Out of the Box Farming Idea for your Community

By
Title Insurance ePro, MBA

As a Real Estate Professional, you have your geographic farm organized and categorized in a Contact Management Program -- right?

That database of names, addresses and even email addresses is a very valuable asset that you collect and build over time.  Take advantage of that database and co-market with other affiliates or vendors that you may never have thought of.

I was at my local dry cleaners and under the glass counter top was tons of business cards from local real estate professionals, mortgage professionals, contractors, etc.

Consider working with the Dry Cleaners similar to what was done above AND / OR ....

Talk with the local cleaners, a fast food restaurant and any other business and ask them if you can offer a discount for their services in your geographic farm.  Tell them you have 1,000 homeowners databased and you could very easily put out a mailing with that offer tastefully done.  Or better yet, put the discount on the back of your business card and when you hand them out -- point this out -- the consumer will then put it in their wallet, keep it in their purse because it has value and they simply won't toss the card.

Make sure you put an expiration date on the mailing or business card but the vendor or affiliate would be glad to share in the cost of the mailing as it could bring incremental revenue to their store.

Just another though thinking outside the box and you now have a stronger relationship with the local manager of the store and hopefully can build referrals that way as well.

Make it a profitable day!

Posted by

Make it a profitable day!

Scott Hoen

SHoen@FirstAM.com

Direct:  (714) 250-5014

Cell:  (714) 270-9607

"The Views expressed herein reflect only the individual's personal views and are not the views of the author's employer."

Comments (6)

Bill Parecki
Elite Pacific Properties - Hilo, HI
RS, ABR, RDCPro, SFR, E-Pro, SRS, AHWD, Green

I like it!  Smart marketing

Aug 11, 2008 08:36 AM
Jacinta da Silva
Atlanta Communities - Marietta, GA

i heard this at the Richard Robbinson course.  I never tried it.  Have you and if so what kinds of results has it given you?

Aug 11, 2008 09:21 AM
Kim Cameron, CRS
Better Homes & Gardens Preferred Properties - Town and Country, MO
Broker Salesperson, CRS

We have done that with a local restaurant (Coupon for appetizers), near by gas station for car wash, and...something else. Great for tracking follow up at the local business.

Unfortunately, we could not track business from the efforts. What is your conversation rate? How long have you done this? We took this approach for 12 months with coupons in our mailers, newsletters, etc. We tracked business for others, but no one that said "Wow, I want to use them to sell my home or to help me buy a home"...

If it is working for you, please share how it is working and how you are tracking your numbers.

Aug 11, 2008 09:22 AM
Deborah Fisher
Fisher & Company, P.A., Marketing & Creative Strategists - Fort Worth, TX

Another good one, Scott. 

One of my client's uses the services of a business that typically only affluent people use.  We put together a special promotion to provide the services of this business for anyone who purchases a home through us within a certain time frame.  In addition, we are offering to give away one of these services for free if they come out and register for the drawing, which will be held at the grand opening of our model home.  In return, he is sending the promotion out to the 10,000 people on his mailing list, all people that he calls clients. It is going to cost me $600 to give this away, less than the cost of a print ad yet to a highly target market, my market.  Will it work? Don't know, but other than creating the promotion and designing the piece, we have nothing in it.

I always enjoy your posts.  You are at the top of your game!

 

Aug 12, 2008 01:57 PM
Renae Bolton
Marketing 4 Realtors - Garfield Heights, OH
I'm your Professional Real Estate Marketing VA!

Excellent idea!  You should post this in the Unique Marketing Contest - Summer Edition!  This is great!

~Renae

Aug 12, 2008 02:28 PM
Scott Hoen
Carson City, NV
Carson City Clerk Recorder / Public Administrator

Renae - Will look into that suggestion -- glad to present some ideas that can be profitable for your business

Deborah -- thanks for your two cents back -- let me know if it works for you!

Aug 12, 2008 04:39 PM