Marketing Commercial Real Estate for Brokers, Brokerages, and Properties

Authored by Neal Swanson, Director of Brokerage & Marketing with contributions from Deann Orr, Marketing Manager at NAI Elliott

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If you’ve ever been frustrated by marketing—wondering what’s worth your time, what’s worth your budget, or why you’re doing it at all—you’re not alone. Commercial real estate professionals are rarely taught how to market themselves or their properties effectively. And even if you do have a plan, the landscape is constantly changing. Email open rates are dropping. Social platforms are evolving (or disappearing). What worked five years ago no longer gets noticed.

So, what’s the point? Why bother with marketing at all?

The first question you need to answer is, "What is your goal?"

Do you want more or better listings?

Do you want to improve how the market perceives your services or your firm?

Do you want to attract new talent to your team?

Do you want to fill vacancies with the right tenants?

Do you want to double your revenue, increase NOI, or build a stronger client base?

Marketing is the mechanism that connects your current position to your future goals. At NAI Elliott, we’ve developed a disciplined approach to ensure our marketing supports our long-term business strategy. We use a tool called the Vision Traction Organizer (V/TO), part of the Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS), to clearly articulate our marketing goals for 1, 3, and 10 years out. All marketing decisions—big or small—stem from this long-term plan with clearly identified goals. It’s the framework that guides every campaign, tactic, and investment.

But to use it effectively, you need to understand what marketing really is—and what it’s not.

What Is Marketing?

Marketing isn’t just advertising. It’s not just social media. It’s not just a website or a logo or a flyer.

To me, marketing is the intersection of four major forces: psychology, sociology, technology, and business. At the crossroads of how people think, how people interact, how people connect, and how commerce functions—that’s where marketing lives.

And that’s also why marketing feels so frustrating: it’s not a fixed science.

The tools evolve. The channels shift. The expectations change. And just when you think you’ve got it figured out, something new shows up to disrupt the formula. Yellow Pages became Google. Brochures became websites. Print ads became Instagram stories. Today, you’re more likely to get a marketing message via text from an unknown number than from a traditional campaign.

But despite all that noise, the core purpose of marketing remains the same: to help you accomplish a clearly defined goal.

The ROI Dilemma

Here’s one of the biggest frustrations I hear from brokers and property owners alike: “How do I know this is working?”

They want to connect every dollar they spend on marketing to a specific return in revenue. But here’s the truth: unless you’re running a coupon code campaign, you’re not going to draw a straight line between marketing spend and income. Even then, the results are not always clear.

That’s because a lot of marketing ROI is invisible. It’s awareness. It’s reputation. It’s credibility. It’s the client who saw your logo at a conference, then read an article you published, then ran across your listing online—before finally deciding to call you. You don’t get credit for the first three impressions. But without them, the call would never have happened.

That’s why I encourage brokers, owners, and asset managers to think of marketing like farming. You’re planting seeds, building presence, and nurturing credibility. Over time, those investments compound—sometimes in unexpected ways.

At NAI Elliott, we are constantly monitoring and refining how we measure our marketing output. From KPIs related to this newsletter to tracking sales conversion ratios across various outreach channels, we operate on the principle that you cannot manage what you cannot measure. Sometimes it takes months—or even years—to gather enough meaningful data. But having a clear goal and consistently tracking your progress toward that goal is essential to long-term marketing success.

Why Most CRE Marketing Fails

It’s not because people aren’t trying hard enough. It’s because they’re skipping the strategy.

Most people jump straight to execution: “Let’s post this flyer,” or “Let’s run an ad.” But they never stop to ask the fundamental questions: Who are we? What are we trying to achieve? Who are we speaking to?

Without those answers, you’re just throwing spaghetti at the wall.

That’s why we developed a simple, strategic three-phase framework to help our commercial real estate professionals create better marketing outcomes—whether you're a solo broker, a brokerage owner, or a property manager overseeing a portfolio.

The Three Phases of Strategic Marketing

Phase 1: Identification

You can’t market effectively until you know who you are and where you’re trying to go. This is the foundation—and the phase most often skipped. Without it, it’s akin to taking a ship out to sea without a destination or capabilities of the ship and its crew.

Start with these questions:

Who are you?

Are you a retail specialist in a mid-tier market? A full-service brokerage in a high-barrier metro? A landlord with Class B assets looking to reposition? Be specific—and be genuine. Don’t posture. Don’t pretend. Authenticity is your greatest marketing asset.

Who are you not?

Defining what you don’t do can be just as helpful. Don’t try to be everything to everyone.

What’s your vision?

Where do you want to be in 1 year? 3 years? 10 years? If your goal is to double your production, build a high-performing team, or transform your property into a lifestyle destination—name it.

What market are you operating in?

Your plan must align with reality. A broker in Portland has different opportunities and limitations than one in Manhattan. A property manager in a secondary market can’t use the same playbook as someone managing trophy assets downtown.

Phase 2: Planning

Now that you’ve identified your position and destination, it’s time to create the roadmap.

This is where you ask:

Who are you trying to reach?

Tenants, buyers, investors, recruits? Each group requires different tactics.

What platforms are they on?

Gen Z brokers aren’t reading postcards. Local tenants may not be scrolling LinkedIn. The platform matters, but only in the context of your audience.

What tools do you have?

Are you leveraging a CRM? Do you have in-house design help? Can you access reliable data or track campaign results?

Are your goals even feasible?

If you’re a brokerage owner in a market with 20 performing CRE brokers, and your goal is to grow your team to 30 top producers in 12 months, that’s not a marketing problem—it’s a math problem.

The planning phase is about alignment. Matching your resources to your goals. Choosing the right tactics. And preparing for consistent execution.

Phase 3: Execution

This is where strategy turns into action—and where most marketing plans fall apart.

Because execution is not just about doing. It’s about doing the right things consistently.

Ask yourself:

Is your message resonating internally?

If your staff or team doesn’t believe in the brand, your customers won’t either.

Is your execution sustainable?

Can you maintain this marketing rhythm over time? If your plan relies on doing five posts a week and three email blasts a month—but you don’t have the time or team to support it—it will collapse.

The key here is iteration. Launch. Evaluate. Tweak. Improve.

At NAI Elliott, we believe in this approach to marketing so wholeheartedly that we have full-time, dedicated marketing personnel focused exclusively on supporting our brokers, property managers, and clients. Their role is to continually evaluate and refine our marketing efforts while also tracking shifts in the commercial real estate marketing landscape. These insights help us adjust our approach as needed, ensuring we stay aligned with the 1-, 3-, and 10-year goals established by leadership.

"Marketing works best when it’s part of the plan from day one. That’s why our team brings its experience to the table early, helping shape strategies that truly connect,” says Deann Orr, Marketing Manager at NAI Elliott. “We’re constantly tracking trends and shifts in the market so we can suggest approaches that give our brokers and clients the best shot at success in an ever-changing landscape."

And if something’s not working? Don’t panic. Don’t throw it all out. Just go back to Phase 2. Adjust the plan. Recalibrate.

Marketing is a living, breathing process. The best marketers treat it like gardening: tending, pruning, testing. Not like launching a rocket you can’t touch again.

Marketing Tools: Online and Offline

There’s no shortage of tools—what matters is how you use them. Online tools utilized by NAI Elliott include:

• Website
• Search engine optimization (SEO)
• Social media (LinkedIn, Instagram, etc.)
• Email newsletters and drip campaigns
• Listing platforms (CoStar, LoopNet, Crexi)
• Blogs, videos, podcasts
• Digital ads
• Offline tools utilized by NAI Elliott include:
• Press releases
• Direct mail
• Signage
• Local business journals
• Sponsorships and community events
• Networking, trade associations, board positions

None of these are silver bullets. Some will work better for certain goals or audiences. But used in combination, they create touchpoints—opportunities for people to see, hear, and remember you.

Final Thought: Marketing With Purpose

In the end, marketing is about communication. It's the bridge between where you are and where you want to be—between who you are and who you want to reach.

The best campaigns come from a place of clarity and intention, not noise and reaction.

So ask yourself again: What’s my goal?

Then build your strategy around that answer. And don’t forget to check in along the way, ask tough questions, and adjust course when necessary.

That’s how you market effectively in commercial real estate—not just for yourself, but for your team, your clients, and your properties.