Bennett Richardson came from Google, Politico, and Semaphore to become the Chief Marketing and Communications Officer at the National Association of Realtors (NAR). Less than a year into his role, he was promoted to CMO. His job: Market to three stakeholders at once - 1.5 million realtor members, Capitol Hill and policymakers, and the American consumer. And rebuild trust. In this episode, Bennett breaks down his philosophy that "building trust with a brand is just like building trust with a person," how NAR communicates at scale without hitting the unsubscribe button, the NAR Influencer Program (1,200 realtors and growing at nar.realtor/influencers), humanizing the brand by getting real people on camera, Think Again by Adam Grant and the importance of pivoting, and why his X-factor is simply loving people and keeping it human.
⏱️ TIMESTAMPS
0:00 - Intro: The Real Estate Industry Doesn't Hand Out Easy Moments
1:20 - Bennett Richardson: From Google to NAR
2:26 - Realtors Show Up Every Day Unemployed
3:52 - Three Stakeholders: Members, Capitol Hill, Consumers
5:05 - Putting Members First: Know Your Customer
6:28 - Diverse Communications for Diverse Membership
8:51 - Consumer Ad Campaign Launched a Month Ago
9:08 - If You're Telling Them Everything, You're Sending Too Much
10:38 - Personalization and Diversification Strategy
11:07 - Launching Broker-Specific Newsletter
12:34 - Humanizing NAR: Getting Real People on Camera
13:13 - NAR Influencer Program (nar.realtor/influencers)
15:08 - Building Trust: It's Just Like Building Trust with a Person
16:37 - How Do You Build Trust at Scale?
17:30 - Nikia Wright's Tour and Leadership
19:04 - Promises Made, Promises Kept
20:38 - How Do You Build Trust at Scale? (Deep Dive)
21:04 - Accountability-Focused Communications
22:29 - Kevin Brown Hadn't Been Home in Six Weeks
23:40 - Not Leaving Anyone Out or Anyone Behind
24:54 - Not Being Afraid to Pivot
25:58 - Think Again by Adam Grant
27:17 - Bennett's X-Factor: I Love People
28:39 - Keep It Human and Keep It Friendly
🎯 KEY TAKEAWAYS
✔️ Bennett came from Google, Politico, Semaphore to NAR as CMO
✔️ Three stakeholders: 1.5M realtor members, Capitol Hill, American consumers
✔️ "Building trust with a brand is just like building trust with a person"
✔️ Show up when you say you will, do what you said, follow through
✔️ Promises made, promises kept = foundation of accountability
✔️ If you're telling them everything, you're sending too much
✔️ Solution: Personalization, diversification, segmentation
✔️ NAR Influencer Program: 1,200 realtors at nar.realtor/influencers
✔️ Humanizing the brand: real people on camera (economists, researchers, advocates)
✔️ Sharing the microphone with membership voices
✔️ Kevin Brown (NAR president) 6 weeks on the road showing up for members
✔️ Think Again by Adam Grant: importance of pivoting mid-strategy
✔️ "Realtors show up every day unemployed - re-earn that business each transaction"
✔️ Bennett's X-factor: loving people, keeping it human
