Real Estate Resolutions: 7 Good Motivators for 2011

I don't know about you, but I absolutely love making new year's resolutions. As the self-diagnosed Motivational Book Addict, making New Years Resolutions is probably the highlight of my year. This is when I can sit myself down, reflect on the past year, and re-evaluate what I can do differently to make the next year AMAZING. Although I highly recommend making a personal New Year's Resolution list, this blog is about your Real Estate Resolutions to jump start your marketing plan for 2011.

So get a pen and paper and get ready to motivate yourself. These are just a few ideas to get you thinking. They will most likely spark a few other ideas, getting you really revved up, until you can barely wait for your first new listing of the year.

1. Make a marketing plan
Maybe you have already been skilled in the ways of real estate marketing. You send out postcards, you've re-vamped your website, you've even attempted a Facebook page. Now, however, is the time to take that next step. Wherever you are with your marketing ("you don't even have a website" all the way to "you are ranked #3 on Google for your keywords"), find out what you can do to improve upon it. I know that's frustrating to hear, but there's always something you can do better. Make a plan laying out everything that you've ever wanted for your real estate marketing. Don't by shy here. This is where you can go crazy.

2. Take Baby Steps
The difficult thing about real estate marketing, is that it can be expensive and time consuming. The best way to tackle your biggest fish is to execute them slowly. Take a look at your "dream marketing plan" and see what you can do realistically. If you have a template website currently and you would like to make it a lot more customized, but can't afford a custom website right now, start off with working within the parameters of the template to make it more personal to your business. Realsupport.com has some great examples of how you can make websites like Point2 and RealPro look like they were made for you, without the custom website price tag.

3. Create a timeline
Visualization is everything when it comes to reaching your goals. If you can go out and buy a calendar, specifically for the purpose of your real estate marketing, it would serve as the ultimate motivator to accomplish your goals. If you can fill in, to the day, what you are going to do each month for your marketing, you are much more likely to do it.  Putting it on the calendar makes it specific, gives it a timeline, and encourages you to get it done.

4. Cardinal Rule: At least one touch per month
Make it a rule for 2011 that you make at least one touch per month with your SOI. Whether that be a postcard, an email, or a phone call, make it a point to keep in touch with your past, present, and potential clients. That means by the end of 2011 you should have reached a handful of buyers and sellers at least 12 times.

5. Start blogging
I've told you before and I'll tell you again - blogging can do wonders for your real estate business. Blogging to your clients not only reaches out to them on a more personal level, it also increases your SEO. There really is no downfall to it. The hardest thing about it is keeping it up. If you can't do it, talk to your Real Estate Virtual Assistant about blogging for you on a regular basis. It really is worth it and you will see results if you do it correctly.

6. Positive Attitude
Okay. Try not to roll your eyes at this one, buy we all need an attitude adjustment. We all know that it has been a rough year for the market, and many of you cannot stop reminding yourself of this fact. But there is nothing better than a clean slate and a new year to change your attitude. Think positive for 2011. It just feels good to say it.

7. Hire a Real Estate Virtual Assistant
The job of a real estate agent requires a ton of responsibilities. Your day-to-day tasks can be very demanding, and stressful, and overwhelming. And that is without the addition of the marketing aspects. A good Real Estate Virtual Assistant can take a lot off your plate, as well as take your marketing to the next level. Take a look at our website to see what services we offer. Even if you don't use us, it's always okay to ask for help from somebody. A Real Estate Virtual Assistant may be just what you need to make this year everything that you imagined it could be.

Have a Very Happy New Year!

Stacey Clarke
Copywriting and Marketing Coordinator