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Where do you spend your marketing money?

are you wasting marketing money I found this on RISmedia and thought it would be good to forward on to you and have you start thinking about your web presence. One quick note about using “Real Estate” as a keyword, this is a most definitely a key search term but everyone is trying to achieve this high rankings phrase on their sites. Some people pay big dollars for that search term. But you have to ask yourself, do buyers and sellers REALLY search for “My town Real Estate” or is that just an ego search term for us in the industry? If you go for the smaller more local issues that surround your market, you will have a better chance at reaching out to the public. Sometimes it’s not just about “Real Estate” when building relationships with buyers and sellers. This is called the Long Tail. You start going for the smaller marketing terms in your area but you stand out as the expert in that area. I think we call it a Niche market. I can bet you, no I guarantee you that buyers and sellers are looking for more specific answers about the “real estate” in the area; shopping, schools, events, lifestyles, and the buying and selling process. They are looking for a lifestyle that matches theirs, not just “real estate.” I would think that knowing the area is more important that knowing that the house has 4 bedrooms and 2.5 baths. Yes the house is critical, but what they get out of the area is very important.

Ask Dave Ringold, an agent in my office, what just five sentences and one picture did this weekend. Or better yet, just search “Fire on Bennett road Mt Airy“ It’s not real estate but he just got his name out in front of plenty (200+ hits) concerned people in the area. It’s just that simple. I have been hounding him forever to start a blog of his own, but he used our office blog as a starting point. (which is starving for new information)

Can you guarantee your current market plan will get your name in front of that many people that quick? Also ask him how much it cost him while you are at it? Will he get direct business from it? Not directly, but it did put his name out in front of plenty of readers (concerned about his market area.) Isn’t that marketing? Why do you put your faces on Shopping Carts, postcards, newspaper ads?

Everyone is looking for a silver bullet in this market, that silver bullet is WORK. Marketing campaigns take time and effort, but mostly consistently and they don’t have to be expensive. Every “Real Estate Expert marketer” tells you that as they sell you the latest and greatest product for hundreds of dollars. And everyone buys into it out of desperation. Stop spending useless money on get rich quick scams! They tell you that because they want you to consistently buy their product and keep them rich for the long term. Phone calls are FREE, most of the internet training that I can offer you is FREE, and emails are FREE. Note cards and holiday cards are inexpensive. Newspaper ads are expensive and ineffective. Dave Stevens sent out a YouTube video last night that made me think of this one. A vision of Students Today. (Mike Wesch has plenty of thought provoking experiments with his students called Digital Ethnography and check out his other videos as they are just as intriguing.) This is our future homeowner and they are graduating soon.

85+% of the buyers/sellers start on the internet
3% actually find their home in the newspaper or print.

Where do you spend most of your marketing money? If you are successful at old traditional marketing like print and park benches, just imagine how successful you will be by going after the 85%?

Just food for thought…I don’t want you to change your ways or anything. : )

Posted by Bob Carney Licensed MD/PA Real Estate Agent on 02/19/2009 12:33 AM

Comments (48)

Marketing Money in the Online Marketing Channel

silver bullet, social networking, marketing

Post is included in group: The Art Of Marketing You
Post is included in group: Long & Foster Agent Lounge
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48 Comments on Where do you spend your marketing money?

FEB

Hi Bob!!

What a nice surprise to see you here. I will check out the YouTube, sounds good. I do come up on first pg of Google for certain terms.

HOWEVER,

When I get leads and check my stats, I am CONSTANTLY amazed what the consumers put in. Like, "oh, I would have never searched for homes that way."

I know...it has been quite a while. Now that it cost to play here, maybe we can have fun again. I m giving it a go again. Glad to be back again. :)

I aproach marketing from a layering point of view. I implement one thing at a time...maybe two or three and then continue to add layers as I learn more. I track everything, so with each new layer I can tell right away if it is working. I sometimes run the same marketing in two different ways to see which one out performs the other. Sometimes both perform equally as well so I keep both. For me, it is a process of educating myself, working hard and keeping an eye on it all.

I blog and then blog and then blog somemore, on a lot of different subjectsk, some relating to real estate, some relating to townships and some off the wall stuff.

I love that you have the Amazon deals of the day on your site...really. Good for you. If I call the newspaper and ask them what 3% of my marketing dollars will get me in print, think they'll hang up?

Tina in Virginia

Tina, this place needs cleaned up. I have neglected it. Did you buy something on there? It's beer money for me! :)

Evelyn, what ever you do...don't stop. It will pay off in the end. Honest.

Laura, It's like onions...all in layers. Sometimes it makes you cry, but you keep going. :)

Bob - Since 85% of buyers start their search on the Internet. I spend all my marketing on the Internet and none on print advertising.

I think you tube is a great idea, but so is craigs list. Both are free!

FEB

My dollars are spent on postcards mailings. Market data, just listed, just sold, open house, fsbo's, expired's, and my website.

Bob- good post. I spend my time on the web too. The only print costs I have is the house flyer.

Bob - Good to see you. How we spend our marketing dollar can make a big difference. Blogging , and video, are cost effective and reaches a larger audience. I am still getting contacts on something posted over a year ago that would not happen with a print AD.

I love it... the silver bullet is WORK... couldn't have said it better! Those videos are incredible! Thank you.

Bob: Welcome to the ActiveRain Community! No doubt you'll quickly come to recognize the value and benefits of your involvement here. Let me know if I can be of any assistance to you!

....hehehe

P.S. Geesh! The guy throws up his first post since November of last year, and it gets 'Featured!'

Thanks for the good tips. I'm spending most of my focus on the internet. I really liked the rismedia 'test' to see what comes up when you put in your city and real estate. Blogging about a variety of things -- and noticing what happens. I love the free things -- really helps spread the marketing dollars!

I try hard to understand how the consumer might do a search and tailor things in that direction.

I think there is a big shift going on right now as people finally realize how many ineffective places their ad dollars go.

Great information! Your marketing plan has to change to take advantage of new technologies. Just a few years back people were saying that the Internet was the wave of the future. As we can see now, the Internet is a very powerful marketing tool...

The office blog is an interesting idea, good to see you here @gotbob

thanks for the post and great info - phone calls are always the best even if you are just calling agents to remind them about your listings

Anyone looking for a job in the UK?

Rich, thanks for the warm welcome. It might take me some time to get my sea legs, so I will need your assistance. (it's that whole monkey and dart thing) :) Thanks for the twinkle twinkle that was a nice thing to wake up to.

Thanks for all the comments. I will respond to them later.

While doing my taxes this week I realized that have spread my marketing money far too thin. I was one of the agents that was looking for the "silver bullet" and tried far too many things in 2008.

My goal for 2009 is to sit down and focus on a few particular items and work them to the fullest.

It's crazy how easily marketing dollars can just fly out the window. This year more than ever we need to only focus on areas that give us the best chance for ROI.

Bob, I agree that marketing to consumers is an art. Especially with search terms because it is kind of like writing a technical manual and/or helping someone online ~ we have no idea where they are coming from. My approach is to be a good resource for real estate and also the area. I also keep forefront in my mind my existing customers because as "they" say, it is easier and less expensive to get referrals from existing customers than it is to spend advertising dollars to generate new ones.

Bob, Great Post! I especially like your Magic Bullet. Ain't that the truth? The cheese has been moved and I think if we still spend most of our advertising money on print, we are doomed. I no longer can afford to pay for "feel good" ads.

Bob, your post really hit home to me. After tabulating the money that I allocated to marketing and advertising during 2008, I have to admit that I actually went overboard. On the bright side, I focused on Internet marketing; on the gloomy side, I fell prey to some fast-talking salespersons, too. Thankfully, I was able to get some of the money back from my credit card company. I do very little print advertising as per the statistics you quoted in your blog. My next campaign will be to contact previous clients to ask for referrals. I plan to do this by writing a brief note and enclosing my new business card which features a current photo and improved graphics. Finally, I make a concerted effort to blog on ActiveRain, something which I hope will speak favorably of my services and reputation down the road. Thanks for your informational, thought-provoking blog. Take care.

Aww man, is that Rich a fun guy, or what??!!??

Look time, no see, Bob.

You make so many good points. When I look at the statistics right her on Active Rain, it is always a surprise to me to see which of my blogs has gotten the most view and click throughs -- it is not the ones I would have predicted. I do not advertise in the newpapers -- the internet and networking are the places to concentrate -- as well as past-client and seo!

great question, most people are not spending any, however, when things are tough you need to and it is also the most difficult

Good information. I do my most my advertising via the internet. It is basically free. Just takes time to get the info loaded on websites and of course blogging.

Good to have you back, Carney.

Once again the Internet Guru is in the house!

Carney - The spammers especially like you:)

I am immersed in the internet and focus on many different facets of linking, blogging, and networking. I do not use print media or do mailings anymore....they end up right in the round file and have not been effective. I do not cold call or door knock either, and I don't need to. The internet is the future...newspapers and print publications are going by the wayside...the RGJ in Reno is on it's way out. Frankly, this society wants information with the least amount of effort....and they want it dumbed down....so the internet is perfect with all of the sharing that is possible. At least you can get traffic to look at pictures and watch videos if they are too lazy to actually read in depth information. Thanks for the post!

It sure does require work, patience, diligence, prayer, and much much more!

I cut out almost all print ads and went almost 100% budget internet last year. Then I experimented by adding back a newspaper ad series... 2 display ads/week in a "top of mind awareness" kind of campaign. It was a waste of money and I regretted doing it. I will not renew it though.

I also don't do any real estate journal type ads unless I take a cover slot. No interior ads.

This is really good information. The internet is defintely where it's at, but for some people in my sphere, postcards still work. They enjoy getting them and retain them for years.

Good article. Focusing all my attention to the web for 09, however I am a little lost in trying to figure out the best way yo reach people.

Great post on useing long tail key words. I have tried it a couple of times, and it definitely has worked for me.

Bob - Great to see you in here again. Been a while for sure. Look at that you come back and get a gold star right off the bat. Glad to have you back. Hope all is well. Bob H.

Bob: I'm a big believer in permission-based marketing. Therefore, I spend the majority of my time marketing to my database in the form of emails, mailers, face-to-face meetings, and phone calls. It's not a new or novel system but works well for me. Thanks for asking!

Good points in your article! Although the mailings and print ads help generate some profit, I don't think they can target a widespread audience (especially younger people) like the internet marketing can, which is free. Since I live in a semi-retirement area, it works best for me to do both types of marketing for advertising<a href="http://www.keepitinhouse.com">Southern Utah home loans</a>. It takes work but if you track & get a good ROI, it's worth the investment.

Nice post Bob, we spend about $3000.00 a year for domain names and hosting 47 websites. No need for pay per click anymore. About 5% of our traffic originates with Activerain. Primary targets are, cities, counties, subdivisions, country clubs, lakes, and schools. We are fortunate it is working very well...

Hey Bob -

Do you really believe that 3% of buyers find their home in print media? I'd say it's closer to 0%, at least here in Denver. And the greater question, in my mind, is: where did they find their Buyer's Agent? You're right - the silver bullet is plain 'ol work!

Hi Bob -- I like how you emphasised ed the word WORK! In these slow times, it makes sense to build one's online presence, as not many agents are overly busy these days.

What is "print"?

So great to see some great comments here. I almost forgot how fast you will all respond.

Robert, good choice, but not that you have to put all of your eggs in one basket...diversify, it's your 401k.

Shawna, Both are good and free. Thanks for stopping by

Doug, Excellent combination

Debi, Think green. :) jk Flyers done well helps the buyer remind them of their experience in you listing.

Jennifer, You hit another good point. The shelf life of a quality blog post last longer than any print media, well maybe not longer, but a helluva lot easier to find.

JB, Everyone is looking for the quick buck.

Alexsandra, Time well spent. Sometime you have to spend money on the internet, but why go there if you haven't tried all the free stuff first.

Christine, Your analytics will tell you that. I am always watching my statcounter to see the trends in search key words. Great job.

Robert, You are right. I think the hard part is the agent convincing the seller why your not advertising in the newspaper and magazine and not relaying the value of the rest of your services.

Steve, Unbelievable marketing tool if used properly. Thanks for the comment.

Maureen, Thank you. Good to be back, just need to see if I can keep it up here and everywhere else. I have split personalities with all my other blogs. :)

Randall, And yes sir Phone calls are very effective as well.

Bill, sometimes we need to fall on our face before we figure it out. Good luck with your 2009 plan. Here's what I wrote about creating a Social Networking Business Plan. You can get burnt out if you don't plan it.

Craig, Excellent point... ROI. need to measure it to see if it successful.

Kelly, The very definition about social media...listen to your customer. Listen and they will tell you what you need to do and give you some of your best referrals.

Marian, Good for you! Who Moved my Cheese is an excellent read for the naysayers.

Roseann, So glad I could help. Good luck with your new project.

Cheryl, Yeah he is...it's been a while stranger. Glad you stopped by.

Joan, Nice job. Keep watching what is popular and embelish it with more info on the topic.

James, Thanks for stopping by

Rob, It's the little four letter work WORK. We forget that it is needed as well as money.

Sardiman, With 135,000 folks here. I am sure I need to fill in some big shoes for that title. Good to see you again. Spammers always meet the delete button. But some are entertaining.

Wendy, GREAT Comment. You hit a lot of good points about the new information consumer...dumb it down...I do that well. :)

Heather, Prayer has never hurt anyone. Thanks for the comment.

Erica, I am right there with you.

Susan, Sometimes you have to mix it up to make it effective. Keep them for years? Must be one great recipe!!!

Lisa, Long tail is a great book and solidifies the Niche marketing idea as well.

Bob, Hey there. I was quite surprise to wake up to a gold star. :) nice welcome back party.

Paul, That is an outstanding formula. There are parts of traditional contacts that work well.

Kathryn, I think the seperation in the age demographics on the internet are getting smaller. Your over 55 are already here.

Frank & Jodi, That's some serious coin on Domains and website. I am sure you have system to keep them all updated.

Kathie, The 3% is national average from NAR. So you might just be dead on with 0% in Denver.

Chris, that drives me crazy seeing them sit around doing nothing but expecting different results.

Jay, You might have to check Wikipedia. :)

FEB

I think your marketing is destined to change with time, too. When I opened my firm, I took out a huge billboard and ads to let people know I moved. Then after 18 months I took the billboard down--didn't need it anymore. You cannot just keep doing the same thing forever.

OCT

I belive it works if you work it. Find that small niche and work it. Become the go to guy/gal.

I have to believe Erica (#49 above) too. You have to change it around now and then. Drop what is getting you the least recognition and try something new.

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