Print Campaigns for Real Estate Professionals
ActiveRain has asked members to share their experience with print campaigns. How times have changed! In past years, I had very successful print campaigns as I was marketing foreclosures in the Maryland suburbs of Washington, DC. I advertised lists of foreclosures in the local newspaper and The Washington Post and was able to build a mailing list with the hundreds of prospects that responded to the calls.
As we built the mailing list, we mailed a weekly list of foreclosures to our buyer prospects. The system of newspaper advertisements plus mailing printed lists enabled me to reach the level of over 100 sales each year. As email became more common, we made the transition from printed lists of foreclosures to emailed lists to our Top Producer database. As the market changed, the system of using printed marketing that had been so successful was no longer viable.
One of the positive elements of our past print campaigns was that I became a well recognized expert in the foreclosures sector. This carried over to the effective use of our website and our effective mass email efforts. All of my marketing efforts were changed to the use of email and our website. We purchased thousands of leads from Market Leader and added those names to our mass email lists.
Now, the local volume of foreclosures is so low that there is too little to market in that sector. Real estate professionals in our current market are struggling with a very low inventory of homes for sale and the need for special expertise has changed from foreclosures to short sales.
If I were recommending a print campaign for agents in our office, I would focus on post cards sent to farm areas to attract listing prospects and to apartments to attract first time buyer prospects.
For agents that are willing to use some shoe leather and are willing to meet face to face with home owners, I recommend a very inexpensive print campaign to be combined with personal efforts. Print this message on the back of business cards, in your own handwriting: “Please call me. I have a question for you.” And, sign your first name at the end of the message.
With your supply of business cards with the special message on the back, knock on every door in your farm area. The question for those that come to the door is to ask if they have any plans to sell their home. When nobody is home, leave a card in the door. Those that follow this method do get call backs form the cards. This works. There is no real substitute for being face to face or actually talking with people.
Disclosure: This post was written is response to an ActiveRain contest challenge.
Crocus, Kentlands IMG_2892
Photograph by Roy Klley using a Canon PowerShot G11 camera.
Roy and Dolores Kelley Photographs
