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Ask An Ambassador: Think & Write Like A Consumer

By
Real Estate Agent with Transaction Alliance 513.520.5305 www.LizTour.com SAL.2002007747

Each time I sit down at the keyboard I have a choice to make.

Who is my audience?

Do I write to other Rainers and hope they remember me when they have a referral?

Do I write to the consumers and hope for that ready now buyer or seller?

Do I write a hybrid post that might appeal to both other agents and consumers?

Do I write for myself and just let the chips fall where they may?

Now obviously the size of the audience and the likelihood of ultimately putting some cash in the bank depend on that daily decision.

My experience has been that for me to be most successful, it's best for me to lean heavily towards writing useful information for the consumer. 

But it's not enough to just write for the consumer, but we have to think like them and write in their language.

Look, our industry is full of jargon that means a lot to us, but is a mystery language to the average consumer.  When we start throwing around DOM, absorption rate, inspection contingency and the like, how many are going to know what we're talking about?  We've got to put it in clear language the average consumer will grasp.  I'm not suggesting going to the point of See Spot run.  See Spot fetch the ball.  But we have to keep in mind is our writing understandable to our target audience.

And of course, putting on our home buyer and seller thinking cap might be key to actually having them find and read our posts.

 

Things I KNOW many of my area patio home niche home buyers and sellers want to know:

Where can I find new construction patio homes?

Where can I find a patio home for less than $250,000?

How much are the patio home HOA fees?

Are there any patio homes in (fill in the blank) community?

How can I save money on my patio home purchase?

What are the selling prices for condos in (fill in the blank) community?

How much is my home worth?

How long will it take to sell my home?

 

Get the drift?  We all know what our local consumers are interested in.  You tailor your posts to answer their local questions, provide good solid information that's NOT being provided by the portals and 1000 other agents in your market and your odds of getting that phone call asking for your help with their sale or purchase.

You establish that online expertise via your blog and website and you've been interviewed by the consumer without ever speaking a word in person.  All you have to do is seal the deal when they do call!

 

So you want business from blogging?  Give your target audience what they want.

 

Until next Tuesday, just Ask An Ambassador if you need help!

Bill of Liz and Bill aka BLiz

 

Posted by

Serving Warren County Ohio & Adjacent Areas

The Liz Spear Team of Transaction Alliance
Elizabeth Spear, ABR, Ohio License SAL.2002007747

William (Bill) Spear, Ohio License SAL.2004011109  Kentucky 77938
Ask for us by name if you visit the office!

EHO
Bill Direct:  513-520-5305
Liz Direct: 513-265-3004     
Fax: 866-302-8418

MailTo:  Liz@LizSpear.com

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Comments (19)

Beth Atalay
Cam Realty and Property Management - Clermont, FL
Cam Realty of Clermont FL

Hello Bill and Liz, I know I'm guilty of this, thank you for the reminder.

Mar 20, 2018 01:50 PM
Liz and Bill Spear

It's so easy for us to do, especially in this community.

Mar 20, 2018 02:53 PM
Anna "Banana" Kruchten
HomeSmart Real Estate - Phoenix, AZ
602-380-4886

Bliz this is a great question- who am I writing to?  Consumers, agents, brokers?  On our website it's all consumer info. Here it's a mix of topics including consumer posts. It's is so important to think about 'who is my audience' every single time we're writing a post.

Mar 20, 2018 02:01 PM
Liz and Bill Spear

And even with the consumer posts, I need to make sure I'm writing specific info they're not going to get on ZTR, Yahoo, MSN, etc.  The general info might make good FAQ content for our sites, but it's not likely to get that phone call I want.

Mar 20, 2018 02:54 PM
Kathy Streib
Cypress, TX
Home Stager/Redesign

BLiz- this reminds me of when I used to sit at dinner with Larry and all of his builder buddies. I had to learn through listening and osmosis what they meant with all of their abbreviations. 

Mar 20, 2018 03:15 PM
Liz and Bill Spear

No doubt, that's a whole other language!

Mar 20, 2018 05:47 PM
Sharon Mistowski
Horizon Lending Services, LLC - Flint, TX
Horizon Lending Services, LLC

Really great post to you both, Liz and Bill! I try to do a mix of pieces, but ultimately, it's my goal to be sure that the posts I publish are educational to consumers, even if it means helping define very specific industry terminology.

Mar 20, 2018 03:47 PM
Liz and Bill Spear

And I've done the same.  One of these days I need to organize them into a thorough FAQ section on our site.

Mar 20, 2018 05:48 PM
Gayle Rich-Boxman Fishhawk Lake Real Estate
John L Scott Market Center - Birkenfeld, OR
"Your Local Expert!" 503-739-3843

Bliz, whenever I read blogs like this, it sparks something in me to dive in and write yet another post about my local community and why I love it OR about the seasons, OR about my community Resource List (which has saved me HOURS of time spent giving people info about a roofer or plumber, or or or...).

And it gives me inspiration to take more photos, because that's ANOTHER way you get found! (I have a new person who has "Fishhawk Lake" as a Pinterest board and she has saved almost every one of my photos...sure makes my day when I see this!)

Happy to share The Daily Drop with you today, too, Mr. Headliner!!

Mar 20, 2018 05:48 PM
Liz and Bill Spear

You've got a hook with Fishhawk Lake.  You KNOW people want to do more, and your blog is the magnet to get their attention.  Good photos?  Another plus to attract attention.  Glad to see you in the DD too :)

Mar 20, 2018 06:57 PM
Debe Maxwell, CRS
Savvy + Company (704) 491-3310 - Charlotte, NC
The RIGHT CHARLOTTE REALTOR!

I get that and do my best to focus on the consumer but, the ADD in me goes off track every now & then, Bill!

Seriously, I do ALL consumer on my website so, I enjoy sprinkling some 'fun' in here. But, yes, you always know who the audience is going to be, for sure!

Mar 20, 2018 06:14 PM
Liz and Bill Spear

I don't write to the community nearly as much as I did at the beginning.  I do commit to Tuesday's AAA post, but the rest my first priority is trying to add another post that might make my phone ring.

Mar 20, 2018 06:58 PM
John Meussner
Mortgages in AZ, CA, CO, DE, FL, GA, IN, MD, MN, MT, NC, NJ, NV, OK, OR, PA, SC, SD, TN, TX, UT, VA, WI - Fair Oaks, CA
#MortgageMadeEasy Fair Oaks, CA 484-680-4852

One thing we learn as writers in school is to keep the audience in mind.  I write a little bit for them, a little bit for you (the real estate community), and a little bit for me.  Great insight to keep in mind, and glad to see the gold star on this one!

Mar 20, 2018 06:29 PM
Liz and Bill Spear

Blogging with a purpose, even if that purpose for the day is just to have some fun :)

Mar 20, 2018 06:59 PM
Diana Dahlberg
1 Month Realty - Pleasant Prairie, WI
Real Estate in Kenosha, WI since 1994 262-308-3563

I believe you mean we should write using the KISS (Keep It Simple Silly) principle.

Mar 20, 2018 06:58 PM
Liz and Bill Spear

tha'ts not the version they taught me in the Navy :)

Mar 20, 2018 07:00 PM
Mary Jo Quay
H360homes.com - Minneapolis, MN
I Move You Home

Right on target. I do it without intending to do so. A client that I sold 3 houses with told me that only recently did she have a clue what I was talking about. 

She asked her husband if he knew, and he whispered, "No, I'll google it when we get home." She didn't ask me to clarify because she was afraid of looking stupid.

My bad. 

Mar 20, 2018 07:05 PM
Liz and Bill Spear

It is so easy to drop our jargon into conversations and not even realize the customer doesn't have a clue what we're talking about.

Mar 20, 2018 08:30 PM
Marte Cliff

Mary Jo Quay - People ARE afraid of looking stupid - and when we make them feel stupid, it does not endear them to us. I'm glad your client liked you well enough to do three transactions in spite of feeling stupid!

Mar 21, 2018 03:37 PM
Tammy Lankford,
Lane Realty Eatonton, GA Lake Sinclair, Milledgeville, 706-485-9668 - Eatonton, GA
Broker GA Lake Sinclair/Eatonton/Milledgeville

I need more hours in the day please.  Or more days of the week... or something.

Mar 20, 2018 08:59 PM
Liz and Bill Spear

I can relate to that :)

Mar 21, 2018 05:49 AM
Endre Barath, Jr.
Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices California Properties - Beverly Hills, CA
Realtor - Los Angeles Home Sales 310.486.1002

Bill I find it interesting, I write the way I speak, and my clients know me as the guy, who loves gourmet food and cooks gourmet food and loves great wines and bubble's... he is the same guy who is one of the top land specialists in the greater Los Angeles area and they also know that I work early to late seven days a week.... the same is what the Active Rain community knows me as. I do not write or speak differently to anyone, but I guess that is why I am different and still successful, BTW we end up going to great Restaurants when we close a transaction and remain friends after the closing, Endre

Mar 20, 2018 10:10 PM
Liz and Bill Spear

That's a good combo that works for you.

Mar 21, 2018 05:50 AM
Richie Alan Naggar
people first...then business Ran Right Realty - Riverside, CA
agent & author

Speakers who address large audiences would pick-out a person and talk to them making it a personal connection. The rest of the audience would listen in or relate and identify. This could be applied to blogging when sharing an issue too

Mar 21, 2018 06:34 AM
Marte Cliff

Richie Alan Naggar - something copywriting schools teach is to picture one person in your target audience and write to that person.

Mar 21, 2018 03:38 PM
Liz and Bill Spear

It seems like common sense to do, doesn't it?

Mar 21, 2018 07:25 PM
Nick Vandekar, 610-203-4543
Realty ONE Group Advocates 484-237-2055 - Downingtown, PA
Selling the Main Line & Chester County

Very true, especially losing the jargon it is so easy to use.

Mar 21, 2018 08:29 AM
Liz and Bill Spear

It's easy because we're so used to using that lingo agent to agent.

Mar 21, 2018 07:26 PM
Eleanor Thorne
Equity Resources - Cary, NC
Advantage Lending 919-649-5058

Great point, I'd love to see more folks write about first time home SELLERS, who - just like when they were buying a home, don't know what they don't know.

Mar 21, 2018 08:42 AM
Liz and Bill Spear

That's a good target audience you're suggesting.

Mar 21, 2018 07:26 PM
Marte Cliff
Marte Cliff Copywriting - Priest River, ID
Your real estate writer

Yes - drop the jargon and don't try to impress with your vocabulary. The rule of thumb in copywriting is to aim for a 6th or 7th grade reading level. Then everyone will understand.

Mar 21, 2018 03:41 PM
Liz and Bill Spear

Supercalifragilistic......  :)

Mar 21, 2018 07:27 PM
Michael Jacobs
Pasadena, CA
Pasadena And Southern California 818.516.4393

Hello Bill - it's a decision, right? Although it hasn't "happened" for me in 2018-there's still time left this year. Every day, right?

Mar 21, 2018 07:35 PM
Liz and Bill Spear

It is certainly that.  Tonight I went off the more typical and wrote something more to the community rather than the consumer.  It's a bit late here, my energy level is low and researching another subdivision just wasn't on the agenda.  But for the most part, my posts are doing their job and creating opportunities.  Potentially two new buyers this week that I can point back to blog posts as the source.  You'll get what you've earned too.  Years of effort have their payoff.

Mar 21, 2018 07:38 PM
Foster Smith Summerville
Carolina One Real Estate - Summerville, SC
Summerville & Charleston Homes for Sale SC Realtor

Great inspiration and a good reminder to stay in touch with our consumers and what they are curious about!

Mar 22, 2018 04:35 AM
Jeff Dowler, CRS
eXp Realty of California, Inc. - Carlsbad, CA
The Southern California Relocation Dude

Hi Bill

This is such good advice for all of us, experienced or not. I think it can be easy to get into a habit of writing a certain way and forgot about specifically who we are writing for and what we want to accomplish - it definitely happens t. Keeping that in mind is also important, as you said, regarding use of industry jargon, as well as trying to sound too sophisticated.

And thinking about consumers and what they search for, and how, is useful regarding our titles and use of keywords. I have, on occasion, have asked buyers how they go about their searching.

Jeff

Mar 22, 2018 04:13 PM
John Wiley
Fort Myers, FL
Lee County, FL, ECO Broker, GRI, SRES,GREEN,PSA

Every profession has it's own set of jargon. Most people in that profession understand what you mean. But others have no idea.

I am so supportive of your post. We need to speak in a manner that those outside the profession will find valuable.

Thanks

Mar 26, 2018 08:45 AM