Business Development - Feature

SOLD: Can you describe in one sentence what differentiates your brand from your competitors?
MM: The Barry Plant brand promises a red carpet experience. Our logo features a red carpet device and our strap-line, which is part of the logo says "The red carpet experience" - it couldn't be a clearer message!

SOLD: Which, specific, criteria results in a decision on company colours? How is this reflected in your logo?
MM: Our brand's colours are red and blue - these are strong primary colours that don't date and are not subject to the whims of fashion. We have used these colours in our brand since 1978. In a recent brand refresh we made a conscious decision to add much more white to our marketing material. This gives us a clean, elegant look, plus, its the best background for property photography. We provide our franchisees with so much in the way of consistently branded, on-message marketing material so they don't need to be trying to create their own. Apart from a television campaign each year between March and November we also provide them with a choice of 16 different drop cards a year - resulting in nearly 10 million Barry Plant drop cards hitting Victorian letterboxes a year and all re-enforcing our red carpet experience message. We also provide Xmas cards, football fixtures, calendars and a range of branded promotional products. Our suppliers are all registered and before they are given access to our supplier's website which houses all our logos and specifications, they have to sign that they agree to abide by the guidelines and not alter our logo and look in any way without seeking permission from Head Office. This has the benefit of having our suppliers also acting as "police" for our brand.

SOLD: What methods do your staff members collectively employ to put your clients at ease? How is this concept incorporated into your agencys sales consciousness?
MM:Because of the broad and consistent promotion of our promise to provide a "red carpet experience", the client is already expecting the best. We have a customer service charter, which is given to all our clients and customers. This charter clearly states our goal of providing the best customer service, but also tells them what to do if they are unhappy with any aspect of their service in a process that escalates the complaint right up to contacting the Estate Agents Resolution Service if we are unable to resolve it. We also have a red carpet guarantee that is signed by the sales consultant and given to every vendor. This guarantee has 10 promises. If any of these guaranteed actions don't occur the vendor can bring this to the attention of the sales consultant and the sales consultant has 48 hours to remedy the problem. If this doesn't happen then the vendor can revoke the authority. So we really are committed to providing a great service and letting our clients know that we are!