Helping one of the Biggest Real Estate Agencies in the Hilton Head Island/Lowcountry Region Grow Even Further thorough the Largest Merger in the Area’s History

With seven offices throughout the Hilton Head Island/Lowcountry region, Charter One Realty had earned the distinction as the sales volume leader throughout the entire Hilton Head and Bluffton market – yet often was not top-of-mind for buyers and sellers due to a low profile in local press and materials that did not cohesively brand Charter One Realty. In addition, in late 2015, Charter One Realty was faced with another challenge as the agency made the strategic decision to merge with Gateway Realty, another top real estate agency in the region – turning to SmartMarketing Communications to help orchestrate the announcement and publicity surrounding what would be the largest business merger in the history of the region.

Solutions:

• Development of a branding campaign and a series of local advertisements to cohesively brand all offices and locations under one clear Charter One Realty umbrella and positioning Charter One as the “one” to turn to for expert real estate guidance
• Creation of branded monthly e-newsletters to keep Charter One Realty in front of potential homebuyers and sellers throughout the region on a timely and regular basis
• Development of blog and continued addition of timely articles and resources to drive clients and potential clients to the website/blog and position Charter One as market leaders in local real estate
• Execution of multi-faceted public relations campaign, including news releases about new agents and other company news, to maintain a steady stream of publicity about Charter One Realty in local press
• Development and strategic release of announcement of the Charter One Realty – Gateway Realty merger to both the press and the real estate community, creating excitement about the region’s largest business merger and enabling both companies to effectively disseminate key messages through extensive positive press coverage

Results:

Through the multi-pronged branding, public relations and advertising campaigns we created and executed for Charter One Realty, the company was kept “in the news” through a variety of media channels, and enhanced overall awareness of Charter One Realty as the market leader in local real estate throughout Hilton Head Island, Bluffton and the Lowcountry. In addition, SmartMarketing Communications’ orchestration of the Charter One Realty-Gateway Realty merger resulted in a front page cover story in the Island Packet on the day the merger was to be announced, as well as subsequent major cover stories/feature stories in all local press and broadcast media – further solidifying Charter One Realty’s leadership in local real estate and positioning the company for further growth.