Let’s face it, this industry is competitive. In any given market, there could be hundreds, potentially even thousands of quality real estate professionals all fighting for the same listings and the attention of potential clients. There are however some unique and effective marketing tactics you can work into your business to help separate you from the pack and bring in more of those quality leads.
These are just a few ideas to help get the ball rolling, but don’t be afraid to put your creative hat on and really put a focus on your marketing efforts. The ROI will definitely be worth it!
- Create a website - Creating a website is important because it will show prospective clients all that you have to offer. You should keep your website as up to date as possible with listings, so potential clients will continue coming back to your site throughout their property search. You want to make it easy for clients to access all the information about a particular property. You can do this by having great images, virtual tours, and information about the neighborhood and location.
- Make it mobile-friendly - By making your website mobile-friendly you are increasing the likelihood that prospective clients will visit your website. Customers spend a ton of time on their mobile devices. So, if your site is mobile-friendly, they can easily pull it up when they are on the go.
- Build a blog - Building a blog can increase your online presence greatly. By creating content on your blog that is optimized for SEO, you can increase the likelihood that your blog/content will appear in front of targeted clients. Ensure that viewers can easily navigate to your website or profile through your blog. You also want to make sure that your blog has captivating images and infographics to keep viewers interested. Blog posts should be relevant, useful to potential clients, and should address interesting topics such as tips for homebuyers, reviews of local restaurants or entertainment options in a specific location or neighborhood, etc.
- Develop email marketing campaigns - Knowing your audience's needs can help you tailor your next interaction with them. If a potential client attended one of your open houses, you can tailor your next email communication with them around other listings in the same area that they may be interested in viewing. If they attended a New Homebuyer seminar, you can only assume that they are looking to learn everything they need to know about the homebuying process. By sending them helpful tips and tricks for new homebuyers, you may be able to answer some of their questions, making them more likely to want to work with you.
- Create a newsletter - Prospective clients don’t always have time to check your latest blog post. Instead, send them a weekly/monthly newsletter including your recent blog posts and any updated listings that they may have otherwise missed. Don’t forget to include local real estate news and new listings in the area.
- Partner with local businesses - Partnering with local coffee shops, restaurants, boutiques, etc. is a great way to make your presence known in the community. Work with businesses to cross-promote, offering incentives to potential clients/customers. For example, invite guests to show up to one of your open houses and they will receive a percentage-off coupon at the local business. Or have a space in the local business where you can place your open house flyers, business cards, and other business collateral.
- Social media - Almost everyone is on social media nowadays and a lot of people actually turn to social media when reviewing a company/business that they are looking to work with. Therefore, you should maintain an active, engaging, and interesting social media presence. This means not only posting captivating content but also engaging with users. Liking, sharing, commenting, joining relevant groups, and answering questions about your industry and your market that demonstrate your knowledge.
- Create a Zillow profile - Zillow has over 188 million monthly viewers, making it an amazing platform to put you and your business in front of new prospective clients. By creating a profile you are able to connect with users and potentially gain more clientele.
- Host a webinar - Hosting a webinar is a great way to demonstrate your knowledge and value to the real estate market. Partnering with a local lender, title company, or other relevant companies in the market can make it easier for buyers and sellers in your area to know and understand the next steps and their best options. Your webinar can be informative and also an opportunity for you to see what questions your potential future clients may have so you can best assist them.
- Use drone photography - Drone photography provides an elevated lens of a property that regular photography simply can’t. You can either purchase a drone yourself or use a drone service to capture the perfect shot. Check out our previous post on Drone Photography to learn more!
- Ads - Facebook and Instagram ads allow you to reach more people than a standard organic post. Both platforms allow you to pick a target audience, goal budget, and length of time you’d like your ad/promotion to run. Ads can be still images, motion graphics, or videos.
- Use local images - By sharing images of the location/neighborhood as well as the home, you’ll be putting your best foot forward and showing all the amazing things the home and town have to offer.
- Real Estate Photography - Photos can make or break your listing. So much of your listing relies on the quality of the images that you showcase. Images that are dull, taken from the wrong angle, or unflattering of the space can immediately turn away potential clients. Learn more about real estate photography from our previous post
- Virtual tours - In today’s world, everyone likes to have an immersive experience and that’s no different when it comes to buying a home. It gives clients an inside look and feel of the home without ever actually stepping foot through the doors. Filming a virtual tour of a home can provide a more detailed look at the home that still images simply cannot.
- Host seminars for home buyers - Most people want to know a little bit about a business or professional before deciding to work with them. With a seminar, you are able to share who you are, what you are about, and the benefit of your help in the home buying/selling process.
- Branding - Placing your logo or business name on items such as mugs, pens, koozies, t-shirts, etc. can increase the chances of your business reaching a larger audience. And let’s face it, people love free things.
- Testimonials - People are more likely to go with a business or professional that has positive reviews from past clients. Asking for testimonials from previous clients to endorse you and the positive relationship with is a great way to gain the interest of new clients.
- Create a referral system - Referrals are one of the best ways to gain new clients. Forty-one percent of sellers found their real estate agent through a referral. Creating an incentive for previous clients to refer you is also a great place to start.
- Unique business cards - Business cards have been around for as long as we can remember, which is why it’s important to make sure yours not only stand out from your competitors but also that they are informative and easy to read.
Utilize Reddit - Posting ideas and tips for homeowners, buyers, and sellers on Reddit can demonstrate your knowledge of the industry, in turn, showing your value and increasing the chances that people will want to work with you.
