New Ad Campaign Urges Consumers to "Get Realtor®"

WASHINGTON, February 8, 2016 — Buying a home isn't as easy as clicking a few buttons and magically getting the home of your dreams, as the current real estate advertising landscape leads many to believe. The reality is that real estate transactions can be stressful and there are often challenges and obstacles along the way.

To communicate Realtor® value in helping consumers succeed in all things real estate, the National Association of Realtors® has launched a new advertising campaign, "Get Realtor®." The campaign targets hyper-connected and emerging generations of home buyers, sellers, owners and investors.

Technology has advanced modern life in many ways and allows peole to do more online than ever before. With just a few keystrokes or taps on a screen, consumers can shop for a mortgage, learn about the buying or selling process and browse through photos of homes for sale. But access to information doesn't automatically translate to success when buying or selling a home. In other words, when it comes to the biggest purchase many people will likely ever make, consumers need to "Get Realtor®."

"When it comes to real estate and the Internet, today's consumers don't always know what they don't know," said NAR President Tom Salomone, broker-owner of Real Estate II Inc. in Coral Springs, Florida. "The Get Realtor® campaign demonstrates how Realtors®– members of the National Association of Realtors® – can help buyers, sellers and investors succeed. We want today's consumers to understand that having a Realtor® at their side is their competitive advantage in the real estate transaction."

NAR's consumer advertising campaign began 17 years ago, and launches in 2016 with a whole new look and feel to help modernize consumer perceptions of Realtors®, particularly among Millennials, who are currently the largest homebuying segment.

"Contemporizing an established brand will take time. To reach new generations, we've created advertising that is dramatically different and bold enough to break through the clutter and get noticed, and help drive consideration of Realtors®," said Salomone. "Also, our own research found that consumers have anxiety about reaching out from behind their tech screens for professional assistance, including from a Realtor®. With this campaign, consumers will be exposed to a redefined brand in more contemporary channels that demonstrates why consumers need to Get Realtor®."

The Get Realtor® campaign currently includes social, digital, print, and radio creative; NAR's media mix is shifting significantly from previous campaigns to the social and digital side for greater engagement with tech-savvy consumers who are increasingly going mobile, getting their content on demand, and sharing information across their social networks.

The Get Realtor® campaign is the first created in partnership with advertising agency Arnold Worldwide, which was named NAR's agency of record in 2015 for its strategy, creativity and extensive history of helping clients reinvent their brands, including Volkswagen, Ocean Spray and Progressive.

For additional information about the strategy and research behind the new campaign, and to view current campaign materials, visit www.realtor.org/consumer-advertising-campaign.

The National Association of Realtors®, "The Voice for Real Estate," is America's largest trade association, representing more than 1.1 million members involved in all aspects of the residential and commercial real estate industries.

Information about NAR is available at www.realtor.org. This and other news releases are posted in the "News, Blogs and Video" tab on the website.