Buy Remarkable
One of my favorite clients was confused by Colorado Springs real estate. He was relocating, and in his price range of $500,000 to $600,000, he had wildly different neighborhoods to choose from. The variety was both confusing and unexpected for a metro area with a population of just over 600,000.
Competing for his attention were Peregrine, Pine Creek, Flying Horse, multiple parts of Black Forest, Mountain Shadows, Cordera, University Park, Broadmoor Bluffs/Spires, Skyway and Old Broadmoor.
Ten different areas, all of them unique, all of them offering different options. Some west side, some east side, some with views, others with trees. Now add two stories, ranchers, new vs established, big lots, small lots, walk-outs, hillsides, conveniences and commute times…
My client was struggling to articulate his quandary. I asked if he wanted advice. He did.
“Buy Remarkable.”
In August 2007, my business began to fall apart as the first major wave of market correction hit. That month, I read Seth Godin’s Purple Cow for the first time (I read it annually).
“Brown cows are boring. Purple cows are worth talking about, and sharing with others. Brown cows are standard and similar. Purple cows are…remarkable.”
That’s the book, really, serialized into a hundred odd poetic blog posts. Make a product worth talking about. In real estate, buy a product worth talking about. Rather than say, “Buy a purple cow,” my advice has migrated to, “Buy remarkable.”
Maybe you’re deal-motivated…is this something that you’re going to share with the crew around the water cooler, “Man, I got such a great deal on this place.” That’s remarkable.
Is it the view that arrests your imagination the second you walk in the front door on a frosty January morning, with the low-hanging haze over the I-25 corridor and Pikes Peak looming on the western horizon? That’s remarkable.
Is it the sense of place, the location that says, “This is the place my family can land for the next decade. I’m feeling home, right here.”
Remarkable might be analytically proven; or it can be straight from the heart.
So often we hear our clients say, “I think this might take some time. We’re pretty choosy and picky. We might drive you crazy.” It gives us permission to smile with one side of our mouth, as we empathetically land right there with them.
“That’s okay,” we say. “Buy remarkable.”
