Long on Innovation
Local Realty Company Earns Global Award
By Monica Surfaro Spigelman
Photo: Courtesy of Long Realty Company
Innovations abound in every corner of the real estate market – yet Long Realty Company proved it was a cut above the rest when it netted a prestigious honor from Leading Real Estate Companies of the World, the largest global network of premier locally branded real estate firms.
For its “Why I Love Arizona” website launched last fall, Long Realty was designated the Most Innovative Brokerage at LeadingRE’s 2012 Annual Conference held in Orlando, Fla. It was a case of the right program at the right time – as Long Realty’s online campaign engaged community creativity while generating positive energy about Arizona.
Long Realty created a photo contest that invited the community to submit photos that portrayed the spirit of “Why I Love Arizona.” Winners were selected based on online voting. The grand prize – $1,926 – was an amount representing the year Long Realty was founded. Long Realty employees and sales associates also were encouraged to submit their own Arizona photos for a special online gallery.
“Our goal was to bring the community together through photos – for everyone to show our Arizona pride,” said Rosey Koberlein, CEO of Long Companies. Long Companies comprises Long Realty Company, Long Mortgage Company, Long Title Agency and Long Insurance Group.
The photo contest generated hundreds of submissions. Tens of thousands of votes were cast from across Arizona. “We wanted to get people talking and sharing the positive, and it worked,” Koberlein continued. “The contest turned attention on Arizona’s natural wonders and inspired community spirit and loyalty.”
Long Realty partnered with KVOA-TV, Clear Channel Radio, Arizona Daily Star, Tucson Lifestyle, Truly Nolen, Comcast and Dental Village to promote the contest and encourage participation. With collaboration at the heart of the initiative, the community got creative, generating votes as well as conversations about the contest in social media. The “Why I Love Arizona” grand prize award winner – Tucson’s Bryan Salzman – and finalists were announced in December. The gallery of winning photos remains online at www.whyilovearizona.com.
Long Realty has made significant investments in people, technology and systems to provide an exceptional experience to consumers and to sales associates, according to Kevin Kaplan, VP of marketing and technology for Long Companies. “The ‘Why I Love Arizona’ campaign is one in a long line of innovative ideas Long Realty has brought to life,” he said.
Long Realty was the buzz of the industry at the recent LeadingRE conference at the Hilton Orlando Bonnet Creek, which attracted 1,000 real estate brokers, managers, relocation professionals, sponsors and guests from across the U.S. and over a dozen countries worldwide.
“Long Realty created an amazing community outreach campaign,” said LeadingRE President and CEO Pam O’Connor. “As the recipient of our Most Innovative Brokerage Award, Long Realty has earned distinction as one of the country’s top-performing real estate companies.”
Only the best among locally and regionally branded firms are selected for membership in the LeadingRE network. Long Realty is the local representative in this network producing $235 billion in annual home sales.