Lauren Henss shares how a powerful brand strategy can transform into a business strategy, built to empower every agent and spark inspiration across the industry.
When I joined FirstTeam, I walked into a brand with a proud history, strong leadership, and one big opportunity: The story we were telling didn’t fully reflect the people who made it great.
Many brokerages build brands around the company, not the agents who live it every day.
The industry has changed. People don’t connect with companies; they connect with people. Every client conversation, social post, website, and listing presentation tells the story of your brand far more powerfully than a tagline ever could.
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The risk of a rebrand
Here’s the truth every marketing leader knows but few say out loud: 60% of rebrands never deliver on their promise and 70% of advertising campaigns fail to generate meaningful ROI (WARC).
A great example of this is the luxury automotive brand, Jaguar. Their recent global rebrand was intended to reposition the automaker as a pure-electric luxury brand. Instead, it saw consumers react negatively to its launch and a near 75% sales collapse during its transition.
What happened? Jaguar’s rebrand failed because it abandoned the visual and emotional cues that customers identified with, launching a radical new identity without first earning their buy-in or bridging the shift through clear storytelling. Loyal customers felt alienated rather than inspired.
Most rebrands fail because they forget who they’re built for, which is why we made sure our rebrand, Behind the Agent, centers around the people, not the platform.
For any brokerage considering a rebrand, the lesson is simple: Center your agents in the process; their confidence and alignment are what turn change into momentum.
The shift from corporate to human
Across the industry, brokerage branding works top-down: Leadership defines the message. That model doesn’t fit a transparent, digital marketplace where clients can see everything, and authenticity drives connection.
Yet, your agents are the brand. They shape how the market perceives you every day. The strongest brokerages understand this and focus on helping agents represent the brand clearly and confidently while allowing space for individuality.
At FirstTeam, we call this the Behind the Agent philosophy.
It means every campaign, asset, and communication is built to showcase agents as the heroes of the story. The brokerage provides the structure, creative strategy, and marketing foundation behind them.
When agents feel seen and supported, they become your strongest brand ambassadors. Give them the tools and message to show up confidently in every interaction.
From tagline to transformation
When I arrived, Behind the Agent was a strong internal statement of purpose that captured who we were, but it hadn’t yet been activated externally. There was no roadmap, no unified website experience, no advertising or content strategy, and no true omnichannel campaign to bring it to life across digital, print, and experiential touchpoints.
That was our opportunity: To take something meaningful and make it measurable.
We evolved Behind the Agent from a brand tagline into a fully integrated brand and advertising ecosystem, connecting web, creative, social, digital, and physical activations into one cohesive story.
If your brand has meaning internally, don’t let it stay hidden. Find ways to activate it across every platform where your agents engage with clients and each other.
A comprehensive advertising ecosystem
To accomplish our ambitious goals, we built a comprehensive advertising ecosystem that rivals global consumer brands.
From digital-out-of-home (DOOH) airport takeovers and connected-TV advertising on premium streaming platforms, to luxury partnership events, agent-led influencer storytelling, and data-driven performance campaigns, we help agents meet consumers where they are, in their feeds, on their screens, and in their communities. We think in terms of experiences, not just ads.
Every activation reinforces our belief that when agents are proud of the brand behind them, they carry it forward with authenticity and energy.
No matter your market, think beyond campaigns. Create experiences your agents are proud to stand behind, and they’ll turn your message into momentum.
The power behind the platform
Our in-house marketing team brings over 75 years of combined experience across some of the world’s most respected brands, including CHANEL, Compass, Salesforce, CBRE, and Toll Brothers, on both the agency and brand sides.
That’s why Behind the Agent doesn’t feel like a campaign. It feels like a movement. It’s a brand ecosystem designed to elevate agents as brands themselves, supported by data, creative precision, and strategy that scales.
You don’t need a massive budget to build something meaningful. Start with alignment, clarity, and a consistent story your agents can grow with.
Why brand experience drives recruitment
Recruiting and marketing are two sides of the same coin. These departments are intertwined.
Top agents don’t join a brokerage just for tools and support: They join for identity. They want to align with a brand that reflects their ambition and amplifies their impact.
Every step of that journey, from outreach, marketing strategy, digital presence, to onboarding, is a brand experience that signals who you are.
When we repositioned FirstTeam, the goal wasn’t just to modernize our visuals; it was to modernize perception. We were seen as a legacy brand. We rebuilt that narrative by telling stories that reflect who we are now: Innovative, inclusive, and forward-looking.
We built this brand intentionally to attract the few — the agents who are innovative, collaborative, tech-savvy, and forward-thinking, and want to build meaningful careers — and repel the many.
Recruitment is branding. When your digital presence and onboarding reflect your values, you naturally attract agents who want to grow with you.
Turning agents into brand advocates
Agents become brand advocates when they see themselves in the story.
That starts with clarity: Who are we? What do we stand for? How do we help our agents succeed?
Once that foundation is clear, agents need tools to bring it to life, especially easy access to co-branded materials, consistent messaging guides, and content that feels personal yet professional.
When agents know they can rely on resources that elevate them, they gain confidence. And confidence fuels advocacy.
We design programs around the agents we want to attract and empower. Campaigns like Women of FirstTeam highlight leadership and opportunity for top-performing women.
Our Ownership Model showcases a path to ownership and autonomy for experienced professionals. Each story tells a different chapter of the same brand promise: Empowerment, purpose, and pride.
Build resources that match your agents’ ambitions. When they see their goals in your brand, they become its strongest voice.
Building a brand that outlasts campaigns
Building an agent-powered brand takes structure, focus, and commitment.
The brokerages that do it well do the following:
- Lead with purpose and values.
- Invest in people, not just production.
- Align marketing, recruitment, and experience into one story.
- Measure what matters: Engagement, retention, sentiment, not vanity metrics.
- Celebrate results publicly and authentically.
Great brands are built on clarity and consistency. When vision and execution work together, pride naturally follows.
The takeaway
Most brands fail because they lose sight of their people.
At FirstTeam, we did the opposite. We designed ours around them.
When you create a brand that amplifies your agents and reflects their ambition, you foster trust, loyalty, and momentum.
That’s the power of Behind the Agent: A brand built in partnership with its agents, where shared ambition drives a movement.
