Can "Mad Men" teach us anything about real estate?

The fifth season of “Mad Men” concluded on Sunday, and in the show’s trademark fashion, it mixed business and pleasure in ways that only Don Draper, Roger Sterling and co. are capable of doing.

But although Mr. Draper may be taking a brief break from television, his ideas on advertising and marketing are going nowhere, and we’ve pinpointed three of his most valuable for the modern real estate agent:

“If you don’t like what’s being said, change the conversation.” This line speaks to approaching your business with a unique, nonconformist attitude, and few professions reward unconventional thinking more fully than real estate. The luxury cover story from our Chicago affiliate last month highlighted a particularly strong example: when an agent was trying to sell a lakefront property during a drought, she didn’t simply cut the price down – she used the drought to her advantage and marketed the home in a creative, daring way.

“The most important idea in advertising is ‘new.’ It creates an itch.” Swap out “advertising” for “real estate” in that quote and little changes, no? The Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce ad agency in “Mad Men” is always thinking forward, and that should be your focus in real estate as well. How can your marketing materials remain fresh and interesting? How can you show that one three-bed home in a new, exciting way? By thinking new. Try cross-platform marketing using social media or new marketing materials you haven’t used before.

“Advertising is based on one thing, happiness.” This one is almost too easy – isn’t that, to a large degree, what residential real estate is based on, as well? A home is often the largest purchase of a person’s life, but despite that fact (and the many details that surround it), make sure your clients never lose sight of the purpose – and happiness– that derives from such a momentous step.