I am a homeowner.

Do you want to market your listing to me?

I am in the market for a home.

Do you want to market your listing to me?

The home I want cannot be older then 10 years.

Do you want to market your listing to me?

I want to own a home between $300k -$400k

Do you want to market your listing to me?

I'm looking for a 4 bedroom home with a 2 car garage and a fenced-in yard with a pool

Do you want to market your listing to me?

I will take the chance and say that you probably don't have a property that meets these requirements. Sure, you can find one for me but that is not what we are talking about here.

This conversation is about property marketing cards. Do they serve a purpose? Yes they do but probably not the purpose you or your homeowner thinks. Using the above example you can easily see that the chance of you sending out a Just Listed card and have it reach a person who is truly interested in that home, is very slim.

We send out these types of direct marketing because we need to let our blue list people know that we are active agents. It is true that occasionally you may be able to start a conversation among neighbors surrounding the house and find the appropriate buyers that way but again, the chances are slim. Positioning yourself as this active agent who is assisting many homeowners is never more important to do then in a down market. So get to it!

Matthew S. Gosselin is the author of My Blue Goose, Exploiting The Wow Factor In Real Estate Marketing. The book can be purchased on MyBlueGoose.com or Amazon. Stay tuned for more information about his new book, "Stand Out, Stick and Stay. Transforming Real Estate Marketing"