PROPERTY CAMPAIGN PUTS THE 'REAL' BACK INTO REAL ESTATE

In today's residential real estate industry, where overpromising and under delivering is rife, South Africans are looking for a company that says it like it is, and truly does what it says. Most of us don’t expect this from estate agents in the real estate industry. Often the actual experience from the agent doesn’t live up to the brand promise from the company. Even the homes sometimes don’t live up to the advertised promise.

The new Jawitz Properties campaign is a real estate industry first that takes a different view on how to talk to its clients , but aligns with the true values of the brand. “We see the campaign as a way to poke fun at the industry but, at the same time show how important it is to be REAL with your clients,” says Herschel Jawitz, Chief Executive. “However, it’s not just about advertising for us. Our ‘Real’ campaign, modelled around our values and our culture which include intergrity, delighting our clients, open communication and transparency. The campaign takes a fresh approach to full-truths in house hunting. We want to eliminate the half-truths that often characterise residential real estate.”

To support this approach, the campaign uses slogans like, “When we say fixer upper, we really mean “Say good bye to your weekends” and “When we say cosy, we really mean small”. “When it comes to pricing a home”, says Jawitz, “too many agents promise sellers they will achieve unrealistically high prices in order to secure a mandate, despite what other properties have sold for or are going for in the area. In fact, the real price of a property is what buyers are prepared to pay. If the majority of buyers are saying your price is too high, then that is the current market. At Jawitz Properties, we pride ourselves on understanding the market and knowing YOUR neighbourhood,” he added.

Overpromising and under delivering are counter to Jawitz’ inherent culture of integrity. “We live up to our word in all things, including communication. If we say we’ll call you, we’ll call you – our commitment is that the sun never sets on a message,” Jawitz adds.

The new campaign including four TV commercials flighting on channels such as Mnet, Sky and SuperSport, and featuring the new company slogan: ‘We’re REAL about Real Estate’, makes use of captivating animation. “It’s a humorous take, but it is very true to the Jawitz brand. This is a company that has been going for 47 years. Its success is based on the honesty and integrity of the people in the organization and the way we work with our clients,” says Joan Mendelsohn and Lynne Baker, the company’s top agents for 2015.

“It summarises what I have always felt about Jawitz Properties, which is that we do keep it real, we are genuine in the way we conduct ourselves in business and within our office environment as well,” says Award Winning Jawitz Agent Lyonelle Venter. Devised by Ebony & Ivory, a Johannesburg based advertising agency, the campaign, a year in the making, comprises TV commercials, print, outdoor street poles and lightboxes, suburban signs and social media roll out. The TV commercials were directed by Garon Campbell of Bread Bin Productions.

“Our new campaign strikes to the heart of what selling and buying is really all about – our people and our clients always come first for us, and how essential it is to be ‘Real’ in real estate,” Jawitz concludes.