Over the last many months I have ran several experiments with my online advertising to gauge the overall effectiveness of the different ads I run in different web properties. Through this experimentation I have gained some valuable insight and expertise that I thought some of my fellow real estate professionals might be able to benefit from:
1. Short & Sweet
For Internet advertisements a quick hook is always the best route. For Search advertisements or banner ads you will have limited space so make sure you have a question or quick phrase that can induce excitement. Remember, the purpose of this quick blurb is to get people to "click".
2. Landing Page Excellence
I can't tell you the number of times that I have clicked on advertisements researching my competition and have had the browser return a "page not found" message. If you go through the trouble of posting advertisements on the Internet then make sure you have a landing page that (a) works (b) is professional and (c) has a clear message and a call to action. Most people when they get to a landing page for an advertisement are doing a quick scan to find relevancy. If your landing page is not relevant or not professional - many times people will move on and you have lost a valuable opportunity. (**more on landing page excellence later in this blog)
3. Call to Action
Make sure that you have a clear call to action. If your hook is designed to get listing business then you should have a call to action that gets your prospective client interested. A common call to action might be - contact me for a "free in-home valuation review". The point is that you are offering something and putting the ball in your prospective client's court.
4. Lead Capture
Many agents have great hooks, great call to actions and that is where the wheels start to fall off. What do I mean? Well, if you are asking a client to email you - you are creating more barriers than necessary. Why not have a quick lead capture form built right into the call to action. There are several great tools and systems out there available for you. I am partial (b/c I helped develop it :) to - Nesters.com With this system you can generate "widgets" (little pieces of HTML code) that you can put into your online advertisements. Now each time someone responds to your call of action - the lead goes into your online database (free) and an email is sent to your address and phone with an alert telling you that potential client is awaiting your response.
5. Timely Followup
Study after study has shown that leads gotten from the Internet are only good for a matter of minutes / sometimes hours. What this means is that you better be quick on the trigger. If a lead wants to possibly do business with you, make sure you respond quickly. A good online lead management system ( Nesters.com is one) can help ensure you are alerted wherever you are so that you can quickly respond.
Well these are some quick hints that I have learned from numerous advertisements placed via the Internet. Hope you find it useful and whatever system or advertisements you run - best of luck to you all in your real estate pursuits!
Best Regards
Douglas Ingram
Nesters.com
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