The news hasn't been great when it comes to the residential real estate market in recent years, but The Bean Group seems to have the magic to buck the industry trend. The nine-year-old company, based in Portsmouth, has grown sales annually since opening in 2003, posting $364 million in sales and $12.5 million in revenue in 2011. Between 2007 and 2009, when the recession hit hardest, sales grew 39 percent.
CEO and Founder Michael Bean has a sign outside his office with a quote from Walt Disney asserting, I'm doing this because I want to do it better. With 15 offices and more than 300 agents, The Bean Group is different because of the way it does business, Bean says.
Bean says the company's technology is a key differentiating factor. While all its agents are independent contractors, each has an individual website and access to the company's marketing team, online tools and training sessions led by industry experts. In 2006, The Bean Group integrated a data technology company into the real estate firm and now has 15,000 unique visitors a day.
The firm doesn't just sell to customers; it sells them on a concept that The Bean Group is invested in helping them find the right home. The website is branded with the firm's motto, Bringing People Home, with photos on its home page of families going on bike rides, laying in the leaves and doing yard work, with only a few photos of homes for sale in the mix until visitors click further in.
The branding seems to be working. This past summer the company acquired Virtual Homes Real Estate in Amherst and was named to the Inc. 5000 list of the fastest growing companies in the United States. The Bean Group ranked 1,617th overall for revenue growth, and 32nd for real estate firms. In New England, only one Massachusetts real estate firm ranked higher.
During the past year, the company has added five new offices and recently hired two new executives: Richard Burbine, formerly executive vice president for Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage Northern New England, as president; and Andrew Werry, formerly CEO of the Northern New England Real Estate Network in Concord, as COO.
For more information, visit beangroup.com.
Current Issue - May 2024