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Marketing strategies for real estate agents

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05 November 2013

Marketing strategies for real estate agents

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If you’re in the real estate business, then you already know it’s not just property you’re selling. You’re also selling yourself.

Potential vendors will do their homework before choosing which agent sells their home. When they’re tossing up between you and your competitors, they need a serious reason you pick you – so make sure you give them one (or two, or five – don’t hold back). 

Here’s how to build a strong personal brand and keep yourself top of mind when people in your farm area are ready to sell.

Always be available 

Be easily contactable. Every single piece of marketing material, from your email signature to your website, should clearly display your contact details. Your mobile number needs to be readily available for vendors and potential clients reach you quickly, and you should be able to access email on your phone – that way you can reply while you’re on the road, without having to wait to get in front of a computer. Always stay on top of your voicemails and inbox and respond to people promptly – don’t give your competition time get in before you.

Optimise your online offerings

Every agent worth their salt needs a strong online presence. It starts with an effective website – if you’re not tech savvy, have a professional developer build you one. A clunky, dated website is a terrible reflection on you and your services (really, you’re better off not having one at all). A serious percentage of web traffic comes from mobile searches, so ensure your site is mobile optimised to let users navigate it easily on their smartphones.

Deliver killer content

Content is the foundation of every modern marketing campaign. Establish yourself a niche or area of expertise, and provide a continual stream of helpful, relevant information that builds you a reputation as a trusted expert. Provide information about the local market, interest rates, real estate trends – anything that’s of interest to current and potential clients – via your website and blog, twitter feed, Facebook page, email marketing, newsletters and more. The more high-quality content you can provide, the more credible you become. Aim to make yourself the go-to person for market information in your patch.

Collect your contacts

Maintain an up-to-date database of all your contacts, past and present, and use it to keep track of potential clients, too. Get in touch on a regular basis, whether that’s with a newsletter, postcard, or another kind of personalised marketing piece. Remind people of yourself and your services, and use your database to help build your business to a point where a significant percentage is coming via referrals and word-of-mouth. For something a little more personal,  you can even host an event like casual drinks or a barbecue, and invite your contacts along. 

Be a local hero

Get involved with your local community and do some volunteer work. What needs doing in your neighbourhood? It might be picking up rubbish along a river, planting a community garden or helping out at a local aged care facility. Be an active citizen! Not only is it a worthy use of your downtime, it’s an opportunity to make connections with other community leaders and gain a much deeper understanding of the local area. Get staff, family and friends along too.

Network, network, network

When you attend conferences and seminars, take the time to build good relationships with agents in other suburbs and states. There may come a time when you can help them out by referring business their way, and they can do the same for you.

Give ‘em what they want

Listen to the customers in your marketplace. What needs can you fulfill in the local area? If a large percentage of people move to the area to downsize, become a downsizing expert. Got a large Chinese population? Take the time to learn about Chinese culture. If you work with a lot of first home buyers, make sure you’re armed with every piece of information necessary to answer all of the many questions they’re sure to throw your way. 

Maximise your marketing

Expend your marketing efforts in the right places. If there are lots of older people in the local area, they may not be so internet savvy – reach out to them via print. A younger population might prefer to connect digitally, so think about apps, social media, and a mobile-optimised website. Think about the way people in your marketplace are most likely to find and connect with you, and then get into that space.

Consistency counts

When the market slows and there’s less business around, it’s tempting to halt your marketing efforts and lay low until things pick up. Big mistake. You need to stay active even when the market is quiet – the most successful agents promote themselves and their services constantly. When business picks up again, they’re the first agent potential buyers consider reaching out to, because they’ve kept themselves top of mind. Meanwhile, the agents who tapered off their marketing have been long forgotten.

What marketing strategies work for you? Let us know in the comments.

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