Every day there is something new hitting your market. New trends, new competition, new investment opportunities and they all add-up to create a continual state of flux. To stay ahead of the competition, your commercial real estate marketing plan needs to be continually adapted. What worked once, may not work now. Reviewing and adjusting your marketing plan is the only way to meet the needs of your existing and prospective customers and to continue to generate commercial real estate leads. How quickly your company adapts to the changes can be the difference between success and a very long year.The key to successfully adapting your strategy to changing business conditions lies in your company’s flexibility and preparedness. That probably sounds like a tall order and a lot of planning, but if you think of your marketing plan as a living document that is continually evolving as technology and marketplace conditions evolve, then it doesn’t have to happen all at once. As a roadmap for doing this, let these activities be your guide for when it’s time to make a change.

Assess the general market
Work with your team to perform regular market analyses. A team based approach will ensure you have a 360-degree view of the marketplace. Try to examine the market in terms of population shifts, industrial sectors, public works projects, utilities, housing, schools and transit. Each of these macro and micro environmental variables will have an impact on your commercial real estate marketing approach. To do an extra thorough job examining the commercial real estate market, invite some non-market facing employees to participate (you may be surprised by what you learn). Be sure to stay abreast of prevailing economic and technological conditions that impact this industry as well.

Look your competition in the eye

You’ll likely have some inkling of how the competition is going to market from your general market analysis. However, today’s commercial real estate marketing professionals are competing with more than just their traditional competition. They’re competing with businesses all over the world and newcomers to the industry that have splashy, high-tech marketing, but almost no track record. Keep an eye who is moving into and interacting with your market. Industry associations, trade journals and your business partners (commercial real estate related or otherwise) are all good sources of this type of information.

Be sure to use technology to your advantage. A great place to start is Google alerts. Here, for free, you can setup customized alerts to inform you about any online mentions relevant to your business. For example, creating an alert for “commercial real estate Austin”, will get you regular notices about commercial real estate activity in this top 5 tech city.

Stay current with regulations
Changes in regulations can significantly impact your commercial real estate marketing plan, or at least provide guidance on topics you need to cover in your commercial real estate flyer or brochure. Federal regulations on lending standards or local zoning ordinances are the types of things you need to be aware of. Look for new opportunities to exploit your properties’ compliance with safety and environmental standards through your marketing efforts – everyone loves to hear about green-minded companies nowadays.

Changes in regulations are also a great way to promote your knowledge on a particular subject and establish your company as a thought leader.

Look in the mirror 
One of the most overlooked places for new information about the market is within your own company. Be sure to look at how your company has changed over a period of time. Do you have more employees which provide you with more reach? Have you changed or added locations which provides a presence in additional markets? Perhaps you’ve developed an expertise in commercial real estate investment or another area.

In reviewing your findings from these activities, don’t be afraid to adjust. It is not easy to shift from what you have come to deem as the norm, but it could really pay dividends in the long run. Be open to new ideas and embrace changes by being flexible, setting goals and keeping up with your regular check-ins on the marketplace.