Marketing Local Books or Social Network

I think it completely depends on your market. If you mentioned blogging in my market they wouldn't have clue what you were talking about.

Depends on your target audience, but I think you reach a greater number of people through the internet (who knows how many are actually in need of your services, though).

I have to agree with Bryant, it depends on your target market.  Internet is more cost effective if you can reach your market that way.  Also, since you work for KW, take advantage of what your office offers you as far as print ads.

I can't say that I have seen much result from either newspaper or internet.  Altho, I do think that by asking that question thru a blogging venue, skews the results.

I do as much as I can on all media fronts, I don't think the sellers are completely convinced that SM i s the way to go yet. Here most are not users of SM anyway. They are net savy but not SM.

Like some others have said, I think it does depend on your market. Our real estate books seem to still be quite popular around here plus they also advertise the listings online. Same with our paper, you can do a joint ad that goes both in print and online. Still, all that said, If I have to choose either/or. I will go with Internet every time. It makes the best sense, especially with the price of print ads.

Hey guys, I think you really need to ask yourself if you're willing to put the time in to make social networking a part of your business.  A lot of people say they're "doing social networking" but if they don't have a plan they are doing little more than wasting their time and hurting their brand.

Social Media is a slippery slope to navigate if you don't fully commit.

You have to put together a marketing plan on what social networks your going to focus on, then you need to work that plan everyday.  Your social profile is a living, breathing thing online and it's up to you to feed it and keep it healthy.

I suggest you start by answering one simple question....

"Why do I want to use social networking?"

When you get that answer you'll know which is right for you.

I might do one print ad when I get a new listing but that's where it ends.  The local real estate books and magazines have lost their luster and the Sunday real estate section in my local newspaper is almost non-existent when it comes to advertising.  I can count on one hand the number of phone calls I've received from print advertsing.  My efforts are now concentrated on the internet and doing some very targeted postcard mailings that are bringing in results.

Jeff and Heather,

I personally and professionally believe in a complete mix of marketing, and our company does both, so hopefully this will not come across as biased in any way. But if I can, I'd like to share some observations that I see in my own community and through conversations with agents nationwide. Be forewarned, they do not jive with many of the opinions already expressed.

The top agent in one of the local cities nearby is overwhelmingly successful. She's got a great website, but she hasn't gotten involved with hours and hours of blogging (she's got a profile here on ActiveRain, but hasn't blogged once...I checked). She also doesn't spend countless hours trying to get her website to pull up on page 5 or less of a Google search.

Instead, you will see her ads EVERYWHERE! She still does Homes and Land magazine, she still does Pennysaver, she still does the local newspaper, she still does flyers, she still does postcards, and she sends out a monthly newsletter.

What's her rate of return "mix"??? I don't know, actually. I just know that EVERYONE seems to know who she is, and she has more signs up throughout her entire city than any other 20 agents combined.

I think she probably approaches marketing a little differently than many of the agents in this community. But she has that luxury too. If she's closing 15 transactions a month, even in a depressed market, she's not worried about the $2,500 or more that she's probably spending each month on promoting her business. After all, it is her business...and marketing HAS to be a part of any business' gameplan and resulting success.

I've read great stories from agents here on ActiveRain, and it becomes obvious there's a place in real estate marketing for blog-sites. It definitely creates some Google juice, that's for sure. And I realize that many, many agents rely exclusively on internet marketing. Thus, it never comes as a surprise to me when I read a post of theirs that states that all of their business comes from the internet. I actually find those comments a little humorous. Well, OF COURSE they all come from the internet...if that's the only place where anyone can find you! Sheesh.

If you only blog on ActiveRain, you probably get all your business from AR as a result. If you only send postcards, then whatever business you get can probably be directly attributed to that effort. 

It's difficult to read a comment from an agent who hasn't done any print marketing in three years, go on to state with any authority that "print is dead"...and that all of her business nowadays comes from the internet. Um....well, what OTHER answer could there have possibly been?

If you tried a Homes magazine ad three years ago when the book was 85 pages, and had over almost 7,000 homes to choose from, you might fare better today. I'm not sure if the rate of return still justifies the expense, but I DO know that you can get fairly aggressive with those publications nowadays in terms of cost because they're desperate for advertisers. Do they work? Well, if your ad looks exactly the same as everyone else's, you might not be getting the kind of results you'd hoped for. But we have customers who will NEVER leave those publications due to the volume of business they get from them.

Conversely, if you finally got your first deal off ActiveRain, but it took 95,000 points to do it, you've possibly spent too much time in front of your computer for the return you've generated.

Here's the deal in my opinion.

The fact remains (this has been true for years and years and years)...that 3% of the general population is doing something real estate at any given point in time. Period. That's a percentage that's virtually carved in stone. One month it may be slightly higher, the next month slightly lower, but three percent has been statistically proven forever.

Your job is to figure out how to reach those 3%. Thus, if it's true that 86% of consumers begin their search on the internet (that was printed once and has become the industry mantra ever since), then here's what the math might look like if you live in a community of 30,000:

30,000 x 3% = 900 total prospects citywide x 86% surfing the internet = 774 people combing the internet. Many are couples looking for one home (obviously) so let's reduce that figure by 40%. That leaves 465 potential opportunities. Some of those people already have a Realtor they've used for years, and others already have their home listed. So let's say there are now 300 potential sales to be had each month. 

You need to choose your best weapon now.

If 90% of the Realtors here believe that blogging is the answer-all to their entire real estate marketing strategy, you can do one of two things. Join them and become one of however many agents in your city blog, tweet, or facebook for business (let's say your community has 1,500 Realtors). 300 prospective customers divided into 1,500 agents using the internet for marketing equals .20 prospects for every agent in town. If you rank on page 1 of a search, increase that by 10 (two prospects). If you rank on page 4, well....you don't wanna know my answer, but it's the reason that some agents blog for 9 months, amass 50,000 points...and finally have their first sale.

Meanwhile, at my own house, I haven't received a single ANYTHING from a Realtor in over a year and a half. Not one thing that perhaps would have had their website printed on it, so I could go online, read about them, learn what they do...ascertain their expertise, and perhaps call them to come list my house.

They literally force me to search online...and I instantly, become one of their two prospects if they show up on page 1. If they list my home as a result, then 100% of their business came from the internet.

Or, they do what the agent I mentioned above does.

Spend a little, vary your marketing strategy...and work with 30 prospects every month instead.

But that's just my opinion. :: smile ::

Dave

In general, print advertising is dead.  Internet is where it's at.  I won't go as far to say you've got to spend "hours" on social networking  sites to be successful, but you do have to have an internet presence.

We take out a full page in our monthly RE/MAX publication every month, but I am loathe to do so every time I pay the bill. We basically have the page to make our sellers happy - the internet is where we generate the predominance of our business.

Classifieds and news paper ads don't seem to be relevant anymore. Direct mail to a target group is a different story. Your message has to be in front of your audience 5 to 8 times till you get a response of some sort. Needless to say, the internet is cheaper ....

Social networking, email campaigns and blogging. Why spend money on print advertising or grocery carts? These methods reach out and touch more people for free. All socialites are connected through the internet.

I stopped reading those irrelevant books a few years ago.  I pass them every week when I go grocery shopping and can't even bring myself to pick one up, and I'm a REALTOR!

With over 80% of home buyers looking online, you cannot forget about online marketing even if you do advertise in a local magazine. I see a lot of benefits to social networking and blogging but very few if any benefits for traditional print newspapers.

I agree with Kelly the most here. Basically you have to have a plan and just keep implementing it over and over again. Blogging just on Activerain is not going to catapult anyones business but I have picked up great tips and tools here to use elsewhere! Autoemail is a MUST.I am currently under contract for a 300k house with a buyer who i originally met 2 years ago and am about to write up a contract for a buyer who again I have been sending auto emails to for about 2 years now. I look at every lead as Future Business and if it happens quicker like the buyer who came in on my Blog and bought after two trips out then that is a bonus. I still think if you can find one decent homes publication monthly to use it but internet does sort of rule. But out of 12 issues of print, if you grab 3 -4 closed transactions it was definitely worth it. Every Deal Counts because if you do a good job there are referrals heading your way. I think you have to entrench yourself in your business and live and breathe it. You guys I think do that and that is why you are successful at what you do! 

I think that as with everything moderation is the key. If you get to know your local area and are able to mix it up online and local print that is the best solution. You will have clients that are WEb heads and clients that don't own a computer. If you pick one or the other there is a portion that you are not going to reach.

I think it depends on ones location because all three offices that I work out of (i.e. Tarpon Springs, Clearwater, and Clearwater Beach, Florida) have a very high percentage of tourists stopping by for information.

Many do not bring their laptops with them so for me some hard copy printing works. Also whenever I sell a home I send out a minimum of 50 postcards to the surrounding homes. It's usually 100 postcards because name recognition helps and not all buyers and sellers are computer literate.

IMHO a big mistake is by transferring one's paradigm onto others but not everyone has access to a computer at all times. For example tourists who come to visit Tarpon Springs, Clearwater, and/or Clearwater Beach. Without print in magazines and such then they may not know that you exist LOL

Of course I am vehemently opposed to some of the exhorbitant amounts that some of these companies charge to advertise in magazines, on benches, etc but in reality exposure is better than no exposure. Some people can afford it... while some cannot but print ads can be effective. Many people see after all. They are not always plugged into their computer and/or cell phones.

Aloha kakou from Florida, Lana