I had the pleasure this afternoon to interview Kye Grace, a local Vancouver Realtor……
truth be told Kye was gracious enough to be my guinea pig as I delved into the dimension of podcasting!

I hadn’t yet met Kye in person, as we’d established a two dimensional relationship through the filter of TWITTER, so as you can imagine I was curious to see how his effective online brand and personality translated in person…….is it aligned and is it authentic? By the completion of our interview I can tell you a confident YES.

The reason I asked him to join me as our first guest was because online he is a standout, a relevant voice, backed up with real action and dimension in an industry, I consider to be, filled with cardboard cutouts cut from the same old traditional marketing mold and methodology. At first glance Kye is the guy next door, with an unsuspecting, warm smile, but then you get him talking about his industry and the passion that drives him and he gets this bright, keen glint in his eyes. It’s very quickly clear that he has created his brand very deliberately, and has plans to continue be on the bleeding edge of brand marketing in this tired industry.

If you want to learn a few things about standing out with your marketing and developing a “remarkable” brand have a listen to what this local Vancouver Realtor, who is generating recognition world wide in just his first year in the business, has to say……

Podcast : Karley Cunningham, 3 Degrees West Podcast with Kye Grace a Vancouver Realtor >>

How often do you celebrate (and by celebrate, I mean share) your company successes?

Admittedly it is something that Sandy and I didn’t used to do all that well. A lot of the time we were so production focussed on the “what’s the next task” that we would forget to stop when something BIG happened (ie. we launched a new site or brand; we won an award; we got a kick a** testimonial from a client) and congratulate one another AND announce it to those around us. We’re definitely now leaps and bounds ahead of where we were at a few years ago and committed to getting better!

So what does celebrating success have to do with your brand and giving it a boost?

Simple: PEOPLE LOVE TO SHARE IN YOUR SUCCESS, THEY WANT TO HEAR ABOUT GOOD NEWS!

Think about it, there is so much negative news driven at us through the media, especially right now, that you WANT to hear something positive, right? Whether it be from your family, your friends, your network, your suppliers, even your competition (or co-opetition - which I would like to see more of - but that’s a tangent I won’t jump on right now) you want to know there is good going on around you. This is all because like attracts like, progress breeds progress, and success encourages success.

So………by sharing your successes (by blog post, TWITTER post, Facebook post, LinkedIn post, eNewsletters, handwritten cards, emails, etc. [*hint* did you get that those are all FREE or LOW COST ways of marketing] ) positioned in an appropriate manner (ie. stay away from the ego “it’s all about me!). You are:

• saying that we are proud of what we do
• building the credibility of yourself, your brand, your company
• (by congratulating others on their wins and efforts) encouraging good sportsmanship and community
• staying top of mind to your network with your announcement
• showing gratitude and thanks for the opportunities you are given
• story telling and building on your brand story
• sharing your happiness/positivity with others
• positioning yourself as an expert in your field

And all of this is a part of building and boosting your brand.