real estate marketing: Increasing click-throughs on your real estate call to action
- 07/04/16 05:03 AM
One of my favorite marketing experts - Bob Bly - sent his monthly roundup of marketing tidbits this morning, and one of them struck me as particularly relevant to real estate agents.
It really is strange how just one little word can change response rates. It's all in the psychology, and how our brains create subconscious responses...
So here's Bob, to share words of wisdom about your efforts to entice website visitors to give you their information in exchange for your special reports...
***Little-known secrets increase CTA clicks up to 90%***
1--In a recent split test of call-to-action (CTA) copy by
OnBounce, the CTA generated a … (30 comments)
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real estate marketing: Where are you?
- 06/30/16 05:18 AM
You know where you are, but do people reading your blog know where you are?
Do people visiting your website know instantly where you are?
Do people reading your emails know where you are?
I know - I harp about this every once in a while, but that's because I think it's important.
When you write something interesting - in a blog post or an email - your readers just might share it with friends. And those friends just might be looking for an agent in your city.
But... if your location isn't evident, it won't occur to them that YOU might be the agent (or stager, … (6 comments)
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real estate marketing: Why didn't someone tell me this early on?
- 06/29/16 01:40 AM
Why didn't someone tell me this early on?
Training? Coaching? Mentoring? None of those were an option in this small town when I was licensed back in 1985.
You just passed the licensing exam and went to work, learning by trial and error along the way.
My first broker took me to see the listings while we waited that interminable two weeks or so for my test results and then my license to arrive in the mail. That gave me a whirlwind view of our agency's inventory, along with memories of some hair-raising rides up old logging roads to see parcels of land … (48 comments)
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real estate marketing: What ELSE does really good real estate marketing copy look like?
- 06/22/16 02:17 AM
What ELSE does really good real estate marketing copy look like?
Yesterday's message was about making your words transparent by avoiding errors and making the copy physically easy to read.
Really good real estate marketing copy has two more important attributes:
It looks like it's about the reader. It looks like it was written to just that one person. First – it's all about them.
Even though your message is "about" you and what a superior agent you are, it can't look like it's all about you.
It has to be about the reader and what interests that reader. Of course you'll get to … (13 comments)
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real estate marketing: What does really good real estate marketing copy look like?
- 06/20/16 06:37 AM
Invisible.
No, I don’t mean it isn’t there at all. I mean that the words disappear behind the message. No one "sees" the individual words or sentences. Instead, readers absorb the message the words were written to convey.
When you can make the words disappear, it's as if your thoughts were being transferred from your brain straight through to your reader's brains.
That’s why it’s so important to proofread for typos, misused words, and misspellings.
As soon as a reader gets stopped by a word that’s somehow “wrong,” they see the words instead of the message. You might as well put in a sign saying “Stop reading here.”
It's … (32 comments)
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real estate marketing: Do you think you "should" write your own marketing copy?
- 06/15/16 08:53 AM
Plenty of people, in real estate and in other businesses, think they should write their own marketing copy.
They feel that since they know their business better than anyone else, they will be able to write about it and promote it better than anyone else could.
What they forget is that different people have different talents, and not everyone is a writer. Not everyone is a car mechanic or a tax expert or a computer guru – but not many of us feel we “should” be able to fix our own cars, do our own tax computations, or repair our own computers – just because they’re … (9 comments)
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real estate marketing: 3 Reasons Why Internet Leads Fail to Convert
- 05/14/16 04:56 AM
This is a blast from the past - but no less true now than it was 4 years ago when I posted it on my own blog. Why Your Internet Homebuyer Leads Fail to Convert If you pay for Internet homebuyer leads you may be feeling frustrated. You can spend thousands of dollars, get hundreds of leads, and end up with no sales.
Why?
It could be because too many agents are getting those same leads. The buyers are inundated with calls and emails. It could be because you waited too long to respond – and they’ve already chosen an agent. It … (18 comments)
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real estate marketing: Converting Leads After the Open House
- 05/05/16 03:05 PM
Denise's three simple words can make all the difference between being seen as "just another salesperson" or as a caring, helpful individual.
This post is about converting open house leads, but could be used in almost any situation. For instance, when you're speaking with a new acquaintance who has shown an interest in what you do.
Converting Leads After the Open House
An agent asked me recently, "Denise, how do I convert leads from an open house?"
Converting leads at an open house is easy because they already met you and I bet they developed some sort of rapport with … (6 comments)
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real estate marketing: What is WRONG with these sentences?
- 04/19/16 02:38 AM
What is WRONG with these sentences?
Here's a hint: There are two real errors. One is a grammar error, and one is a marketing error. Then, they are all examples of one of my pet peeves.
"Being new to our company website, I wanted to be sure that you are finding the information you want and need." "As a new subscriber to our newsletter, I wanted to check to make sure you're receiving your copies each Monday and Wednesday." "As the newest member of our team, I want to welcome you." Are you ready?
First the grammar error – and I'm not even … (46 comments)
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real estate marketing: Do you want to lose a potential client because you have bad manners?
- 04/13/16 05:46 AM
Do you want to lose a potential client because your blog posts show you have bad manners? Or... do you want to lose a potential client because your blog posts show you don’t know the basic rules of grammar?
I didn’t think so.
I’m being picky again… Sorry, but I do think a potential client might cross an agent off their list for breaking these basic rules of etiquette and grammar.
Every now and then, in a real estate blog post, I see a “manners and grammar” mistake that sets my teeth on edge.
It goes like this: “Me and my clients” … (71 comments)
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real estate marketing: Proofread - one more time
- 04/08/16 03:55 AM
Proofread – one more time Do you write your blog posts and/or web copy in Word, then cut and paste it after you’ve revised, tweaked, and proofread it for the 4th time?
Then proofread it again after you’ve uploaded.
If you don’t, you’re apt to be telling your would-be clients and customers that you just don’t pay much attention to details.
Why? Because you’re more than likely going to end up with sentences that look like this property description I found on a real estate website this morning: “chef’s kitchen with double ovens.”
That’s right – the apostrophes, dashes, question marks, and other … (19 comments)
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real estate marketing: The final step in proofreading...
- 03/06/16 02:01 AM
You might read your copy a dozen times on screen and think it's all "just right," and you might be wrong.
That's probably OK for a blog post, since you can go back and correct errors if you catch them later, but when you're sending something to print, there's a final important step.
Print it out, then leave it alone overnight. The next day, come back and read with fresh eyes.
You might be amazed at the small things you didn't see the day before.
It might be a sentence that would benefit from having one word changed to a better word. It might … (20 comments)
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real estate marketing: Procrastination will derail your marketing plans
- 03/04/16 01:49 AM
If you're planning some new marketing that calls for letters, a brochure, a new bio, or pages for your website, and you know you'll need a real estate copywriter – plan ahead!
This post is somewhat of a repeat of one I wrote a year and a half ago – after a week of saying "No, I'm sorry" to several agents.
This past month has been much the same. I've been saying "I can do that, but not for another month." In fact, since I've been working on this post, I answered a call from someone who needs web copy within a week. … (25 comments)
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real estate marketing: Stay in touch with past clients/your sphere on Valentine's Day
- 02/05/16 08:05 AM
According to History.com, more than 62% of Americans celebrate Valentine's Day.
With approximately one billion cards sent each year, it is second only to Christmas in its impact on the greeting card industry.
I have no idea who keeps track of this, or how they do it, but they report that 85% of those cards are purchased by women.
Although considered by some to be a purely romantic holiday, many do also send affectionate greetings to parents, children, grand-children, siblings, and friends.
That means it's a great time to send a short greeting to your past clients, your sphere of influence, and the folks in … (24 comments)
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real estate marketing: How to market yourself when you have competition...
- 02/04/16 08:37 AM
You've got a territory – or you've been working on developing a territory – but now there's another agent or two moving in on you. They're marketing to "your" homeowners.
What should you do?
The first impulse might be to "go political" and tear down the competition – but that might not be wise.
Years ago, market researchers learned that naming your competition in an ad brought an unwanted result. It made people remember the competition instead of the advertiser!
Instead, focus on what you do well. Toot your own horn.
Talk about your personal service or your extensive marketing techniques. If you've got good statistics to … (19 comments)
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real estate marketing: Do You Lose Leads? Here are 6 ways to ensure that you don't!
- 01/30/16 03:26 AM
Melissa Zavala brings us some wise advice on hanging on to those leads - not to mention our past clients and people in our spheres of influence.
If you allow people to forget you - they will.
Note that she mentions sharing a bit of personal information. Real estate is a personal business - much more so than any other business relationship. This is the same reason why, when I write agent bios, I encourage agents to let me include a bit about their hobbies, volunteer activities, etc.
You’ve built a pipeline of new and repeat clients that can help you keep your … (30 comments)
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real estate marketing: Marketing Your Services? Please don't do this…
- 01/28/16 02:46 AM
Yesterday's email brought a message that was a prime example of how NOT to market yourself or your business.
Here it is:
Our company operates an online platform that's composed of over 40 million subscribers. The technology that we use allows us the ability to show our people a best, preferred choice when they are looking on any of the main search engines.
We are looking for a best, preferred choice to send our people who are looking for real estate in Mount Prospect and surrounding markets.
I am in the office …. He gave his hours, then entered his name, followed by the … (25 comments)
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real estate marketing: Proofreading: Does Your Real Estate Marketing Send the right Message?
- 01/21/16 01:50 PM
Proofreading: Making sure your real estate marketing messages represent you as a professional.
How many times do you read and re-read a marketing message before you hit send?
How often do you go back to your web pages to make SURE that they're correct?
Proofreading is by far not the most entertaining or pleasurable part of writing, but it IS one of the most necessary parts, because silly mistakes can give your readers the wrong impression about you.
At the very least, they'll convey a message that you don't pay attention to details. At worst, they'll make people think you don't know any better, so … (69 comments)
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real estate marketing: How Much Marketing is TOO Much Marketing?
- 12/21/15 06:24 AM
If your in-box and your postal mailbox look anything like mine... it's difficult to find the "real" messages in the avalanche of marketing messages.
Some of those retailers are emailing 3 or 4 times a day - reminding me that I need to buy, buy, buy! Today the message for many is "Only X more hours to get delivery by Christmas!" Or "Last day for free shipping!"
I've been watching one retailer change messages from "30% off your order of $100 or more" to "25% off your order of $75 or more" and now today it's "20% off your order of $50 or … (17 comments)
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real estate marketing: How do you build your real estate prospect list?
- 12/11/15 07:00 AM
Yesterday a new agent who had just received my weekly newsletter called me to ask a few questions. (I
love that, by the way, so if you've thought of calling – please do!)
She wanted to know how I mailed the newsletter. I told her that I used YMLP (Your Mailing List Provider), and that I was happy with them. Service is good, and I'm able to sort into as many different lists as I please. I can also add "capture boxes" to my site and they'll put the names into the correct lists.
I've thought of checking out Mail Chimp, but haven't … (50 comments)
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One of my favorite marketing experts - Bob Bly - sent his monthly roundup of marketing tidbits this morning, and one of them struck me as particularly relevant to real estate agents. 
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