Are you a real estate professional that has traditionally relied on print newsletters, newspaper ads, postcards, yellow pages ads and flyers to grow your business or increase brand awareness? This just in: Direct Mail Is Dead, Old School Real Estate Professionals SAD! It is time you saved some time and money, gave your tongue a rest from the nasty taste of government stamps and said “Good Bye” to the direct mail pieces because they won’t grow your business. Hell, they won’t even successfully advertise your business. Why?
15 years ago the world was “a big place,” people were slower, more trusting and the competition for real estate business within any single community (city or subdivision) was much less competitive than it is today. Today it is close to impossible to knock on a door, unannounced and unexpected, and find a receptive homeowner. (that’s if they answer the door of course) Previous generations of real estate agents were able to target an audience with the use of direct mail followed up by phone calls and then a visit. Can you do that today? Let’s see……..who opens their mail anymore, Do Not Call List, who has a public phone number anymore, how many “NO SOLICITING” signs are clearly posted? I am a Business Development Manager for a national title insurance company in Phoenix, Arizona, I help real estate professionals "Get found" on the Internet.
Most people are simply too busy to read the postcards, flyers, brochures, newsletters, catalogs, and other unsolicited solicitations that find their way to their mail boxes. They, like me, simply sort the “junk” from the bills (which are also a joy to receive) and then pile the junk mail off to the side where it finally reaches critical mass and then is eventually tossed in the trash. No Joke, this is my STASH, ready for shredding to protect my identity 
"The Drawer Of Death"
Only a tiny, tiny percentage of direct mail is actually read. In fact, “one of the managers at a local recycling center reports that tons of “garbage” sorted at the facility is junk mail–much of which has never even been opened!”
To those “Old School” Real Estate Professionals That Are SAD, that are reading this, while your eyes well up with tears, mouth’s wide open, let me put you at ease. There is still a place in your business for direct mail. Breathe….in-out-in-out. OK, as I was saying, there is still a place for direct mail. Mail campaigns are more likely to be effective when the receiver is “targeted,” because they either know you, (your database of past clients or sphere of influence) they are more likely to open your message OR you know they have an immediate need for your services, (they have received a Notice Of Default, and you are a Short Sale Realtor that can help them avoid the “F word”- foreclosure). For instance, if you have been the guest speaker for a networking group, 1st time home buyer seminar or prevent foreclosure meeting, a follow up mailer might ( and I mean might) be opened, and if the person remembers that your service might benefit him, they might be open to an appointment when they receive your message. Don’t wait by the phone though, people that need “HELP” rarely call someone they don’t know well, they instead head to the I-N-T-E-R-N-E-T!
That brings up a great point. If I was a Realtor, inclined to using direct mail, I would use direct mail to drive traffic, people, consumers, clients to my W-E-B-S-I-T-E, where they can discover more information about: ways to prevent foreclosure, if a short sale is right for them, why they should buy or sell now, and on and on and on. In this instance, if the person or group of people know you (or recognize your name at least), they open your correspondence, and your message is compelling (has value) it can prove to be an effective way to build your real estate business. One tip though: If you direct someone with direct mail to your website, don’t just list your website on your correspondence, include the actual link or Bit.ly or Hoot.ly that takes them directly to the information you have promised, most people will not root around an obscure website to find the information. I know I won’t.
There is another problem with direct mail. Tracking. Any business, regardless of the kind or type measures the success rate of a marketing campaign. Ask any sales manager about any campaign and they can easily break out a file that lists the contacts, conversion rates, actual sales that resulted from that campaign. In real estate, we call it “holding your dollars accountable” or “red light-green light”. The tracking or measuring part of direct mail is the problem. How do you measure the success of that postcard or flyer when you don’t even know if the recipient received your message, opened it, read it or even saved it? Did it result in an action? These are hard questions to answer.
So, what is the solution? You didn’t think I would ruin your day with out at least presenting a solution did you? I hope not. The example I listed above is an example of OutBound Marketing or Push Marketing. As we previously discussed, the recipients of a direct mail message typically not only didn’t ask for it, they don’t want it. This is the opposite of InBound Marketing or Pull Marketing where you bring the consumer to you. By monitoring the traffic growth and click throughs to your website you will be able to know which messages are effective, because pull marketing results in an action. So the next time you are inclined to approach your title rep and ask for postcards or lick a stamp ask yourself “self….who am I sending this to? Who is my target audience? Is my message of value? Can I measure my success?” If the answer is no, DON’T DO IT! PUT THE POSTCARD DOWN AND SLOWLY STEP AWAY. Then call me, I can help you grow your real estate business with inbound marketing tools like Blogs, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn, ActiveRain and on and on and on. The best part about about Inbound Marketing? It’s kind of like a postcard, your message will be delivered to them in a medium they prefer when they want it, on their terms, when they type the keywords you are optimizing for in Google. Imagine the refreshment they will experience when they type “Short Sale vs Foreclosure Arizona” and your message immediately pops up with “If you are like many Arizona homeowners, you have asked yourself should I Short Sale or allow the Foreclosure to occur…………”
Won’t that be great……..They will probably feel like you are talking directly to them, because you are!
Want help growing your Arizona real estate business? I help real estate professionals “get found” on the Internet. Lets meet for coffee, 20 minutes and a cup of coffee could change the direction of your business.
I help real estate professionals "get found" on the Internet
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