the soda business for a long time. Coke had a gigantic lead until Pepsi started making inroads in the 1970’s and 1980’s. Today, Coke’s market share is around 43%, while Pepsi’s is 31% in a highly competitive $100B+ industry. This competitiveness has helped make brand allegiance personal; badmouth someone’s favorite soda and “they be fightin’ words”, as we say in the South.

However, industry experts will tell you that Coke and Pepsi are close to identical products. “What???” One of my UNC professors posed this fact to our MBA class and the responses were unanimous. “That’s ridiculous!” “Coke is awful, absolutely atrocious.” “I would definitely know the difference and spit the Pepsi out!” So the professor proceeded to pour Pepsi into three glasses and Coke into three glasses. The most indignant students “who loved their brand of soda more than life itself” were given the chance to conduct a blind taste test to prove their mettle.

The taste test unfolded and the results were tallied. Afterwards, several things came to mind:
1. Phrases like “Talking the talk, but not walking the walk” and “Singing it, but not bringing it”
2. NBA players that “guarantee” a win
3. The “unsinkable” Titanic

The best student was right only 50% of the time (naming 3 out of the 6 cups correctly), and the other students’ results were downhill from there. For such sheer, stated loyalty to a product, they couldn’t tell the difference between the one they drink several times a day and its biggest competitor!

If the products aren’t really different, how does Coke sway consumers to buy their brand and not Pepsi’s? They market differentiation (even when there isn’t any!). They have Paula Abdul sing about it, make their bottles in cool shapes, and sponsor the Olympics. They run tons of commercials that make you feel like “buying the world a Coke”. Pepsi does the same types of things with their brand. They both do a tremendous job of getting their name out there and associating it with things you like. And you, in turn, buy their product exclusively (even if it costs more)!

So, what separates your real estate firm from the others? “We’re just better! And consumers should know that!” Unfortunately, data suggests that it’s more about the sizzle, and less about the steak. Or, simply stated, exactly like the “Cola Wars”. If you don’t believe that, look at the National Association of Realtors’ statistics. 70%+ of consumers use the first firm they contact and most of them do this over the internet (they don’t even meet a Realtor in person first!). In layman’s terms, if your internet presence is seen by the consumer and it resonates with them, you’re hired.

Why are consumers hiring Jimmy (and not your firm) even though you’re better? Why don’t they do the research, find out you’re superior, and staunchly hold out for your services?

It’s because Jimmy’s marketing made it easier for the CEO’s assistant to find him and his content (which included his military background- hence the nickname) made him seem like a better fit. The old mantra, “perception is more important than reality”, holds true. It’s not necessarily about being better or different, it’s about having people believe that you are.

As you sip on your can of Pepsi, you can ponder the unfairness of it all.

Brett Furniss is the President & Owner of BDF Realty, “Charlotte’s Most Innovative Property Management & Investment Company” (www.BDFRealty.com and www.RentToSell.com). You can follow his Twitter thoughts on the Charlotte real estate market by clicking on http://twitter.com/bdfrealty. He is the author of the FREE E-Manual entitled “How to Rent-To-Sell Your Own Home” (http://www.renttosell.com/RTS-Book.html) which details how to get the most potential buyers to your home in this challenging real estate market.