How Tapping Into Your Community Builds Your Business

When you look at the socially progressive brands that really resonate in the market nowadays, the ones that find causes they're passionate about and incorporate their message into their business are the ones that have built a solid foundation for the future.

Clothing company Ten Tree plants 10 trees for each purchase and allows you to follow along online to see where they're planted. TOMS shoes makes a donation of a pair of shoes to a child in need in another country. Both companies have found a way to combine the revenue generating side of the business with their philanthropic side, and to coexist in a way that carves out their place in the world.

Real estate agents can take a page from these powerful value propositions to really help distinguish their brand—not because it's what they think consumers feel they should do, but because it's the right thing to do.

The power of giving back

You never want to just blindly write checks towards something because it looks like good PR; actually take the time and effort to get behind a simple and meaningful cause in your community. Today's consumers really want to know how you're making the world a better place. In fact, in a recent study, 91 percent of respondents said they wanted to hear about a company's social responsibility and progress, and want to hear about this in their marketing.

Positioning yourself as an advisor of your community will build trust with your audience – and helps give your brand a sense of purpose by showing exactly what you stand for. It helps build deep relationships within your community – and helps you stay top of mind as a trusted source when it comes time to buy or sell.