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How to simplify your online real estate advertising

By
Services for Real Estate Pros with HomeFinder.com

These days, you’re faced with a dizzying array of media, formats and creative challenges. Not the least of which can include SEM/pay-per-click, brand display ads, direct response display ads, syndication or even print. Want to simplify real estate advertising?

Keep it simple. Don't get distracted by all the options. Focus on being the best and stand out from the crowd. How? Go back to the basics.

 

Be available

Before you think about how to convert the lead, first think about how to capture it. Beyond just an email form,  ensure you are readily available and think about engaging prospective clients through a live chat widget on your site, streamlining your communication channels or maximizing all your connections through your social media profiles.

 

Be transparent

Put yourself and your business out there. Try creating a wiki (whiteboard) for your clients. You can also put everything at your audience's fingertips by displaying, and explaining, important real estate documents and forms on your site. Docstoc and Issuu are two possible platforms for this. The purpose is to lay everything out for your clients and prospects so they know exactly what they're getting from you and helping to build trust from the first point of contact.

 

Give 'em what they want

Consumers are always looking for more information, so become the trusted expert/consultant/ally. Try creating a value-add monthly e-newsletter with recent sales and local market stats, or helpful buying and selling advice.

 

In today's hyperactive digital age, multi-media is the way to go, and consumers will always want more visuals. Instead of the typical online listing route, consider creating a photo blog for each of your listings, incorporating text, photos, videos and even music.

 

Presentation matters, so be sure to polish your priority listings by creating killer slideshows and listing presentations that go above and beyond. Single Property Websites can also be an effective marketing tool to automate your SEO and social media strategies. We’ve recently launched our own patent-pending Single Property Website solution. More to come on that soon. 

 

These only scratch at the surface of what you can do. Not sure where to start? Focus on what you can execute well. Have a great marketing/design team? Try your hand at display ads. Have a great headline/call to action writer? SEM may be a good choice for you. Have an agent who is a natural in front of the camera? Start syndicating video.

 

The possibilities are endless.  Good luck and let us know what works for you!

 

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Comments (4)

Deborah Byron Leffler BzyBee Real Estate Lady!
Keller Williams Realty Boise - Nampa, ID

Great ideas!!!    Thanks for sharing! 

Jul 05, 2011 09:39 AM
Gabrielle Jeans
WebTech Dezine, Gabrielle Jeans Real Estate Coach - Toronto, ON
Real Estate Web Solution, Real Estate Trainer and Coach

Great Ideas. A website that incorporates all these tools is http://moneymaker4agents.com it is really tailored to real estate agents and helps with the things you mentioned in your post.

Jul 05, 2011 09:44 AM
HomeFinder.com Real Estate
HomeFinder.com - Chicago, IL

Hi Deborah, Barbara and Gabrielle, thanks for stopping by and reading our post!

Good luck and let us know what works for you. Remember, better advertising is a process. You start where you need to start and keep adjusting from there until you find what works best for you. 

Jul 06, 2011 04:56 AM