In Studio city where homes regularly sell in the $3M – $4M range, sun-tanned, A-list celebrities can often be spotted, one local REALTOR® is gaining recognition for her camera-work.
Shelley Cohen, a neighborhood specialist with Purplebricks Realty Inc, is being embraced by Studio city business owners as a true community advocate with an eye for the people behind the scenes.
Since January of 2018, Cohen, an experienced presenter for C-level executives, has been interviewing local business owners in her community and promoting them on her Parkbench neighborhood website.
Despite managing a busy schedule of clients, Cohen launched herself into action, using her smartphone and a selfie-stick to record over 30 interviews in 30 days. To date, some 50 interviews with local businesses can be found on her Parkbench.com neighborhood blog, an eclectic mix of some of Studio City’s most enterprising and entertaining personalities.
The interviews were completed as part of a nationwide challenge involving some 1,000 agents across the US and Canada. Members of the Parkbench.com network, or ‘local leaders’, as the company refers to them, are encouraged to become neighborhood advocates by supporting economic growth and building relationships within the local business community.
Cohen, who has lived in LA since 2004, relocated from Toronto, CA to be with her husband. A REALTOR® since 2011, she considers her integrity her strongest asset. “It’s always about treating people right. That comes first.” But she doesn’t hesitate to use her boardroom experience and sales-savvy to protect the best interests of her clients.
Having served as a member of Carpenter High’s PTA, and as co-chair of the school’s Annual Fundraiser, Cohen feels a strong connection to her adopted city. After buying and selling several homes herself, she decided to put her experience to good use helping others on the path to home ownership.
As Cohen explains:
“I’ve been through the process myself many times. I understand what my buyers and sellers need from my own experience and I make sure to always put them first. It’s the most important decision anyone will ever make so I give people my best possible service and care. The relationship is the most important part. Treat people right and you’ll always succeed.”
Although she launched her Parkbench.com website in January of 2018, it wasn’t until August that her interviews gained momentum.
Describing her method for interviewing, she says:
“It took about 2 hrs to do each interview and get it posted. I did an interview a day for 30 days, sometimes more. I usually booked an interview by phone. Sometimes I’d just show up. About 80% of them were people I’ve known through business, friends, neighbors…a few were brand new but my focus was small businesses, owner-operated. I wanted a more natural approach. I did some transcribing, and I produced whatever the business owner was comfortable with, either video or a written article.”
Completing the Parkbench.com 30×30 challenge was a significant milestone for Cohen. The busy agent with a knack for making others look good was only 1 of 4 agents to complete the challenge held in multiple cities.
As a member of the Parkbench.com family, Cohen is the exclusive website sponsor for Studio City and Universal City. She felt the investment was worth it to help small business owners reach a larger audience of local residents.
Her website includes a range of free resources to help residents find the best deals, including a business directory, events listings, news, real estate, and daily deals from nearby retailers.
Future Plans
With plans to interview more business owners, Shelley is eager to get more local business owners the exposure they need. She hopes to attract more local residents to her Parkbench.com Studio City Blog, which includes the latest news, interviews and deals happening in the city every week.
“Real estate is very competitive but I want to offer clients more than my business expertise. With my website, the whole community benefits and I’m able to help my clients connect with the right people, whatever they may need. The interviews show you the people behind the businesses and give you a sense of what living here is really like.”
To book your free feature interview, visit Shelley online.
Are you a community-minded agent? Visit Parkbench and claim your area today!