In the competitive real estate market of Southlake, TX, the days of agents finding clients through cold calls and mailers are fading. According to Justin Nimergood, leader of the Top Gun Team at Epique Realty, buyers and sellers now search online, form opinions, and then decide whom to contact. This shift has made a media presence a requirement for agents on his team, not an optional extra.
Nimergood has seen the impact firsthand. His own growing social media presence recently led to an inbound message from a former college roommate who is now joining the Top Gun Team. This wasn't a paid lead or a cold call result; it happened because the right person saw consistent, authentic content and reached out on their own terms.
The modern real estate consumer does their own research before engaging an agent. They are well-educated and well-informed, and they want to find an agent, not be found by one. Nimergood notes, "They don't want to be sold to anymore. The new consumer of real estate is well educated and well informed, and they will find you. They don't want to be found; they want to find you." This changes the role of marketing from interrupting to attracting, allowing prospects to do their due diligence at their own pace, so by the time they call, they already trust the agent.
Building a media presence does not require viral stunts or a film crew. Nimergood is clear: "You don't need to be doing TikTok dances and jumping out from behind pot plants." The bar is lower and more sustainable: be consistent and be an educator. Agents who regularly share useful, local information build more trust than those who attempt to go viral once and vanish. This approach is easier to maintain long-term, as a short video on a market trend or a common buyer mistake requires less effort and builds genuine connections.
A media presence serves dual purposes for team leaders. On the client side, prospects who follow an agent's content before meeting them arrive already comfortable, having seen the agent's philosophy and answers to common questions. This comfort shortens the sales cycle and reduces time spent establishing credibility. On the recruiting side, the same content reaches agents evaluating team opportunities. A recruit who sees a leader consistently add value on camera gains a clearer picture of what working with that leader entails than from a slide deck.
Time is a common objection to building a media presence, but Top Gun Team's "Podcast in a Box" program addresses this by handling production, editing, and publishing, requiring only that the agent shows up and talks about what they know. Agents interested in this support and the team's recruiting approach can learn more on the team's About page.
A media presence has stopped being a nice-to-have for agents competing in Southlake and across Dallas-Fort Worth. It is now one of the clearest ways to be found by buyers, sellers, and future teammates who are already searching.
