I've read hundreds of discussions here at ActiveRain regarding the fact that "print is dead", "flyers are a waste of money", etc. The mantra for 2009 (especially in light of the housing market's downturn) is that the internet is where it's at...and that anything having to do with print advertising is sooooo 2003.
Well...YOU might believe that, but your sellers may not agree.
The seller on a 3.5 million dollar home expects a little more than just an $8.00 vFlyer and a Featured Listing on your website. And his neighbors are watching to see what kind of agent you are in the event they need to sell their home too.
You can do a flyer in Microsoft Publisher and print them out on your inkjet in a pinch, or you can have your internal marketing marketing department create a standard flyer which may or may not appease the seller. On a 3.5 million dollar home at 6%, the seller is going to pay the listing agent's office over $100,000 in commissions, of which the agent is likely to share in the 80-90% range on average.
The agents above chose to spend $129.00 to have us create an elegant, high-end 2-sided flyer layout for the above property, and have the flyers printed on heavy cardstock with an ultra high-gloss UV coating. The seller absolutely loved them. The people who worked for the company that the seller owns absolutely loved them. The surrounding sellers loved them. And the agents realize that prospects on future listing presentations are probably going to love them too.
I guess I can't help but wonder whether the agents whose mantra is "print is dead" are actually losing business as a result??? When I sold real estate, virtually all of the listings I took were because of my marketing. Yes, some were referrals...but most were because of my marketing. I didn't necessarily price the home the highest. I wasn't always the agent who'd been in the business the longest. I rarely (if ever) reduced my commission. Yet I managed to close 8-12 transactions a month.
My mantra was "Have a better gameplan and marketing than your competitors, and you'll likely win."
It seemed to work.
By the way...some of you may be thinking "Yes, on a multi-million dollar property, it makes sense, but on a $299,000 listing, I'm going with the cheap stuff."
Cheap stuff?? LOL!!
If anything, you spend $79.00 on a professionally laid out single-sided flyer instead!! BUT YOU NEVER EVER PROMOTE CHEAP! That's like handing out Post-It Notes instead of actual professional business cards. Don't do it! It'll kill your business and chances of success faster than anything!
Even at $299,000...the seller is paying almost $10,000 in sales commissions...and the professional marketer will win every time in those situations as well. And $79.00 isn't what I'd call expensive anyway!
If it's time to find out whether print really is dead, order a nicely done, professional listing brochure on one of your listings. Watch the seller's reaction. Keep a few on the side for your upcoming listing presentations. Hand deliver 10-15 to the surrounding neighbors.
See which mantra is true (you might be surprised).
Just my Saturday morning thoughts. Thought I'd share. ::: smile :::
Dave
Marketing Specialist for CJ Realty Group/Cindy Jones Broker - Springfield, VA
Country Homes and Land Murphy NC Realtor - Murphy, NC
CCIM - Murphy NC Real Estate for Sale
You made a good point - if you're going to do something, at least do it right. Things like this definitely impress potential sellers.
Sep 19, 2009 05:08 AM
Leslie Prest, Prest Realty, Sales and Rentals in Payson, AZ - Payson, AZ
Owner, Assoc. Broker, Prest Realty, Payson,
And if the listings don't sell, maybe the cost of that marketing will run you right out of business. I've seen it happen to a couple of offices here.
Sep 20, 2009 06:44 AM
Owner of FlyersToYou, Inc. and former Top Realtor - Hemet, CA
Pat,
LOL...about four months ago (maybe longer??)...we decided to revamp our entire website. Incorporate shoping cart features instead of having customers manually download order forms, etc. We also decided to re-do all of the graphics...blah, blah. And now, here we sit, months later...and so busy with customer projects that we can't even finish our own website!!!!! Seems like something's wrong with that picture, doesn't it?? But I guess it's a good spot to be in!
You can view some more samples of our work by clicking here: http://www.flyerstoyou.com/samples
P.S. Thank you for stopping by!!
Kate,
I totally agree. I see many agents who "get it"...and many who don't. The ones who "get it" seem to enjoy great success no matter what the market's doing. The ones that don't often struggle more than they need to. What a shame.
Thank you for your comment!
Les and Leslie Prest,
I think we must be talking about two separate things. I'm not talking about full page ads in the newspaper, or tons of two-page ads in Homes and Land. I'm talking about a $79.00 flyer layout which will absolutely distinguish you from your competition. If $79.00 puts an office out of business, then there's definitely something else wrong.
Here's the deal.
It's rare that 100% of anyone's listing inventory will sell. I know agents who have two listings and they don't market them at all. They can't afford it. What if they don't sell? It's all expense at that point, and they're already struggling. So...the property remains unmarketed, unsold...and the agent doesn't even gain the benefit of showing anyone what they're capable of. Perhaps if they had, they'd have two more listings...and double their chances of success. But they did no marketing, and the neighbors noticed, and listed with someone else.
On the other hand, one of our top customers, Dee Messing...ordered her first flyer from us about six years ago. It was on a property she had listed for $499,900. About four days after getting her flyers, she called me and sounded excited. She said "Hey Dave, remember that flyer you did for me recently on Bluebelle Court?" I said, "Of course Dee, did you sell it?" She said, "Nope. Wayyyyyyy better!"
That confused me a little.
She explained that a couple had been driving the neighborhood, had picked up some flyers (if there were any) from various properties...and when they got home that day, they called Dee. They explained that they were looking for a home in the 1.2 million dollar range, and although Bluebelle Court didn't fit the bill, they liked Dee's way of marketing properties. Much more professional than any other agent's flyers they'd seen. They also explained that they had a home in the neighboring town that needed to be listed, and they wanted to use an agent like Dee who obviously was different than most other Realtors.
They asked if Dee could also help them find their new home. Of course, the answer was yes (to both).
So...Dee listed their home for $549,900....and found them a new home for $1,099,000.
$1.7 million dollars in business off a .79 cent flyer!!
It's unfortunate that many Realtors don't approach their real estate business as a real business. Heck, the local pizza parlor does better marketing than most Realtors in my town. And their product is a $7.99 pizza for crying out loud!!!!!! Meanwhile, the Realtor who's going to make $6,000 on her next closing won't spend $40.00 on marketing. I find that comical.
I also used to frequent a little independent coffee house near my home that changed hands about a year ago. The new owners were inexperienced business people, but the shop had been there for 8 years, and it should have been a shoe-in for continued success. Business was great. New neighborhoods were springing up all around...and the closest Starbucks was at the other end of town.
BUT....
They did no marketing at all. None. Zip. Nada. They "couldn't afford" it. They were afraid that if they spent any money on advertising, they wouldn't have enough money left to pay their employees, or renew their supplies.
They lasted one year. The shop is closed. Their business failed (miserably).
It's not the marketing that will run a company out of business. It's the wrong marketing, or the complete lack of it that will....every single time.
I appreciate your input though!
Dave
Sep 20, 2009 07:24 AM
Windermere Real Estate - Park City, UT
I agree. Though we have this great technology for our marketing and advertising which is just a click but we have also bare in our mind a parallel marketing. Flyers or print ads are strategically traditional yet it is very effective. Good work David. Thanks for the input.
Sep 24, 2009 10:15 AM
The Thomas Group Brokered by eXp Realty - San Tan Valley, AZ
Your Home Sold Guaranteed!
David, I like your mantra better have a better gameplan than the others. I think you need to do what it takes. Some sellers are still in 2003 and expect fliers, whether $79 or $299. Each listing is different and you have to know your sellers and do what they want (within reason) to make them happy and sell their home.
Oct 12, 2009 02:14 AM
Comments(6)