5 Best Marketing Tactics for Real Estate Agents

There are a lot of "top 5 lists" for Real Estate agents. "Top 5 ways to improve your digital impact," "5 best tips for spring cleaning," "5 great social media marketing tips," and so on.

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This article isn't going to be one of those lists. I'm not here to tell you the five secret marketing tips that are going to suddenly transform you into a top-selling Real Estate agent, because I'm not here to lie to you. The truth is this: there isn't some secret marketing formula that will make you an instant sensation. Instead, there are five areas that with focus, diligence, and a bit of ingenuity you can separate yourself from your competitors, and enjoy the benefits of a successful Real Estate career.

1. Know Your Customers

When I say "know your customers," I am talking about more than a cursory knowledge. Whether your business is grown through referrals, brokerage leads, or through organic searches, you need to know your past, present, and targeted customer base. Here are two pointers that will get you on the right track:

• Start with the basics: name, age, gender, income, marital status, etc.
• Move on to Real Estate generals: has your customer previously purchased a home; what type of residence is he interested in; does your customer have a specific timeline or budget; desired areas to live in; most important criteria in a home, etc.

2. Understand Your Customers

Understanding your customers is not to be confused with knowing your customers. When you understand a customer, you have insights into what makes that particular individual tick. Ask yourself the following types of questions:

• What is their personality type?
• What life events have helped to shape their life (as it pertains to Real Estate decisions)?
• Do you understand their perspective, i.e. can you put yourself into their shoes?
• What outside influences are going to affect their Real Estate decisions?
• The latter types of questions will help you to better communicate with your customers, serve their needs, and finally deliver that personal care that all Realtors try to achieve.

3. Communicate Effectively with Your Customers

Effective communication is the key to gaining new customers, keeping current customers, and acquiring referrals from your previous customers. This is also the category where most writers will steer you towards the quintessential "top five lists" that I previously alluded to. However, truly effective communication is based on the previous two points, not on simply following the top social media marketing points (or some other communication list).

• Effective communication is based on knowing and understanding your customer.
• Some customers will prefer only email communications (and that's ok).
• Always communicate in a way that will resonate with your client. For example, are they a professor who enjoys speaking at a higher-education level? Or, are they a high-powered CEO who prefers short, to the point messages?
• Always respond in the correct timeframe. Some clients will appreciate an immediate response, others will take immediacy as a sign that you didn't truly process the message and wrote a mindless response. Knowing the difference will greatly improve your customer service.

4. Work Effectively with Your Realtor Network

Marketing successfully requires knowing your allies. Your Realtor network is your ally. It should be a group of people that are interested in mutually growing the local Real Estate community. Working effectively with your Realtor network is as simple as:

• Maintaining Realtor relationships - these individuals should be your professional group of friends and colleagues. Treat them with the respect that they deserve and never back-stab just to achieve one sale, the repercussions of such actions will haunt you.

5. Analyze All Results

This last category spans across all Real Estate business aspects. From the stationary that you write your thank you notes on, to the number of email campaigns that you sent out, you need to analyze results. If you never examine the results then you will never truly understand what marketing tactics are working, what areas need improvement, and what areas are steadily performing at the same levels.

If you only take away one thing from this modern approach to a top five article, take away this final point. Real Estate marketing success relies on an intimate understanding of your customers, fellow Realtors, and the results that you have previously achieved.

 

About the author: Since 2012, Laura P. Parker has served as a marketing consultant to the Real Estate industry. Her insights have helped hundreds of Real Estate professionals improve their customer relations and marketing efforts.