Jay Mitchell, a REALTOR® from the Virginia Beach area, sees a recently launched app as a game changer for how REALTORS® communicate who they are.
“We wanted it to be something everyone can have their hands on,” says Mitchell, of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Towne Realty and 2020 Consumer Communications Chair for the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR). “It takes literally seconds to be posted. It just makes it so easy for them to embrace ‘That’s Who We R.'”
The app, which recently rolled out to all REALTORS®, is the latest addition to the “That’s Who We R” campaign, launched by NAR to reintroduce to the public how REALTORS® benefit consumers, the economy and communities as advocates for property owners, engaged community members and trusted advisors with in-depth knowledge of the industry.
The consumer ad campaign has existed for two decades, but “That’s Who We R” launched in February 2019. It aims to reinforce for the public that a REALTOR® is a member of NAR and subscribes to its Code of Ethics. It is the most successful consumer ad campaign to-date for the REALTOR® community.
Funded through a $35 annual assessment for members, the comprehensive campaign featured, for the first time in 2019, customizable print, video and digital assets to help REALTORS® build their brand and their businesses. The campaign leans into the “R” membership mark, focusing on how REALTORS® go above and beyond in their efforts for their clients, their neighbors and their communities. In 2020, the campaign will go further and ask consumers to “Look for the R” to know that they’re working with a trusted, reliable professional. This is another compelling reason why members should showcase their REALTOR® status with a prominent membership mark.
The “That’s Who We R” campaign reached more than 2 billion consumer impressions in 2019. Surveys show it positively moved the needle on perceptions of REALTORS®, with 80 percent of consumers stating that the campaign made them more likely to use a REALTOR® in the future. A central point of the campaign included ads that were featured during cable sitcoms like “Seinfeld” and “The Big Bang Theory,” early morning cable news programming on CNN, Fox and MSNBC, and radio and streaming audio stations like Pandora and Spotify.
“I think it has put us on the map in a very different way,” says Mitchell, who adds that in addition to the print and digital assets, the REALTOR® Team Store® added “That’s Who We R” merchandise to its inventory.
Now, with the addition of the app and its customizable features, “it (the campaign) has the right legs to get everyone excited,” says Mitchell.
With the app, NAR partnered with the content creation app Photofy to create a custom version of the app that is already pre-loaded with “That’s Who We R” social media assets. As part of the new offering, REALTORS® are able to select their preferred campaign materials and personalize them with their name, photo, contact information or company logo.
Going into the new year, Mitchell says the app is the perfect tool to help members. With the campaign’s new ads encouraging people to “Look for the R,” now members can easily show it.
NAR created campaign videos and animations that can be instantly shared, and also numerous customizable campaign graphics “so agents can select, personalize and post it quickly,” he explains. “They should also be good for local and state associations. It’s something everyone in the REALTOR® family can have their hands on. It has consistency to build upon and last many years.”
For more information, please visit www.nar.realtor/thats-who-we-r.
