Real Estate Marketing Done the Right Way

It’s easy to post updates on social media. What’s not so easy is using social media strategically and effectively – so that it’s actually generating leads and referrals, and engaging people so that it helps build a pipeline for the future.

It’s easy to think the work of internet marketing is done when homes are listed online or you’ve filled out a bio and office page on the corporate website. What’s not so easy is creating web content that actually gets found in online search or stands out from the rest when someone does see your listing or visit your office webpage online.

it’s easy to network and pass out business cards at open houses, community networking groups, your Chamber of Commerce and so on. What’s not so easy is giving contacts a good reason to prefer you over the dozens of other realtors they’ve met at the same type of events.

The easy way feels productive, but doesn’t usually produce measurable results. And this is time you can’t get back.

If your marketing is producing measurable results, read no further. If you’re spending a lot of time trying to work social media, your website, internet listings, and networking events with little to show for it, keep reading; this is right where you need to be – where the easy way meets the right way.

Real estate marketing done the right way starts with a strategic plan (not just a strategy).

A strategic plan lists:

• where you are now
• where you want to be
• your target market/s and ideal buyer type/s
• economic, regulatory, legislative, marketplace and competitive landscape
• anything else that impacts your ability to succeed (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats)

A strategic plan enables you to define and refine your brand:

• vision
• mission
• values
• attitude and personality
• language and imagery
• use guidelines
• templates (email, web page, blog post, business card, brochure, 1-sheet, flyers, invitations, notes, postcards, etc.)

A strategic plan puts your goals into specific, measurable, trackable statements:

• g., 25% more homes, or ## homes sold in 2017
• g., 25% more home buyers/sellers or ## home buyers/sellers worked with in 2017
• g., 25% bigger pipeline (contact list, social following, referring lending or title agents, etc.) or ## number of contacts in pipeline in 2017
• g., 25% higher average home value represented in 2017
• g., 25% increase in open house attendance or ## average number attending each open house in 2017

And so on.

If it’s a goal, it must to be measurable and within your control to achieve; otherwise? It’s really just wishful thinking.

A strategic plan lists specific strategies that will be employed to achieve each goal and may be further detailed by tactics relative to each strategy.

• Grow pipeline by 25% in 2017 (GOAL)
  • Grow email contact list (STRATEGY)
    • Prize drawings to get more prospect emails at open houses (TACTIC)
    • Local prize drawings (e.g., local restaurant gift card) to get social followers to subscribe to emails (TACTIC)
    • Business book giveaway to get Chamber or business networking colleague emails (TACTIC)

And so on.

Even at the tactical level, additional details may be supplied. For instance, if you’re going to woo social followers to become subscribers, which networks will you target? How often will you hold drawings? What is the total budget, and how will it be allocated across networks/frequency?

A strategic plan encourages accountability by putting deadlines (i.e., “in 2017”) around goals, assigning responsibility for tactics, setting baselines, specifying when progress measures will be taken, and often indicating whether/what contingency plans will be put into place if progress isn’t occurring.

If you’re working with a team, the strategic plan becomes an objective management tool, showing how each team member contributes to progress, showing where the team is lacking in skills, or indicating whether changes to staff may be needed. It eliminates the he said, she said, finger-pointing, and shoulder shrugging. It provides a roadmap for every day operations and a standard by which you can evaluate and adopt (or reject) ideas relative to the way they support or detract from the goals you said were most important.

Real estate marketing done the right way sets your business apart from all those who are doing it the easy way.

When you commit to real estate marketing done the right way, you can get off the hamster wheel of continuing to do the same things (that aren’t working well) harder, faster, or more often, in hopes that somehow it will produce a different result.

Let’s do your marketing the right way.

We can help with one-time solutions:

• Hands-on strategic planning workshop or sessions (virtual or in-person)
• Brand identity workshop (team or individual)
• Branded marketing and sales collateral
• Consultation or brainstorming strategies and tactics
• Plan development and writing
• Buy our strategic plan template

Or we can work with you to create and work the plan, filling in with services where skill gaps exist on your team or by leveraging our real estate marketing super powers as “The Invisible Man” who gets the job done while putting the spotlight on your business and brand.

We would love to be part of your story.

It’s time for you to get your real estate marketing done the right way, too. Complete the form below to request more information or a free, no-obligation proposal.

[contact-form to=’elizabeth@marketingdesks.com’ subject=’Inquiry – real estate strategy post’][contact-field label=’Name’ type=’name’ required=’1’/][contact-field label=’Email’ type=’email’ required=’1’/][contact-field label=’Website’ type=’url’/][contact-field label=’Best number to reach you’ type=’text’/][contact-field label=’Prefer contact by’ type=’select’ options=’Email,Phone’/][contact-field label=’How can we help?’ type=’textarea’ required=’1’/][/contact-form]