Target Your Listing Posts to Your Desired Audience: Buyers vs. Sellers

Pat Kennedy, wrote an excellent post about the best way to use ActiveRain to market listings. I would add one additional point to her post:

Target your listing posts to your desired audience. Are you marketing to buyers or sellers?

That's right. Listing posts can be directed to buyers or sellers. You need to determine WHO you want to target and then write the post to attract that audience.

For example, if I'm targeting buyers I may not want to use the address in the title of the post. Instead, I want to use search terms buyers Google. For my area that might be Franklin TN Home on Acreage with Barn, Franklin TN Home with Two Master Suites, Franklin TN Home in Westhaven with 3-Car Garage.

Here's an example of the many ways Bill and Liz Spear target buyers to Mason Patio Homes. As you can see, they rank in 8 out of 10 spots. It's no wonder they get so many calls about patio homes for sale.

Remember, a listing post geared towards buyers is designed to attract all buyers; local and relocation. It's hard to do that with a post titled 123 Main Street for Sale.

You might get some local buyers who have driven by a specific address to Google it, but most buyers use long-tail keywords to find homes meeting their criteria.

If I'm writing a listing post geared towards sellers, then I want to use the address. While at listing appointments I can then show sellers the many spots I have on Google for a listing.

This isn't that different from postcard farming. Postcards are really directed to sellers, not buyers. That's what you're doing when you write a listing post using the address--directing it to potential sellers.

Barbara Todaro refers to the use of blogging and postcard mailings as an integrated approach to marketing.  To the left is page one from Google for 512 Maple St, Franklin MA. The Kuney-Todaro team holds 5 of the 10 spots on Google. It doesn't matter that Zillow, Trulia and Realtor.com are three of the five. When you click these links, Lorraine Kuney shows as the listing agent. That's all that really matters. 

When you sit down to write your next listing post, determine who your target audience is--buyers or sellers. Then write your post geared toward that audience.

Whether you decide to market to buyers or sellers, the ultimate goal is to get your phone to ring.  

Blogging using a little bit of both methods is your best way to be found all over the internet.