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The HOPA girl, Elyse Porterfield or Jenny DryErase, has become an overnight web sensation by promoting herself over the internet. Although her method was a bit unusual and later revealed to be a hoax, it most definitely did the job. Let me explain. HOPA girl is an aspiring actress from Greeley, CO who has recently packed her bag and moved to LA to follow her dreams. Ms. HOPA aka Jenny Dry Erase was searching for a creative way to get her name out to the mass media and more importantly in front of top industry agents. After some brainstorming with a good friend, they came up with the ingenious HOPA girl, organic marketing plan. Her self promotional campaign has already drawn millions of hits as well as a million visitors to her Facebook account alone. HOPA girls plot was originally believed to be true, but it later turned out to be a hoax. Bummer right? Not so fast...Although this being a true story would have made the morning water cooler talks a bit more tantalizing; her strategy worked whether real or not! I am willing to bet that Jenny Dry Erase is receiving phone calls from some very important people right now. In fact, HOPA girl is probably soliciting numerous commercial deals, acting offers as well as opportunities to be featured in some very popular magazines.
I know you are asking yourself "what does this have to do with real estate?" Well nothing and everything! While Ms. HOPA's marketing ploy does not apply directly to real estate; we can learn some invaluable organic marketing lessons such as:
1) Be Creative- Marketing does not always have to hit you in the pocket book. A simple yet effective organic marketing plan can bring in an overwhelming response (see HOPA girl).
2) Use Social Media-HOPA girl's success was due to posting her organic marketing plan on several media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, and blogs. This quickly expanded because the content was creative, amusing, and unique which captivated readers to share with their friends, who shared with their friends and so on.
3) Be Unique-Like the aspiring actor there are thousands if not millions of agents and brokers trying to stand out to get the next dream gig or client. Most actors mostly use the same techniques in hopes of getting noticed such as having headshots done, going to numerous casting calls, and bombarding agents trying to convince them that they are the next Angelina Jolie or Brad Pitt. Likewise real estate brokers and agents promote their own headshots, attend real estate conferences, as well as overwhelm potential clients with tiring email blasts and direct mailers. While these techniques are not bad in concept and sometimes must be done to stay competitive; they lack the creative attributes to separate themselves from the pack.
I challenge all of you to think outside the box and be creative, use social media, and most importantly be unique. How many real estate companies do you think are writing about HOPA girl's organic marketing plan? I would venture to say none!
Credits: http://tiny.cc/v62uw
I am the owner of Evolv Consulting which is a full service consulting company that helps real estate firms with social media and organic marketing plans. I am also a ghost writer for several blogs, twitter, and face book accounts. If you are interested in my services please feel free to contact me at eric@evolvconsulting.com. You can view my latest work at http://www.newmanre.com which was designed and maintained by Evolv.
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