by When you start in the business of real estate, very little is taught about marketing. In fact, oddly enough it’s almost an afterthought. When we were early in the business, we had asked a successful real estate agent what he did for marketing. After all, he was consistently closing multiple 7-figure homes each month, he must have “cracked the code” to un-earthing these eager buyers. Our anticipation of a great answer was short lived though as he said “just throw your picture on a postcard and mail it out, it doesn’t matter”. Not the type of inspiration or systematic approach to getting business we had hoped for.
His response is what many real estate agents still do today and that is why, when the market tightens, so many real estate professionals are left scrambling to find new work. While a license is required to practice real estate, your license doesn’t really prepare you for acquiring new business.
The enthusiasm of getting your license and visions of helping people accomplish their dream of home ownership makes you think very little of how you are going to go about getting your business. Once you start to ask the questions of what you should do to get business, you are generally given some of the following ideas:
- Do an open house
- Mail and call your friends and family
- Get business cards
WOW! Not marketing options that really push any limits there. The problems with these ideas are numerous, the worst of which being, unless you have like 100+ family members who want to buy you are going to run out of business in just a month or two.
In order to be a true professional real estate agent, your marketing needs to be different and cost effective. In order to be different, you aren’t going to take out a billboard, or get bus benches!
Marketing online for real estate isn’t a concept that is totally new, yet the majority of agents still aren’t generating any business from their websites, blogging efforts, or social media. The problem for most agents is they have the wrong focus for their online presence. The good news is, when you change the focus, you get dramatic results.
Change the focus
The focus of your websites needs to be on the customer and what the customer is looking for. Too many websites have large pictures of agents and talk about awards on the first page. The person trying to purchase a home isn’t looking for awards, they are looking for information on the area and they are trying to find out what is available in the different neighborhoods that you support. Make your very first page of your website about looking for properties and draw them in deeper, always letting them know your website is there to help them.
Make it easy
If a customer has to search far and wide to get juicy information on your website, they will just leave for a better website. Make it easy for visitors to get area information and search your local MLS system. It needs to be obvious on each and every page of your website that they have the opportunity to learn more and get listings.
You don’t have to spend your budget on a fancy website to help your visitors get the information they long for. Simply take the time to make sure your website isn’t about you and that it’s all about your customers and watch your marketing start to generate serious business for you.
