Advertising...Internet vs. Print

I would prefer to do ALL my advertising on the net...b/c yes.  Most buyers come from the web.  However, we have sellers INSIST that we advertise on print.  Has it ever brought us a buyer?  No!  Times are changing indeed.  I wish the sellers would just trust our professional opinion and experience. 

-Meredith Amon

Great post.  The numbers are definitely indicating (and interactions with consumers personally) that the internet is playing a major role.  From cost perspective, it can be much cheaper as well.  The difficult part is that other 20% and the recognition that they can not be forgotten about (especially when listing a property).  I feel that it is important to find a balance between the 2, and that entails measuring the effectiveness over time.  I do both, and have focused more on the internet piece becuase that has provn more effective for me.  As for print (as strange as this sounds to many), newspapers have been more successful than magazines.  I attribute that to the area and not as a general thing for others areas of the country.

In Texas, a resent survey showed 94% of buyers were online looking at houses.  What's the point in spending 6% of my budget on print when I rather put that money into the rest of the internet marketing?  I do one print thing and that's the Just Listed/Just Sold cards as they're sent out automatically through a program I have set up.  Everything else is online.

Lisa, I agree with most of what you have said other than agents previewing houses on tour day. If it were that simple buyers would purchase homes without physically looking at them and just show up with a moving truck. How many time did you see a home on line only to see that once you pulled in to the driveway you discover junk cars in the neighbors yard, the peeling paint on the back side of the house, or the sun is shaded most of the day by a huge tree? Is that LP siding or is that Hardie Board? The list can go on and on.

Brokers tours are still important and all that about seeing it on-line is enough preview is Bull. As Realtors we sell the details, and those details come from first hand knowledge of our market area. The Internet will grow to huge dimensions and replace most print ads in the near future. You just can't replace the first hand knowledge of having actually physically seen a home or property. Besides Broker tours can be relationship building and help get a property sold faster or the price adjusted.

Good post. I am in the Real Estate advertising field and I agree with a lot of what your saying however in my own defense I have to disagree with some of your points. Statistics show that 87% of homebuyers are doing their search online, however there are reports showing that print media does in fact fuel the internet. Look at ebay, started out internet only now they have their own magazine as well, that is only one example of many.

Print media and the internet should be complimented much like a marraige, there are print medias that have relationships with the big names in the internet arena. The Real Estate Book for example is the largest publisher of Real Estate Magazines in the Country, however they also have created unique partnership with roughly 35 websites in which the Realtor can feed their listings to. Its all part of the entire package that they offer, so if you are into the net and putting a lot of money into it then you owe it to yourself to check out The Real Estate Book because you will target your internet audience and take care of your sellers request to be in print for a fraction of what you might think.

If you should have any questions at all please do not hesitate to call me. 760-567-4331

Jeff