DON’T BE ‘STARRY’-EYED ABOUT YOUR STRATEGY Rebranding the Right Way
In early 2023, Pepsi shocked the public by rebranding its lemon-lime soda Sierra Mist as Starry. Though the move raised eyebrows and spawned jokes, the success of the company’s rebranding strategy remains to be seen. Rebranding is always tricky and opens you up to the wrong kind of attention. So, if you’re considering it for your business, how do you ensure you get the right reactions? Companies rebrand for many reasons. Many do so after flagging sales to revitalize interest or reach a new market. Others rebrand to reflect a significant change in the business, like an acquisition or considerable shift in products or services. Rebranding is also a tried-and-true method for companies to move on from bad publicity. But rebranding is more than renaming your business — in fact, you don’t necessarily need to rename your business at all. Rebranding is more than a new company name, updated logo, or website. It’s about your business’s identity and overall strategy for the future.
“feeling” like it’s time for a change is not enough. Ask what you’re hoping to accomplish, then consider whether you need to rebrand to achieve it. Your brand may just need a “facelift” with a tweaked logo, new company colors, or a refreshed social media presence. If you’re committed to rebranding, do it with clear eyes and an awareness of how your efforts could go wrong. One famous example was Tropicana (also owned by PepsiCo) in 2009. The company replaced its instantly recognizable image of a straw in an orange with a generic picture of a glass of orange juice. Consumers felt it cheapened the product — and some even had trouble finding it. Tropicana quickly switched back to its old packaging, but it was a $50 million mistake. Rebranding is a balancing act between refreshing your image and retaining the elements that made your company successful in the first place. Business leaders should strongly consider hiring a rebranding expert who understands the risks before beginning an overhaul. It’s essential to understand your current customer base and target market. Otherwise, you could alienate both — and all your money, time, and effort could fall flat.
Since rebranding is not a quick fix, every business owner should evaluate their reasons for wanting to rebrand before making the leap. Simply
The Best Way to Get Started Investing in Apartment Communities
IDENTIFY YOUR GOALS Where do you want to be in one, three, five, and 10 years? Be realistic here but stretch out of your comfort zone. Do not say you want to invest $100,000 and retire next year. It’s not going to happen, but you would not have to wait 30 years, either. Again, take some time to identify your financial goals. Are you more interested in monthly cash flow or making large capital gains from a property? Given the time frames, your goals will change. What do you want your personal Income Statement and Balance Sheet to look like? By starting out with some education, deciding what kind of investor you want to be, and then identifying your financial goals, you will be much further ahead than if you just call up a broker and start looking at properties. Many investors try to skip these steps and end up wasting a lot of time or, even worse, getting into a property that cannot help them reach their financial goals. Lastly, another great resource is my podcast. If you are not listening in, you ARE missing out. You can get my latest episode or past episodes at my website, DarinGarman.com. –Darin
Over the years, I have heard from many investors who want to get started investing in apartment buildings. And for good reason — apartment complexes are one of the best types of real estate to invest in for many reasons, and among them are:
There are many great books and courses available specifically designed to help beginning investors get started with their education in the multifamily arena. Simply do some searches on the internet or at your local library and get started with your education. I cannot emphasize this enough. I would recommend downloading one or all of my books (at no cost) at DarinGarman.com. DECIDE WHETHER YOU WANT TO BE AN ACTIVE INVESTOR OR PASSIVE INVESTOR Make the decision whether you will start out as an Active or a Passive Investor. Here is what I mean:
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Purchased correctly, multifamily properties will do well no matter what the economy is doing. They provide a stream of income in the form of cash flow. They will be in demand from renters for years to come.
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I could keep going, but there are many reasons why apartments will outperform other real estate investments, and in a down economy, more people shift toward renting than buying, so multifamily properties actually benefit when the economy is down. Investors are quickly realizing this and want to know the best way to get started investing in apartment complexes. Here are a couple of ideas to help get you started. START WITH SOME BASIC EDUCATION We all start out at the same level: with the basics. Make your initial investment in yourself and your education before you go looking at properties.
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Active Investor — Actively involved from A to Z with their properties and the day-to-day management Passive Investor — NOT involved in the day- to-day management of their properties
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Take some time and really decide, given the amount of spare time you have, whether you want to actively manage your property or work with someone else who will take care of the day- to-day property management activities.
There is no right or wrong answer here — just be truthful with yourself.
2 DARINGARMAN.COM
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