Print Advertising in Real Estate May Not be Dead, but it's in Serious Condition
This subject always seems to start an argument with at least a few real estate agents, but it bears repeating. Print marketing in real estate is increasingly losing its usefulness when it comes to reaching the largest possible number of prospects at the lowest cost and in the most efficient manner.
NAR 2011 statistics indicate that 88% of buyers use the Internet (one percent higher than those who use an agent, which is 87%). Yard signs are at 55% and open houses at 45%. Newspaper is at a meager 30% and if you talk to ad managers at "big box" real estate companies who buy space in major metro newspapers, they'd tell you it's more like 15%. Home books and magazines are at the bottom (like coffee table magazines or "shoppers").
Even FSBOs understand the declining value of print advertising. The 2011 NAR statistics showed that only 17% of FSBOs (on average) used newspaper advertising to market their home.
According to Better Homes & Gardens, 89% of buyers who used the Internet were likely to use a real estate agent (versus 70% of those who did not use the Web, a gap of nearly twenty per cent. Agents, you want prospects to call you, right?
At a time when company dollars are tight and some in the industry are struggling to survive, you have to play the law of averages. That means putting your marketing budget where it has some sort of realistic possibility of achieving results. Print is falling off the scale when it comes to reaching and grabbing serious buyer attention.
If you have to use print, do it sparingly. That means coming into the twenty-first century and realizing that newspaper ads, free community "shopper" magazines and tabloid real estate mags just don't cut it anymore.
A listing flyer or grab-and-go brochure may still have some value. If your office has a walk-in clientele (such as you'd find in a second home or recreational community), it's useful to be able to hand walk-ins a listing brochure that they can stuff into a pocket or purse.
Sellers, if you're considering listing your home with an agent who relies heavily on print marketing, ask yourself what the chances are that such an agent can sell your home. How many buyers will even see your listing or become aware that your property is for sale?
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