Better Homes and Gardens- A Name you'll Remember

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Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Grows Consumer Brand Recognition by Nearly 20 Percent in One Year

Wall Street Journal Residential Real Estate Survey Results Speak to Company’s Presence as a Powerful Consumer Lifestyle Brand

PARSIPPANY, N.J. (Aug. 26, 2009) – On the heels of its first anniversary, Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate LLC today announced its brand recognition among consumers has jumped nearly 20 percent, according to two surveys conducted in its first year. According to an Infinia Analytics report completed in May 2008, aided awareness of the brand was 49 percent prior to launch and, according to a Wall Street Journal Residential Real Estate survey released this month, two out of every three Journal subscribers surveyed (approximately 68 percent) said they are aware of the brand today. Better Homes and Gardens® Real Estate now is one of the fastest-growing brands in the industry.

The results demonstrate that despite a challenging housing market, Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate has risen quickly by distinguishing itself as a consumer lifestyle brand in the real estate industry. The organization has attracted 2,100 brokers and sales associates across 75 offices in 10 states by successfully combining an iconic brand known for all things home-related with a next-generation real estate business driven by the latest technologies, advanced agent tools and award-winning consumer marketing.

"We set out to develop a brand that could successfully marry Main Street ideals with Web 2.0 sensibilities and to communicate that message directly to today’s changing real estate consumer," said Sherry Chris, president and CEO of Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate LLC. "Our ability to deliver on this message in our first year undoubtedly has led to our success."

Without traditional media buys, such as radio or television commercials, the brand instead focused on developing content relevant to today’s consumer, employing social media and marketing tactics such as consumer-friendly online videos with home renovation and selling tips from designer Stephen Saint-Onge and an innovative, consumer- and agent-friendly Web site and industry blog. Through unique public relations and marketing tactics, the brand has emerged as one of the most readily recognized in real estate.

"We built the entire brand around the aesthetic and appeal of the Better Homes and Gardens brand, which we found through extensive research and measurement would immediately resonate with consumers," said Camilla Sullivan, senior vice president, marketing, for Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate LLC. "We aimed to move beyond simply the real estate transaction and to speak directly to consumers at every turn. It looks like they were listening."
Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate was launched to accommodate today’s changing consumers as they trend to the Web for information, education, transparent pricing, home valuations, seamless customer service, and for finding an agent or buying a house.

The Wall Street Journal 2009 Residential Real Estate Study surveyed 3,000 of its print subscribers living in the top 20 designated market areas in the United States. The study had a 76 percent response rate. Respondents had an average household income of $245,000 and an average household net worth of nearly $2.3 million.

About Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate LLC

Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate LLC is an international real estate brand that offers a full range of services to brokers, sales associates and home buyers and sellers. Using innovative technology, sophisticated business systems and the broad appeal of a lifestyle brand, Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate LLC embodies the future of the real estate industry while remaining grounded in the tradition of home. Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate LLC is a subsidiary of Realogy Corporation, a global provider of real estate and relocation services. For more information, please visit www.BHGRealEstate.com.

Better Homes and Gardens® is a registered trademark of Meredith Corporation licensed to Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate LLC.

Equal Opportunity Company. Equal Housing Opportunity. Each Better Homes and Gardens® Real Estate Franchise is Independently Owned and Operated.
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