You are here: Home / Podcast / A Mixed Bag Of Marketing Tips For Real Estate Agents – Episode #135

Do you have a clear plan for marketing your real estate business, or are you just throwing things against the wall to see what sticks? Most of the agents I talk to inside my RoundBox coaching program are chasing shiny objects that end up distracting them from one of the three pillars (Influence, chase, and attraction). Today, I want to share a few marketing tips for real estate agents. Before I launch any marketing, I run every piece of content through these filters to determine how effective they will be. I hope these tips will resonate with you and help you produce better marketing content that will elevate your business to new levels of success!

Follow a clear plan, not shiny objects

The first filter I run any marketing material through is this: does it fit into my established plan, or am I just chasing the latest shiny object? Having a clear plan is the most important step before you do any marketing. Let me put that another way…If nothing is working, that means you have no plan. Developing a clear plan takes focus and hard work (and a good coach), but it gives you a foundation to build on. When I am planning a marketing campaign, be that a postcard, an email, a Facebook post or a YouTube video, I ALWAYS hold it up against my plan to make sure it furthers that goal instead of distracting from it.

Social Vs. Searchable

Here’s a scenario I see often…an agent reaches out to tell me that they published a professional, engaging “New Home Buyers Guide” or similar video on Facebook, then waited for it to be liked, shared and commented on…they are still waiting, because that content is searchable, not social. It was posted in the wrong place, to the wrong audience. In a nutshell, Facebook content is social; it’s entertaining, engaging and usually pretty short. Think about how you interact with Facebook…do you watch every video all the way through? Do you read every word of those long posts? Of course not. You scroll, with the occasional pause to view a little bit of engaging content, then move on. On Youtube, However, you search for specific content, then scroll to find the most relevant content to your search. You might watch a 15-minute video because it kind of relates to your subject. Understanding the nuances of searchable vs. social content is VERY important in today’s marketing landscape! If you want to learn more, check out episode 131 with Karen Carr, where we talk about the important difference between social content and searchable content.

Marketing to people you know vs. marketing to people who have never met you

The content you send to your friends and family needs to look very different from the content you send to people who have never met you. If you send a warm and fluffy, homey newsletter to a client you have never met, it’s going to make them feel weird and disengage. “Why is this random realtor sharing his life goals and dreams and failures with me? I don’t even know this guy…” The content you send to new clients should be glossy, professional and contain calls to action that are proven to be effective. Once you nail that content, you have to send to them consistently. A one-off piece of content is NOT the approach you want to use, trust me!

If you are sending to people you know, the exact opposite is true. You want the content to be warm and inviting, “downhome” even. Why? Because those people know you. They know you are not perfect, and they would rather hear about your goals, struggles, and failures. Proper grammar and tasteful designs are still present, but that content is a snapshot of your life, and no one expects that to be perfect.

The cheese and whiskers

It’s been said that the average consumer is like a mouse when it comes to the way they respond to marketing. A mouse spends all day either looking for cheese or running from whiskers (attached to a cat, of course). In the marketing world, value is the cheese and a pushy sales pitch is the whiskers. As long as you’re providing value, people are going to be attracted to you and the message you have to share. But when you begin putting on the pressure to buy, they’re going to run away. I’ve got some thoughts about how this can apply to your real estate business, so be sure you take the time to listen.

In every market, there is a demand for something

If you ever get discouraged by the real estate market trends, pay attention. The truth is, In every market, there is a demand for something. Successful real estate agents look for where the demand is, then figure out how to stand in front of that demand. During the recession, the demand was short sales. Nobody wanted to do them, because of all the work and communication it took. I had other agents who passed along short sales to me because at that time I was communicating that I was willing to put in the work to get them done. In today’s market, the demand is trying to keep up with all the requests for houses. How is my team standing in front of this demand? We look for houses that haven’t hit the market, we ask for the opportunity, and we constantly try to build likeability and trust.

Outline of this great episode

  • [2:15] If nothing is working, that means you have no plan
  • [3:30] Sponsors section
  • [4:00] Have a clear plan, don’t just follow shiny objects
  • [7:15] Understanding social vs. searchable content
  • [11:15] Tips for marketing to people you know
  • [17:00] Marketing to people you don’t know
  • [20:24] The cheese and whiskers principle
  • [24:00] In every market, there is a demand for something
  • [26:45] How do I envision my clients responding?
  • [30:45] What filters did you like the best? I want to hear your thoughts!

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Resources and Links mentioned in this episode

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